Sustainability strategy

At Sonova, it has always been our mission to have a positive effect on our consumers’ lives. We aspire just as much to have a positive effect on our society and the environment. Therefore, we consider environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles as integral to the way we do business.

Stakeholder engagement

Continuous engagement with stakeholders allows us to better understand their needs and expectations concerning our business activities, products and services, as well as sustainability initiatives and projects. Stakeholder engagement is vital for Sonova's long-term performance and regular interactions provide us with meaningful insights. We review the outcomes of stakeholder engagements and incorporate them into our operational and strategic decisions. We have defined seven key groups of stakeholders:

• Employees
• Consumers
• Customers and insurers
• Suppliers
• Shareholders and financial communities
• Academia and opinion leaders
• Regulators

Additional stakeholders that are important to Sonova are: the media, competitors, community representatives and NGOs.

Double materiality assessment

In the 2023/24 financial year, Sonova transitioned from a single materiality assessment to a double materiality assessment. Engaging more than 100 internal and external stakeholders, we gathered insights about our actual and potential impact on the environment and on society (impact materiality), as well as about how our financial performance is, or could be, affected by sustainability issues (financial materiality). 

The 2024/25 DMA builds on the previous year's efforts and results and includes an in-depth assessment of the positive and negative impacts that Sonova has, or could have, on society and the environment, and the sustainability-related risks and opportunities the company faces.

In the 2024/25 financial year, we conducted the DMA by completing the following steps:

1. List compilation
2. Identification of impacts, risks, and opportunities (IROs)
3. Internal stakeholder consultation and assessment of IROs
4. Materiality calculation and expert calibration

The assessment resulted in eight key material topics and are mapped within the value chain as follows:

IntACT - Sonova's ESG Strategy

With our hearing solutions we improve the lives of millions of people. Beyond serving our consumers, we aspire to create benefits for the economy, the environment, and society as a whole. Sonova’s ESG commitments are formalized within IntACT – our ESG strategy. The name IntACT emphasizes the ultimate goal – keeping our planet and people intact – and underlines the urgent need to ACT.

• Protecting the planet: We drive the transition to a resource-efficient and low-carbon future of our operations throughout the life cycle of our products and services.
• Serving society: We constantly innovate in hearing health care, improve access for people in under-served areas, and engage actively with our communities.
• Advancing our people: We foster our employees’ development, wellbeing and engagement in an inclusive work environment that embraces diversity.
• Acting with integrity: We behave ethically and apply the highest quality and safety standards to everything we do.

Our ESG Report 2024/25 is organized according to these areas.

ESG Governance

Sonova has a defined governance structure for managing, improving, and reporting on our ESG performance. The ESG governance structure involves our shareholders at the Annual General Meeting, the Board of Directors, the Management Board and ESG Council, the Corporate Sustainability team, topic managers and experts as well as local Group company representatives. The ESG Council oversees and further develops the Group’s ESG strategy, including its commitments and targets. The Council also monitors progress on key performance indicators and initiatives. It meets at least quarterly and consists of the Group CEO, CFO, GVP Operations, GVP Human Resources Management & Communications, Group General Counsel, and VP Sustainability & Infrastructure. Progress on ESG targets is also regularly reviewed by the full Management Board and is an element of each member’s variable compensation. The Board of Directors approves the ESG strategy, initiatives, and targets and receives monthly updates.