Corporate responsibility is an essential element of our culture and underpins our enduring principles of service, expertise and integrity.
This report has been created in response to interactions with key stakeholder groups. Each stakeholder group is expected to use this report to gauge Northern Trust’s progress on achieving our goals pertaining to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) matters. This report has been prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards: Core option.
This report is based on information obtained, created and compiled for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, unless otherwise stated. Our previous report was for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019. The boundary of this report includes 100 percent of our leased and owned offices and 100 percent of our workforce in all global regions in which we operate. No joint ventures or other entities are included unless otherwise noted. There are no restatements from prior years and no significant changes in size, structure, supply chain or ownership from previous reporting periods.
In response to COVID-19, we adjusted our operations by enacting business continuity plans through which the vast majority of our workforce were working from home. We deployed monitors, laptops and power packs to employees, transitioned client events to online venues and employed virtual internal meetings.
Northern Trust actively engages in dialogue with our stakeholders, including clients, employees, shareholders, communities, regulators and suppliers.
These stakeholder groups are determined based on our business strategy of serving corporations, institutions and individuals worldwide. Each stakeholder group informs our reputation, policies and best practices. We believe it is imperative to consult regularly with these groups through periodic meetings, electronic communication, conferences and other platforms. Through these interactions, we receive suggestions and concerns related to our business practices.
The report provides details on the material aspects and topics that reflect economic, environmental and social impacts relevant to our business. In 2020, we conducted a review of our materiality assessment. Our new strategy reflecting such assessment will be described in our 2021 CSR report.
