Corporate governance
Iberdrola, at the forefront of best international practices
Our Governance and Sustainability System is inspired by and based upon a commitment to ethical principles, transparency and leadership in the application of the best international practices in good governance and revolves around three main vectors: enviromental, social and corporate governance. It is an organisational instrument for the achievement of our purpose and values of interest and social dividend, and as a guarantee of our project, identity and independence. In a constant process of revision and improvement, we incorporate the main recommendations of the international markets and the most advanced trends in this area. This is one of our hallmarks and makes us an international benchmark of good practice.
An independent and pluralistic board of directors
The board of directors focuses its activity on overseeing the Group's general guidelines and strategy, as well as establishing its corporate policies, some of which are pioneering, such as the Shareholder Engagement Policy.
The following keys define the company's vision of the future, its multinational projection and the establishment of channels for the participation and engagement of the shareholders:
- A Board of Directors under continuous renewal, adapted to the needs raised by the businesses and markets in which the Group does business.
- There are 14 directors of various nationalities and professional profiles, selected based on a broad set of criteria.
- 71 % of the directors are independent.
- It is a leading Ibex 35 company in terms of the presence of women on the Board of Directors, who exceed 40% of its members.
- The first Spanish company and one of the pioneers at the worldwide level in formalising a Shareholder Engagement Policy, which is one of the fundamental pillars of the corporate governance strategy.
- Constructive, ongoing, efficient, and transparent dialog with the shareholders, fostering their engagement and promoting their active participation through various channels, such as the interactive On Line Shareholders (OLS) system and the Shareholders' Club,among others.
- The General Shareholders' Meeting is the company's main participation milestone. The meeting is convened several weeks before it is held and a wide range of channels are deployed so that shareholders can exercise their rights, with the aim of continuing to offer them an innovative, accessible and close meeting. Shareholders can exercise their rights to grant proxies or vote remotely (by telephone, QR code, via WhatsApp, Telegram or post), as well as at the shareholder information desks set up in several locations.
An internationally renowned effort
Our commitment to corporate governance best practices and dedication to sustainability, ethics, fiscal transparency and shareholder engagement has been widely recognised globally.
- We have been selected for the eleventh consecutive year as one of the most ethical companies in the world, according to the 2024 World's Most Ethical Companies ranking prepared by the Ethisphere Institute – a leading organisation in defining standards of good business practices. We remain the only Spanish company in this ranking and one of the eight companies included in the Energy and Utilities category, which also includes its subsidiary Avangrid in the United States.
- For the sixth consecutive year, Iberdrola is once again included in the 2023 Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index, in recognition of our equal opportunity and gender equality policies.
We are the only European utility included in all 24 editions of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. - We are the only European utility included in all editions of the FTS4Good index since 2009, which assesses the performance of companies that demonstrate strong ESG practices. We have been selected in recognition of our equal opportunity and gender equality policies.
- We have been included in the world's most prestigious climate change index, the CDP, with the highest score. We are one of a small number of companies that have achieved an "A" rating – out of over 21,000 companies analysed.
- We are one of the top 100 companies worldwide included in the 2024 gender equality report and ranking by Equileap, a leading organisation dedicated to promoting gender equality and diversity and inclusion in the corporate world.
- We have been recognised as the world's best utility in ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) disclosure, and the top company in Europe, in the Print-Based Alternative Reports category of the League of American Communications Professionals (LACP) world ranking.
- In 2023, Iberdrola’s Executive Chairman Ignacio Galán has been recognised, for the second consecutive year, as one of the 100 most committed Latinos to climate action by Sachmama
External link, opens in new window. , considering his positive impact on the environment. - In 2023, we received the "t de transparente" ("t for transparent") seal from the Haz Foundation, which certifies the company's transparency in twelve areas, demonstrating our fiscal responsibility.
We publish our second Compliance System Tranparency Report
At Iberdrola we have published the second Compliance System Transparency Report [PDF] in 2023, being the first IBEX company to undertake a study of this nature. It is a further step in the company's commitment to the implementation and continuous improvement of a robust ethics and compliance system and reaffirms a business model that respects the rights of customers, employees, shareholders and all its stakeholders in general. We thus ratify our first outstanding position in the 2023 Transparency and Good Governance Index on ethics and compliance practices of IBEX 35 companies, prepared by the Fundación Haz in November 2023.
The report analyzes voluntary transparency in public information about their policies and practices in the areas of ethics and compliance of Ibex 35 companies and highlights Iberdrola as the first company to comply with the key indicator of publishing an annual report in which the unit or responsible person for the compliance area details its activities, achievements and objectives.
Ethics and transparency in our contact channels
Ethics and transparency are one of the essential pillars of the Iberdrola Group, and we promote both values in our relations with all of our stakeholders and with society. Therefore, through our contact channels, queries may be addressed regarding the most significant issues among our stakeholders, and through the Whistle-Blower Channel, any irregular conduct, unlawful acts, or acts contrary to the law or to the System of Governance and Sustainability that refer to or affect the scope of activity of the companies of the Iberdrola Group may be reported by means of identification or anonymously.
