By Dinesh Paliwal, President and Chief Executive Officer of HARMAN

April is recognized as Earth Month, and Earth Day is celebrated worldwide on April 22nd. Like all appointments on our calendar, these milestones are important reminders to take action for individuals and businesses alike.

However, keeping our planet healthy is a year-round commitment that requires constant, unified efforts.

At HARMAN, we take this responsibility very seriously. There are three key qualities we strive for as an organization: to be ethical, sustainable and accountable in all that we do. I’m honored to share some of the recent progress we’ve made in these areas with the launch of HARMAN’s 2018 Sustainability Report. The Report balances our business goals with our community and environmental contributions, illustrated by its theme of Values & Velocity.

Highlights from the Report include:

  • Culture & Inclusivity: Social responsibility is deeply embedded in HARMAN’s DNA, and it’s our people who bring these values to life. Eighty percent of HARMAN’s global manufacturing workforce participated in formal health and safety committees last year. HARMAN has also made great progress in the areas of diversity and gender parity. The global expansion of the HARMAN Women’s Network, the inaugural Women’s Leadership Summit and unconscious bias workshops have been instrumental in creating awareness around these critical issues and in driving meaningful results. Today, women hold top ranking positions within the company in Finance, Legal, Compliance, Strategy, Talent and Intellectual Property.

  • Carbon Footprint Reduction: HARMAN is meeting aggressive goals in reducing our carbon footprint. Last year, we achieved 10% energy reduction across our sites globally, and we will continue to challenge ourselves to improve.

  • Sustainable Products: HARMAN innovations help others drive change. In our Professional Solutions business, for instance, we have developed and deployed energy-saving technologies that enable sports stadiums and performance venues to conserve significant amounts of power.

  • Purposeful Partnerships: By fostering lasting relationships with local schools and universities, nonprofit organizations and community-focused initiatives, we aim to inspire the next generation of leaders to realize their potential through the power of education, particularly within STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) fields. In 2018, HARMAN funded scholarships to empower women to pursue careers in esports and gaming through our partnership with the 1,000 Dreams Fund, a national non-profit that provides micro-grants supporting the dreams of talented young women. We donated music equipment to schools in under-served communities with the help of organizations committed to music education like Little Kids Rock and GRAMMY Music Education Coalition. In addition, we supported students in their vision to reshape the future of transportation with partners like the University of Michigan’s Hyperloop program.

HARMAN has earned multiple awards and recognitions for using sustainable practices to benefit our operations, employees, the environment and the communities where we operate. Most recently, HARMAN was honored as part of the Business Roundtable’s #EmbracingSustainability initiative in a video describing our ongoing commitment to community, corporate citizenship and environmental stewardship.

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HARMAN has achieved great successes as a global citizen, but we also recognize that our work towards creating a more environmentally and economically sustainable future is never complete. Driving sustainability is an ongoing challenge that requires continuous collaboration. Together, we can inspire each other and continue to connect with our communities on a deeper level, cultivate collaboration and elevate the way we relate to the world. Join HARMAN in our pledge to make a difference.

 

To read the full 2018 Sustainability Report and for more information on HARMAN’s commitment to global purpose and sustainability, please visit https://www.harman.com/sustainability.