Human after all

What Sanofi is doing to lead the way on attaining human health

‘Human health’ – the World Health Organization defines health as ‘a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.’

As an innovative global healthcare company, at Sanofi we strive to prevent illness while also providing potentially life-changing treatments.

In the UK, we stand by the 3.5 million people who will experience a rare disease during their lifetime and the 19 million who currently live with a long-term health condition. Working to reduce the impact of rare and chronic disease is our bread and butter. But, what about the ‘complete physical, mental and social well-being of people’?

Well, over the last year, we have been asking ourselves this question and, in our company and in the community, we have focused on two core elements of this wider concept of human health. Specifically, inclusion and sustainability.

There is a powerful connection between inclusion and well-being. We are wired for positive social connections to shape our sense of identity, and since we spend most of our waking hours working, it makes inclusion in this setting even more critical.

As leaders, we can make others feel seen, heard and valued through how we role-model diversity and inclusion and how we reinforce signs of belonging. Taking the time to appreciate our diverse workforce is of great importance as it naturally drives greater innovation, increases productivity and fosters creativity.

Sanofi’s Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) strategy, which covers age, disability, gender, sexuality and ethnicity, places our ambition to reflect the diversity of our communities and the patients we serve, at its core. Our strategy is built around three key pillars:

With a bold mix of external thought leaders, executives and employees, we ensure our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) strategy is executed and progress on our 2025 targets is monitored in order to accelerate our impact in this space. Indeed, our DE&I Board is the first-of-its-kind in pharma, bringing in experienced external advisers to shape our strategy.

Led by employees, our five UK Employee Resource Groups (ERG) groups – Gender+, Generations+, Pride+, Ability+, and Culture and Origins+, support the members’ professional and personal growth and cultivate a sense of belonging.

The UK & Ireland Country Council takes inclusion a step further with its own Shadow Board, which gives those at the start of their careers a chance to mirror members of our leadership team – the Country Council – to input into our strategic decisions and initiatives.

With the Government’s ‘Disability Confident’ employer scheme, we take action to improve how we recruit, retain and develop disabled people at Sanofi. And by working with organisations like G-Work, we are also looking to understand how we can better represent, engage, and recruit LGBTQ+ professionals to diversify our talent pool.

We evolve our work environment to meet our employees’ physical and mental health needs. From remote working to flexible working patterns, from rooms catering to well-being to hybrid working, we embrace different ways of working and nurture a culture where everyone feels that they belong.

By positively impacting the society in which we live, we engage with and advocate for our diverse communities.

Our apprenticeships provide opportunities for people to join Sanofi at an early stage in their career, developing valuable skills and experience in the pharmaceutical industry. With socioeconomic status often a key barrier to inclusion, we strive to attract candidates from a range of backgrounds, supporting their development and enabling greater social mobility.

In the community, as well as joining the London Pride parade, we are proud sponsors of Reading Pride and have supported marginalised communities through our volunteering schemes.

A recent example of this is when our teams took to the streets of London in the lead up to Christmas to support Refuge Network, a humanitarian NGO. They spent an afternoon preparing and distributing meals. Just one example of Sanofians giving back to those who really need the help.

We know that for people to be healthy, we need a healthy planet and – by protecting our planet – we’re protecting life. That’s why, at Sanofi, sustainability is a vital part of ensuring our healthcare system will be fit for the future. As they say, there is no Planet B.

Climate change threatens human health and well-being in so many ways, including impacts from increased extreme weather events, wildfires, decreased air quality and illnesses transmitted by food, water and disease carriers.

Healthcare systems are responsible for 4-5% of total global net emissions, equating to 2.4 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. That’s why it’s so important that we are responding to the impacts of the climate crisis.

Our key initiatives include:

Planet Care – minimising our environmental impact across the entire life cycle of our products from the raw materials that make them, to their use and eventual disposal by patients.

We Mean Green – implementing our sustainability roadmap and driving sustainable projects as we monitor and reduce our environmental footprint.

Within the company, we’re also working hard to make measurable changes – from using 100% renewable energy in our UK office, to going paper-free by default, reducing energy consumption, optimising waste management, cycling to work, and cleaning and creating green spaces for wildlife within the community.

Sanofi’s commitment to protecting the environment is non-negotiable and we’ve put sustainability at the heart of everything we’re doing, including committing to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2045.

I am proud to say that Sanofi has been recognised as one of the most sustainability-committed companies in an Environment, Social and Governance Evaluation, and ranked number one in the European pharmaceutical sector – but we know there’s still a lot more to do.

I’m hugely heartened by our progress so far – we’re listening and we’re changing. We’re working hard to ensure that our employees, the communities we work in and the planet are in good health – now and in the future.

Jessamy Baird is Country Lead at Sanofi UK & Ireland. Go to sanofi.co.uk