How we create value for our stakeholders

  • ×
    • Employees
    • Training & development
    • Stakeholder engagement & Public-Private Partnerships
    • Philanthropy & sponsoring
  • ×
    • Raw materials (including renewable and recycled materials)
    • Energy (including renewable sources)
    • Water
  • ×
    • Shareholder equity
    • Borrowings
    • Partnerships & open innovation
    • Purchased goods & services
    • Manufacturing asset base
  • ×
    • Safety & health
    • Brighter Living Solutions
    • Engaged workforce
    • Skills & employability
    • Employee benefits
    • Improved nutrition
  • ×
    • Reduced environmental footprint
    • Brighter Living Solutions
    • Enabling the transition to a more circular economy
    • Safer ingredients & materials
  • ×
    • Financial performance (Adjusted EBITDA & Adjusted net operating free cash flow)
    • Dividend
    • Contribution to business success for customers & suppliers
    • Contribution to civil society via taxes
    • Patents & royalties
  • ×
    • Better fed & healthier individuals and communities
    • More prosperous and resilient employees for our company and in our value chain
  • ×
    • More sustainable use of resources, for our company and in our value chain
    • Products that contribute to safer, healthier working & living environments
  • ×
    • Creating Growth & Value through science-based sustainable solutions
    • Sustainable returns to investors
    • Positive contribution to economic growth in the countries & markets in which we operate

Human capital

We employ skilled and talented people from diverse backgrounds. We strive to provide employees with a safe and inspiring workplace, as well as with the tools and training they need to be effective and to develop their abilities. We reward employees with competitive benefit packages.

Societal & relationship capital

We engage with our various stakeholders to ensure close alignment between our aims and societal needs. We generate value for stakeholders outside our direct value chains of employees, suppliers, customers and end-users; these include employees’ families, governments, local communities and civil society.

Natural capital

We recognize that the world is an interconnected system of resources. For us, this represents a responsibility and a business opportunity. We aim to improve the environmental impact of our supply chain, operations and products and services, while developing innovative solutions that deliver sustainability benefits to customers and beyond.

Financial capital

Providers of capital — shareholders and bondholders, banks and the financial markets — supply funds that we use in our business to create value, driving growth and delivering sustainable returns.

Intellectual capital

We manufacture and distribute high-quality products and services safely, efficiently and responsibly and strive to develop valuable, collaborative and long-term relationships with customers and suppliers. We pursue open innovation, connecting and collaborating with partners and investing in start-ups.

Manufactured capital

We have unique competences in life sciences and materials sciences and connect these to deliver innovative solutions that nourish, protect and improve performance.

This diagram is based on the International Integrated Reporting Council's Integrated Reporting <IR> framework and gives an overview of how we create value for our stakeholders based on six capital inputs:

  • Human capital

  • Societal & relationship capital

  • Natural capital

  • Financial capital

  • Intellectual capital

  • Manufactured capital

Since 2002, we have reported on our performance in terms of People, Planet and Profit, and so the six capitals shown here continue to be clustered accordingly.

Our organizational and operating model is made up of market-facing business groups focused on the primary business functions (Innovation and R&D, Direct Sourcing, Manufacturing & Operations, and Marketing & Sales), global support and functional excellence departments, and regional organizations.

We seek to minimize risk and take advantage of the opportunities around megatrends, thereby transforming the capital inputs into value and positive impact. A key part of our strategy, aside from our financial targets, is to continue to strengthen our commitment to sustainability. We especially try to have a positive impact through our engagement in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We engage with all 17 SDGs, especially on the five shown in this figure. For more information, see 'DSM and the Sustainable Development Goals' and throughout this Report.