Summary

Corporate social responsibility is key to the Office Gold strategy of growing the business. It attracts talented staff and retains our customers. Office Gold will continue to push the attributes of our CSR which will serve to help customers, employees and the environment.

Michael Loftos, CEO, Office Gold.

Environment

Office Gold is an ISO 14001 Accredited company. Our Operations Director has responsibility for all environmental issues within the organisation. Our Environmental Management System is subject to regular auditing and is geared to reducing any harmful environmental effects arising from our business.

We supply our Green catalogue to our customers which comprises of products which are environmentally friendly. The catalogue includes circa 900 products, which have attributes ranging from 50% to 100% recycled materials used, products sourced from sustainable forests and fair trade products. We actively promote this product range to our customers as it is part of our environmental policy.

Our Fleet

Our fleet of vehicles are all maintained by a third party Fleet Management Company. They have responsibility for the servicing schedule of company vans, 7.5 tonne trucks and staff company cars. By keeping our vehicles in good condition it prolongs the efficiency and lowers emissions produced by each vehicle.

We are currently investigating the possibility of converting our current vehicles to run on Bio-diesel which will help to lessen the impact on the environment.

Each of the vehicles is fitted with a satellite navigation system, this reduces the routes taken by the drivers, meaning that vehicles spend less time on the road and consume less fuel.

Office Gold actively encourages staff to travel to work by public transport, bicycles and walking. We have in-house shower rooms to encourage people to take part. A car sharing scheme also operates for the office based members of staff.

Recycling

Office Gold currently recycles over 85% of all waste generated in-house. Our program of waste management is the responsibility of the Operations Director.

We currently re-use packaging boxes that our goods are supplied in. We are also about to switch to recycled cardboard boxes. The boxes will be branded as recycled, thus pushing our environmental commitment.

By rolling out these initiatives, we will reduce packaging waste which ends up in landfill sites.

Management

Office Gold continues to encourage employees to take personal responsibility for their careers. However Line Managers are tasked with providing employee support, training opportunities and direction.

Office Gold recognises that staff are key to the business. With this in mind we continuously promote the objectives and career development of every member of staff. Every member of staff receives a one-to-one appraisal every six months.

Employees

High staff satisfaction and retention are key to our business, to keep up office moral and to keep continuity with customers.

Office Gold employee benefits include good holiday entitlement, Pensions, Life Assurance, Car Allowances and a Career Break Scheme that will give up to 3 months' leave.

Health and Safety

High levels of health and safety practices are driven by Office Gold. We take the well being of staff and visitors to our site very seriously and always practice our procedures to the maximum.

Company Communication

Senior managers have the responsibility of ensuring that employees know the Office Gold plans, business results, changes and developments. All employees are told and understand how their job roles and responsibilities at work contribute to the company's overall results.

Products and Supply chain

Paper Products
We actively source paper products such as white copier paper, fax and till rolls, filing equipment. It is important when sourcing any paper based product that the supplier conforms to the best possible environmental practices. We also look to source from sustainable forests. These forests are essential for the environment and the paper mills that we use recognise this.

Our Paper suppliers produce sustainability reports and have recognised environmental accreditations i.e. FSC, the Nordic Swan or EMAS.

Computer Supplies
We offer our customers a toner recycling service, these collected items are then sent away and used for remanufacturing. Some parts cannot be remanufactured, so the units are stripped down and recycled e.g. the metal parts are melted down and re-used.

Catering
Office Gold supply fair trade tea, coffee and other catering consumables. Fair trade is about 'giving new opportunities to some of the world’s poorest producers' and 'promotes forms of trade that contribute to sustainable development and increased social justice'.

Suppliers
We work closely with our suppliers to continuously look at opportunities where we can improve on the supply chain mechanism.

Charity

Office Gold have a local nominated charity, as well as cash funding we donate stock to local charities. Office Gold also promotes manufacturer offers within our publications; these offers will also include charity donations.

Customer Surveys

On an annual basis Office Gold send out customer satisfaction surveys. We can then measure our success and address areas that may need improvement.