TomTom 2008 Annual Report Download - page 43

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CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AT TOMTOM
No company works in a vacuum and at TomTom we
recognise this, fostering open relationships with our
stakeholders – keeping connected with them all, from
suppliers to customers.
As a market leader we have certain responsibilities to
our employees, stakeholders and the world around us.
We constantly strive to improve our Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) performance to strengthen
TomTom’s position in this area. Several organisations
assess our progress like the VBDO (Dutch Association of
Investors for Sustainable Development) and the Dow
Jones Sustainability Index. These organisations provide
feedback as to how we can improve our CSR
performance. Hence, we use criteria from the Dow Jones
Sustainability Index to focus our policies and have
improved on our performance against this benchmark
since last year. We also use our findings through this
exercise to inform our policy decisions, pushing
ourselves ever forward.
Our CSR policy focuses on three themes: responsible
driving, supply chain management and environmental
impact.
We aim to be transparent in our responsibility profile and
give an overview of the progress we have made in 2008.
Our accomplishments include:
• the development and adoption of our Internal Code
of Ethics
• the components in our products are mostly
recyclable up from 93%
• a community of well over 30 million drivers that
spans the globe.
With the departure of Alexander Ribbink (COO) in July
2008, Alain De Taeye has taken responsibility for CSR
at Management Board level.
A CONNECTED DRIVING COMMUNITY
We take our position in the driving community seriously,
helping drivers all over the world to make their journeys
safer and more economical hence minimising the impact
on the environment.
With our GO LIVE products, launched in October 2008,
we connect drivers to the latest relevant information to
help them on their way. This includes the most up-to-
date traffic information, HD Traffic and Safety Alerts,
which gives safety camera locations, but also other
safety warnings for the road ahead, including accident
blackspots, like sharp curves and ungated railway
crossings. We also alert drivers to schools so they can
adjust their speed appropriately.
Some of this information comes directly and anonymously
from other users, connecting drivers in a way that is both
innovative and unique in the market. With the TomTom
Group now reaching out to other navigation markets
through its business units, this community involvement
provides us with an edge – for example, reports uploaded
from the Map Share community worldwide are now used
by Tele Atlas to further improve their map offering.
Our TomTom WORK business unit has recently launched
Truck Navigation to give tailored routing for trucks. This
reduces the likelihood that they are routed through small
rural roads, or find themselves obstructed by a low
bridge, for example.
Safety in numbers
We have again commissioned independent research this
year into driving safety. Our previous studies proved that
it is safer to drive with a navigation device, due to
reduced stress, fewer kilometres driven, fewer
distractions and better driving behaviour.
The study was commissioned by TomTom and conducted
in 2008 in Germany, the UK, France, Spain, Italy and the
US, by leading independent research institutions.
The key findings of the research were as follows.
1. The use of satellite navigation devices heightens
awareness and reduces the stress levels of the driver.
2. The use of satellite navigation devices reduces the
driver’s workload.
3. The use of a satellite navigation device improves the
driver’s behaviour when driving through an unknown
area or to an unknown destination.
4. The use of a satellite navigation device reduces the
number of kilometres driven when driving through an
unknown area to an unknown destination.
5. The use of satellite navigation devices reduces travel
time when driving through an unknown area or to an
unknown destination.
We are pleased to see objective research further
validates the fact that navigation contributes to driving
safety and efficiency. This, of course, also shows that the
use of navigation systems has positive effects on the
environment and fuel costs.
As a market leader, we believe it is our responsibility to
keep safety at the forefront of all our product
innovations. This has already resulted in the
development of additional unique safety features
included in the software of all TomTom’s devices, helping
drivers getting from A to B as safely as possible. These
include our Help Me! emergency menu, advanced lane
guidance and voice command and control features.
We have also partnered with the relevant roadside
assistance service automobile clubs in all relevant
countries to give direct access to the emergency
services.
You will find a complete overview of TomTom’s safety
activities at http://www.tomtom.com/whytomtom.
Increased popularity
With satellite navigation equipment becoming more
popular with motorists, it’s also becoming more popular
with criminals. We acknowledge this trend and take our
responsibility to educate our consumers and
furthermore, actively cooperate with local authorities to
address and support theft prevention campaigns.