Industry Thought Leadership

Gillie Fairbrother is ESG Manager at Syniverse and explains why ESG is an integral part of Syniverse’s overall business purpose.

Our success as a lynchpin in the global communications technology ecosystem depends on our ability to identify and manage the issues that are most important to our business and to our stakeholders. We therefore focus on our most material sustainability issues and ensure that they are embedded within our ESG strategy and framework. We do this through an annual materiality assessment, which includes considering and integrating stakeholder feedback.

We have examined several different standards, including SASB and GRI, to understand our industry’s key issues, ultimately selecting SASB as a reference point as it focuses on the issues that are financially material. We also recognize the importance and relevance of the UN SDGs and believe that goals 3, 5, 8, 12, 13, 16, and 17 are specifically relevant to us. We report our carbon emissions to the CDP on an annual basis, and intend to assess our work in terms of GRI in the future.

In 2021, I was appointed as a dedicated resource to lead our ESG efforts. Housing ESG in our finance division, under the supervision of the CFO, ensures joint responsibility for reporting ESG and financial metrics and adds responsiveness to investor enquiries on ESG topics. I report quarterly to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Board on ESG matters.

At Syniverse, we remain proud of the critical role we play in providing the software, protocols, and orchestration capabilities the world needs to transact, converse, and connect. Our powering of almost every person and device on earth is a privilege we do not take for granted. We are also aware of the responsibility that this position brings with it, and consistently strive to work according to the highest standards of integrity and transparency.

We call our sustainability strategy and framework RISE. It identifies the four areas that are critical to our long-term sustainability and our ability to create value. These areas are:
Each pillar of our ESG strategy addresses an issue we have identified as having material significance to our ability to conduct our business and meet the needs of our stakeholders. These issues were identified through our annual materiality assessment. You can find out more about RISE and our progress in each of the pillars in 2022 ESG Report here - https://www.syniverse.com/corporate-responsibility

Our 2022 ESG Highlights Include:

Environmental

• Continued focus on energy reduction in operations by 5% from 29,811.60GJ in 2020 to 28,356.24GJ in 2021
• Recognition of climate change: Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions decreased by 36% to 10,729.59MT
• Committed to reporting progress on environmental goals through CDP since 2011, expecting our next score at the end of calendar 2022
• 100% of our 74.9MT of e-waste disposed of ethically and sustainably
• Designated April 2022 as Earth Month, setting employee challenges to positively impact the environment both inside and outside of work

Social

• 87% participation in our annual employee engagement survey: 93% rated their experience at Syniverse as positive or neutral
• Increased individual employee training spend from $185 in 2020 to $300 in 2021, on track to over double this in 2022
• Began to implement an inclusive recruitment strategy that focuses on attracting a diverse candidate pipeline
• Implemented a performance objective for all employees that supports our efforts to build a more equitable and inclusive culture

Governance

• Updated our Supplier Code of Conduct to promote responsible ESG actions across our supply chain
• Increased service uptime to 99.98% from 99.85% in 2021
• Net Promoter Score (NPS) increased from 42 in 2020 to 48 in 2021
• Established a new cross-functional Risk and Assurance Council between finance, technology, and operations
• Renewed accession to the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 (see page 51 of our ESG Report for details)
  

Part of having a sustainable future is having an Inclusive culture for employees and the global community. We champion diversity throughout the organization which enables us to identify better, more innovative, and more inclusive ways of doing things.

Syniverse is committed to being good neighbors to the communities our employees and customers live in and serve and to contribute meaningfully to their development. We are a proud supporter of minority groups and believe in equal opportunities for all. Further details about our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work can be found in our ESG Report.

Syniverse leads in creation of new technologies and solutions to ensure the world can enjoy better mobile telecommunication services. We strive to deliver those to be offered sustainably for future generations. We innovate and offer paths to a better tomorrow. We demonstrate commitment to quality and integrity and instill best practices in all that we do.

We operate sustainably and engage transparently on behalf of our customers and stakeholders. We commit to advancing a collaborative, inclusive and globally diverse culture that creates careers and enables our people to perform at the highest level of satisfaction.