Sopra Group recognises the responsibilities we have to our employees, our customers, our suppliers, the communities to which we belong and the environment as a whole.

• Our Business Values
• Our Employees & Potential Employees
• Industry Leadership
• Environment & Sustainable Development
• Charities
  

With a global delivery capability and an extensive presence in European and International markets, backed by the excellence and commitment of our staff, our business is about helping our Customers to obtain best value from their Information Technology investments.  We aim to be an Employer of Choice, to make a positive contribution to our local communities and, where possible, to minimise our impact on the environment.

Our Business is driven by the following principles, our standards of conduct, which govern the way we work with each other and with our customers:

• The Company's Reputation is Sacrosanct
  We behave with absolute integrity, honesty and fairness in everything we do.
• Customer Satisfaction is Paramount
  We aim to deliver solutions of the highest quality and to achieve consistently satisfied and delighted customers, whatever the challenges.
• Strong Leadership Drives Continued Success
  We believe that the quality of our leaders today and the development of our leaders for tomorrow are essential to sustaining our competitive advantage.  We promote teamwork, trust our colleagues and value good performance.
• Our Staff Are Our Most Valuable Asset
  Our ambition is to bring together enterprising men and women, who enrich each other's business skills and technological expertise and take genuine pride in being part of our company, in order to better meet our customers' needs.  Originality, creativity, commitment, professionalism and performance are the fundamental values informing every aspect of our work.

We incorporate elements of our Business Values and Visions into internal processes such as interviews and performance reviews, ensuring that they are the backbone of the organisation.

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Sopra Group very much wishes to be recognised as an 'Employer of Choice'.  We are an Investor In People but wish to go beyond the scope of the accreditation.  We have an internal working group in place to drive forward a business change programme called Growth Through People (GTP).  This is headed by the CEO and focuses on making Sopra Group a better place to work.  Key objectives of GTP are simple - to keep people happy and motivated by ensuring they are well managed and can see real career development prospects.

Training

We actively encourage and support staff through training as we see the benefit for us, our clients and our employees.  We incentivise staff for certain types of training, such as technology Certification, providing courses and materials, but also rewarding them for successful completion.

We also run in-house Academies to retrain existing staff in new skills or train people from outwith the industry.  Some of these Academies run for a number of weeks and see staff leave the course with ISEB or equivalent qualifications.

Our graduate programme also sees us take students in on summer placements as well as on our fully fledged graduate training programme once they have left university.

Health & Safety

We have a responsibility to each of our employees to create a safe and healthy environment in which to work.  Our people are our most important asset and, with that in mind, we have developed a comprehensive Health & Safety (H&S) Policy and procedures.

The objectives of the policy are to:

• Promote a high standard of safety practice within a healthy working environment
• Put in place effective arrangements and subsequent monitoring which allow safe and efficient working, and record and encourage compliance
• Ensure that all staff at all levels accept that Health and Safety is a major part of their individual responsibilities and is good business practice
• Ensure that Sopra Group implements all legal obligations in a reasonable and practical manner.

Communication

We believe in open and honest communication throughout the organisation, with clear lines of escalation.  To help ensure consistent communication across the organisation we have a yearly communications plan that includes regular staff newsletters and briefings.

Recruitment

We are an equal opportunities employer and only employ people based on merit.

Rights

We respect our staff and expect all employees to treat each other, clients, suppliers and partners with dignity; we do not tolerate harassment, discrimination or bullying of any type within the workplace and have policies in place that manage and address any issues of this type.

We have clear career paths and job role profiles that are in line with the rest of the industry, in terms of both remuneration, working hours and responsibilities.

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Sopra Group (UK) is a UK-wide business as it is important to be represented at a national level within the IT Industry.  We are involved with a number of trade bodies including Intellect, Scotland IS and the BCS.  Sopra Group is represented on the Board of all three of these associations, which represent the UK's IT industry.  These associations are able to lobby effectively and ensure the importance of the ICT industry to the UK economy is recognised at all levels in Government.  As one of the UK's leading IT companies, we are committed to being at the forefront of industry developments, and we commit time and resources to the industry as a whole.

In addition to the trade bodies we also support initiatives such as e-skills uk and Computer Clubs for Girls.

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We define sustainable development as:

• Maintenance of stable and increasing levels of growth and employment
• Social progress which recognises the needs of everyone
• Protection of the environment
• Prudent use of resources.

The Board of Sopra Group (UK) recognises the importance of maintaining a sustainable approach to business development and that concern for the environment and quality of life is an integral and fundamental part of the way that the company conducts its business.  Sopra Group recognises that it has responsibilities to the community and to the environment and we aim to take positive steps to address the environmental and social impacts of our business operations.

The company supports the principles of sustainable development.  We manage risks effectively and seek to realise the opportunities arising from proactive management of our environmental, economic and social responsibilities, to create long-term business value.  We have a comprehensive policy in place, and responsibilities for Environmental & Sustainable development are owned by our Operations Director and are delegated to Corporate Services Managers and local Office Managers.

Some of the actions that have been put into place following the adoption of our Environmental and Sustainable Development Policy include:

• Ensuring that lights, computers and other equipment are switched off  when not in use
• Printing only when necessary and setting duplex as the default for printers to minimise paper consumption
• Encouraging the use of public transport through the provision of interest-free travel loans
• Creating a Cycle-to-Work scheme 
• Extending recycling facilities for our offices
• Organising a car share scheme so staff can travel to work together
• Installing video conferencing facilities in many of our offices to cut down on the necessity to travel
• Reviewing our supply chain carefully when procuring products of any type to help ensure our sources are ethically sound
• Buying Fairtrade products.

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We support charities in a number of ways.  We support staff participation in local or community-based charitable events through a staff managed charitable fund.  This can include paying for entry fees, matching sponsorship raised or indeed just a donation.

Sopra Group also supports Children In Need and Jeans For Genes Day every year.  Each office participates in both of these days by organising local fundraising initiatives.

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