Sustainability key to 'holistic' Daimler strategy

Q+A: Ulrich Walker

For a company with a heritage spanning over a century, Daimler serves as a true testament of sustainable development. Over the years, it has developed a comprehensive corporate social responsibility program that is deeply ingrained in its business strategy.

"In line with our corporate values, we at Daimler are deeply committed to various CSR causes," said Ulrich Walker, CEO of Daimler Northeast Asia.

Walker noted that the company considers its social responsibilities one of the top priorities for its business. Addressing social needs and giving back to the society is the new way to remain sustainable, he said.

Walker sat down with China Daily to discuss how the company's sustainability strategy is linked with its overall business philosophy.

Sustainability seems to be a key point in Daimler's business strategy. How has this been translated into your CSR efforts in China?

As a well-established global automotive manufacturer operating in a globalized and volatile economic environment, Daimler is greatly focused on growing a sustainable business, especially in such an important market as China.

At Daimler, we define sustainability as responsible corporate behavior that leads to long-term business success, at the same time, is in harmony with society and the environment.

This is why Daimler Northeast Asia recently presented our first Sustainability Report. We wanted to share our efforts in sustainable management, integrity, diversity and corporate social responsibility as well as product- and operations-related environmental friendliness with the aim of promoting transparency, integrity and social responsibility within corporations in Chinese society.

The publication of our report coincided with our third Daimler Sustainability Dialogue in China, which was attended by many high-level representatives from government organizations, academic institutions and internal organizations, as well as our stakeholders to facilitate a dialogue that can help Daimler further improve our sustainability efforts and performance not just in China and the region, but hopefully on a global scale.

Of course, our Mercedes-Benz Star Fund - the company's largest startup amount for a charity fund worldwide as well as the first-ever charity fund launched in collaboration with nationwide dealers - is an important part of our strategy. Through such an effort that rallies the public, we are confident in helping more people sustainably.

Can you tell us the key points in this report?

Our Sustainability Report focuses on Daimler's comprehensive strategy to grow our business in China sustainably. This is based on the principle that economic, environmental, and social responsibility go hand in hand.

Looking at the big picture, we at Daimler are contributing to the betterment of society through our CSR efforts under the Mercedes-Benz Star Fund, which addresses five key social issues in China.

On a business level, our investments contribute to the country's economic growth and provide employment opportunities. Through staff training, we also contribute to workforce development in China.

In our report, we talk about Daimler's comprehensive approach to exercising integrity in our business operations as well as sharing specific best practice cases in a wide range of fields.

This includes the production of safe and energy-efficient products, treating our stakeholders and employees fairly and ethically, ensuring environmental friendly operations, and of course, exercising our corporate social responsibility.

With this, we hope to invite people to learn about our sustainability efforts in China so they can then take part in a dialogue with us.

How can the practice of sustainability and social responsibility help the company?

Many might wonder why an automaker is involved in so many different efforts - education, environmental protection, music, arts, sports and others. This is because we feel that promoting voluntary commitment to do more than is expected results in holistic and sustainable development.

Since we started our charity efforts in 1994, we have gotten involved in various causes in line with our expansion - from education to environmental protection, music, arts and sports development, as well as promoting a good culture of driving and contributing to disaster relief efforts.

We believe in giving sustainably and effectively to leave a lasting impact on the society. We also believe that social responsibility should enhance a business' competitiveness, as well as help maximize the value of bringing benefits to those who are most in need of help within the society.

So with the support and positive feedback from our stakeholders and partners, we remain firm and resolute in our CSR goals.