The INSA Toulouse foundation, chaired by Jean-Louis Pech (CEO of the ACTIA group) recently brought together the HR and CSR managers of its sponsor companies, as well as the INSA personnel involved in this broad topic, in order to address the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy of manufacturers.
This was an opportunity for ACTIA to demonstrate the diverse range of actions taken for the group’s CSR approach.
The ACTIA model: a committed and sustainable company
Why did the INSA Foundation host a CSR workshop?
This workshop was about discussing students’ training needs regarding these CSR matters; in order to jointly support developments in training programs for engineering students and make these students aware of manufacturers’ CSR changes.
Commitment by young talented people is in higher demand than ever by their future employers. These days, young people are not just looking for a job, but a company that shares their values with an ecological and ethical dimension within the working relationship. They want work that is meaningful and that makes a positive contribution to society. The pandemic has reinforced this expectation.
In these circumstances, the challenge for a group such as ACTIA is to offer students meaningful assignments, and to illustrate the group’s CSR approach through topics focused on both people and the environment.
ACTIA’s commitments
ACTIA’s commitments are based on 4 pillars:
- A learning organisation,
- Inclusion,
- Quality of Life at Work,
- Development of partnerships, openness of the company.
These fundamentals, supported by the company’s strong human-oriented values, are brought to life within the company through practical measures for all employees (electric charging points, concierge services, health-care costs and coverage, etc.) and others that are more specific for people with disabilities, newcomers, interns and students on work/study placements. Our aim: a company that is increasingly environmentally responsible.
ACTIA’s GAIA score: 81/100
This index is an ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) scoring system for intermediate-sized companies, and small- and medium-sized companies and industries. Every year, the Gaïa Index recognises the 70 best-performing French companies based on approximately 170 criteria related to governance, social and environmental policies, as well as customer/supplier relationships.
It is therefore a reliable marker that students can trust for effectively assessing companies’ commitment to sustainable development.
The change in ACTIA’s positioning on this index shows the development of all of the group’s CSR pillars regarding these issues.
Concrete actions within the company presented at the CSR workshop of the INSA Foundation
During the workshop at the INSA Foundation, Danaé Weill, Head of Human Resources and Estelle Labat, Head of CSR set out the actions that illustrate ACTIA’s commitments in concrete terms
Actions for a company that is inclusive, socially responsible and respectful of its employees
“ACTIA employees are able to come together and are responding in greater numbers to each new socially oriented action organised internally, across the group’s various sites.
We are also extremely proud of the actions and considerations undertaken by our committee for disability, “Tous Cap”. This group meets regularly, combines ideas and is particularly active within ACTIA, with a highlight being the organisation of DuoDays as part of European Disability Employment Week.
As for students, ACTIA Automotive and ACTIA Telecom recently received Happy Trainees 2023 accreditation. This renowned program helps companies assess the level of satisfaction, commitment and recommendation stated by interns and students on work-study placements hosted by the company.
ACTIA participates in numerous student forums, events, and conferences throughout the year. This openness is essential for forging links between schools and the company, and for offering students stepping stones towards employment.
Furthermore, we have also fine-tuned our integration process, for example with the appointment of a point of contact who supports new employees in their first few months within the company. We have also developed a number of e-learning modules to help them in taking up their position” explains Danaé Weill, Head of Human Resources.
Actions aimed at the environment
The environmental model and ACTIA’s activities are mutually dependent. They aim to contribute to:
- Reducing the carbon footprint of its customers,
- The design and manufacture of solutions for environmentally responsible transportation and better energy management,
- The renewal of ISO 14001 certifications for all its industrial sites.
“The environmental component is a major focus of the transformation plan for our ACTIA Colomiers 5.0 showcase factory. The project aims to improve the factory’s energy and environmental performance by reducing its footprint and its level of energy consumption. It therefore addresses the recommendations of the latest energy audit conducted by BUREAU VERITAS, for example: better monitoring of energy consumption within the factory or improving buildings’ energy performance through insulation work.
This carbon footprint work is also taking place worldwide for the company. It includes educating employees on environmentally friendly practices. Along with our partner EDF, we have hosted “Cafés de l’Énergie” workshops to raise awareness among employees about eco-friendly actions.
We have initiated an analysis of the life cycle of one of our off-the-shelf products designed and manufactured by ACTIA. This is an initial step towards a full carbon footprint review for the company, with the aim of defining a decarbonisation strategy by the end of the year” explains Estelle Labat, ACTIA’s head of CSR.
This presentation within the INSA Toulouse Foundation illustrated ACTIA’s overall CSR approach, which has been jointly constructed in an active and concrete manner by all of the company’s involved parties. It is based on a social model for a company on a human scale that is respectful of the teams, their safety, their health, and their development. This is also a company that is invested locally to have a positive impact on its home territory.
