Our approach to sustainability
Journeo remains committed to being a responsible member of the corporate community and, over the last two years, we have been working to formalise our approach to sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics. In previous annual reports, we have shown how we identified our key topics through a materiality assessment process that involved discussions with internal and external stakeholders.
Following the materiality assessment, we prioritised the subject areas that are the most important to Journeo, defining the categories where we aim to lead within our sector and themes that we will proactively manage and monitor. There is a strong alignment between our lead material topics and our core business strategy – customer bonding, engineering excellence and technology leadership.
Through a baseline review process, we have assessed our existing systems, processes, policies and management systems relating to our material topics. In many cases, our existing ISO certifications for
environmental management (ISO 14001), quality management (ISO 9001), information security (ISO 27001), and health and safety (ISO 45001) give us a solid platform from which to manage and progress our sustainability journey.
However, the baseline review also identified gaps in our approach and opportunities for further development. This included areas where we felt investing in additional expertise within the business was appropriate. To support this, we engaged in a recruitment process to build upon the knowledge already held within the Group, including that within our recently acquired businesses of Infotec and MultiQ.
Additionally, the expansion of the Group has delivered challenges that have meant that we are yet to attain the sustainability reporting position that we wish to achieve. For example, we initiated a customer satisfaction survey to gain valuable insights into how our customers value the services we provide and identify areas that we can improve. We asked customers whether they would recommend us to others which formed the basis of a Net Promoter Score. Whilst this was done and returned a positive score,
it is no longer representative of the wider Group, focusing only on the customers from our Passenger Systems and Fleet Systems’ businesses.
Further, the creation of a Carbon Reduction plan is ongoing as we seek to collate data from the recently acquired additions to our operations.
We remain, however, committed to progressing our approach to sustainability and have made significant progress in our Lead topics. We are pleased to share with you a few recent examples of the developments being made across the business.
Progress in 2023
Innovation and product responsibility
Journeo is a technology group whose products and services enable our customers to efficiently and effectively run their vehicle fleets, transport networks and passenger information systems. Central UK Government investment in recent years has supported the drive to deliver improved public transport and make it a viable de facto choice for people, ahead of their personal use cars, to reduce carbon emissions and contribute to more sustainable societies. Two pillars of our core business strategy are technology leadership and engineering excellence; responsible product innovation is a key part of these. Furthermore, one of the reasons why both Infotec and MultiQ were chosen as acquisitions was their close alignment with our customer-centric approach to product and solution development.
Following the recent acquisitions, we have been creating a consolidated platform on which to operate our systems responsibly across our business, with initial efforts focusing on display signage and associated innovation. This is an ongoing process, but will deliver efficiencies throughout the business, including consolidation of our supply chains and a common operating platform across our technologies.
In parallel with this, we have also been working closely with industry bodies such as the Real Time Information Group (RTIG) to assist in the development and implementation of their new Content Management System (CMS) to Passenger Information Display (PID) open standard. Designed to open competition related to the implementation and servicing of displays, we have embraced the change in the market and are working to lead the implementation of the standard. Bench testing has proven successful and our first implementations, which are also the first of any supplier, will be deployed throughout 2024.
Cyber security also remains an important area of focus for Journeo. Geopolitical developments over the last two years have increased the risk landscape for cyber threats and require constant vigilance. As hackers and cyber criminals continue to develop and evolve their techniques Journeo ensures that it is able to respond in a rapid and agile way to keep our systems, and the data they store, secure. In addition to our secure-by-design approach, we maintain certification to ISO 27001 and regularly assess our systems for weaknesses, through a strict regimen of Penetration Testing and Vulnerability Scanning, conducted by expert third parties. Journeo is also accredited to the UK Government-backed Cyber Essentials scheme.
Energy use and carbon emissions/low carbon products
Tackling the challenge of climate change and accelerating the shift to a net-zero economy requires technology-driven solutions alongside behavioural change. Transport and personal mobility remains a key area of focus for Journeo. It is widely acknowledged that to encourage a change in behaviour to get people out of personal cars and into public transport, requires services to run smooth and efficiently, with high levels of passenger satisfaction. Through the systems and solutions that Journeo create, we are enabling our customers to deliver better, more connected services, reliant on lower carbon infrastructure solutions.
We commit significant investment into our product innovation, including reducing the power consumption of our hardware. In last year’s Annual Report, we highlighted our low-power, optically-bonded displays. We continue to deliver an ever-greater number of low-power displays to our customers as we install new hardware and replace legacy systems. Further, over the course of 2023, we saw increasing demand for our ultra-low power and solar-powered solutions, resulting in a 176% increase in sales and delivery of our E-ink displays.
We are placing increased focus on the development of low-powered technology to support our customers as they seek to deliver the same high level of customer information, at a lower environmental cost and we look forward to providing further updates in future reports.
Health, safety and wellbeing
Without an understanding of how our employees feel about working for Journeo, we will not be able to improve the workplace environment we offer them. Engaged and motivated employees are the lifeblood of
effective organisations, and our aim is to offer a workplace where employees are satisfied, supported and able to progress effectively.
One significant development in this last year has been the appointment of Bex Hodds in May 2023 as Human Resources Manager. Bex’s core remit is to invest in and activate strategies related to employee health, safety and wellbeing; an aim not previously possible through our third-party advisers and organisational structure. We already see this appointment paying dividends for our employees as Bex is spearheading a number of significant initiatives.
“The foundations we have laid throughout 2023 to implement new systems that will track and support employee wellbeing are designed to underpin our aim of ensuring that Journeo remains a dynamic, challenging and enjoyable place to work, enabling us to continue to attract and retain the best talent available.”
Bex Hodds,
Human Resources Manager
For example, throughout the course of 2023, the groundwork was laid for the launch of a new employee assistance programme called ‘Wisdom’, which was officially launched in January 2024. Wisdom is a web- based system that provides a range of wellbeing tools and advice for employees designed to support their mental and physical wellbeing. Wisdom is available to all Journeo employees, covering our Fleet and Passenger systems businesses, Infotec, and our most recent colleagues in Denmark.
Following a successful launch, the system is being promoted by line managers within their teams across the business and through virtual ‘toolbox talks’, especially for employees who regularly work remotely. Wisdom not only provides a hub for information and support resources, it also allows up to eight one-to-one counselling sessions each year for employees who may be facing personal or work-related difficulties.
Early feedback suggests employees are positive about the launch of Wisdom and we expect to be able to collect anonymised usage data over the course of the year. An indirect benefit of launching the system is that conversations on wellbeing are happening at an individual level between employees, managers and the HR team, demonstrating greater evidence of our strong commitment to health, safety and wellbeing.
Throughout 2023 we also reviewed a range of centralised human resources software systems and have selected a solution that will be rolled out in 2024. The new software system will provide a single source of
information on our workforce with an at-a-glance view of our employee metrics, further supporting our efforts to track and enhance employee wellbeing.
If you would like to learn more about our progress please contact esg@journeo.com