For us, integrity and compliance are the basis for a trustful partnership and cooperation. This can only be achieved if companies, employees and business partners have a common understanding of values and all work in unison.
Compliance and integrity are key elements of our business life. We expect this attitude not only from all our employees but also from our partners.
Renata Jungo Brüngger
Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG. Integrity, Governance & Sustainability
Our Expectations of Business Partners
Integrity forms the foundation of our business activities. An integral part of this is that we abide by the law, respect basic ethical values, and behave in a sustainable manner. At Mercedes-Benz Group we promote a corporate culture in which we act in accordance with this value concept. We expect integrity from all our employees as well as from our business partners.
Integrity Checks on Our Business Partners
When selecting our direct business partners, we make sure that they comply with the law and follow ethical principles. We also continue to do so over the course of our business relationship. This is why both, our potential and existing business partners, are subject to risk-based integrity checks. Our aim is to identify possible integrity violations early on. We continuously improve our Due Diligence and monitoring processes.
If a partner fails to comply with our standards, we reserve the right to terminate the cooperation or the selection process.
We regularly inform our employees about the standards for our business partners and their selection processes. In this respect, we created an explanatory film to show how the integrity check on our sales partners works.
Doing the Right Thing Together: Business Partner Standards
With the Business Partner Standards, Mercedes-Benz Group explains its ethical principles and the respective expectations of its business partners. We actively promote their compliance and demand this also from our partners. The Business Partner Standards are aimed at all business partners worldwide.
Responsible Sourcing Standards
Our Responsible Sourcing Standards
Increasing Awareness: The Compliance Awareness Module
Based on the Responsible Sourcing Standards, the Business Partner Standards and our Integrity Code, we provide our sales partners and suppliers with a “Compliance Awareness Module