csr or esg? tbh, it’s all about doing good and here is our story
environmental
The impact our company has on the conservation and protection of the natural world including waste and pollution, resource depletion, greenhouse gas emission, deforestation, and climate change
social
The impact the company has on employees and on society in general including employee relations & diversity
governance
The way in which the board and management conduct themselves and navigate their business
background
Environmental, Social and Governance are the three key factors used to measure the sustainability and ethical impact of our business. Here we summarise where we are and set out what jellybean has done and is doing to constantly improve our ESG performance.
Jellybean has always been a socially responsible and ethical agency, so we come from good foundations. However, we needed to formalise our strategy, set out our goals and amalgamate achievements to date to form a clear company policy for ESG. So, in October 2021 we launched our Beanshot Challenge to get everyone at jellybean involved in generating loads of new ideas and sustainable actions to improve our environmental and social impact, and ensure we practice good governance.
In 2022 our ESG policy was in place combining all the activity (for the past 36 years) with the new ideas and goals borne out of our Beanshot challenge. The whole team at the agency are involved and inspired to work together to reassess the way we work and embrace change to reduce our impact on the planet, sustain our support for good causes and operate as a responsible and ethical business.
Our view is that small things that work together can not only bring about global change but also ensure that jellybean continues to be a great place to work and a business you are proud to work for.
environmental
This refers to the impact our company has on the conservation and protection of the natural world including waste and pollution, resource depletion, greenhouse gas emission, deforestation, and climate change
Every member of the team has signed up to our Beanifesto pledge which sets out what individuals can do to help us achieve our corporate goal to be net zero by 2030 in line with SBTI (Science Based Target Initiative).
Goals and achievements:
- In 2022-4 we worked with Ecologi to offset our carbon emissions and become a carbon neutral business.
- In 2024 we appointed Alectro as our VSO (Virtual sustainability Officer) to help us measure our full emissions impact and identify specific KPIs for jellybean.
- We are working with Alectro to become net zero by January 2030(in line with SBTI)
- In October 2024 our base line showed that we had an intensity ratio per employee of 1.17 versus an industry standard for a professional SME of between 0.6 and 4.5 so we were already well below the average for a business of our size. This showed us that the actions we had put in place since 2022 were already having a positive impact on reducing our emissions.
- In the past 12 months we have reduced our emissions from 22.37 per employee to 10.15 which is more than halved.
- In 2024 we offset our carbon emissions by nearly 9 times (source Alectro Annual Emissions 26.96tC02e vs annual offset via Ecologi 242C02e) which is equivalent to:
- 186 long haul flights
- 80 sq metres of sea ice saved
- 600,400 miles driven in a car
- We also planted 2,908 trees
- We are in the process of creating an EPP (Environmentally Preferred Procurement) Policy whereby we aim to increase the %age of our supply chain that aligns to our net zero strategy from 13% to 66% by 2027.
- We are a climate positive workforce that invests in verified climate crisis solutions to offset our carbon footprint.
- We operate an Electric Car and cycle to work lease purchase scheme and have a charging station at the office
- We use the most efficacious eco-friendly cleaning products throughout the premises
- We use energy efficiently and have a renewable only energy supplier and encourage our employees to do the same at home
- We operate a car share scheme for all necessary travel to work and client/event meetings and opt to travel on public transport whenever feasible
- We operate a WFH policy to reduce our travel miles
- We endeavour to be a paperless office and only print when necessary
- We use Teams for meeting and conference calls to reduce our travel miles
- We recycle all waste
- We discourage any single use plastic on the premises
- We’ve appointed a Beanshot Action Team to continuously identify future improvements and changes for the business
- All jellybean equipment is energy efficient and meets energy star guidelines
- All our suppliers of digital services are carbon neutral, and our web host was the first to become so in the UK
- To improve air quality and well-being we have increased plant presence in the office
- We have reduced mail to a minimum opting for electronic comms/publications
- We use only recycled paper and avoid unnecessary over packaging and printing
- We are involved in community events to clean up local rivers and environs
social
This refers to the impact the company has on employees and on society in general including employee relations & diversity, working conditions, including child labour and slavery, local communities; seeks explicitly to fund projects or institutions that will serve poor and underserved communities globally, health and safety and conflict.
Our people:
- Since the agency was founded in 1987 we have consistently supported global, local and industry charities
- We operate an equal opportunities employment policy at jellybean from CV screening through to interview, skills assessment to final appointment
- We have a head of Diversity and Inclusion on the leadership team to champion this aspect – (over 73% of employees are female at jellybean and represent 60% of the LT)
- We benchmark all salaries and benefits against industry data to ensure we pay fairly and equitably to all staff at all levels irrespective of gender
- We are dedicated to staff training and development and have formal two-way annual reviews and appraisals to map progress against set KPIs, gain feedback from peers and identify training needs (on the job, internal workshops, external courses and accredited qualifications). We want all our people to progress and grow in their role and career at the agency and achieve their full potential.
- We participate quarterly in an industry benchmarking survey (The Alliance) regarding employee engagement, job satisfaction and mental wellbeing and identify how we perform against our peers and take action to improve.
- We have mental health and physical health first aiders appointed and we do regular mental health and financial health checks with the team.
- We operate an open-door policy whereby any bean can talk to anyone within the business if they have any concerns with no retaliation
- All employees over one year’s service can join our private health scheme which includes mental health practitioners and provides access to various support mechanisms
- We have a company funded death in service policy for all employees after 1 years service.
- We provide high spec equipment and facilities so that employees can work confidently and competently from home or the office
- We have a WFH and flexi time policy to improve work life balance and mental health and reduce our carbon footprint.
- We have a regularly updated health and safety policy which all employees are fully conversant with and share any updates as required
- We have a comprehensive employee handbook which covers all matters relating to employee rights, how to resolve conflict etc
- All employees have a contract of employment that sets out our codes of conduct and their and our contractual obligations
Our charities:
- For over 37 years we have supported Plan International sponsoring a child for every employee around the globe which means we have helped over 100 children gain basic education, food, water, and shelter to help them get out of the poverty trap.
- We have built classrooms in refugee camps in Gambella (read more) and we have empowered education of girls in Zimbabwe (read more) as 2 big specific initiatives with Plan International
- On a more local basis in 2021 we installed a light and sensory system in a local special needs school (read more)
- We support our industry charity Hospitality Action offering free strategic advice, support, and creative work
- We sponsored a key industry initiative during lockdown to help the industry get back on its feet (read more)
- We work pro bono for a number of charities including Debra and CWSNF and have done so for over 24 years and our CEO is a Patron
- We support local schools with career evenings and work experience
governance
Is the way in which the board and management conduct themselves and navigate their business including tax strategy, executive remuneration, donations and political lobbying, corruption and bribery and board diversity and structure
- In September 2024 jellybean became employee owned under an EOT Trust whereby all employees have a stake in the future success of the agency
- We have 3 employee representatives on the EOT board so that employees’ interests are paramount and protected
- Jellybean has a Code of Conduct, which serves as a guide to establish and maintain appropriate business conduct for all workers (management, employees, contractors, student interns, trainees and volunteers). We expect all workers to exhibit the highest standards of ethical behaviour and business integrity in their conduct.
- In addition jellybean is signed up to The Alliance Code of Conduct (Alliance Code of Conduct) which sets the standard of conduct for the independent marketing community. It’s a code of honour, integrity, and creativity, in addition to all statutory legal and self-regulatory business requirements. It stands as an agreement between jellybean, the Alliance, our employees, clients, and customers.
- jellybean has for over 37 years behaved in a financially responsible manner putting the security and welfare of our staff at the forefront of how we operate
- We treat suppliers as we would want to be treated as partners with respect, courtesy and prompt payment
- Our annual accounts have been posted for the past 37 years and tax paid as per UK HMRC
- All employee salaries are annually benchmarked in the industry against peer agencies of a comparable size, geographical location and field of expertise
- Executives are remunerated in line with industry benchmarks for salary and benefits and we have no fat cats (the top salary is no more than 2X the average at the agency and appx 4X the lowest paid employee).
- Under an EOT we operate a tax-free bonus scheme for all employees based on overall company performance and achievement of KPIs
- We have processes and policies in place to prevent any breaches of GDPR, confidentiality, corruption, or bribery
- The leadership team at jellybean represents all operating divisions and all disciplines and everyone has been appointed on merit to represent the team and the business
- In 2025 we appointed an NED to provide independent expertise and advice on financial, legal and commercial matters and to give the business a wider perspective and understanding of different business models and operations.