NHHOTEL GROUP
CODE OF CONDUCT
All NH Hotel Group employees, Board members,
shareholders and suppliers must comply with a
Code of Conduct implemented by the Company
since 2011. In addition, the Group has a
confidential procedure to report non-compliance
with this code. For the dissemination of the Code
of Conduct among employees, there is a
Practical
Guide
available on the intranet that details the
rules and values of the Code in an didactical
manner, as well as a
FrequentlyAskedQuestions
section that includes aspects such as compliance,
confidentiality when processing complaints and
the anonymity of the channel.
Code of Conduct training
In 2013, we have continued to implement and
disseminate the Code with the launching of online
training courses to help employees understand and
gain in-depth knowledge about the Code.
The training sessions are available in six languages
and include educational and interactive content,
exercises that facilitate understanding of the
principles that should guide the conduct of each
employee, information about anonymous channels
for complaints and a test to self-assess the
knowledge acquired. This training is mandatory
and periodically monitored in order to guarantee
all staff members adhere to the Code.
A total of
709
employees
completed the training
courses during December 2013 (2,471 as of April
2014).
GLOBAL FRAMEWORK
UnitedNations Global Compact
Since 2006, NH Hotel Group is a member of the
United Nations Global Compact
and its ten principles as a reference framework for designing Corporate Responsibility
strategy and management. In addition, the current Code of Conduct incorporates
compliance with international and sectorial ethical commitments that include the
Compact’s ten principles.
The Company manages its business according to corporate values and its standard
of ethics and conduct, and guarantees strict compliance with the laws governing each
country. In specific cases, like real estate management, the Company operates according
to legislation, with a process for reviewing the classification of short-listed plots and the
conformity of business licenses when signing new contracts. In relationships with local
governments, the Company always acts independently of any political power, maintaining
transparency with the different public and administrative institutions.
The Annual Progress Report
was presented in 2013, like each year, through a public
letter signed by NH Hotel Group CEO highlighting the initiatives and results achieved
during the year.
RelationshipwithGovernments
During this reporting period, subsidies were obtained from governments, mainly for
building hotels and golf courses in Sotogrande and Donnafugata, to the value of
€
18,086.
For more details, please refer to the 2013 Consolidated Financial Statements and
Management Report.
RiskManagement
The activities undertaken by NH Hotel Group are mainly within the hotel sector and,
in particular, in the city hotel sector, characterised by relatively high operating leverage
that may require strong investment in fixed assets, especially real estate. These types
of assets have long economic cycles that require financed investments, mainly through
financial indebtedness. Financial orthodoxy has always beenmaintained ensuring capital
adequacy ratios have always been high.
The management of risks to which the Company is exposed during the development of its
activities constitutes one of the basic pillars of operation, with the objective of protecting
the value of assets and, consequently, the investments made by shareholders. The Group’s
Management Committee analyses riskmaps in order tominimise these and optimise their
management.
SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE
INVESTING (SRI)
Presence in FTSE4Good
The
Socially
Responsible
Investing index, FTSE4Good,
was created by the London Stock Exchange and in
March 2013, it announced the addition of 20 new
international companies, and NH Hotel Group
was the only Spanish company in the sector to be
included in the semi-annual review.
FTSE4Good
was designed to help investors
integrate Environmental, Social and Governance
(
ESG) factors in their investments. This index
measures the performance of companies that
meet globally recognised corporate responsibility
standards and identifies those companies that
best manage these factors when aiming for
financing, profitability and structured products.
These indices are later used by investors looking
to incorporate these types of variables in their
decision-making processes or can also serve
as frameworks for collaboration with other
companies or administrations.
CarbonDisclosure Project (CDP)
In 2013 and for the fourth consecutive year,
NH Hotel Group has reported to the Carbon
Disclosure Project (CDP), an independent non-
profit organisation that analyses companies’
environmental performance and whose indicators
are consulted by various stakeholders.
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OUR SUSTAINABLE COMMITMENT
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RELATIONSHIPWITH STAKEHOLDERS
