Attention to the consumer, inclusion and innovation in the center of Sustainability Report 2023 Of You knowl which outlines the company’s commitment to build a more responsible future which was shared as part of the Sisal Talk “Unlocking Sustainable Transformation”, a moment of dialogue and discussion on the key themes of the sustainable growth and innovation strategy in the long term.
They attended the meeting Paolo Taticchiprofessor of Corporate Strategy and Sustainability at University College London and Andrea Alemannohead of Public Affairs and Reputation at Ipsos, who highlighted the centrality of sustainable transformation in companies’ business models and in the expectations of stakeholders; Patrizia Rutiglianoboard member of Poste Italiane and Acea and CEO of Sisal Francesco Durante who instead discussed the impacts that the ssustainability strategies have on the company and on the ability to create value in the long term.
“Sustainability is an opportunity to guarantee the growth of the company in the long term and create a positive impact on society and future generations – he underlined Francesco Durante -. In Sisal we firmly believe in the role of innovation to accelerate and consolidate sustainable transformation: today the great challenge for digital companies is the ethical use of technologies to put the people at the center of a more responsible future”.
Pillar of the sustainability strategy of the company is in fact the promotion of a gaming culture as a form of entertainment and away from excess, with the orgoal of having zero problem gamblers by 2030. For this reason Sisal has started a minnovative model of Responsible Gaming which adopts studies, research and advanced tools to identify and prevent problematic phenomena which, by combining behavioral research and Artificial Intelligence algorithms, has obtained the certification from the Italian Patent and Trademark Office for the approach to responsible gaming in Italy.
In 2023, Sisal’s commitment to Responsible Gaming was further strengthened with the establishment of the FAIR Foundation – Foundation for Listening, Innovation and Research, a project dedicated to addressing the challenges of consumer protection and responsible gaming in Italy. The Foundation presents itself as a point of reference open to all organizations that want to contribute to research and innovation in the field of Responsible Gaming, with the aim of involving and including other players in the sector to scientifically address the planning of the future of the gaming industry.
THE ROLE OF TRAINING
Sisal has also strengthened its commitment to training its resources and point of sale staff and by raising consumer awareness, to recognize and evaluate their gaming behaviour. In 2023, almost 1,500 hours of internal training were provided and two new mandatory training courses on responsible gaming were introduced, involving over 26,850 retailers in the area and over 30,000 customers were involved in the research activities.
Exemplary working environment
People are the engine of Sisal’s growth, which is committed to enhancing their talent and promoting diversity and inclusion. All the initiatives developed during 2023 focused on this path: from training to equip the people who work at Sisal with the appropriate skills to face the market, to the wellbeing necessary to allow them to feel at ease in the everyday challenges that led to the disbursement of over two million euros in initiatives and welfare, up to the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion strategy.
In 2023, 800 new colleagues were hired, half in Italy and half abroad, bringing the “company population” to over 3,200 people in 4 countries with 20% under 30. Furthermore, a significant step was taken towards achieving of one of the main objectives of the sustainability agenda: eliminating the Gender Pay Gap by 2030. 2023 recorded a wage gap of -3.4% (a sharp reduction compared to -12.9% in 2020) as well as an increase of the number of women who have occupied top leadership roles in the company (36%).
INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY
The innovation for Sisal is the strategic driver which allows the business to evolve and achieve long-term objectives, leveraging both internal assets and the ecosystem conceptfeeding a virtuous circle of scouting, incubation and development of innovative projects. In 2023, Sisal followed 117 technological innovation projects and inaugurated three new Digital Hubs in Naples, Palermo and Istanbulcenters of excellence that are part of the strategy of investments in new technologies and of promotion of digital skills and talents, in Italy and abroad.
Sisal also continues to support the start-up ecosystem thanks to its responsible innovation program GoBeyond to continue to be a driving force of technological transformationto able to create a positive impact on society as a whole. As the data confirms: in 2023 they were higher 450 startups responded to the Call for Ideas, with an increase of 29% compared to the previous year. The initiative made it possible to pool knowledge from high-impact sectors such as healthcare, ICT, clean technology, food & beverage, fashion, education and lifestyle.
Not only that, again in 2023 the numbers increased significantly people involved in the WeDo programthe project of solidarity and corporate volunteering who dedicated 1249 hours to volunteer activities during working hours with more than 350 Sisal resources involved in the initiatives.
ZERO EMISSIONS
Sisal has also launched numerous projects to achieve the objective of zero net CO2 emissions by 2035: in 2023, approximately 4,000 tonnes of CO2 were avoided through the purchase of Guarantee of Origin certificates and Energy Attribute Certificates and through a 15% reduction in paper use. The company also has new initiatives planned for both reduce energy consumptionthanks to the efficiency of the buildings that host the activities and the technologies used in the points of sale, both to reduce the impacts of emissions caused by fuel consumption thanks to the transition to full electric or hybrid vehicles.
In 2023, the installation of two photovoltaic systems for the self-production of electricity on the sites of Rome And Peschiera Borromeo, which will cover approximately 10% and 45% of the buildings’ energy needs respectively.