2022 Winner: Coutts & Co, Positive Social & Sustainable Impact Award

Coutts’ goal is to create a workplace where all are welcome. One of the first actions of CEO, Peter Flavel, was to appoint a dedicated person to focus on culture, engagement, diversity and inclusion with the role reporting directly to the CEO. This was an important step to demonstrate how serious Coutts was about improvement. The Coutts Culture Plan is underpinned by three important pillars: The People Council, the Diversity & Inclusion Council and a wider employee survey. The People Council (PC) acts as the voice of all colleagues in shaping the culture of the workplace and provides feedback to the Executive Committee and the Coutts Board. The bank established a Diversity and Inclusion Council, chaired by the CEO, and formulated a comprehensive plan of action.

As an integral part of obtaining B Corp status, D&I values are embedded in policies and procedures – for example, recruiters complete inclusive interview training; Interview Ambassadors help bring diversity of thought to interviews; and colleagues can anonymously raise concerns via the Whistleblowing service. Every single senior leader has a personal objective in their performance goals to improve diversity in their area and strengthen the female talent pipeline. As part of NatWest Group, Coutts & Co are signatories to HM Treasury’s Women in Finance Charter and are signatories to the UK Government’s Race at Work Charter.

Coutts’ Employee Led Networks (ELNs) are made up of colleagues who volunteer to play a key role in delivering, raising awareness and influencing the bank-wide inclusion strategy. Members of the senior leadership team act as ambassadors to the ELNs to provide support and to promote key messages.

Twice a year, the bank conducts extensive surveys that give all employees an opportunity to – anonymously – have their say on what it’s like to work at Coutts. Key measures such as engagement, leadership and inclusion are all up by 20%+ over the last 5 years. All feedback is factored into the Board and management decisions.

As a certified B Corp organisation, Coutts amended its articles of association to require the Board of Directors to ensure the bank always balances profit and purpose, supporting core principles around the environment, society and governance (ESG).

In response to the female entrepreneurship review commissioned by HM Treasury and led by Alison Rose, CEO of NatWest Group, Coutts established the UK Enterprise Fund (UKEF) with BGF (formerly the Business Growth Fund) to give women better access to capital. The first fund (UKEF1) closed in September 2021, raising £41.5 million from 100 investors. 22.1% of total BGF investment in UKEF1 portfolio companies is in female-led businesses. This is above the standard for the industry, but further progress is expected in the future.

B Corp certification not only provides independent recognition of a responsible approach to managing clients’ wealth and the positive impact the bank is having on society but is now an integral part of Coutts ethos. Coutts actively encourages clients, peers within finance and the companies the bank invests in to take the online B Impact Assessment to benchmark their organisations and help them to become more sustainable.

Keen to support others in transitioning into being more sustainable and to consider all stakeholders, since certification in July 2021, Coutts has engaged with more than 75 clients and twelve suppliers about achieving B Corp status. In addition, Coutts has worked with NatWest’s Purpose-led Accelerator to support 130 entrepreneurs and business leaders by providing a deep dive on the B Corp certification journey.

Coutts’ ‘B-Keepers’ ensure that the bank will never rest on its laurels. Their overarching purpose is to be the ‘conscience’ of the business; identifying opportunities to improve B Corp scores year-on-year and identifying areas where points could be lost. Working with oversight from the Sustainability Team and the Executive Committee, they work in partnership with other areas of the businesses to factor in B Corp scoring into the work they’re delivering.