Our approach

The definition of what it means to be a responsible business continues to evolve. How companies operate and behave is receiving more focus from wider society than ever before. This in turn is having a greater influence on the perceptions and decisions of a broader set of stakeholders, including investors, consumers and colleagues.

At IHG, we understand the importance of operating responsibly and sustainably – it is absolutely core to our business and culture. In recent years, we have made important progress in targeting operational, people-led and environmental issues most material to us and our stakeholders, broadening our focus and our impact as part of our promise to provide True Hospitality for Good. We are proud of our progress on what is a journey towards making an increasingly positive difference to our people, communities and the world around us.

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Governance

Our commitment to responsible business starts at the top. Our Board is focused on ensuring we maintain the highest ethical standards of governance to support our culture, values and commitment to conducting business responsibly; and our CEO, Executive Committee and senior leaders make sure it is embedded, measured and upheld on a day-to-day basis.

Our Group Responsible Business Committee reviews IHG’s responsible business objectives and strategy, including its impact on environmental, social, community and human rights issues; its approach to sustainable development and responsible procurement; and how it engages with key stakeholders in relation to its approach to responsible business. Key considerations and recommendations are then shared with the Group Board.

To support our Board and Executive Committee, we have an internal Responsible Business Governance Committee, which comprises of senior leaders from across the business who oversee our day-to-day responsible business activities. This committee includes representatives from teams such as Cybersecurity and Information Security, Procurement, Human Resources, Legal, Operations and Corporate Responsibility.

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Risk management

Our growth ambition in a fast-moving and our innovative business environment means that we must consider risk as a central part of the definition and execution of our strategy.

Our risk management and internal control system is fully integrated with the way we run the business and how we create and protect value in pursuit of our strategic objectives.

Our culture, values and behaviours, establish authorities, capabilities and appropriate incentives for empowered and agile decision making across our portfolio of risks by teams across IHG, supported by functional expertise.

Formal and informal monitoring, reporting and assurance arrangements enable the Board and Executive Committee to maintain ongoing oversight of key areas of uncertainty and the effectiveness of our risk management and internal control arrangements.

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Code of Conduct

We take steps to ensure that there is a culture of responsible business across our business and that our employees act with integrity.

The cornerstone of our culture is our Code of Conduct, which sets out our commitment to operating honestly and with the highest ethical standards. The Code help us to act responsibly and sets out the value we place on being trusted by our colleagues and guests, those who do business with us, and the communities we work in.

It is extremely important that our employees and any person with a relationship to IHG, including our suppliers and their workers, feel comfortable reporting ethical concerns. To facilitate to this, we have a confidential reporting channel that provides employees and those with whom we do business a means to share any ethical concerns they may have.

Responsible procurement

The provision of goods and services by our suppliers is critical to our ongoing operations and we aim to work with suppliers who share our commitment to operating responsibly. This includes adopting ethical work practices and having a positive impact on both the environment and local community.

Due to our operating model, our supply chain activities are complex, but can be split into two categories: corporate and hotel.

Our corporate supply chain covers categories including technology, marketing services, HR services and other professional services, such as management consultancy.

Procurement of goods and services for hotels includes items required for opening, renovating and operating a hotel, such as operating supplies and equipment. Procurement predominantly occurs at the local hotel level as our hotels are largely owned by independent third-party owners, who are responsible for managing their own independent supply chains

To ensure that our suppliers act with same integrity and respect as we do, all our suppliers are expected to adhere to the standards of our Supplier Code of Conduct within their own business and across their own supply chains.

Privacy and information security

The privacy and security of personal data is very important to us. We want everyone, including guests booking via our reservation channels, members of our loyalty programmes, employees, suppliers and shareholders, to trust that their information is appropriately managed.

We have policies and procedures in place regarding how personal data can be used by our corporate offices and managed hotels, as well as information security standards. These set out our commitment to handling personal data legally and responsibly. Our privacy statement on ihg.com provides information about how we collect and manage the information of our guests.