OUR ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS
Stakeholder engagement remains vital to building a sustainable business and we interact with many stakeholders at different levels of the Group. Engagement is carried out by those most relevant to the stakeholder group or issue. The table below identifies some of our stakeholders and how we engage with them.
Our operating businesses
Suppliers Why it is important to engage Our external supply chain and our suppliers are critical to our performance. We engage with our suppliers to build trusting relationships from which we can mutually benefit and to ensure that they are performing to our standards and conducting business to our expectations. Stakeholder key interests ■ Quality management ■ Cost-efficiency ■ Long-term relationships ■ Responsible procurement, trust and ethics
Global communities Why it is important to engage We support communities and groups local and relevant to our operations and consider the environmental and social impacts of our operations.
Why it is important to engage We operate a decentralised model where our operating businesses are empowered to innovate and grow, and decision- making takes place on the front line and close to customers. Our businesses are key stakeholders of the Group and are vital for our growth strategy. Stakeholder key interests ■ Operational and financial performance ■ International expansion ■ Capital investment ■ Collaboration ■ Strategic guidance ■ Resources and support Ways we engage ■ Quarterly business reviews ■ Regular site visits and management meetings ■ Operating business management forums ■ Support in specialist areas, such as tax, legal and commercial, M&A, and ESG ■ Knowledge-sharing webinars ■ Internal audit and compliance ■ Internal conferences
Our people Why it is important to engage Employee engagement is critical to our success. We work to create a diverse and inclusive workplace where employees can reach their full potential. Engaging with our employees ensures we can retain and develop the best talent. Please see pages 92 to 95 for more information on employee engagement. Stakeholder key interests ■ Health and safety ■ Remuneration and benefits ■ Career opportunities ■ Employee engagement ■ Training and development
Customers
Shareholders Why it is important to engage We engage with Shareholders to understand their requirements and generate returns and value. We ensure that we provide timely disclosures and fair, balanced and understandable information to Shareholders and investment analysts and work to ensure that they have a strong understanding of our strategy, performance, culture and ambition. Stakeholder key interests ■ Growth ■ Financial performance and economic impact ■ Governance and transparency ■ Operating and financial information ■ Confidence in the Group’s leadership ■ Dividend growth ■ Resilience and sustainability Ways we engage ■ Regular market updates ■ Investor presentations ■ 1:1 and group meetings ■ Site visits ■ Corporate website, including dedicated investor section ■ Shareholder consultations ■ Annual reports ■ Annual General Meetings ■ Capital Markets Days ■ Investor conferences and roadshows
Why it is important to engage Understanding the needs of our customers allows us to provide application-specific products, which both add value and differentiate our customers from their competitors. We engage with our customers to build trusting relationships from which we can mutually benefit. Stakeholder key interests ■ Safety, quality, efficiency and reliability ■ Engineering capabilities ■ Technical know-how ■ Competitiveness ■ Our availability and responsiveness
Stakeholder key interests ■ Local operational impact ■ Health and safety ■ Environmental performance ■ Employment
■ Technological advances, including digital solutions ■ Knowledge sharing
Ways we engage ■ Joint customer visits ■ Supplier audits ■ Employee training ■ Regular business reviews ■ Geographical footprint allows smaller suppliers to operate globally
Ways we engage ■ Charitable donations and volunteering ■ Corporate and operating company websites ■ Local environmental initiatives ■ Prioritising local employment
■ Well-being ■ Reputation
■ Relationship ■ Compliance ■ Convenience ■ Range of products
■ Logistics efficiencies ■ Supplier conferences
Ways we engage ■ Employee surveys ■ Regular town hall meetings ■ Board and Group management visits to operating companies ■ Annual performance evaluations ■ Newsletters ■ Employee events ■ Social media ■ Apprenticeship and placement programmes ■ Online learning and development portal ■ Fair pay
Ways we engage ■ Customer visits, telephone calls, engineering visits ■ Participation in industry forums and events ■ Social media and commercial websites ■ Contract negotiation, implementation and management of ongoing relationships ■ Customer audits of our manufacturing facilities ■ Trade shows and exhibitions ■ Distributor conferences ■ Geographical footprint allows us to meet customers in their locations ■ Satisfaction surveys
The Group promotes policies and procedures that consider the interests of the Group’s employees, the need to foster reasonable business relationships with suppliers, customers and others, the impact of the Group’s operations on its workforce, the community and the environment, and the maintenance of high standards of business conduct. Our policies and procedures, including our Stakeholder Engagement Policy, can be found on our Group website https://www.discoverIEplc.com/ sustainability/company-policies and are referred to on page 45 of this Annual Report and Accounts. Day-to-day responsibility for the implementation of policies (other than the Board Diversity Policy) is delegated to the management of discoverIE’s operating businesses, under the supervision of the Group Management Committee. Where appropriate, the Group policies and procedures are supported by the local operating businesses’ policies, all within a framework established by the Board and Group Management Committee, intended to ensure that we operate as a Group to the highest standards. The Group also has due diligence processes in place to support the ongoing assessment and management of risks associated
with both existing and newly acquired companies and the development of relationships with new suppliers. These include site visits by both Executive and Non-Executive management, meetings with customers and suppliers and, where relevant, asking our suppliers to confirm compliance with Group policies. As an international organisation, discoverIE takes account of cultural differences between the various territories in which it operates. discoverIE’s values are essential to how it operates and to the long-term success and growth of the Group. Management considers environmental, social and governance matters in its actions and endeavours to show due respect for human rights and works to high standards of integrity and ethical propriety. discoverIE believes that who we are and how we behave matters not only to our employees but also to the many other stakeholders who have an interest in our business. In the last five years, no disciplinary action has been taken against any person for reporting any whistleblowing issue.
■ Recognition and reward ■ Whistleblowing reports ■ Internal audits
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discoverIE Group plc Innovative Electronics
Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2026
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