Stakeholder Engagement

Stakeholder Engagement

Based on the Company's operational conditions, with reference to the annual international sustainable trends, the Company's own operational development, and the sustainable development process of related peers, and based on the sustainability reports of previous years, the ESG Office invites colleagues of key departments to identify stakeholders with reference to AA1000 SES Stakeholder Engagement Standard to identify communication targets and consider adjustment principles. Key stakeholders include: employees, customers, partners and universities and research institutions, suppliers and contractors, media and public associations and the government, shareholders and institutional investors, communities and non-profit organizations as a total of seven categories of stakeholders.

We interact with stakeholders by using a range of channels including telephone communication, online customer service (live chat), physical and online meetings/forums, event satisfaction surveys, customer satisfaction surveys, customer visits, supplier audits, participation in public association initiatives, and other means, as well as by using the corporate social responsibility mailbox (csr@advantech.com) and CSR website “Contact Us" section of the CSR official website for stakeholder consultations. Responsible colleagues of each unit shall respectively engage with the demands of our stakeholders and respond accordingly.

Stakeholder Communication Channels of Advantech

Stakeholder Communication Channels of Advantech
Stakeholder Communication Channels of Advantech
Stakeholder Communication Channels of Advantech
Employee Relations Co-creation of customers and partners Sustainable management of the supply chain Operational Performance and Corporate Governance Structure Public Information for Investor RelationsEvents & Presentations - Investor Advantech News & Archives Altruism and Social Benefit Application advocacy and education of IoT Neighborhood and Community Care

Identification of Material Issues

Advantech pays attention to international sustainability trends and standards, including GRI Standards, UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Responsible Business Alliance(RBA), Sustainability Accounting Standards Board(SASB); and concerned issues in international sustainability evaluation such as DJSI and MSCI ESG Ratings, CDP, TCFD, and other disclosure frameworks. Each year, Advantech conducts a survey and assessment on sustainability issues relevant to the company. This includes stakeholder engagement surveys to understand the level of concern regarding these sustainability issues' economic, environmental, and social (including human rights) impacts. The evaluation of senior management on the degree of actual and potential positive/negative impact on Advantech's operations and financial performance. Through a two-dimensional analysis of significance conducted by the Sustainability Development Committee and reported to the Board of Directors, the identified results serve as a reference for information disclosure and the basis for developing sustainability strategies and planning related projects.

Advantech's Sustainable Goal Setting and Strategy Development Process

Collection/Identification of Advantech’s Related Sustainability Issues

Given the breadth of sustainability topics, we collect and identify Advantech-related sustainability issues from both internal and external sources. We strengthened the process of collecting stakeholder opinions. We gained insights into external stakeholders ‘ issues through multiple communication meetings with investment institutions and clients and participation in external sustainability-related conferences. Additionally, we proactively engaged with various stakeholder units (including sales, public relations, employee relations, investor relations, emerging business development units, and supply chain) to solicit feedback on whether there were any additional issues they would like to add or discuss in the questionnaire. This approach aimed to understand stakeholders’ perspectives on the questionnaire design and the significance of Advantech's initiatives.

Sources of Advantech’s sustainability topics

External Internal
  • Stakeholder feedback (investment institutions, clients, etc.)
  • International sustainability standards and regulations (GRI Standards, RBA, SDGs ,SASB)
  • International sustainability ratings (DJSI, CDP, MSCI ESG Index, TCFD, etc.)
  • Feedback from management
  • Advantech's operational strategy and objectives
  • Advantech’s ESG vision
External
  • Stakeholder feedback (investment institutions, clients, etc.)
  • International sustainability standards and regulations (GRI Standards, RBA, SDGs ,SASB)
  • International sustainability ratings (DJSI, CDP, MSCI ESG Index, TCFD, etc.)
Internal
  • Feedback from management
  • Advantech's operational strategy and objectives
  • Advantech’s ESG vision

Process of Advantech’s material issues survey

Process of Advantech’s material issues survey

Refinement of survey work on material topics in 2022

Convergence of Issue Focus Increase in breadth of investigation Target setting mechanism
  • Focusing on the ESG threeaspect topic was converged, and this topic is clearly provided in the questionnaire
  • A benchmark for issue adjustments was established to respond to sustainable trend changes resulting in rapid response to stakeholders

The survey of interested parties has been expanded and sent to 6 main domestic and oversea operations (Advantech Headquarters, Advantech China, Advantech Europe, Advantech America, Advantech Japan, Advantech Korea)

The viewing period of the analysis results of material topics has been extended. The material topics for this year are all proposed for 2023 and 2025, for expecting us to fully review and respond to the expectations of stakeholders.

Convergence of Issue Focus
  • Focusing on the ESG threeaspect topic was converged, and this topic is clearly provided in the questionnaire
  • A benchmark for issue adjustments was established to respond to sustainable trend changes resulting in rapid response to stakeholders
Increase in breadth of investigation

The survey of interested parties has been expanded and sent to 6 main domestic and oversea operations (Advantech Headquarters, Advantech China, Advantech Europe, Advantech America, Advantech Japan, Advantech Korea)

Target setting mechanism

The viewing period of the analysis results of material topics has been extended. The material topics for this year are all proposed for 2023 and 2025, for expecting us to fully review and respond to the expectations of stakeholders.

List of material topics and description of changes in 2022

List of material topics and description of changes in 2022
Stakeholder Survey, Impact Survey, and Materiality Analysis

Advantech‘s stakeholder survey and significant impact assessments with senior management in 2022 received a total of 1022 valid surveys, covering 14 sustainability issues and detailed descriptions of each issue (as the above Table). The degree of impact and likelihood of occurrence of material issues on the economy/environment/people (including human rights) were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 by relevant stakeholders. All relevant units are responsible for scoring, and the working group of the Sustainable Development Committee is responsible for compilation. Considering the differences in the numbers of valid surveys received from stakeholder groups, the average results of each stakeholder group were calculated and weighted based on their relationship with Advantech. After the analysis, we communicated and negotiated with the senior management to measure the characteristics of the Company and the industry, refer to the DJSI yearbook, and the renaming and adjustment of material issues by industry benchmark companies.


As shown in the Figure “Materiality Analysis Results”, we added the two scores to get the ranking of the issues; and for those whose impact level is higher than 3.28 and the stakeholder degree of concern is higher than 4.10, these are regarded as material issues for Advantech. Based on the above analysis results, the Sustainability Committee Working Group has measured the Company‘s core development strategies. After communicating with the Sustainable Development Committee in writing, 11 material issues have been adjusted and agreed to follow (in order of importance), and these shall be fully disclosed in this Report:

Materiality Analysis Results

Materiality Analysis Results

11 Material Issues Addressed in the Report

5 Eleven Material Issues Addressed in the Report

Material Issues Boundaries

Material Issues Boundaries
*Note:
Among the 11 material issues, five are self-defined topics and correspond only to GRI 103; namely, information security management, Sustainable Intelligent Solutions, innovation mechanisms, risk foresight and crisis management, and eco design and product liability.