Rhonda Zygocki is responsible for Chevron's global government relations, internal and external communications, and initiatives to enhance Chevron's reputation.
Rhonda Zygocki is vice president of Policy, Government and Public Affairs for Chevron.
How has corporate responsibility evolved at Chevron in the six years that the company has published its report?
Within our company, supplying energy responsibly is at the heart of our value system — The Chevron Way. Reporting on our corporate responsibility (CR) activities allows us to share the many ways we bring those values to life in our business. It is also a great way for employees to see the strong connection between their ongoing work and our CR objectives. Over the six years we have been reporting our CR successes, challenges and aspirations, I see two important trends. Internally, we are increasingly integrating action on CR issues into core business processes. For example, our recently implemented Environmental, Social and Health Impact Assessment process is being applied to capital projects to address multiple CR areas. Externally, energy security is receiving greater attention from governments, businesses, nongovernmental organizations and communities. There is growing consensus that secure energy supplies and environmental and socioeconomic performance are interdependent and must be addressed together through partnership and collaboration. We couldn't agree more.
How has the CR Report changed to respond to these and other developments?
I think the report is more responsive to stakeholder interests. It has consistently reported on both ongoing work and new initiatives across a range of core CR issues as well as how all of these actions are integrated into the business. This is the fourth year we've included a summary table in the report that compares our intentions with our achievements. This format is an effective way to communicate our commitment to operating responsibly and show measured progress. In response to stakeholder feedback, we engaged Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance to verify our process for collecting health, environmental and safety data. And the report evolves in step with the issues. We have reported annually on our climate change-related actions in our operations. In 2007, we also shared our principles for sound climate policy, which is a topic of current debate. This year, we share our views on energy security, and as you read our sixth report, the theme of partnership and collaboration will be clearly evident.
How does Chevron's commitment to operating in a responsible manner reflect how the company is engaging stakeholders and the public?
We believe energy is one of the critical issues of our time. There is unprecedented interest by governments, nongovernmental organizations, communities and the public in energy development. More than ever before, proactively engaging our stakeholders is integral to our success. Extensive stakeholder engagement is built into our processes for major capital projects, and community awareness and outreach are core elements of our Operational Excellence Management System. These engagements connect people — face to face — to build trust so that health, environmental and safety aspects of our operations and new energy developments will be managed in a responsible way. Recognizing the importance of stakeholder engagement, we have invested in tools and training to increase our effectiveness. Recognizing the importance of energy, we have also invested in innovative public awareness campaigns to foster dialogue on energy issues among people from around the world. As a responsible operator, we are extending engagement beyond our facilities to the issues of global energy delivery.