How we do business
Our values go hand in hand with the BBC brand. This means we prioritise: pursuing excellence in editorial standards; protecting the BBC brand and reputation; compliance in all commercial activities with the BBC's Four Commercial Criteria (see Commercial Governance); putting our audiences and customers first; and a commitment to a programme of continuous appraisal and improvement, not only in these areas but also in corporate governance and business ethics.
Our commitment
As part of our commitment to this goal, we:
- demand and expect exacting editorial standards
- care about the working conditions of those who make products for us and our licensees
- endeavour to reduce our environmental impact and carbon emissions
- support the development and welfare of our people and seek to build a diverse workforce
- engage with the communities in which we work
We have highlighted some of our recent work in improving editorial standards and ethical sourcing here. Information about our other Corporate Responsibility initiatives can be found in Governance.
Editorial standards and brand values
Editorial standards and brand values At the heart of the company is a commitment to the integrity, reputation and values of the BBC brand. BBC Worldwide's commitment is underpinned by an extensive set of editorial guidelines and internal quality controls which touch every aspect of our business.
This framework of editorial controls is constantly evolving to adapt to the needs of a changing business. There is an increasing emphasis on editorial issues as the business has moved beyond pure distribution of content to developing direct-to-consumer propositions such as BBC-branded channels that offer BBC content. Recognition of this shift led to the creation of BBC Worldwide's current Editorial Framework. This includes a widely published set of Editorial Principles, a Worldwide Executive Committee-level Editorial Champion, Editorial Leaders for each business, and a dedicated Editorial Standards Adviser. Over 1600 people have been trained in Safeguarding Trust, and we have produced a new, single, comprehensive set of Advertising and Sponsorship Guidelines.
BBC Worldwide's marketing team has developed a Brand Tracker to measure the presence, relevance and appreciation of the key BBC brands and their link to the overall BBC masterbrand. Major competitors' brands, the BBC masterbrand and BBC sub-brands are tracked annually across key territories and measured by specific brand equity and brand links back to the BBC.
In our Magazines business, Editorial Advisory Boards (EABs), work alongside all BBC magazines (such as Radio Times, Gardeners' World, Good Food and Top Gear) and their dedicated websites, and play a key role in ensuring that the magazine portfolio reflects the BBC's public purposes and editorial values. The EABs are overseen by an Annual Review Panel, consisting of external experts and senior representatives from Magazines, BBC Vision and BBC Audio & Music.
As the business evolves, BBC Worldwide is committed to a process of continuous appraisal, refinement and improvement of the company's Editorial Framework to ensure our standards remain high.
Ethical sourcing
Our values lead us to show respect for those who manufacture products for us and our licensees. It is highly important that we ensure suppliers adhere to our ethical sourcing policy, which is designed to improve conditions for workers in high-risk territories. Factories in these territories are independently checked and graded each year.
In line with this policy, over the past year we have reviewed all factories commissioned to produce BBC Worldwide products around the world and now have a highly rated ethical sourcing programme. Only suppliers who engage fully with that programme and meet clearly defined standards are allowed to produce BBC Worldwide branded products. During the year we commissioned capacity-building projects with factories in China producing covermounts for our magazines that will help the management improve worker conditions. Elsewhere we have agreed action plans with licensees in order to find sustainable ways for their factories to control working hours.
"BBC Worldwide's Ethical Programme provides a robust approach to diagnosing and tackling supply-chain ethical issues. The company is raising the bar year on year and is well on the way to having one of the strongest ethical programmes in the industry." Rosey Hurst, Founder and Director, Impactt Ltd (ethical trading consultancy)