Qantas 2013 Annual Report Download - page 68

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Corporate Governance Statement continued
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2013
Appointment and Re-Election of Directors
When appointing new Directors, the Board and its Nominations
Committee look to ensure that an appropriate balance of skills,
experience, expertise and diversity is maintained. External
consultants are engaged to assist with the selection process
as necessary and each Board Member has the opportunity
to meet with the nominated Director.
Directors receive formal letters of appointment setting out the
key terms, conditions and expectations of their appointment.
Directors submitting themselves for re-election at a general
meeting are reviewed by the Nominations Committee. Directors
are re-elected in accordance with the Qantas Constitution and
the ASX Listing Rules.
Diversity
Qantas takes a holistic approach to diversity and is committed
to a diverse and inclusive workplace. A diverse workforce
supports Qantas business objectives and delivers competitive
advantages and benets to customers. Diversity is promoted
at Qantas through leadership, talent and development
programs, exible work arrangements and recruitment and
selection processes. Qantas has established a Diversity
Statement which is available in the Corporate Governance
section on the Qantas website.
The following diversity-related measurable objectives
supporting gender diversity have been endorsed by the
Nominations Committee:
»Leadership – establish a Group Diversity Council, to be
chaired by a member of Executive Management
»Management Representation – senior executives targets of:
— 35 per cent women by 2015
— 40 per cent women by 2018
The progress against the objectives from the 2012/2013 annual
review is detailed below:
»Group Diversity Council – Qantas established its Diversity
Council in 2012. The Diversity Council is chaired by the Chief
Executive Ofcer – Qantas Domestic and has a membership
of 10 Senior Executives. The Diversity Council meets regularly
and has a strategic focus on, among other things, achieving
gender diversity targets and supporting the careers,
engagement and experience of women at Qantas. During
2012/2013, the Council oversaw a number of initiatives, one
of which was the incorporation of key diversity principles into
Qantas’ recruitment policy. Other initiatives include:
— introducing a supportive parental leave scheme for
women
in executive positions to increase retention and
engagement
— outlining the necessary experiences needed to accelerate
women into executive positions
— rolling out unconscious bias awareness training
»Senior Executive target of:
Targets 2012 2013
35% women by 2015 31.5% 31.3%
Qantas continues to report diversity statistics, including the
following gender-related statistics, in the Sustainability Statistics
and Notes on page 171:
»the percentage of women employees in the whole
organisation
»the percentage of women in Senior Executive positions
»the percentage of women on the Board of Directors
»the percentage of female graduates recruited
Induction and Continuing Development of Directors
A formal induction program is available to new Directors to
ensure they have a working knowledge of Qantas (including
its culture and values) and the aviation industry. Directors
have open access to all relevant information, including
discussions with Management and subject matter experts, and
visits to operations. Directors may meet independently with
Management at any time to discuss areas of interest or concern.
Review of Board Performance
The Board undertakes an annual review of its performance,
and that of its Committees, and periodically engages the
assistance of external consultants to facilitate formal Board
performance reviews.
During 2012/2013, the Board undertook an external performance
review, which included a series of interviews with Directors and
a Board discussion.
The Board will undertake an internal review in 2013/2014.
In addition, the Board continually assesses its performance and
the Chairman discusses performance with each Director during
the year.
THE BOARD PROMOTES ETHICAL AND RESPONSIBLE
DECISIONMAKING
The Board has established a corporate governance framework,
comprising of Non-Negotiable Business Principles (Principles)
and Group Policies, which forms the foundation for the way
inwhich the Qantas Group undertakes business.
The Board has a formal code of conduct, the Qantas
Group Code of Conduct and Ethics, which sets out Qantas’
expectations in a number of areas including:
»compliance with laws, regulations and ethical standards
»continuous disclosure
»share trading
»political donations and prohibited payments
»compliance with competition laws
»giving or receiving gifts
»conicts of interest
»accounting records and retention of records
»dealing with auditors
»making public statements about the Qantas Group
»use of condential information
»treating people with respect
»the whistleblower process
»privacy
»equal employment opportunity