Process for determining significant topics

We use a comprehensive materiality process to determine the topics that are relevant both for the direction of our sustainability strategy and for our reporting. To this end, we perform an annual document analysis in order to analyze aspects such as existing legislation and the expectations of our stakeholders, for example, the capital markets. In the reporting year, we focused in particular on the risks and opportunities associated with sustainability. To validate the results, we held a workshop with internal experts to look closely at the risk outcomes. No major topics emerged from the 2021 materiality analysis that needed to be added to those of the previous year. Consequently, there is no need to include further matters in the NFS for 2021.

Detailed information on our approach will be published in our 2021 CR report.

As part of our comprehensive risk and opportunity management system, we determine existing and potential risks and opportunities arising from environmental, economic, or social aspects, and from how our Company is managed. Topics such as climate protection, suppliers, and reputation involve potential risks, which we have outlined in the section “Risk and opportunity management.” We maintain this practice to provide the transparency our stakeholders expect, even if the risk assessment has found that these topics have a “low” risk significance and therefore do not need to be rated as “very likely severe” in the meaning of the CSR Directive Implementation Act. The present NFS focuses on these risks and opportunities in relation to the relevant aspects.

For further information, please refer to the section “Risk and opportunity management.”