footprintsvodafone india sustainability report 2013-14. steps today for a better tomorrow

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Steps today for a better tomorrow

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Table of ContentsCEO Speak 01About the Report 03About Vodafone India 05Vodafone India Mission 10Vodafone Cares 12Education 16

- Raise Your Hand 17 - Health Safety and Well-being 19 - Mobiles and Health 21 - Empowerment Through Education 23

Empowerment 24 - M-Pesa 25 - Empowering Communities 27 - Empowering Women 31 - Empowering Customers 33 - Empowering Employees 35 - Empowering Suppliers 37 - Empowering Businesses 40

Environment 42 - LEED Buildings 43 - Conserving Energy 45 - Waste Management 50 - Reducing Environmental Impact 52

Sustainability Metrics 54Assurance Statement 55Glossary 59GRI Content Index 60

Dear Reader,

It is a proud moment for me to introduce the fourth edition of our annual sustainability report Footprints IV - Steps today for a better tomorrow. This report chronicles the initiatives undertaken during the year, as per the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G4 guidelines, highlighting the issues that we consider material.

We are fortunate to be a part of an industry that connects and empowers people, enables inclusiveness and furthers community causes. In 2007, when Vodafone started its operations in India, we knew the potential of mobile communications but could not predict that we would be able to transform the lives of approximately 170 million people. The most rewarding part of this journey has been the opportunity to connect people and contribute to the socio-economic development of the country.

This, however, is just the beginning and there is a significant opportunity to continue to drive real change and progress through connecting people who have never been connected before, giving them an opportunity to access the internet and providing products and services tailored to their needs that enable them to improve their livelihood. We are excited by the opportunity to create positive social and environmental change through mobile services while growing our business, and will continue doing that.

Vodafone aspires to be the most trusted, respected and successful telecommunications operator in the country. We see our customers, employees, shareholders and the community we operate in as our most important stakeholders. As a part of our strategy to create value, we have devised initiatives in regard to managing our social, economic and environmental impact and ensure that our initiatives are aligned to our strategic priorities-reducing energy consumption, enhancing connectivity and customer experience, community development, waste management and development of human capital.

Operating responsibly is essential to our license to operate, for it delivers commercial advantages to the business. This helps to turn potential risks into opportunities and enhance the contribution of our products and services. By acting with honesty and integrity we secure the trust of our stakeholders, which is integral to the long-term success of our business.

Acknowledging our responsibility towards society, we have engrained sustainability in Vodafone India’s Mission and strategy, shaping the way we conduct our business. We base sustainability on one simple principle: Everything that we need for our survival and well-being depends, either directly or indirectly, on our natural environment. As its custodians, the onus is on us to ensure that we meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Footprints IV. Vodafone India Sustainability Report 2013-14 01

CEO Speak

avoid recurrence of such unfortunate incidents and further strengthened our resolve towards achieving zero fatalities by providing additional impetus to our programmes and initiatives focused on creating a ‘Safety First Culture’ across the organisation.

I am particularly proud of the participation and impact created by our employees through volunteering programmes like ‘Raise Your Hand’ and ‘World of Difference’ and also support garnered during ‘Giving Championship’ to enable thousands of girls to enroll back in school.

You will read details about these initiatives and many more in the pages ahead. Reflecting the true spirit of sustainability, this report is being published only in the digital format. Further, in accordance with our commitment to continually raise the bar of our sustainability reporting, this report has been further assured by external auditors.

While exploring opportunities where our products and services can bring further benefits to society, we are also researching the potential for our technology to further contribute to sustainable living.

Sustainability to us, is a continuous, unending journey pivoted on the belief: “What is good for society is good for business”. By remaining true to this core belief in thought and action, we will continue to create value for all our stakeholders and for ourselves.

Marten Pieters

MD & CEO Vodafone India Limited

‘Vodafone Cares’ is our platform to integrate and showcase all the good that Vodafone does in India. The initiatives under ‘Vodafone Cares’ are built around 3Es – Education, Empowerment and Environment; the strategic components that drive our sustainability agenda.

Last year we laid emphasis on improving diversity within the organisation and contributing to society more meaningfully; hence strengthening the Vodafone Cares platform pan India. This year, we made good progress in our ongoing projects and also launched several new initiatives to upscale our programmes in an effort to make them more holistic. This has not only helped fulfill the targets we had set out initially, but has also enabled us to make a wider and far more positive impact on society.

We took several steps forward towards fulfilling our commitment to green telecom by reducing our carbon footprint, Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, and making our buildings, data centres and network operations more energy efficient. We have also been successful in increasing the diversity quotient across levels within the company.

As an employer of choice for over 12,000 employees across the country, we take the health and safety of our employees seriously. Our focus on adherence to the seven absolute safety rules led to 233 lives being saved but despite best efforts, we also incurred eight fatalities during the course of the year. We have taken all necessary measures to

“Across sectors- education, empowerment, agriculture, health care, financial inclusion, rural outreach - the progress enabled by mobile is unparalleled. Furthermore, is the beyond quantitative impact – the feeling of being constantly engaged and enabled, the ability to do several things at a mere click and as per own convenience, the power to share and exchange information two-way – is what makes the power of the mobile truly astounding.”

- Marten Pieters


With over 900 million mobile telephony subscribers, India is one of the largest and fastest growing telecom markets in the world. Second only to China, the Indian industry has emerged as a key driver of comprehensive economic growth and social development.

In the last two decades, mobiles have truly transformed the way people engage and interact. Seamless connectivity and easy availability have made mobile services, the engine for accelerating inclusion and propagation of information across sectors. After transforming the way people connect, communicate and engage, it is now revolutionising the ways that people entertain, shop, bank and transact.

The developmental domain too has significantly benefitted with the advances in both the mobile reach and technology. The progress enabled by mobile across varied sectors such as agriculture, health- care, finance, education has been unparalleled. Faster deployment and upscaling of projects, instant information flow for real time monitoring and requisite corrective interventions, consistently being connected even when not physically present or accessible – have become possible. These elements are critical while working at the grass root level and in remote locations.

A mobile keeps an individual connected, enables one to do multiple things at a mere click as per one’s convenience, and empowers to share and exchange information two-way. This makes the power of mobile truly astounding.

What is often referred to as the last mile connectivity using the mobile, is just the first step towards opening a new world of information and services, given the huge potential it can unbridle. The true mobile revolution has just about begun and Vodafone India is committed to catalyse it.

With its nationwide network and operations, Vodafone India is at the forefront in providing innovative, affordable and customer friendly services that enable people to connect and communicate with each other in a seamless manner. Being a leading player in the telecom industry, it aims to lead the path not only through products and services, but also via sustainability and CSR initiatives.

At Vodafone India, the need to engage in responsible practices is led by an intense desire to contribute positively towards the three pillars of sustainability and CSR – Social, Economic and Environment. The Mission, Vision and Values of the organisation clearly reflect its commitment, not only to the direct stakeholders but also to the society, in which it operates.

Footprints IV. Vodafone India Sustainability Report 2013-14

About the Report

03

Vodafone Cares is a platform that ingrates all the good that Vodafone India does for the society. All the social initiatives undertaken are categorised under the three pillars of Education, Empowerment and Environment (3Es) on which the ‘Vodafone Cares’ platform rests. These 3Es align the organisation’s efforts towards being a socially responsible company and to make a meaningful difference to its employees, customers and the community at large.

In 2011, Vodafone India became the first organisation in the telecom industry to voluntarily start publishing its annual Sustainability Report, ’Footprints’. Over the years it has consistently endevaoured to raise the bar of its reporting in line with the evolving global reporting frameworks and publishing it only in the digital format, conforming to the true spirit of sustainability.

Footprints IV – Steps today for a better tomorrow, the fourth edition of Vodafone India’s annual Sustainability Report is prepared for the reporting cycle FY 2013-14. It follows the GRI G4 Guidelines and is in accordance with a ‘Core’ option report. Additionally, the report has been externally assured by an independent assurance provider, DNV Business Assurance India Pvt. Ltd. using the AA1000AS (2008) type 2 Moderate level standard.

Through this report, Vodafone India aims to provide its readers a glimpse of its progress in enabling economic, environmental and social development, doing more with less, increasing accessibility and being a responsible organisation. Vodafone India is ambitious in the manner in which it manages its wide-ranging responsibilities and have strong systems and programmes in place to:• Treat employees fairly• Reduce impact on the environment• Ensure strict and ethical labour and environmental

standards for suppliers • Leverage the power and potential of the

mobile technology and platform to address developmental challenges

• Contribute to sustainability and corporate social responsibility through their Foundation and the in-house Corporate Social Responsibility team

This report responds to key material aspects for its key internal and external stakeholders identified as customers, employees, suppliers, NGOs, industry experts and regulatory authorities as well as the communities Vodafone India operates in. Vodafone India will continue to work with the identified stakeholders in the future as well.

Vodafone India has reported on standard disclosures, the stakeholder engagement process and the material issues identified. A brief overview of the material issues selected has been explained under the section of ‘Vodafone Cares’ and thereafter in greater detail under individual chapters.

The scope of this report covers the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) performance of Vodafone India and aspect boundary which is limited to entities over which Vodafone India has significant influence and/or control. Disclosure to Management Approach (DMA) for generic aspects has been presented in the sections, explaining how the listed material issues have been identified and managed by Vodafone India. A detailed GRI Index has been provided at the end of the report, referencing the disclosures. In an endeavour to showcase Vodafone India’s commitment towards environmental sustainability, this report is digitally published.

Precautionary Statement:

This report contains “forward-looking statements” describing Vodafone India’s objective, projections, estimates and expectations. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied. Important factors that could make a difference to the organisation’s operations include, among others, economic conditions affecting demand/supply and price conditions in the domestic and overseas markets, in which Vodafone India operates, changes in the Government regulations, laws and other statutes and incidental factors. Vodafone India implements management systems to address various aspects of quality health and safety, environment and information security. Further, in an effort to nullify hazards and prohibit access to general public, visible warning signs are affixed at all tower sites. Vodafone India also has a robust EMF monitoring mechanism in place.


Vodafone Plc. is one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies providing a wide range of services including voice, messaging, data and fixed broadband to over 434 million customers globally. It has equity interests in telecommunications operations in nearly 30 countries and around 50 partner networks worldwide.

Vodafone India is a 100% fully owned subsidiary of the Vodafone Group Plc. with operations across the country serving approximately 170 million customers. Commencing operations in 2007, Vodafone in its long-term commitment to India, has built a robust business in a highly competitive and price sensitive market. Vodafone India has been providing innovative, customer friendly and reliable products and services by continuously differentiating itself with a strong brand, best quality network, unique distribution and great customer service. This has been acknowledged at several prestigious forums where Vodafone India has won awards and recognition across different segments consistently.

Serving the needs of enterprises, Vodafone Business Services (VBS) provides total telecommunications (Voice and Data) solutions across mobility and wireline platforms. With the advantage of global expertise and experience and the knowledge of local markets, the business is run through the following verticals – Vodafone Global Enterprise (VGE), National Corporate (NC), Small and Medium

Enterprise (SME) and a dedicated vertical for Government customers. Vodafone Business Services has steadily taken a leadership position and is currently providing both mobile and wireline services to global and national businesses equipped with a robust and superior network infrastructure and a 24x7 Network Operations Centre (NOC).

As a value based organisation, Vodafone India is committed to achieving the highest standards of Health, Safety and Well-being not only for its employees but also for all its partners. For creating such a responsible culture in the organisation, the company was awarded Golden Peacock Occupational Health and Safety Award 2013.


About Vodafone India

Vodafone India Ltd. (VIL) Subsidiaries:

The following companies are telecom subsidiaries of VIL:1. Vodafone Mobile Services Limited2. Vodafone South Limited3. Vodafone East Limited4. Vodafone West Limited5. Vodafone Digilink Limited6. Vodafone Cellular Limited7. Vodafone Spacetel Limited

Joint Venture Partnership (Indus Ownership):

Indus Towers is an Indian joint venture offering passive infrastructure services to all telecom operators. It is independently managed and was incorporated in November 2007 in New Delhi. Vodafone India Limited owns 42% of this joint venture.

Sustainability at Vodafone India

At Vodafone, sustainability is an integral part of the company’s Mission and strategy, shaping the conduct of business every day. ‘Vodafone Cares’ is a platform to showcase all the good that Vodafone does for the society and has championed several projects and initiatives under the three pillars

of Education, Empowerment and Environment a sustainability platform that was devised last year.

Vodafone Foundation responds to the needs of the communities in every market across the world in which Vodafone operates as a telecom service provider. In India, the Vodafone Foundation focuses on harnessing the power of mobile to address some of the country’s most pressing problems and challenges, associated with education, health, equality and access. Under its ‘Mobile for Good’ programme, it supports several projects in the domain of m-Health, m-Education, m-Agriculture and m-Women in the country As part of its social investment programme, the Vodafone Foundation in India, also focuses on disaster relief and implements the World of Difference, a unique employee engagement programme.

Strong Financial Performance

During FY 2013-14, Vodafone India witnessed a strong revenue growth on a year-on-year basis. This revenue performance, driven by increase in customer base, price hardening and strong growth in data revenue, also resulted in healthy cash flows.

The figures below provide an overview of Vodafone India’s financial performance over the last three years.

Key Financials

All figures are in Indian Rupees in Millions

*Note: Spectrum advance payment at 25% for 900 MHz and 33% in case of 1800 MHz in March 2014

N.B. The above figures are for IGAAP VIL Consolidated financial performance for the given years. This includes VIL’s share of 42% ownership in Indus.


Robust Momentum in Operations

Amidst a backdrop of global economic uncertainties, a slackening domestic economy and concerns about governance, Vodafone India maintained its focus on profitable growth. It made data services easily accessible, leveraged mobile technology to drive financial inclusion with the country wide roll out of M-Pesa and enriched its portfolio to become a total telecom solutions provider for its corporate and enterprise customers. Continuing to strengthen its presence in rural areas, Vodafone India recorded a overall 9.3% growth in customer base and 8.7% growth in rural customer base during FY 2013-14.

New Product and Service Offerings

Vodafone India is one of the forerunners in developing

and creating innovative solutions. The company has launched several industry first initiatives to increase usage and enhance the mobile internet experience. Some of these include:• Packages for International roaming where

customers can avail of (over 95%) reduction in international roaming across 53 countries

• Vodafone Music – a unique and comprehensive music channel on mobile

• Vodafone Sports – a one-stop portal for all sports action

• Vodafone Service Delivery Platform – a plug-and-play system for all application providers and developers.

Snapshot of Coverage and Distribution

83%Overall Coverage

1,197,000 Number of Sites

8,500+Exclusive Retail Stores

1.7 mn Recharging Outlets


Overall trend over the last 5 years

76%Rural Coverage 22,400 Number of 3G Sites

0.9 mnActivation Outlets28 Total Number of

Angel Stores

Governance

Vodafone India conducts its business ethically and in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. Corporate Governance at Vodafone India is overseen by the Board of Directors and the Committees concerned about the benefit of its stakeholders. The chief principles such as independence, accountability, responsibility, transparency, fair and timely disclosures, credibility etc. serve as the foundation for implementing Vodafone India’s philosophy of Corporate Governance. Such principal values complement the belief that the best board practices, transparent disclosures and shareholder empowerment are a necessary requirement for creating shareholder value.

Committee Function

Executive Committee

• Aligning Vodafone India’s strategy from an orientation on revenue and market share to a sharper focus on profits

• Legal and regulatory expertise• Building the employment brand

of Vodafone India• Profit and loss management• Improving Vodafone

India’s capability as a total communication solutions provider

• Expertise in building brands and customer value

• Improving technology and network infrastructure

Risk and Audit Committee

• Defines current and future risks for the company

• Assesses risk impact and the likelihood of its occurrence

• Classifies the risks, monitors and reports them periodically

• Reviews various reports placed before it

• Addresses the larger issues, examines and considers those facets that could be of vital concern to the company

• Acts as bridge between the Statutory & Internal Auditors and the Board of Directors

Remuneration Committee

• Reviewing the overall compensation policy, service agreements and other employment conditions.

• Retaining and motivating the best managerial talents


Board

ExecutiveCommittee

Risk and AuditCommittee

RemunerationCommittee


Compliance

Vodafone India is in 100% compliance with all laws and regulations. A strong set of ethics and adherence to all applicable laws, regulations and norms marks the Vodafone way of working. The cardinal principles such as independence, accountability, responsibility, transparency, fair and timely disclosures, credibility, etc. serve as the base for implementing the philosophy of compliance. Vodafone India has a robust, three-pronged approach towards managing compliance:1. Compliance by law-functional compliance 2. Internal assessments3. Internal assessments and Statutory audits

The focus during this year was on complying with anti-corruption regulations and promoting fair competition. A special module to raise awareness amongst employees was introduced. 11,642 employees attended online trainings, while 712 attended face-to-face trainings on anti-corruption and anti-bribery. The company has strong anti-corruption systems which identifies risks related to corruption across all operations. During the reporting period, no significance fines were incurred for non-compliance. For disclosures related to taxes and regulatory cases, please refer to the Vodafone Group Plc Annual Report FY 2013-14.

Managing Ethical Behaviour

Being a successful company is not just about performance and achievements, it is also about acting in a responsible, ethical and lawful manner. Vodafone India’s Code of Conduct is designed to ensure that it is trusted by its customers, colleagues, business partners and the communities in which they operate. It sets out what is expected out of every single person working with Vodafone India and also underlines its responsibilities to people, partners and shareholders. These business principles, based on the values of Speed, Simplicity and Trust, clearly state what is expected from each employee in terms of their behaviour.

Committed to act with honesty, integrity and fairness in its internal and external dealings, the Code comprises of the following:• Non tolerance to any form of bribery, including

improper offers of payments or gifts to or from employees

• Compliance to the provisions of all applicable domestic and international laws and appropriate standards and principles

• Protect the health, safety and well-being of its customers, employees, partners and the communities in which it operates

• Provide the best possible return for its shareholders over the long term

• Voice opinions on government proposals and other matters that may affect Vodafone India and its stakeholders

• Communicate openly and transparently with all its stakeholders within the bounds of commercial confidentiality

It is the duty of each individual associated with Vodafone India to report on any breach of the Code of Conduct, including dishonesty, corruption, fraud, labour and human rights violation, environmental damage or any other unethical behaviour. The company also has a whistle-blower mechanism called ‘Speak Up’ for all Vodafone India employees, suppliers and business partners. To register a complaint, one may directly contact the independent third party through a telephone hotline or by logging onto the official website.

“Our corporate governance framework is designed towards compliance, fairness and transparency. The trust of our stakeholders is integral to the long term success of our business. Operating responsibly and ethically is key to this mission.”

- Kumar Das, General Counsel

Vodafone India Mission

We will enhance value for our stakeholders and contribute to society by providing our customers with innovative, affordable and customer-friendly communications services. Through excellence in service, we aspire to be the most trusted, respected and successful telecommunications company in India. We see our customers, employees, shareholders and the community we operate in as our most important stakeholders.

EmployeesWe enhance value through providing enriching careers and long-term growth opportunities in a fair and collaborative work environment.

Our employees trust and respect us because

• We provide a healthy and safe workplace

• We encourage mutual respect, trust and appreciation

• We promote diversity and treat them inclusively

• We conduct ourselves with transparency and integrity

• We pursue speed and simplicity in all that we do

• We recognise and admire accomplishments

We define success as happy employees with great careers

CustomersWe enhance value through delivering affordable, reliable and customised communication services which are simple to use, enjoyable, seamless and secure.

Our customers trust and respect us because

• We understand their needs

• We create innovative services

• We consistently deliver on what we promise

• We are transparent and trustworthy in our interactions

• We provide a secure and reliable network

• We offer affordable products and services

We define success as delighted customers who recommend us to others

ShareholdersWe enhance value through growing the company’s revenue and profitability while creating sustainable free cash flow through efficient resource utilisation and effective risk management.

Our employees trust and respect us because

• We follow ethical business practices

• We communicate in a fair and transparent way

• We enhance the company’s reputation and brand value

• We do everything to protect our shareholders’ interests

We define success as creating sustainable value and delivering great shareholder returns

Community(Business Partners, Authorities, Influencers and Local Communities)

We contribute to the society by supporting and enabling social and economic development of local communities in India. We act in a sustainable way and create value for our business partners by offering them fair business opportunities.

Our community trusts and respects us because

• We act responsibly towards our environment

• We create community connect

• We stimulate business and economic growth

• We have high standards of corporate governance

• We conduct our business with transparency, integrity and fairness

We define success as being the most trusted and respected telecom company in India



Stakeholder Inclusiveness

Vodafone India’s Mission identifies the key stakeholders, most pertinent to the company’s business and operations. Being a large and established corporate, with a presence across the entire country, Vodafone India engages with a wider group of stakeholders (beyond those articulated in its Mission) to fulfil its economic, environmental and social responsibilities. Collaborating with this larger set of stakeholders, Vodafone India remains confident of continually addressing key social and environmental challenges, making its commitment to sustainability more robust and further enhancing the credibility of its reporting.

To make its stakeholder engagement comprehensive, Vodafone India periodically reviews its ongoing initiatives and initiates discussions with new target

groups on subjects of mutual interest including sustainability strategy, practices and common issues. This collaborative approach in addition to deepening relationship with stakeholders, aids in making informed decisions, mitigating risks and bringing together diverse and fresh perspectives to enhance innovation in services offered.

Such an approach has enabled Vodafone India to respond better to the evolving needs and expectations of its diverse stakeholders and has helped it holistically understand issues material to the company. The table below highlights Vodafone India’s mode of engagement, frequency of engagement with its stakeholders and the valuable feedback Vodafone India received from them.

Key Stakeholders Mode of Engagement Frequency of Engagement

Feedback

Employees • People survey• Formal appraisal

process

Yearly • Employee satisfaction• Career planning• Operational excellence• Talent development• Health and safety• Rewards and recognition

Customers • Feedback and surveys that help understand customer satisfaction levels.

• Net Promoter Score (NPS)

Ongoing • Affordability • Network coverage• Service efficiency

Shareholders • Meetings• One to one interactions• Group sessions,

participation in investor conferences etc.

Ongoing • Revenue Market Share• EBITDA• Cash Flows• Emerging trends and growth

opportunities

Local Communities • Through project partners for various programmes

Ongoing • Social requirements and specific feedback on programmes

Suppliers • Supplier assessment workshops

Quarterly/ Yearly

• Supplier selection process• Performance improvement• Additional business

opportunities

Developmental Sector Organisations• NGOs• Trusts• Social Enterprises• Foundations

• Face-to-face meetings• Participation in industry

events, conferences etc. • Periodic reviews with

project partners

Ongoing • Ideation and planning • Advocacy• Enhanced support

Industry Associations • Participation in industry events

• Partnering for events• Meetings with senior

office bearers

Ongoing • Support• Spokesperson• Thought leadership

The three pillars of sustainability– Social, Economic and Environmental, are integral to the way Vodafone India runs its business and designs its policies. The Mission, Vision and Values of the organisation clearly reflect its commitment, not only to the direct stakeholders but also to the society, in which it operates. Vodafone India remains committed to act responsibly and ethically to maintain the trust of its customers, its employees and other stakeholders.

Taking forward the philosophy it strongly believes in: ‘What is good for society is good for businesses’, Vodafone India has taken several steps to evolve its sustainability platform Vodafone Cares, which was formally launched last year. This platform is an outcome of our regular engagement with all our stakeholders who have played a crucial role in Vodafone’s growth story in India.

Vodafone Cares integrates all the good that the company does for the society and rests on three strong pillars of Education, Empowerment and Environment (3Es). These 3Es align the organisation’s efforts towards being a socially responsible company and to address issues that matter most to our diverse group of stakeholders. It also enables the organisation to have a sustainability approach relevant to its business philosophy amidst an evolving corporate responsibility landscape in the country and to do more with less!

Vodafone Cares



Education

Meaningful participation of communities at large, in finding and implementing solutions for sustainable development is not possible without education, for it develops skills, knowledge and values, which are priceless possessions that help shape the future of the country.

Vodafone India aims to create awareness among its stakeholders for a better tomorrow. It believes in nurturing a ‘safety-first’ approach by facilitating education and enabling means through which, sustainable development can be achieved. Several programs have been initiated under this pillar to achieve the desired impact.

Empowerment

Positively impacted by the transformative technology for development, over 900 million users in India alone are getting empowered by using mobiles. It provides a significant opportunity to drive social change, facilitate crucial access to information and knowledge to all, at an extremely affordable cost.

Vodafone India aims to empower communities and contribute towards transforming societies. The initiatives under the Empowerment pillar are focused towards enhancing access to information, empowering women, developing the community and promoting social livelihood.

Environment

Environmental sustainability is critical for future survival and growth. All the choices made and decisions taken today impact tomorrow.

Vodafone India proactively works toward managing and minimising its environmental impact. It ensures that its environmental initiatives preserve and enrich the planet. Its commitment towards environmental sustainability is reflected in its energy conservation, waste minimisation and carbon footprint reduction initiatives.

The Vodafone Cares platform forms a crucial part of Vodafone India’s overall business strategy. It is aligned with Vodafone India’s materiality analysis as discussed below. Each identified material issue categorically falls under each of the 3E pillars.

Materiality Assessment

At Vodafone India, materiality is defined as factors that have an impact on stakeholders and issues that are relevant to the company’s business The process to identify key material aspects is based on the Reporting Principle and Guidance for Defining Content in the GRI G4 Sustainability Reporting Framework.

“Our desire to engage in responsible practices inspires us to contribute positively towards the three pillars of sustainability and CSR – Social, Economic and Environmental. Through Vodafone Cares – the platform that defines corporate responsibility at Vodafone India, we categorise our initiatives in the domains of Education, Empowerment and Environment, to address issues that matter most to our diverse group of stakeholders and maximise impact.”

- Rohit Adya, Director, External Affairs

Identifying Key Aspects

Identifying key aspects helps Vodafone India drive its sustainability strategy with priorities relevant to its business, employees and other stakeholders. In order to identify key areas wherein Vodafone India’s business interests overlap with sustainability issues of the company, a materiality assessment was conducted. This materiality assessment process is based on a formal structured approach:1. Identification of aspects relevant to the company

through primary and secondary channels (reported by the ICT sector, the Vodafone Group, peers, impending regulations in India, media etc.).

2. Aspects relevant to Vodafone India are categorised based on different criteria- impact on business, feedback received from stakeholders, effect on value chain etc.

3. These criteria are then measured on a criticality scale (as shown in the materiality matrix below) which help isolate and prioritise the key material aspects.

4. Following prioritisation, the material aspects are reviewed by Vodafone India’s senior leadership and are considered while making strategic decisions.

Vodafone India commenced its materiality review in FY 2013-14 using the methodology prescribed by the GRI G4 guidance. The aspects mentioned below, identified as a result of the materiality review, are in line with the feedback received from surveys such as Vendor Survey, People Survey, Customer Satisfaction Survey, etc.

Materiality Matrix

The diagram below is the materiality matrix highlighting the aspects in line with Vodafone India.

From the list of aspects only those material to Vodafone India have been reported in this Sustainability Report. The management approach covering the materiality issue for each identified aspects, its management and monitoring, which have been articulated in the report.

As

pe

cts

cri

tic

al

to b

us

ine

ss

Aspects critical to stakeholders

Low Medium High

Lo

wM

ed

ium

Hig

h

Tendering

Processes

Water

Management

Human Capital

Energy

Management

Waste

Management

GHG Emissions

Masts and

Health

Community

Development

Health and Safety

Customer

Privacy

Supply Chain

Connectivityand CustomerExperience

Material Aspects

Issues Sustainability Context Relevant Sections

Stakeholder Impacted

Education Pillar

Health and Safety

• Health and Safety

• Training and Building Awareness

• Improving Access to Education

This helps to focus on the safety of the workforce in tower operations and the well-being of employees which are priorities for Vodafone India.

Care for Health, Safety and Well-being

• Internal• External

Masts and Health

• Building Awareness on EMF

It is important for Vodafone India to be cognizant of their stakeholders’ concerns. Contributing to the well-being of their customers, employees, contractors and the public in general, Vodafone India is committed to comply with all international and national regulations regarding Radio Frequency emissions.

Care for Mobiles and Health

• External



Material Aspects

Issues Sustainability Context Relevant Sections

Stakeholder Impacted

Empowerment Pillar

Human Capital • Employment• Gender Diversity• Training and

Education• Employee

Satisfaction• Compliance• Anti-corruption

This helps in enhancing employee development which is important and pivotal to Vodafone India’s sustained growth. It is mandatory for employees of Vodafone India to adhere to all compliance and anti-corruption requirements put forth in the code of conduct.

Empowering Employees

• Internal

Supply Chain • Vendor De-Risking

• Supplier Assessment for Labour Practices

This helps mitigate risks associated with various outsourced vendors and partners who provide services to Vodafone India. It also helps to mitigate potential negative impacts with regards to labour practices in Vodafone India’s supply chain.

Empowering Suppliers


Connectivity and Customer Experience

• Customer Satisfaction

The availability of effective telecommunication services is critical to the socio-economic growth of a country. Hence, Vodafone India focuses on making their services more accessible and enhancing the customer experience at the same time.

Empowering Customers


Community Development

• Education• Women

Empowerment• Local

Communities

This focuses on supporting and enabling socio-economic development of communities that is an integral part of Vodafone India’s CSR contribution.

Empowering Communities

• External

Customer Privacy

• Data Privacy• Network

Security

This helps in ensuring customer privacy which is a key element of Vodafone India’s Code of Conduct.

Customer Satisfaction


Environment Pillar

Energy Management

• Energy Consumption

• Renewable Energy

This helps Vodafone India achieve and maintain optimum energy utilisation thereby minimising energy costs and mitigating environmental effects.

Care for Energy


GHG Emissions • Management of Direct and Indirect Emissions

Vodafone India monitors and takes on initiatives to reduce its carbon emissions and contribute towards the target set by Vodafone Group.

Care for Energy

• Internal

Waste Management

• Waste Management

This helps Vodafone India ensure recycle, reuse and be responsible in its disposal of waste. The company has structured a Waste Management manual which ensures waste minimisation and handling of waste according to regulatory norms.

Care for Waste Reduction


EducationEducation is perhaps singularly, the most important catalyst in all stages of social, cultural and economic progress. It is the transmission of civilisation itself with learning, knowledge, skills, habits and attitude being transferred from one group to another through teaching, training or research.

A conscientious corporate, Vodafone understands the vital role of education inherent to its cause and purpose of sustainable development. For it is only through the critical reflection of the present and learning from the past, will new ideas emerge for the future.

Through its own initiatives and in partnership with organisations in the development sector, Vodafone India has taken several steps to promote literacy and also raise awareness about critical areas like Health, Safety and Well-being (HSW) and Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) amongst its internal and external stakeholders via tailored programmes. It continues to support development of innovative solutions that leverage the mobile platform and technology that makes education accessible beyond the barriers of age, gender, language and reach.

Raise Your Hand

Taking its commitment to nurture a safety-first

environment among school children, Vodafone

India launched Raise Your Hand, a volunteering

programme for its employees. This initiative encouraged

Vodafone India staff across the country to give their

time to impress upon students the importance of road

safety and was delivered through simple, effective

and entertaining stories featuring the ever popular

Zoozoos, making it an instant hit with the kids and

staff alike. The children are encouraged to practice

simple safety rules and also act as ambassadors to

spread the message among their families, friends

and community.

Aligned to Vodafone’s internal focus on Health Safety and

Well-being (HSW), this programme in its inaugural year

had 1,600 Vodafone India employees who volunteered

to reach out to almost 40,000 school children and 600

teachers in 125 schools across 25 locations in FY 2013-14.

Vodafone India is committed to making the Raise Your

Hand programme an annual feature for its employees to

engage with school children on topics and themes aligned

to their curriculum. The second edition of the programme

being rolled out in FY 2014-15 will focus on the theme

of ‘Saving our Environment’.

Health, Safety and Well-Being (HSW) of its employees and all those associated with the company, is vital to Vodafone India. The seven Absolute Safety Rules (ASR) articulated by the company, well define the seriousness of this cause. Featured as one of the key material issues for the Group as well, in India it is well guarded by the HSW Management System, HSW Policy and Safety Councils. By adhering to the seven Absolute Safety Rules, 233 probable fatal incidents were avoided last year.

Adherence to HSW norms is a pre-condition for employment for both staff and suppliers. Any breach in protocol of the ASRs is scrupulously investigated and suitable corrective actions are undertaken. During FY 2013-14, 494 cases of violation were reported, reviewed and investigated. As a result of which, services of 16 Vodafone India employees and

three partner employees were terminated, as their level of violations were found to have crossed the acceptable threshold.

To ensure maximum HSW compliance, Senior Management Tours (SMT) are conducted at Vodafone India. The visiting team comprises the CEO, senior leadership team members, operations directors and circle business and function heads, who visit different locations, offices and facilities. The prime objective of SMTs is to engage with front line employees and suppliers and to personally assess the status of HSW initiatives and provide recommendations for improvement. A total of 735 such SMTs were conducted by Senior Management in FY 2013-14.

Absolute Safety Rules Probable No. of Lives Saved

Helmet 124

Helmet and Speed Limit 52

Seat Belt 42

Seat Belt and Speed Limit 5

Speed Limit 9

Safety Harness 1

Total 233


Senior Management Tours (SMT) Conducted during FY 2013-14:

CEO and SLT Members 21Circle Business Heads 24Circle Function Heads 690

Health, Safety and Well-being

Type of Incident FY 2013-2014Fatalities 8Lost time incidents 17Major incidents 9Minor incidents 751

Besides, periodic inspection of all its cell sites and offices is conducted on regular basis. Special emphasis is laid to ensure adequate measures are in place for high risk jobs like driving (two and four wheelers), working at heights and conducting electrical work. Three key risk standards are implemented for employees under high risk. No employee is allowed to work at heights or with electrical equipments, in the absence of the work permit (e-permit).

HSW Management System

The HSW Management System is well-integrated in the company’s overall Business Management System and takes into account, all requisite safety implications during strategic decisions. To enhance awareness on safety standards and effectively implement its HSW policy, Vodafone India has established dedicated Safety Councils at circle as well as the corporate level. These Councils are responsible to ensure that no employee is injured or becomes ill at work. They also monitor the annual HSW plan and provide strategic inputs for improvements and additions, as and when required.

Aligned with the Group’s objectives, Vodafone India outlines its HSW objectives at the beginning of the year and the leadership team ensures that required resources are made available to achieve the health and safety standards of the highest level. This has resulted in 99.6% of the company’s towers and poles being declared safe across the 23 circles, where it operates.

Vodafone India’s robust incident reporting and management system allows the company to efficiently report and monitor the accidents that occur, followed by an investigation and ensuring that corrective measures are taken. During the reporting period, no incidents of high risk diseases were reported.

Electrical problems

should only be fixed by

qualified workers

All occupants to wear

retractable seat belts

while driving

Always wear a helmet

while riding and ensure

that the pillion rider

wears a helmet

Never exceed

speed limits

Never drive under the

influence of alcohol or

illegal drugs

Never use your mobile

phone while driving

Always use suitable

Protective Equipment and

attach safety harness while

working at heights


Training Awareness and Competence

To ensure safety remains top on agenda and reduce the number of accidents, Vodafone India conducts several HSW initiatives and training programmess annually. These training modules are designed following a comprehensive Training Needs Assessment undertaken for the various roles and jobs that Vodafone India staff and those of its associates and suppliers are required to do. In FY 2013-14, about 1,908 sessions (171,584 man-hours) were conducted, covering approximately 50,356 participants including employees, associates and contractual staff.

Some of the most impactful HSW training and capacity building initiatives undertaken during the reporting period were:

Building further on its focus on HSW, Vodafone India plans to issue Safety Passports to all employees, contractual staff and associates working with the organisation in FY 2014-15. These passports will make it mandatory for each holder to record and disclose his/her individual HSW qualification, experience,

information and will help to keep tab on his/her mandatory trainings so that it can be verified at any time

Care for Mobiles and Health

As an industry leader, Vodafone India has always responded to public concerns and myths regarding Radio Frequency (RF), used to transmit and receive information between mobile towers, masts and health.

Engaging with its stakeholders, Vodafone India identified health risks associated with EMF to be an important public concern. Although there are international standards set by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) and more stringent Indian regulations are in place to limit EMF emissions, it is important to clear the concerns of the relevant stakeholders.

Committed to understand and address these concerns in a collaborative manner, Vodafone India has a dedicated space on its website, based on the findings of reputed health agencies like the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other independent expert groups from around the world. Through this, it aims to provide useful information, answer the most commonly asked questions, and communicate the most up-to-date scientific opinion on use of RF.

Strengthening its commitment to this cause, Vodafone India established an EMF vertical in FY 2013-14 and through active participation in telecom industry bodies engages with opinion leaders from academia, government, citizens, technology suppliers, media, NGOs etc. To promote and enhance awareness internally, Vodafone India conducted an intense campaign, reaching out to more than 40,000 employees and associates. It will continue to extend this campaign to the company’s channel partners and suppliers as well.


Initiative Outcome

Expect the Unexpected This programme was aimed at enhancing the participants’ perception of ‘risk’ related to road safety

Training Provided by Driving School

More than 350 drivers, driving four wheelers for Vodafone India, were trained on a one-day ‘defensive driving’ course

Mission Reach 1,000 Vodafone India employees embarked on a mission to train 49,326 outsourced field staff on the importance and benefits of HSW. In fact ‘Mission Reach’ was recognised by the Vodafone Group as the best ‘Health and Safety Initiative of the Year 2013’ for enabling a be-havioural and cultural change.

Self-Defense Workshops

Women employees in select locations were taught the art of self-defense through a series of workshops by qualified trainers

Further at the Group and regional level, a senior leadership team with representation from local markets and relevant functions tackles risks related to RF and is responsible for monitoring the rise of public concerns. This group also reviews the scientific advances, available information and sets the strategy relating to mobile phones, towers and health.

Care for Improving Access to Education

Education is the key enabler of social change, especially in a diverse and developing country like India where 65% of population is young (under 35 years). To foster the spirit of contemporary learning, the ethic of equality and to impress upon the importance of diversity, Vodafone Foundation has partnered with several NGOs in India to create programmes and initiatives that enable deeper community connect and higher sustainability.

Learning Out of the Box

To make learning of seemingly tough and boring subjects like Science and Mathematics, fun, Vodafone Foundation collaborated with Pratham Education Foundation and conceptualised a unique Learning Out of the Box programme.

Bringing technology to classrooms and using novel techniques, this project provides creative and interactive learning opportunities in Science and Mathematics for grade six and seven students, in both English and Hindi languages. This learning solution, using innovative software developed by the Vodafone Solutions Team (Innovations Centre), has reached out to over 50,000 children, across 1,000 schools. Several schools across the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Assam, Rajasthan and Tripura are already enrolled in this programme.

“The telecom sector has a critical role to play in nation building. Being a large, global player in this industry, our endeavour is to share our learning and experience from across the world - innovative models, best practices, new ideas, emerging trends to develop the sector per se. We are collaborating with peers and partner with them to engage with other stakeholders for addressing common challenges facing the industry.”

- TV Ramachandran, Resident Director, Regulatory Affairs & Government Relations


Giving Championship

The Giving Championship is Vodafone India’s way of supporting the commendable efforts of select colleagues participating in Vodafone Foundation’s flagship World of Difference (WoD) programme. WoD taps into the skills, expertise and passion of employees and enables them to take time out from their regular jobs and work for a charity of their choice. The employees continue to receive their salary and all related benefits from Vodafone India throughout the WoD Programme. In its third season in India, the WoD programme had 33 highly skilled Vodafone employees, identified after a rigorous selections process, working with 29 NGOs for a period of eight weeks to address women related issues in India.

Over 12,000 Vodafone India employees enthusiastically planned and participated in several activities to raise funds to support the common cause of educating girls. All 454 Vodafone retail stores too joined hands to raise money and critical awareness about the education of the girl child through the sale of special school themed ZooZoo and Zumi merchandise. Setting an ambitious target of sending 30,000 school girls back to school for the academic year, their collective efforts raised over Rupees 12 million, enabling over 47,000 young girls (in the age group of 6-14 years) associated with NGO partner Educate Girls to resume school in Ajmer, Bunda and Rajsamand districts in Rajasthan.

Right to Play

The Vodafone Foundation in partnership with Magic Bus, works with 5,000 children from the marginalised communities in Kerala. A special emphasis is placed on gender equality, education, development of personal skills and children’s right to play. The NGO works in the areas of education, gender equality, health & hygiene and sexual & reproductive health of children.


EmpowermentEmpowerment refers to increasing the economic, social, educational and gender strength. It implies giving authority or power, making them stronger and more confident, especially in controlling their life and claiming their rights.

From a corporate perspective, empowerment requires that companies look beyond their immediate business interests and serve the larger interests of the communities in which they operate. It is about putting people before profits, forging meaningful partnerships with internal and external stakeholders, and using their resources and capabilities to address long standing socio economic challenges of education, poverty, diversity and inclusivity.

Vodafone India is cognisant of its ability and responsibility to play the role of a catalyst. The high level of penetration and underlying potential of mobile telephony makes it arguably the ideal platform for delivering both services and benefits to those most in need of them.

Through its own products and services, carefully crafted corporate responsibility initiatives, partnering with government, intermediaries and the developmental sector, Vodafone India is empowering individuals and communities to lead a life of dignity and helping them create their own destiny.

M-PesaFinancial inclusion is a key national priority, critical to India’s holistic growth. Consistent with its strategy of introducing innovative products and services that enrich lives of its customers, Vodafone India launched ‘M-Pesa’, its unique mobile money transfer and payment service. M-Pesa empowers the unbanked and under-banked sections of the population gain access to financial services via the mobile phone.

Mobile Commerce Solutions Limited (MCSL), a subsidiary of Vodafone India, has partnered with ICICI Bank to launch M-Pesa across the country. This partnership effectively leverages the combined strengths of Vodafone’s global expertise in the domain of mobile payments and significant distribution reach in India plus the security of financial transactions provided by ICICI Bank.

‘M-Pesa’, is a safe, secure and convenient service to transfer money and make payments, beyond the reach of traditional banking channels.

Currently, M-Pesa is operational pan India and is available at more than 65,000 outlets.

Visit an ‘M-Pesa’ outletStep

1

Register with ‘M-Pesa’

agent and fill and submit a

form, provide identity,

address proofs and deposit

a minimum amount

Step

2

Mobile Wallet ready to use –

Deposit Cash, transfer money

to any bank account or another

‘M-Pesa’ account holder,

recharge mobile and DTH and

pay mobile or utilities

Step

3

Application and documents

verified and approved by

MCSL and ICICI Bank – Now

withdraw cash and transfer

money to any mobile in India

Step

4

How does it works?

Empowering communities is a prerequisite to achieving sustainable economic, social and environmental development.

Mobile technology around the globe has a significant and positive impact on economic development and social well-being. Mobile phones have provided several new opportunities to millions of people in the developing world: from improving service delivery to playing an important part in enabling their inclusion and empowerment.

From providing basic health information to enabling financial inclusion, from helping SMEs to improve efficiency to servicing educational needs of students, Vodafone India, with help from the Vodafone India Foundation, has taken several initiatives to cater to the growing technological needs of the society.

In order to avoid, mitigate risks and establish accountability, all social sector partners that Vodafone India and Vodafone Foundation engage with in the country are duly checked to ensure that legal, financial and tax compliances are met. In 2013, an external agency conducted a thorough physical audit at NGO sites; after which a report was compiled and all gaps were duly filled.

The company will also have in place, as per the new requirements of The Companies Act, 2013, a distinct CSR policy, committee and a robust governance structure to monitor all future CSR activities of the company.

“Our approach to sustainability is pivoted on the belief: “What is good for society is good for business”. By remaining true to this core belief in thought and action, we are creating value for our customers and for ourselves. Through M-Pesa, we are enabling financial inclusion, a national priority. Thousands of M-Pesa agents spread across the length and breadth of the country, both in urban and rural areas are serving the unbanked and under banked by providing them easy access and connectivity to the formal financial system.”

-Sunil Sood, Chief Operating Officer


Empowering Communities

Mobile for Good

In India, Vodafone Foundation is harnessing the power of mobile technology to address some of the community’s most pressing challenges relating to education, health, equality and access. Committed to enable people and technology to drive innovation, disseminate knowledge, and create shared value to improve lives, the Foundation leverages mobile technology in the area of m-Women, m-Education, m-Health and m-Agriculture.

Through its flagship Mobile for Good Awards programme, the Foundation recognises, promotes and supports mobile innovations by the non-profit sector. Initiated in 2011, these annual awards acknowledge and support NGOs/NPOs who have developed innovative applications that can be accessed via mobiles in the areas of health, education, governance and business inclusion through critical funding and mentorship. Since inception, these awards have helped 13 NGOs expand and upscale their operations and technology.

World of Difference

Operational in 22 countries worldwide, World of Difference (WoD) is a key initiative of the Vodafone Foundation. A unique employee volunteering programme, it encourages skilled employees to take time off to work dedicatedly with NGOs/NPOs for a continuous period of eight weeks to address societal issues. The employees are identified after a rigorous selection process, and the NGO partners tap into their skills, expertise and passion to bring in a systemic change.

Since its inception in India in 2011, 78 employees have participated in the WoD programme, spending over 38,500 man-hours, while working on 73 unique social projects with diverse NGOs.

This year, 33 highly skilled Vodafone India employees (30% growth in participation over last year) worked with 29 NGOs across the country on the common theme of women empowerment and related issues. Beginning this year, the Vodafone Foundation also introduced the World of Difference Connect programme. This initiative had four senior management staff members advising NGOs on key strategic initiatives, thus making the engagement and commitment deeper and richer.

Project Drishti

India shoulders the largest burden of global blindness with about 12 million1 cases and 30,000 are added every year. Corneal blindness is the most common cause of this. With such large numbers, the need for opportunities to become financially independent, gain respect and lead a life of dignity is acute.

As an organisation committed to inclusion, Vodafone India partnered with various chapters of the National Association for the Blind (NAB) and Blind People’s Association (BPA) to design and implement Project Drishti. Under this project, visually impaired youth are provided requisite training to develop and employ them as telesales agents.

The training material, call scripts and data was translated into Braille and during the pilot testing itself, the levels of productivity and skillset of these telesales agents were found to be superior. Excellent verbal communication skills, higher conviction and convincing power, persuasive and polite approach and razor sharp memory were some of the key attributes that resulted in substantially higher levels of productivity.

Project Drishti was started in 2011 and is presently active across seven circles – Mumbai, Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. It has benefitted over 160 youth by creating sustainable livelihood opportunities for them and bringing them into main stream work force. Vodafone India plans to expand the scale and scope of Project Drishti to other parts of the country as well.

1 International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB)


Rural BPOs

To enable empowerment of rural communities, Vodafone India has partnered with RuralShores, a social enterprise creating employment opportunities for educated rural youth. An inbound Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) centre with 80 seats is operational at Bhiloda, Gujarat, to serve the needs of prepaid customers in Gujarat. Prior to this, people from this village had to travel all the way to Ahmedabad (125 km approximately) for employment. This initiative also supports the youth of Bhiloda for higher studies through its education plan. Setting-up of similar skill building and employment generating centres is being explored in other circles and locations.

Red Alert

This initiative mobilises emergency response to provide humanitarian and relief aid to victims impacted by natural disasters. During the massive floods and landslides in Uttarakhand, communication services were severely impacted which resulted in delaying coordination of rescue work. To restore communication services, Vodafone India deployed its Instant Network or “Network in a Box”, a portable Base Transceiver Station (BTS), which was airlifted and deployed at a relief camp set-up by the local administration in Mayali village (between Tehri Garwal and Uttarkashi) located in Rudraprayag District. This was the first time that such a network had been installed and used in the country in such a short time. Charging stations, dedicated helplines and talk time credits enabled those impacted to connect with their dear ones.

The Vodafone Foundation donated approximately rupees eight million to the Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS)to distribute 2,200 family packs containing basic necessities like kitchen sets, clothing, mosquito nets etc. to provide relief in the worst affected areas. It also launched ‘Operation Care’, in partnership with Samhita, a local NGO and raised over rupees 4 million for emergency supplies via online and offline channels.

A similar support was extended by Vodafone India to carry out the relief and rehabilitation work in regions

ravaged by cyclone Phailin, in Odisha. Vodafone India partnered with the IRCS in order to provide assistance to the victims of Phailin that shattered 14 coastal districts, affecting over 10 million people. In an effort to improve connectivity and ensure normalcy, Vodafone India successfully restored 100 sites within 83 hours.

Behtar Zindagi

Behtar Zindagi is a service designed to enable rural subscribers to get relevant information based on their location or postal code. The primary objective of this service is to improve livelihoods in rural markets, by providing desired information and news that helps in informed decision making, at affordable price. It provides necessary and relevant information on agriculture, weather updates, rural finance, mandi rates, livestock, fisheries education, and health by connecting users to domain experts who provide them with advice. An Interactive Voice Response (IVR) service, offers content in Hindi and 18 other local languages and has benefitted 16,772 users so far.

Gammat Jammat

This unique initiative is aimed at building awareness on the benefits of mobile internet among students in schools and colleges. The Gammat Jammat team, toured 120 villages in the interiors of Maharashtra and Goa over a period of three months and engaged with approximately 45,000 students. With an interesting audio visual and a special training module, the team raised awareness among students about accessing internet using mobile devices and highlighted select applications and websites that would provide them the desired news and information.


Vaccination Reminder Service

Vodafone India partnered with the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) to launch the world’s largest vaccination reminder service for its flagship programme, ImmunizeIndia. The IAP-ImmunizeIndia programme leverages the outreach of mobile technology and penetration of mobile phones across the country to raise awareness and deliver critical alerts about an essential health service. This national, non-profit initiative aims to prevent 500,000 child deaths and disabilities by 2018.

This reminder service is available free of cost to parents across the country. To opt-in, an SMS text message is to be sent to the national short code 566778 from any mobile network in India, in the format: Immunize <Space> <Baby’s pet name> <Space> <Baby’s date of birth>.

An immediate confirmation follows this simple registration and text message reminders are sent for 12 years, following the prescribed immunization schedule - three reminders are sent, at two day intervals, for each vaccination that is due.

Vodafone India’s commitment to the cause of mother and child safety is not new. In 2011, Vodafone India supported the Gujarat government’s ‘E-Mamta’ initiative by providing them 40,000 Closed User Group (CUG) connections. This solution created for Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs), doctors, and health workers in Gujarat is a mother and child tracking system. Initiated by the Health and Family Welfare Department of the Government of Gujarat, it aims to reduce the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR), in collaboration with the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and National Informatics Centre (NIC). Over the years, this project has achieved significant success and has helped in reducing the Infant Mortality Rate in the state.


Gender equality and women’s empowerment is core to sustainable development. Recognising this need and the potential of women to engage in, contribute to and benefit from sustainable development, the Vodafone Foundation has undertaken and supported several initiatives to propagate their cause, helped them overcome challenges and enabled them to transform their own life as well as those of their families, benefitting the community at large.

Women of Pure Wonder: Struggle, Survival and Success

Women of Pure Wonder: Struggle, Survival, Success, traces stories from the heart of India - tales of an India defined by grit, bravery, and courage.

For centuries, women in India have been the unsung heroines of unheard stories. This book chronicles the struggle, survival and success of 60 such contemporary women, who are warriors, survivors, and leaders in their own way. Blending an engaging mix of some well-known and some unheard stories, this book narrates the extraordinary deeds of real women who have braved social, economic and familial odds to find success in their chosen field of work.

The ‘Red Rickshaw Revolution’, an initiative by the Vodafone Foundation that had three committed women traverse the distance of over 1,500 km from New Delhi to Mumbai, in a specially designed red auto rickshaw, in March 2013 was the genesis of

this book. During the course of their 9-day journey, the women stopped at multiple locations along the route, engaging and interacting with inspirational women whose initiatives have positively impacted people’s lives and made a real difference within their communities.

A visually rich book, Women of Pure Wonder: Struggle, Survival, Success, details the accounts of an acid attack victim bravely taking on the world, of unlettered housewives setting up businesses, countless struggles against violence and inequality, and those against societal vices like child marriage. This book is a work of passion and compassion and is put together by a team led by women, for women, and featuring women.


Empowering Women

RUDI Sandesha Vyavhar (RSV)

RUDI (The Rural Distribution Network), is a large network of rural women entrepreneurs in Gujarat, who market and distribute rural farm produce brought directly from farmers. It reaches 1.1 million households and provides an income for 3,000 women. These women entrepreneurs, known as RUDIbens, buy farm produce through the network to sell to customers in their local communities under the RUDI brand. They often had to travel long distances to place orders and collect stock from central warehouses. Journeys were frequently wasted because not all the produce ordered was available once they reached the warehouse.

RUDI Sandesha Vyavhar (RSV), a special platform developed leveraging mobile technology, enables RUDIbens to submit their orders via SMS on a basic phone. The software records their transactions, enabling them to track sales and reduce paperwork, significantly increasing their productivity and improving quality of life. The system also enables the RUDI organisation to track and manage stock levels in real time and reduce inefficiencies that previously contributed to lost sales worth up to 20% of revenue.

This system has been developed through a partnership between the Vodafone Foundation, Cherie Blair Foundation for Women (CBFW) and SEWA (Self-Employed Women’s Association), which contacted a local company, Ekgaon Technologies, to develop the software. RSV has been designed such that, with training, it is easy to use, even by women who are illiterate.

Since the programme started in 2012, it has been piloted with over 1,500 women. In 2014, the solution will be rolled out to more districts of Gujarat and Rajasthan with the aim of reaching out to 4,500 direct beneficiaries in total by 2016 and potentially thousands more as their families and communities also benefit from the success of the RUDIbens businesses.

The RSV Project was awarded a GSMA mWomen Innovation Grant in 2013 to further enhance the application with the integration with Vodafone India’s

M-pesa mobile money platform. This will enable RUDIbens to make payments remotely, further reducing time wasted by travelling and also enables them to receive payments from customers 24x7. It also won the ‘Best Mobile Product in Emerging Markets’, at the 2014 Global Mobile Awards.

Angel Stores

Vodafone India has one of the largest exclusive retail footprints in the country. Judiciously combining this strength with its commitment to promote diversity and inclusion, emphasis on equal rights and opportunities for all employees and encouraging women employees to aspire for and achieve their career ambitions, Vodafone India launched Angel Stores. The Vodafone India Angel Store, a first of its kind retail concept store, is completely managed and run by women employees. All the functions at these stores - management, sales, service, billing, security etc. are managed solely by women staff who operate within a secure and productive work environment.

Currently, there are 28 Angel Stores operating in 17 states and employing 234 women. Vodafone India remains committed to continuing this endeavour to encourage diversity and inclusion by increasing the footprint of Angel Stores in newer locations within and across cities.

Another retail initiative, a first-of-its-kind in the telecom industry, is Project Samridhi. Currently operational in Narnaul, in Mahendragarh district of Haryana, it has 24 women who are trained and provided requisite infrastructure to operate as entrepreneurs and earn a living by selling recharge coupons and e-top ups. This initiative is also being scaled-up and expanded to other districts in the state.


Customer centricity is core to Vodafone’s way of conducting business. Providing them with innovative, affordable and customer friendly communication products and services is engrained in the company’s Mission. Over the years, their needs continue to evolve and it remains the company’s core objective to anticipate, invest, develop and deliver solutions that enable them to remain connected at all times, empower them to make informed decisions and to enable businesses to make optimum use of available opportunities.

Data Security and Privacy

Customers trust Vodafone with personal information. This process starts right away when they apply for a connection sharing with us requisite details to fulfill the mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) norms. Protecting this information and respecting their privacy is fundamental to maintaining their trust.

Vodafone India’s privacy and security programmes govern how it collects, uses and manages customers’ information from ensuring the confidentiality of their personal communications and respecting their permissions and preferences, to protecting and securing their information. It has adopted the Vodafone Global Privacy Management Principles to enhance privacy of customer data.

Vodafone India has taken several initiatives to ensure that data privacy remains a top priority across the organisation. Under a customised

Privacy Management Framework which is established, awareness campaigns are carried out regularly to educate employees about the need and importance of maintaining data privacy. During the reporting period no complaints regarding breaches of customer privacy and loss of customer data were reported.

Training on privacy is core to all employees and is being integrated in their onboarding process itself. Mandatory and refresher training modules are conducted in classrooms or on the Vodafone e-learning portal that all employees need to necessarily go through and get evaluated.

Vodafone India conducts Privacy Impact Assessment on its products and services that handle personal information to ensure that “data” minimisation” is followed and that only essential data is collected, stored and accessed.

Optimising the incident management system for prioritisation of data privacy incidents, upgrading the process flow documents as per changes in business processes and conducting risk assessment exercises on a periodic basis are other initiatives that have helped build a robust culture of privacy.

Complying with best practices in this domain has made Vodafone India the first Indian telecom company to be BS10012 certified.


Empowering Customers

The Company’s approach to information security is based on the principles outlined in the ISO 27001, the international standard for information security management systems. Its core data centres in India are certified to this standard. The external suppliers and partners of Vodafone India are required to meet defined minimum security standards. Periodic risk assessments and due diligence exercises are conducted by the Company to provide assurance that these are being met in practice. Additionally, Vodafone India annually complies and gets certified on several relevant international standards such as SOX, ISO27001 and PCIDSS[1] among others.

Customer Satisfaction

Servicing the myriad needs of customers 24x7 is integral to providing them with a superior experience. Over the years, customers have trusted, admired and preferred Vodafone as their telecom service provider for empowering them to remain connected at all times as per their mode of choice and convenience.

Vodafone India offers its customers various touch points to make a complaint, query or request - call centres, stores, websites, myVodafone app and other self-service centres. These are then responded to within a set time frame.

To consistently raise the bar of the customer service provided, Vodafone India engages with its customers in a structured manner across each business line to seek feedback and further refine its internal processes to avoid similar repeat complaints. Such feedback gaining exercises are conducted every month and their progress is tracked daily by the operating teams. The overall Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) achived by Vodafone India during FY 2013-14 was 91.4%.

“Mobile technology is improving quality of life globally. Seamless connectivity and easy availability have made mobile services the engine for propagating information. Rural India is exploring the power of the Internet for the first time via the mobile and we enabling them to its benefits. We continue to explore opportunities to develop products and services that bring further benefits to the society.”

-Vivek Mathur, Chief Commercial Officer

Modes to Capture Customer Feedback: (Customer Interaction Feedback):

Customer feedback modes Frequency Mode Touch-points

T-NPS - Net Promoter Score (NPS)

Selective interactions for the day SMS

Only for retail customer interaction – tracked through

TNPS tool

CSAT - Customer Enquiry 1 in 15 Days SMS

Call Centres - inbound/outbound, Retail - VS, VMS and ADVMS

CSAT - Customer Requests 1 in 3 Days SMS

CSAT - Customer Complaints 1 in a Day SMS

CSAT for Non-Voice Channels

All ERC (Enq, Req and Comp)

Survey - Link

Non-Voice channels - written communication, online grievance

management and web - chat

IVR CSAT 1 in 15 Days SMS At IVR level (when the call ends at the IVR)


Vodafone firmly believes that its people are its most valuable asset. While technology, brand and innovation can help build a great network and business, it is the people who create a great organisation. Developing a mindset that expands to meet the career aspirations of people today without compromising those of generations tomorrow is the endeavour.

Accordingly, Vodafone India provides a variety of opportunities for its employees to hone their talent and learn new skills via structured interventions and individual development programmes, through e-learning modules, classroom coaching, expert sessions and external programmes.

Complementing the learning and development initiatives is a vibrant Rewards and Recognition programme, that acknowledges the contributions made by employees across levels for their ideas, performance, innovations and for living the ‘Vodafone Values’. Judiciously managing and optimising the inherent talent within the organisation and developing leaders of tomorrow through customised training modules are critical to ensuring long term growth of the organisation.

The company’s self-service portal – myHR – is a one-stop-shop for all HR policies and process related queries. ‘AskHR’ is an HR advisory service that helps answer employee queries on regular operational and administrative matters.

Employer of Choice

Vodafone India aspires to be an employer of choice and the Vodafone People Survey (VPS) provides the company a holistic insight of what the employees have to say. Conducted annually, VPS in addition to capturing the pulse of the employees thinking and expectations, also highlights the areas where the company has progressed well and those that need improvement. All employees receive performance and career development reviews, making Vodafone India an employer of choice.

The numbers below indicate the progress made in its journey during the year towards fulfilling its aspiration.

Key Indices 2013 2012 2011

Engagement Index 87 (+4) 83 (+2) 81

Aggregate Manager Index

83 (+4) 79 (+1) 78

Diversity and Inclusion 87 (+3) 84 (+2) 82

Speed 92 (+4) 88 (+3) 85

Simplicity 92 (+4) 88 (+3) 85

Trust 95 (+4) 91 (+2) 89

Employee NPS 61 (+4) 57 (+11) 46


Empowering Employees

Great Place to Work Survey

The Great Place to Work (GPTW) Institute conducts an annual study in which 500 companies from over 20 industries participate. In its 2013 survey, Vodafone India was once again adjudged as a Great Place to Work. Continuing its climb to the top, Vodafone India was ranked 1st in the telecommunications industry and 18th overall (across all participating companies and industries) as against 2nd and 24th rank respectively, recorded last year. It was also acknowledged as 2nd (against 4th) among large companies with over 10,000 employees.

Diversity and Inclusion

With 19% of the work force being women (up from 14% last year), Vodafone India has made considerable progress in its journey on mainstreaming diversity and inclusion across the organisation. With talent as the core, it is on course to have 30% of its work force as women by 2016.

In its endeavour to hire quality talent, Vodafone India has gone beyond the traditional domain of telecom to other sectors including FMCG, Banking, Financial

Services and Information Technology. From just 1 woman zonal head amongst 100 last year, the concerted effort on grooming internal talent and hiring from new domains for positions traditionally considered as suitable for men, has resulted in 17 women zonal heads currently.

A safe and conducive work environment, strong set of employee centric policies, an open and righteous work culture, structured induction, career building approach, focus on talent, regular mentoring and access to cross functional forums, have all been instrumental in making Vodafone India the preferred place to work for over 12,000 employees.

Nurturing Talent

An equal opportunity employer and a nurturer of talent, Vodafone India has drawn top notch talent from all parts of the country and from across several industries. To ensure that this talent is properly nurtured and deployed, Vodafone India lays emphasis on training and skill building through several tailored programmes for its employees across levels, locations and experience.

The Learning & Development (L&D) framework is focused on developing qualities of leadership and excellence, aligned to the company’s business needs. Vodafone India’s ‘Executive Trainee Programme’ is aimed to identify and develop future leaders from within the organisation and from the business school campuses it recruits from every year.

“Our thrust is on enabling employees to optimise their potential and build long term careers. We seek to nurture talent through not just training interventions, but strongly through terrific role opportunities too. Our capability building programmes are looked forward to by employees as are our culture building focus areas such as HSW, inclusivity and diversity. Our people are empowered to take on ambitious assignments and demonstrate leadership, in business and to society. We are proud of our balance of impact and of the values that our teams live by.”

-Ashok Ramchandran, Director, Human Resources

Category Male Female

Total Employee Count

Junior Management 8,266 2,010

Middle Management 1,524 313

Senior Management 260 31

Total 10,050 2,354

Total New Hire Count

Junior Management 1,560 880

Middle Management 103 88


Total 1,681 978

Total Attrition Count

Junior Management 1,489 239

Middle Management 163 25


Total 1,692 266

Total Workforce

Off Role Employees 9,981 1,931


Vodafone India aspires to be the most trusted and respected telecommunications company in India. To cater to its myriad needs across the country, Vodafone India works with several suppliers providing the widest possible range of products and services. To streamline its base of suppliers, Vodafone India has developed a robust supplier selection and development programme, which is managed by its Supply Chain Management (SCM) team. The SCM team ensures that all suppliers and partners associated with the company directly or indirectly, follow the company’s code of conduct and guidelines pertaining to Health, Safety and Well-being (HSW) at all times. The company assesses 100% of its

suppliers across Vodafone India as per the labour practices criteria.

Vodafone India caters to a large number of customers and in order to maintain continuous contact with its customer base, the company has various touch points like dedicated call centers, branded stores, exclusive distributor outlets and retail outlets across India. Vodafone India reaches out to all of them with their logistical network. The supply chain team caters to several functions that include Network, Information Technology, Sales and Marketing, Retail, Customer Service, Business Solutions, Support functions thereby ensuring seamless availability of services to the customers. A majority of the company’s supply chain includes service and roll-out suppliers that assist in the set-up of base-stations, installation of towers and helps with their maintenance as well. Vodafone India has approximately 6,000 suppliers nationwide for all circles and they cater to all types of business needs of Vodafone India.

TECHNICAL

APPROVED

PREFERRED

STRATEGIC

Increase

in Spend

Business Impact/Safety Risk to Vodafone India

Low Medium High Significant


Empowering Suppliers

Vodafone India has undertaken several initiatives to improve transparency, efficiency and sourcing practices to better empower its suppliers. The Code of Ethical Purchasing is an intrinsic part of the supplier evaluation process at Vodafone India. It sets benchmarks for suppliers to comply with human rights, labour standards, environmental management, and against bribery and corruption. In its effort to enhance transparency and achieve excellence, Vodafone India has put in place a supplier portal. This online portal allows suppliers to access all the relevant information pertaining to them; giving them the power to access real-time information and raise grievances.

Vodafone India categorises Supplier Risk Potential such that the required controls can be implemented to mitigate high levels of Risk. The SCM team has developed an innovative framework to classify their existing suppliers based on three important criteria - Spend, Business Impact and Safety Risk.

Supplier De-Risking

Vodafone India’s supplier de-risking programme, created through an external audit agency, is aimed to evaluate a supplier from data security, Code of Ethical Purchasing, safety and sustainability perspective. The Supplier De-risking Initiative (SDI) was conceived to mitigate risks associated with various outsourced suppliers, who provide services to Vodafone India.

As part of this project, around 1,000 supplier audits were conducted to assess the suppliers’ information security and privacy posture across 582 suppliers. For 415 suppliers, re-audits were conducted to assess the closure of information security and privacy issues reported in first round of audit. Environmental assessments on waste management, re-use and re-engineering processes are conducted so as to monitor and mitigate environment and social risks.

Supply Chain Management

Significant amount of work has been done to screen suppliers, across various supply chain categories.

Following vigilant monitoring of high risk suppliers the following two risk mitigation strategies have been put in place:

• Training high risk suppliers and adherence to HSW standards via contractual terms

• Implementation of Consequence Management Matrix (CMM) for violations

Health, Safety and Well-being of Suppliers

Vodafone India has well defined policies and systems in place to manage HSW for not just its employees and customers, but for its partners and suppliers as well. HSW requirements have been integrated into the Supply Chain Management process and the following processes ensure commitment and compliance of sub-contractors and suppliers to Vodafone India’s HSW requirements:

Third Party HSW Management Process

Screening of contractors

and suppliers for HSW

Integrating Health and

Safety into contracting

process Mandatory

HSW

conditions

signed off

by

suppliersHigh risk contractors

identified and measures

taken to reduce these

contractors

HSW policy and

requirements

communicated to

contractors and suppliers

HSW Consequence

Management Matrix for

suppliers updated based on

nature of non-compliance

Meetings with key

contractors at each Circle

on a monthly basis

Monitoring: Contract co-ordinators (Line managers) monitor

contractors performance on HSW on a periodic baiss.

1 2 3

4567


For all high risk activities, an HSW plan is sought from the suppliers before issuing the purchase order. This plan outlines the process for hazard identification, risk assessment and control measures associated with the activities. The plan also sets out the compliance procedure for any relevant legal requirements. To come on board, the supplier needs to qualify and obtain the minimum quality threshold score and endorse the policy compliance document of Vodafone India.

The high risk suppliers are periodically monitored for their performance by the line managers. Corporate SCM also has a programme in place to reduce and

consolidate the high risk contractors’ numbers for better control. The Vodafone India de-risking program is managed by an external audit agency. The audit observations are critically examined and corrective measures are taken and aligned.

The supplier base reduction drive aims at consolidating the supplier base to reduce the safety and sustainability risks, associated with them. Accordingly, the supplier base has been optimised to 9,149 during the year and is targeted to be reduced further.

“We conduct our business in a fair and transparent manner with a strong focus on governance and ethical practices. Our suppliers are critical to our success and we consistently engage with them to improve efficiency, enabling them to deliver with speed, simplicity and trust. We have successfully partnered with key suppliers to standardise processes for several large initiatives to enhance process effectiveness and improve business outcomes.”

-Thomas Reisten, Chief Financial Officer


Solution

Providers

(Hardware,

Software,

etc.)

Distributors

Suppliers

Contractual

Workforce

Infrastructure

Development

Installation

and

Maintenance

Enterprise

Customers

Retail

Customers

Stores and

Outlets

Call Centers

Vodafone

India

Supplier Based Optimisation

54,000

24,000 24,000

12,800 12,8009,149

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000 Supplier base

Achieved

FY 11-12 FY 12-13 FY 13-14

Numbers are in units2

2 Units refer to the number of the suppliers

Schematic representation of Vodafone India’s Supply Chain

Vodafone Business Services enables businesses and enterprises to harness the power of total communications solutions by bringing together voice and data, wireless and wireline to Communicate, Collaborate and Connect. With its global reach and understanding of local market requirements, it brings both scale and flexibility that businesses need. A dedicated team of technicians and technology experts ensures an assurance of quality in delivering enhanced connectivity and efficient customised solutions backed with state-of-the-art technology and back-end which are not just best in class but also cost-effective.

M2M

Vodafone India’s Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Solutions connect devices, appliances and machines, wirelessly to the internet, turning them into intelligent assets that open up a range of possibilities for businesses. The potential of M2M Solutions is almost unlimited, across any device, in any business sector and located anywhere in the world. It also provides you with data required for effective analysis and deployment of actions needed, while keeping tighter control on costs.

To understand and share the possibilities of M2M, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) formulated a consultative committee to design and formulate M2M regulatory guidelines. Vodafone India partnered with the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) to conduct a workshop on M2M and facilitate industry discussions.

Mahindra REVA

Mahindra REVA engaged with Vodafone India to explore the possibilities of M2M, for its new venture. This first-of-its-kind collaboration enables car owners to access various features and functions of their vehicles. By using a smartphone application from a dedicated webpage the users can now check the battery charge, control its air-conditioning, lock or unlock doors, find the nearest charging station and more. It also provides the owner with automatic SMS alerts on a variety of safety and security checks .

Empowering Businesses

Space for Image


Mswipe

Ensuring the most robust, reliable connectivity nationwide, Vodafone India’s Mswipe solution enables smaller retailers to accept card payments, thus reducing the cost of doing business. Users can download the Mswipe application on their smartphones and then swipe cards at the point of purchase. The payment details are sent via a Vodafone M2M SIM. The phone acts only as a modem to transfer data, no customer details are kept on the phone. Vodafone India plans to expand this internationally by selling Mswipe solutions in Pakistan, Nepal and Philippines. The company aims to take this solution to 100,000 merchants by the end of 2016.

Doorstep Banking

To eliminate the documentation process and enable on-the-spot banking, Vodafone India partnered with a leading private sector bank to pioneer Tablet Banking. It is a virtual banking concept that allows customers the convenience of opening a bank account in the comfort of their home or office. This comprehensive mobile solution approach enhances customer experience and improves service availability and offers easy accessibility.

Vodafone India provided 3G connectivity to 5,000 tablets, and helped manage the device, application, connectivity and life cycle management. Initiated in 29 cities, the service is now available in 300 cities. The solution enhanced efficiency and led to higher cost savings due to automated process.

“Our ahead of curve communication solutions enable enterprises to address business challenges of today and prepare for the future. By bringing together Voice and Data, wireless and wireline services, we create customised solutions for corporates and help them harness the power of total communications to enhance operational efficiency and address some of their sustainability challenges.”

-Naveen Chopra, Director, Vodafone Business Services (VBS)


EnvironmentThe aggregate of surrounding things, conditions or influences in which a business operates constitutes its environment, which gets continuously impacted as a result of regular business operations. Catering to growing business demands in a manner that continually minimises the potential adverse impact on the environment at large, forms the core of sustainable development.

Vodafone India understands that environmental sustainability is vital to ensure long term survival and well-being. The choices it makes and the actions it takes today impact the future. Going beyond the conventional, Vodafone India has taken conscious steps to manifest its commitment towards a sustainable tomorrow.

Focus on LEED certified offices, green network, green data centres, sourcing renewable energy, comprehensive waste management, reducing Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, have all resulted in the organisation reducing its carbon footprint, even as it expands its operations and business.

LEED BuildingsLeadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a certification program for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of high performance green buildings. LEED offers third party validation of a building project’s green features and corroborates that the building is operating precisely the way it was designed to. In order to receive LEED certification, building projects need to fulfil certain prerequisites and earn points to achieve different levels of certification.

A key initiative under the Vodafone Cares Environment pillar, LEED certification was first obtained in 2012 for the Vodafone India Lucknow office. Ever since, the company has focused its efforts into reducing its environmental footprint through investments in green buildings. These LEED buildings have facilitated in enhancing energy efficiency, reducing water consumption, conserving natural resources, selecting sustainable sites and having a healthier space for occupants.

In FY 2013-14, Vodafone India has successfully achieved Platinum Certification (87 out of 100 points) for Delhi circle office and Gold Certification (75 out of 100 points) for IBFC corporate office at Mumbai.

Some of the initiatives employed in these buildings have been:

• Occupancy sensor operated LED lighting which consumes 50% less power

• Low emission glass façade to prevent heat transmission and reduce the heat load of building

• Day light sensors to take maximum benefit of sunlight

• In house Reverse Osmosis (RO) filtration plant

• Sensor operated water faucets to optimise water usage

• Rain water harvesting to maintain ground water.

In addition to undertaking energy efficiency initiatives in its own operations, Vodafone India has also engaged with its partners to design, develop and deploy green solutions across its network and operations enabling customers to opt for e-statements, created business solutions that reduce the need to travel and implemented enterprise management platforms for storage optimisation. These are some of the steps that Vodafone India has taken to propagate responsible energy consumption.

Green Network

Network forms the backbone of Vodafone India’s operations. In order to provide seamless connectivity, it requires consistent energy feed, to run the large network continuously. This task is made more difficult with an unreliable supply of electric power across vast areas of the country. Vodafone India, in its own way, has initiated and implemented several steps to make its network energy efficient and reduce its overall carbon footprint.

Co-location of Sites

Vodafone India has a network footprint of 119,923 base stations (as on March 2014) with majority of its base stations (106,160 sites, 89% of network) co-located along with other operators and third party tower company sites. By leading this industry initiative of co-location of sites, Vodafone India has contributed to reducing the energy consumption by sharing of resources.

Conserving Energy

Seggregation of Vodafone India’s Network Footprint


Base Stations

operationally

controlled by

Vodafone India

Base Stations at

third party tower

company sites89%

11%

Green Sites

17,580 sites of Vodafone India’s 106,160 partner sites, have been declared as Green Sites. Deployment of innovative solutions, latest battery technology and close monitoring of sites has led to complete diesel free operations at these sites making the cities of Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Surat greener and cleaner.

At the remaining 11% sites (owned and operated by Vodafone India), the company continues to take definitive steps to reduce its energy footprint. Given that the majority of these base stations are located

in regions where availability of grid electricity is unreliable, Diesel Generators (DG) are commonly used for round-the-clock running of the network.

The deployment of energy efficient and renewable energy technologies helps the company manage fuel consumption and reduce its diesel consumption.

Vodafone India’s electricity consumption from its network where it has operational control (sites, switches and data centres), its offices and retail stores has been 1,515,600 GJ and its diesel consumption from the same has been approximately 1,424,098 GJ during FY 2013-14.

Electricity Consumption

0

FY 10-11

700

1,400

2,100

1,3461,421

1,4801,516

FY 11-12 FY 12-13 FY 13-14

0

FY 10-11

500

1,000

1,500

2,0001,856

FY 11-12 FY 12-13 FY 13-14

1,6901,622

1,424

All figures in ‘000GJ

Diesel Consumption

Note - This graph showcases Vodafone India’s electricity consumption from its network where it has operational control (sites, switches and data centres), its offices and retail stores.

Note - This graph showcases Vodafone India’s diesel consumption from its network where it has operational control (sites, switches and data centres), its offices and retail stores.

All figures in ‘000GJ

Some of the key energy efficiency solutions at Vodafone India owned and operated sites include:

Hybrid Solutions

Last year, Vodafone India reduced its diesel consumption by 50% by deploying hybrid solutions with intelligent controllers across 300 of its Vodafone India owned sites. This takes the total number of sites with hybrid solutions to 3,000 Vodafone India owned sites across the country.

Indoor-Outdoor Conversion

By strategically converting its sites from indoor to outdoor, Vodafone India eliminated the use of air

conditioners at 729 Vodafone India owned sites, resulting in a 17% (2,542 tonnes) decrease in carbon emissions during FY 2013-14. So far 1,700 of all Vodafone India owned sites have been converted from indoor to outdoor. At 1000 indoor sites the company has also deployed Free Cooling Units (FCU’s) which shut off air conditioner when ambient temperature is favourable, thus reducing the need for air-conditioning at 1,000 of its indoor sites.

This effort was extended by Vodafone India to its partner tower companies as well. By converting 11,539 of their indoor sites to outdoor, a decrease of 57,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions has been recorded.


Solar Powered Sites

Vodafone India has been successfully harnessing solar energy since 2010. During FY 2013-14, it deployed solar solutions at 161 sites thereby increasing the total solar powered site count to

405 off-grid and poor grid sites. This has resulted in a substantial 75% reduction in DG run time at these sites.

Note - These graphs showcase Vodafone India’s Scope 1 and 2 CO2 emissions per network node4, wherein Scope 1 and 2 emissions include data from its network where it has operational control (sites, switches and data centres), its offices and retail stores.

3 GB: Traffic data over network in Giga bytes4 Node: Which supports a carrier or band of one technology generation across all sectors served by a site

Scope 1 CO2 footprint (Tonnes per node)

All figures in Tonnes per node

Scope 2 CO2 footprint (Tonnes per node)

All figures in Tonnes per node

Scope 1, 2 and 3 CO2 footprint of Vodafone India

All figures in Kg per GB3

Note - This graph showcases Vodafone India’s Scope 1, 2 and 3 CO2 footprint wherein Scope 1 and 2 emissions include data from its network where it has operational control (sites, switches and data centres), its offices and retail stores and Scope 3 include emissions from other tower companies and shared sites where Vodafone India is a tenant.

Scope 1 and Scope 2 CO2 Emissions (Absolute)

0

FY 10-11

50,000

135,618

FY 11-12 FY 12-13 FY 13-14

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

400,000

303,809

123,742

321,104

118,741

336,824

104,284

345,222

Scope 1 CO2

Emission (Tonnes)

Scope 2 CO2

Emission (Tonnes)

All figures in Tonnes

Note - This graph showcases Vodafone India’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 CO2 absolute emissions wherein Scope 1 and 2 emissions include data from its network where it has operational control (sites, switches and data centres), its offices and retail stores.


Green IT

Vodafone India has made conscious efforts to make its operations greener and more efficient with the adoption of sustainable practices and new technologies as they evolve even as it intensified its efforts to reduce and suitably manage the carbon footprint created.

Video Conferencing

To reduce travel footprint and GHG emissions as well as increase productivity, Vodafone India promotes the use of Video Conferencing (VC) as an alternative to travelling for meetings both inter and intra city, especially for internal purposes. During FY 2013-14, the company increased the number of VC sessions by 60% (approximately), leading to a reduction of 15,762 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Virtualisation and Deactivation

Vodafone India has undertaken initiatives to facilitate the running of multiple Operating Systems (OS) and applications on single server hardware by using shared resource pools, thereby increasing system productivity. Over 1,089 OS instances have been virtualised against 1,490 physical hardware servers, increasing Vodafone India’s virtualisation foot print to 37%. Also, 129 physical OS instances have been deactivated resulting in a reduction of 24% physical server. This initiative has generated an annual reduction of 54.43 GJ of energy consumption and 12.4 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Database Consolidation

Consolidation of databases by clubbing smaller databases has relieved unused resources and made available additional computing capabilities in the server. 17 databases have been consolidated giving rise to energy savings of about 94.6 GJ and to a carbon footprint reduction of 21.5 tonnes per annum.

Database Optimisation

In order to fine tune and optimise performance and resources, Vodafone India has initiated defragmentation, re-indexing and optimisation of the recycle bin, which has led to 696 Terra Bytes of storage capacity reduction and 1,104 GJ of energy consumption reduction thereby reducing CO2 emissions by 251.4 tonnes per annum.

Power Policy

Vodafone India has established an internal Power Policy via the ‘ConfigMgr R3’ tool, which optimises the power consumed as per customisation. The mode offers maximum performance when the user needs it and saves power during inactive periods. Effective implementation of this Power Policy has led to CO2 reduction of 10,048 tonnes annually.

Cloud Computing

Vodafone India has setup multiple high capacity servers, that are interconnected to provide a huge resource pool and centralised management through Cloud Computing, which basically enables delivery of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). On creation of this pool, virtual servers have been created to cater to application requirements. This Cloud Computing initiative has resulted in reduction in Vodafone India hardware footprint and energy consumption as well as optimal utilisation of resources.



Exadata

To reduce the amount of energy consumed by UPSS (Unified Prepaid Support System), Vodafone India is re-engineering the UPSS onto an alternate technology known as Exadata, which requires lesser hardware and reduces energy consumption. This technology is expected to reduce storage by 12 - 25 times and is estimated to generate an annual reduction of 4,610 GJ in energy consumption leading to CO2 reduction of 1,050 tonnes.

Green Data Centres

Increasing needs for storing information, computing and analysis has led to capacities of existing data centres being expanded and new ones being set-up. In addition to the power consumed by the servers and other IT equipment that are housed in there, these centres require consistent ambient conditions of temperature, humidity, dust free environment etc. to be maintained 24x7. Vodafone India has worked with its suppliers and partners to deploy energy efficient cooling systems that use recycled water instead of only air conditioners to maintain the desired weather conditions. This has resulted in reduction of the overall peak demand for electric power and reduced Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions. Vodafone India saves approximately 53,918 GJ of energy due to the efficient cooling system per year.

Energy Management for Small Businesses

Vodafone India along with its partners provides cloud based energy management solutions to its corporate clients that helps them track their energy consumption and accordingly plan reduction initiatives. Started in 2011, this service offering has helped approximately 200 SME clients across sectors in Northern India’s Tier 1, 2 and 3 cities to reduce their energy costs, preserve resources, earn green credits and comply with GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) standards.

Contributing towards Vodafone Group’s Targets

The Vodafone Group has set up a challenging yet achievable target for its emerging markets. This target involves reducing CO2 per network node by 20% against a FY 2010-11 baseline by March 2015. Through the conscious efforts of Vodafone India and others, the Group has already reduced its emissions per network node to 15 tonnes of CO2, a 19% reduction from the FY 2010-11 baseline and is well on course to meet the set target next year.

Computation Methodologies

The computation of GHG emissions is based on activity data multiplied by emission factors specified in the ‘CO2 Baseline Database for the Indian Power Sector User Guide’, (version 9.0, January 2014) issued by Central Electricity Authority, Government of India.

“Our unflinching commitment in Green Telecom motivates us to continually innovate and develop energy efficient solutions. The onus is on us to ensure that we meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Accordingly, we are designing, developing and deploying green solutions increasingly across our network even as we continue to research the potential of our technology to further contribute to sustainable living.”

- Vishant Vora, Director, Technology

Vodafone India’s waste management policy ensures adequate and appropriate disposal of all types of waste. Initiated in FY 2011-12, it has enabled Vodafone India to establish a uniform and holistic approach towards waste management, in compliance with local laws, regulations and in accordance with best practices. In FY 2013-14 we have only reported on hazardous waste. In subsequent reports we will disclose data on hazardous as well as non-hazardous waste. Vodafone India has disposed over 2,365 tonnes of waste.

ReSolve

Based on three “R’s” – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, this endeavour raises awareness about waste management amongst employees and communities while defining an end-to-end management process

of wet waste, paper and plastic waste. At the core of this project is a waste-to-wealth initiative, linking Vodafone India’s waste output to a recycling project, thereby enhancing livelihood opportunities through partnerships with credible NGOs for creation of local community-based enterprise.

This Golden Peacock Award winning initiative - ReSolve - provides sustainable livelihood opportunities for the urban poor and is presently being implemented by local NGO partners across eight circles - Kolkata, Bengal, Karnataka, Chennai, Delhi, UP (West), Maharashtra and Goa, Gujarat thereby benefitting 40 rag picker families.

Waste Management

Total Waste

E-Waste694,833

Hazardous Waste227,335

Battery270,573

Scrap1,172,307

All figures in KG

E-Waste: All electronics components, cards etc.

Hazardous Waste: Copper cables and oil removed from diesel generator sets

Battery: All battery cells categorised as unusable.

Scrap: MS Iron scrap from unused and damaged cabinets



Scrap is tracked and pooled centrally. It is then stored in cordoned areas and sold to licensed recyclers. Disposal of hazardous material like lead acid batteries is a crucial element of waste management and is managed through a predefined process to licensed recyclers. Partnering with authorised recyclers.

E-waste policy and sale of electronic scrap

Dead cells generated in the network operations are revived to give a life extension of 6-12 months. Besides being environmental friendly, this initiative also meets the local regulatory compliance. Proof-of-Concept has been a success. This will be rolled-out to circles in FY 2014-15.

Phone bills are distributed through electronic means like e-mailers, softcopies in CDs and likewise to reduce the use of paper.

To reduce the consumption of PVC, Vodafone India now uses the quarter card. ¼ the size of the standard SIM card, these are made of recyclable grade PVC.

With an objective to reduce the consumption of paper, the size of recharge coupons has been reduced by five times (approximately).

In order to reduce the consumption of paper, the size of the bill envelope has been reduced from A4 size to A5 size, half the standard size.

Battery Cell Revival

E-bill promotion

Change in SIM size

Change in Recharge Coupon size

Initiatives by Vodafone India

Change in Bill Envelope

Reducing Environmental Impact

Operating in the area of environmental responsibility, Vodafone India not merely complies with regulations but also works responsibly towards reducing its environmental impact. The accomplishments of Vodafone India to date have significantly reduced the environmental impacts of its operations and products.

Green Bill

Every 3,000 (considering normal copier paper GSM as approximately 75 GSM and GSM of envelope paper as approximately 120 GSM) sheets of paper cost us a tree. Mindful of this excess, Vodafone India has gone a step ahead of the static e-bill. Its Green Bill initiative allows customers to access their bill through various links, make payments, register on direct debit and even sort bills. Promotion of online payment modes has witnessed an increase in digital payments from 20.53% (March 2013) to 24.37% (March 2014). The Green Bill penetration has also increased from 46.55% (March 2013) to 47.58% (March 2014), thereby saving approximately 0.4 million sheets of paper – equivalent of 133 trees. We have also made the welcome visit forms digital which has helped save approximately 0.8 million sheets of paper – equivalent of 266 trees.

Tree Plantation

To promote tree plantation in the years to come, Vodafone India has joined hands with ‘Grow-Trees.com’, the exclusive planting partner for United Nation’s Environment Program’s Billion Tree Campaign. 300,000 trees will be planted over three years between Kanha and Pench national parks, creating a first-of-its-kind wildlife-corridor.

This activity will be spread out over 100 hectares of forest land between the two reserves. With this unique project, Vodafone India will be able to offset the 33 million kilogram of carbon footprint generated by its offices every year, for three years. In addition, this project will create about 25,000 workdays of direct jobs mainly for women and tribals, inhabiting the area.

Last year, Vodafone India tied-up with Give India (GI) to undertake a tree plantation project in five villages in Maharashtra. The NGO partner, National Rural Research and Development Association (NARAD), helped the company in planting 26,700 trees during July – August 2012. The saplings will be maintained for three years (2012 – 2015). This initiative has led to the utilisation of waste land by farmers; that was earlier only used for cattle grazing.


Embedding Sustainable Development

In April 2012, acting in a sustainable way was made a part of the company’s India specific Mission statement.

This commitment towards sustainable development was reinforced at its FY 2013-14 Management Conference, an annual summit of Vodafone India’s top leadership team, by making the conference carbon and waste neutral.

To offset carbon footprint created at the two-day event, owing to local and air travel, hotel stay and energy consumption, Vodafone India contributed Rupees 100,000 to plant 1,000 trees. Echoing the Vodafone India’s waste management initiative ReSolve, the Conference offset its waste footprint by ensuring recycling of paper and plastic, and composting.

Responsible Use of Materials

To significantly reduce the quantity of harmful air contaminants, Vodafone India incorporates regional materials with a high recycled content, while constructing its buildings. This includes adhesives and sealants, paints and coatings. The company also employs proper and responsible methods of disposing construction waste to landfills. Regional materials are materials sourced within 400 km from the building constructed as mandated by requirement LEED.

Collaborations and Partnerships

The Energy Resources Institute

To further embed and promote sustainability within its operations, Vodafone India did a strategic tie-up with The Energy Resources Institute (TERI), during FY 2013-14. The key focus areas under this partnership include: advisory on energy conservation and green telecom; waste recycling; offsetting carbon footprint and other sustainability development initiatives. To foster evolution of environmental sustainability, Vodafone India is seeking membership of TERI’s Business Council for Sustainable Development and intends to play an active role in furthering its cause and objective.

The Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation

By partnering with the Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation (CESC), Vodafone India seeks to offer low carbon solutions. This partnership aims to improve customer service and cut operational costs by achieving meter reading accuracy of over 99%, by using smart meters connected on Vodafone India’s network.

Technology Partners

Besides following the best practices in technology implementation, Vodafone India in collaboration with its technology partners has implemented several active infrastructure solutions, including shutting down associated cabinets and extra transmitters during low traffic to reduce energy consumption.


Sustainability Metrics

Key sustainability performance measures on 31st March 2014

Our Network

Number of base station sites 119,923

Energy Consumption at sites and facilities operationally controlled by Vodafone India

Electricity Consumption (GJ) 1,515,600

Diesel Consumption (GJ) 1,424,000

Total Co2 Emissions (Tonnes of CO2) 449,506

Waste Generation

Quantity of e-waste (KG) 694,833

Quantity of hazardous waste (KG) 227,335

Quantity of battery disposed (KG) 270,573

Quantity of scrap (KG) 1,172,307

Total waste generated (KG) 2,365,048

Our People

Total number of employees 12,404

Average employee attrition rate (%) 17%

Women Employees (%) 19%



Introduction

DNV GL represented by DNV Business Assurance India Private Limited has been commissioned by the management of Vodafone India Limited (‘Vodafone India’ or ‘the Company’) to carry out an independent assurance engagement (Type 2, Moderate level based on AccountAbility’s AA1000 Assurance Standard 2008 (AA1000AS (2008)) for the Company’s sustainability performance - qualitative and quantitative information - disclosed in ‘Footprints IV’, Vodafone India’s Sustainability Report 2013-14 (‘the Report’) in its printed format against the Global Reporting Initiative G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines (GRI G4) - Reporting Principles and Standard Disclosures and prepared in line with the ‘in accordance’ – Core option.

The management of the Company is responsible for all information provided in the Report as well as the processes for collecting, analysing and reporting the information presented in the printed report. Our responsibility in performing this work is regarding the verification of the disclosures in the Report only and in accordance with the scope of work agreed with the management of the Company. The assurance engagement is based on the assumption that the data and information provided to us is complete, sufficient and authentic. We disclaim any liability or responsibility to a third party for decisions, whether investment or otherwise, based on this assurance statement. The intended users of this assurance statement are the management of the Company.

Our assurance engagement was planned and carried out in August – September 2014.

Scope, Boundary and Limitations of Assurance

The scope of assurance included the review of sustainability disclosures in the Report. In particular, the assurance engagement included:

• The verification of the qualitative and quantitative information on sustainability performance disclosed in the Report prepared by Vodafone India based on GRI G4, and covering identified material Aspects related to environmental and social performance, for the activities undertaken by the Company over the reporting period 1st April 2013 to 31st March 2014 and disclosed in this Report;

• Evaluation of the disclosed information in the Report, both General and Specific Standard Disclosures with the ‘in accordance’ – Core reporting requirements and the systems and the processes which Vodafone India has in place for adherence to the Reporting Principles set out in GRI G4;

• Evaluation with respect to the AccountAbility principles and specified performance information, for a Type 2, Moderate level of assurance, in accordance with the requirements of AA1000AS (2008):

• Information relating to the issues, responses, performance data, case studies and underlying systems for the management of such information and data;

• Information relating to materiality assessment and stakeholder engagement processes;

• Confirmation of sustainability disclosures related to GRI G4 - ‘in accordance’ – Core as declared by Vodafone India.

The reporting aspect boundary is as set out in the Report, and is based on internal and external materiality assessment covering operations of Vodafone India, including key supply chain activities and excludes operations and supply chain partners over which the company has limited influence and control. During the assurance process, we did not come across limitations to the scope of the agreed assurance engagement. No external stakeholders were interviewed as part of this assurance engagement.

Independent Assurance Statement

Verification Methodology

This assurance engagement was planned and carried out in accordance with AA1000AS (2008) i.e. Type 2, Moderate level of assurance and DNV GL Protocol for Verification of Sustainability Reporting (‘VeriSustain’ - www.dnv.com/moreondnv/cr/; available on request). The assurance engagement focused on verification of sustainability performance disclosed in the Report including the underlying management systems and reporting processes. The report has been evaluated against the following criteria:

• Adherence to the principles of Inclusivity, Materiality and Responsiveness, as well as Reliability of specified sustainability performance information, as set out in AA1000AS (2008);

• Application of the principle of materiality as per GRI G4;

• Adherence to additional principles of Completeness and Neutrality, as set out in VeriSustain;

• The GRI G4 requirements for the ‘in accordance’ - Core option.

During the assurance engagement, we adopted a risk-based approach, i.e. we concentrated our verification efforts on the issues of high material relevance to business and its key stakeholders. As part of the engagement, we have verified the statements and claims made in the Report and assessed the robustness of the underlying data management system, information flow and controls. In doing so, we have:

• Reviewed the company’s approach to stakeholder engagement and its materiality determination process;

• Verified the robustness of the data management system, information flow and controls;

• Performed sample-based checks of the processes for generating, gathering and managing the quantitative data and qualitative information included in the Report;

• Examined and reviewed documents, data and other information made available by Vodafone India at the Company’s head office in Mumbai, and visited the offices at New Delhi, Bangalore and Kolkata, India;

• Conducted in-person and on-line interviews with top and senior management team of Vodafone India and other representatives, including data owners and decision-makers from different functions and locations of the Company;

• Performed sample-based reviews of the mechanisms for implementing the Company’s sustainability related policies, as described in the Report.

Conclusions

In our opinion, based on the scope of this assurance engagement, the sustainability performance disclosures reported, including the referenced information provides a fair representation of the sustainability management systems and performance. The Report meets the general content and quality requirements of GRI G4 i.e.,

General Standard Disclosures: We reviewed the General Standard Disclosures reported in this Report and we are of the opinion that the reported information generally meets the reporting requirements for ‘in accordance’ – Core.



Specific Standard Disclosures: We reviewed the reported Specific Standard Disclosures (identified material aspects), including the reasons for omissions and we are of the opinion that the reported information generally meets the disclosure requirements for covering Generic Disclosures on Management Approach (DMAs) and Performance Indicators for identified material Aspects as below:

1. Environment - Energy – G4-EN3, G4-EN6; Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Emissions – G4-EN15, G4-EN16) and Waste Management (Effluents and Waste – G4-EN23) covering hazardous waste;

2. Social

2.1. Labour Practices and Decent Work - Human Capital (Employment – G4-LA1, Training and Education -G4-LA9, G4-LA11); Health and Safety (Occupational Health and Safety – G4 LA5, G4-LA7) and Supply Chain (Supplier Assessment for Labor Practices – G4-LA14);

2.2. Society - Community Development (Local Communities – G4-SO1);

2.3. Product Responsibility - Connectivity and Customer Experience (Product and Service Labeling – G4 - PR5) and Customer Privacy – G4-PR8.

We have evaluated the Report’s adherence to the following principles on a scale of ‘Good’, ‘Acceptable’ and ‘Needs Improvement’:

AA1000AS (2008) Principles

Inclusivity: The stakeholder identification and engagement process is corporate driven and includes engagement with key stakeholders to identify key sustainability challenges and concerns; the Report fairly captures the key feedbacks of identified stakeholders. In our view, the level at which the Report adheres to this principle is ‘Acceptable’.

Materiality: The materiality determination process is structured based on inputs from primary and secondary channels. The Report fairly captures identified material aspects to its business in the sustainability context of its operations. In our view, the level at which the Report adheres to this principle is ‘Good’.

Responsiveness: The Report has fairly brought out its response to identified material aspects through its policies, management systems and governance mechanisms for the reporting period. In our view, the level at which the Report adheres to this principle is ‘Acceptable’.

Reliability: The majority of data and information verified at the head office and at three sites visited by us were found to be fairly accurate. Some of the data inaccuracies identified during the verification process were found to be attributable to transcription, interpretation and aggregation errors; these errors have been corrected. Hence in accordance with the AA1000AS (2008) requirements for a Type 2, Moderate level assurance engagement, we conclude that the specified sustainability data and information presented in the Report is reliable and acceptable. In our view, the level at which the Report adheres to this principle is ‘Good’.

Specific evaluation of the information on sustainability performance

We consider the methodology and process for gathering information developed by Vodafone India for its sustainability performance reporting is appropriate, and the qualitative and quantitative data included in the Report was found to be identifiable and traceable; the personnel responsible was able to demonstrate the origin and interpretation of the data and its reliability. We observed that the Report presents a faithful description of the reported sustainability activities for the reporting period.

Additional principles as per DNV GL VeriSustain Protocol

Completeness: The Report has fairly reported the General and Specific Standard Disclosures including the management approach and sustainability performance indicators. However certain disclosures are partially reported as systems for disclosures are being developed and timelines for same has been set out. In our view, the level at which the Report adheres to this principle is ‘Acceptable’.

Neutrality: The disclosures related to sustainability issues and performances are reported in a neutral tone, in terms of content and presentation. In our view, the level at which the Report adheres to the principle of Neutrality is ‘Good’.

Opportunities for Improvement

The following is a summary of observations and further opportunities for improvement reported back to the management of Vodafone India and are not considered for drawing our conclusion on the Report; however, they are indeed consistent with the management’s objectives already in place:

• Strengthen the stakeholder engagement process to identify and consolidate key stakeholder concerns across Vodafone India’s operations, subsidiaries, business and supply chain partners;

• Disclosure of short, medium and long-term sustainable strategies, goals and targets as response to stakeholder concerns and identified material aspects;

• Disclosure of results of supply chain risk assessment covering the value chain partners and appropriate sustainability strategies adopted to manage emerging risks;

• Disclosure of monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of Company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes and approach to assessing socio-economic impacts related to CSR initiatives.

Our Competence and Independence

We are a global provider of sustainability services, with qualified environmental and social assurance specialists working in over 100 countries. While we did conduct other third party assessment work with Vodafone India in 2013-14, in our judgement this does not compromise the independence or impartiality of our assurance engagement or associated findings, conclusions and recommendations. We were not involved in the preparation of any statements or data included in the Report except for this assurance statement. DNV GL maintains complete impartiality toward internal stakeholders interviewed during the verification process.

For DNV GL

Vadakepatth NandkumarProject Manager

Head – Sustainability and Climate Change Services

DNV Business Assurance India Private Limited, India.

17th September 2014, Bangalore, India.

Sivasubramaniam BalasubramoniamAssurance Reviewer

DNV Business Assurance India Private Limited, India.



Glossary

ASR Absolute Safety Rules

BMS Building Management System

BPA Blind People’s Association

CEO Chief Executive Officer

CEP The Code of Ethical Purchasing

CESC The Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation

CMD Chairman and Managing Director

CMM Consequence Management Matrix

CSR Corporate Social Responsibility

DG Diesel Generators

DMA Disclosure to Management Approach

EMF Electromagnetic Fields

ERM Enterprise Risk Management

E-Waste Electronic Waste

FY Financial Year

GHG Greenhouse Gas

GI Give India

GRI Global Reporting Initiative

HD High Definition

HR Human Resources

HSW Health, Safety and Well-being

IAP Indian Academy of Pediatrics

ISWM Integrated Solid Waste Management

IT Information Technology

IVR The Interactive Voice Response

KPI Key Performance Indicators

LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design

MCSL Mobile Commerce Solutions Limited

MD Managing Director

M2M Machine-to-Machine

NAB National Association of the Blind

NC National Corporate

NIC National Informatics Centre

NPO Non-Profit Organisation

OFCF Operating Free Cash Flow

RF Radio Frequency

RSV RUDI Sandesh Vyavhar

RUDI Rural Distribution Network

SCM Supply Chain Management

SDI Supplier De-Risking

SEWA Self Employed Women’s Association

SME Small and Medium Enterprise

SMS Short Messaging Service

SPOC Single Point of Contract

TBL Triple Bottom Line

TERI The Energy Resources Institute

VBS Vodafone Business Services

VC Video Conferencing

VGE Vodafone Global Enterprise

VI Vodafone India

WHO World Health Organisation

WoD World of Difference

GRI Content Index

General Standard Disclosures

General Standard Disclosure

Disclosure Item Location of Disclosure External Assurance

Strategy and Analysis

G4-1 Statement of the MD & CEO CEO Speaks (Page 1-2) Yes

Organisational Profile

G4-3 Name of the Organisation About Vodafone India (Page 5)

Yes

G4-4 Primary brands, products and services About Vodafone India (Page 7)

Yes

G4-5 Location of the Organisation’s headquarters

About Vodafone India (Page 5)

Yes

G4-6 Number of countries where organisation operates

About Vodafone India (Page 5-6)

Yes

G4-7 Nature of ownership and legal form About Vodafone India (Page 5-6)

Yes

G4-8 Markets served About Vodafone India (Page 5-6)

Yes

G4-9 Scale of the organisation About Vodafone India (Page 5-7)

Yes

G4-10 Employee profile Empowerment - Empowering Employees (Page 36)

Yes

G4-11 Percentage of employees covered by collective bargaining agreements

As there are no unions, no collective bargaining agreements exist.

Yes

G4-12 Organisation’s supply chain Empowerment - Empowering Suppliers (Page 39)

Yes

G4-13 Significant changes during the year There have been no significant changes.

Yes

G4-14 Precautionary approach or principle About the Report (Page 4) Yes

G4-15 Externally developed economic, environmental and social charters, principles or other initiatives to which the organisation subscribes

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI); GSM

Yes

G4-16 Memberships of associations Members of COAI, CII, etc. Yes





Identified Material Aspects and Boundaries

G4-17 Entities included in the organisation’s consolidated financial statements

About Vodafone India (Page 5-7) Yes

G4-18 Defining the report content and Aspect boundaries

About the Report (Page 3-4) Yes

G4-19 Material aspects Vodafone Cares - Materiality Assessment (Page 13-14)

Yes

G4-20 Aspect boundary within the organisation Vodafone Cares - Materiality Assessment (Page 13-14)

Yes

G4-21 Aspect boundary outside the organisation Vodafone Cares - Materiality Assessment (Page 13-14)

Yes

G4-22 Effect of any restatements of information provided in previous reports

No restatements have been made

Yes

G4-23 Significant changes from previous reporting periods

No significant changes in the report

Yes

Stakeholder Engagement

G4-24 Stakeholder groups engaged by the organisation

Vodafone India Mission - Stakeholder Engagement(Page 10-11)

Yes

G4-25 Basis for identification and selection of stakeholders

Vodafone India Mission - Stakeholder Engagement (Page 10-11)

Yes

G4-26 Organisation’s approach to stakeholder engagement

Vodafone India Mission - Stakeholder Engagement (Page 10-11)

Yes

G4-27 Key topics and concerns raised through stakeholder engagement

Vodafone India Mission - Stakeholder Engagement (Page 11)

Yes

Report Profile

G4-28 Reporting period About the Report (Page 3) Yes

G4-29 Date of most recent previous report Vodafone India Sustainability Report 2012-13

Yes

G4-30 Reporting cycle Annual, same as the financial year cycle FY 2013-14

Yes

G4-31 Contact point for questions regarding the report or its contents

Rohit Adya, Director of External Affairs

Yes

G4-32 ‘In accordance’ option the organisation has chosen

About the Report (Page 4) Yes

G4-33 External assurance About the Report (Page 4) Yes





Governance

G4-34 Governance structure of the organisation About Vodafone India - Governance (Page 8)

Yes

Ethics and Integrity

G4-56 Organisation’s values, principles, standards and norms of behaviour such as codes of conduct and codes of ethics

About Vodafone India - Governance (Page 9)

Yes

Specific Standard Disclosures

GRI G4 Reference DMA and Indicators Location of Disclosure External

AssuranceDMA General disclosure on Management

ApproachEducation: (Page 16-23)Empowerment: (Page 24-41)Environment: (Page 42-53)

Yes

Material Aspect: Energy Management

G4-EN3 Energy consumption within the organisation

Environment - Care for Energy (Page 45-49)

Yes

G4-EN6 Reduction in Energy Consumption Environment - Care for Energy (Page 46-49)

Yes

Material Aspect: GHG Emissions

G4-EN15 Direct Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions (Scope 1)

Environment - Care for Energy (Page 47)

Yes

G4-EN16 Energy indirect Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions (Scope 2)

Environment - Care for Energy (Page 47)

Yes

Material Aspect: Waste Management

G4-EN23 Total weight of waste by type and disposal method

Environment - Care for Waste Reduction (Page 50-51)

Yes

Material Aspect: Human Capital

G4-LA1 Total number and rates of new employee hires and employee turnover by age, group, gender and region

Empowerment- Empowering Employees (Page 36)

Yes

G4-LA9 Average hours of training per year per employee by gender and by employee category

Empowerment - Empowering Employees, Training on Health and Safety (Page 19-21)

Yes

G4-LA11 Percentage of employees receiving regular performance and career development reviews, by gender and by employee category

Empowerment - Empowering Employees (Page 35)

Yes



Specific Standard Disclosures

GRI G4 Reference DMA and Indicators Location of Disclosure External

Assurance

Material Aspect: Supply Chain

G4-LA14 Percentage of new suppliers that were screened using labor practices criteria

Empowerment - Empowering Suppliers (Page 37)

Yes

G4-LA15 Significant actual and potential negative impacts for labor practices in the supply chain and actions taken

Empowerment- Empowering Suppliers (Page 37-39)

-

Material Aspect: Health and Safety

G4-LA5 Worker health and safety committees that help monitor and advice on occupational health and safety programs

Education - Care for Health, Safety and Well-being (Page 19-21)

Yes

G4-LA7 Workers with high incidence or high risk diseases related to their occupation

Education - Care for Health, Safety and Well-being (Page 19-20)

Yes

Material Aspect: Connectivity and Customer Experience

G4-PR 5 Results of surveys measuring customer satisfaction

Empowerment - Empowering Custormers (Page 34)

Yes

Material Aspect: Community Development

G4-SO1 Percentage of operations with implemented local community engagement, impact assessment and development programs

Empowerment- Empowering Communities (Page 27-28)

Yes

Material Aspect: Customer Privacy

G4-PR 8 Total number of substantiated complaints regarding breaches of customer privacy and losses of customer data

Empowerment - Empowering Customers (Page 33)

Yes

Material Aspect: Masts and Health

DMA Aspect Specific disclosure- DMA Education - Health, Safety and Well-being (Page 19-20)

Yes

Vodafone India Limited. Peninsula Corporate Park. Ganpatrao Kadam Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai - 400013 India.

© by Vodafone India Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Vodafone.

We have engaged KPMG in India to serve as advisors in the process of report content development. We value your suggestions and invite your feedback on this report. For any feedback on the report, please write to Rohit Adya, Director of External Affairs at [email protected]