Sustainability governance

The Strategic Sustainability Council ensures that we share the same positions across the IKEA franchise system, and that we align future developments and commitments, while respecting the independence of the companies in the IKEA franchise system. It focuses on the following:

• The IKEA brand’s role in society.
• Strategic directions and ambitions across the franchise system, such as always respecting human rights, and our ambitions to become a circular and climate-positive business.
• Alignment of IKEA specific sustainability requirements; for example, the requirements included in IWAY, the IKEA way of responsibly procuring products, services, materials and components.

The Strategic Sustainability Council is where representatives from Inter IKEA Group and the franchisees join to describe and follow up on our collective sustainability ambitions. The managing directors of the represented IKEA franchisees and Inter IKEA Group companies (or core businesses) are invited members of the Council. The CEO of Inter IKEA Group is the chair of the Strategic Sustainability Council.

Experts on specific topics from Inter IKEA Group and franchisees meet in working groups to share best practices and build knowledge through the IKEA value chain. The working groups discuss and align strategic initiatives and plans to fulfil the IKEA sustainability strategy.

The Inter IKEA Group sustainability management team includes the sustainability managers from the three core businesses: Franchise, Range and Supply. The group is responsible for aligning and developing sustainability ambitions and commitments, and reporting on performance. The group also provides recommendations on strategic business decisions with environmental and social impacts, and prepares content and decisions for the Strategic Sustainability Council.

The IKEA way of doing business is strongly rooted in the IKEA values and culture – they show up in our actions, decisions and behaviours. This behavioural part is reflected in how we do business and how we interact with each other, our business partners and customers. The IKEA business requirements cover a wide range of topics, including business ethics. Important documents covering business requirements are:

• Code of Conduct: for Inter IKEA Group co-workers
• IConduct: for IKEA franchisees
• IWAY: for IKEA suppliers and service providers

The Inter IKEA Group Code of Conduct

The Inter IKEA Group Code of Conduct, introduced in 2016, is undergoing a revision which is expected to be launched in FY23. It will be accompanied with wider communication on ethics. The objective is to foster an ethical workplace and to stimulate dialogues on ethical dilemmas within Inter IKEA Group.

Inter IKEA Group code of conduct

IConduct

IKEA franchisees must live up to the business requirements to secure responsible business and protect the IKEA brand. These requirements are described in IConduct – the IKEA franchisee code of conduct. IConduct is based on the eight core International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions and reference the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, which support our commitment to respect human rights.

IWAY

The IKEA way of responsibly procuring products, services, materials and components (IWAY) is the IKEA supplier code of conduct. IWAY sets requirements and ways of working on environmental, social and working conditions and animal welfare for all IKEA suppliers and service providers.

Creating a sustainable IKEA value chain with IWAY

The Inter IKEA Group way of doing business is based on a culture of high integrity. We promote an open culture of trust and honest communication, also when conversations are difficult. We have a strong focus on our feedback culture and focus on building trustful relationships at work. Sometimes people could end up in situations where it is impossible to solve it directly or with the manager. For those instances, we offer a Raising Concern Line, available by phone and web in local languages.