22
Abstract This is a student project for a diploma program from London School of Business and Finance Novo Nordisk A/S and its Corporate Governance Culture Governance and Ethics Module Jaineet Kaur

Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

AbstractThis is a student project for a diploma program from London School of Business and

Finance

Novo Nordisk A/S and its Corporate Governance Culture

Governance and Ethics Module

Jaineet Kaur

Page 2: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

Table of ContentsProject Plan 2

I. Introduction 2

II. Statement of Problem 3

III. Objective of Project 4

IV. Methodology 4

1.Introduction to Novo Nordisk’s Corporate Governance Culture 5

2. Novo Nordisk and its Governance Structure 5

3.Novo Nordisk and Corporate Social Responsibility 7

3.1 Novo Nordisk & Investments 8

3.2 Novo Nordisk & People 9

3.3 Novo Nordisk & Environment 9

3.4 Novo Nordisk & its Employees 9

4. Novo Nordisk and Ethics 10

4.1 Business Philosophy 10

4.2 Sustainable Reporting 11

4.3 Employee Ethical Business Conduct 12

5. Novo Nordisk and Triple Bottom Line12

References 14

1

Page 3: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

Project Plan

I. Introduction:Corporate Governance and Ethics is relatively a new subject in the corporate world. The theorists have in the

last fifty(50) years or so started developing strong and deductive theories on the subject along with its

implications. If one tries to look for a definition of Corporate Governance, it will become clear that there is no

‘one’ decided definition, however there are several interpretations of what Corporate Governance is.

Corporate Governance broadly speaking is a framework containing the guidelines and rules under which a

company operates, and how it treats its relationship with the shareholder, employees, consumers,

stakeholders and the community at large.

Corporate Governance implementation has transformed over the years and companies nowadays, in order to

maintain shareholder’s confidence, have started structuring themselves in order to pay more attention to

shareholder needs rather than their own self-interests. There is also the budding idea that good Corporate

Governance is important for the long-term sustainability of a company and helps in maintaining profitability.

There is also significant debate on the extent of social responsibility of a company and how companies impact

the natural environment around them.

To create a foundation for good Corporate Governance several attempts have been made by theorists and

reporting committees to create a benchmark for companies to follow. The primary focus of such theories has

been large companies, which invite external investments and can have a substantial impact on the markets

and consumers. One such example is the UK Combined Code which has been developed to provide broad

Corporate Governance guidelines and recommendations. The roots of this Code can be seen in the report

shared by the Cadbury Committee led by Sir Adrian Cadbury in 1992. The literature on this matter has laid

emphasis on how the top management of a company should conduct itself and what the ethical

responsibilities of a company should be.

Other countries like Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark etc., have also seen significant development

on Corporate Governance recommendations. In the USA, the Securities Exchange Commission monitors the

Financial reporting and accountability of the Company. Thus it is clear that Corporate Governance

accountability is a concern that all countries are trying to grasp.

This Project seeks to explore the methods of good corporate governance by studying the practical example of

Nova Nordisk, a Danish pharmaceutical company pioneering in research and manufacturing of drugs treating

diabetes, haemophilia and growth hormone deficiency, and other bio pharmaceuticals.

2

Page 4: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

II. Statement of problem Recent corporate scandals like Enron and the collapse of the global economy in 2008, after the housing market

crisis in USA, has forced the thinking world to take a deeper look at the root cause of such events. The clear

result is that, there was lack of accountability, bad board management and unethical business practices within

large companies. The repercussions of such events create doubts and lack of trust in the investors/stakeholder

mind-set, which is not favourable for economic growth. One needs to understand that the Company –

Stakeholder relationship is a fragile one, and one that rests on trust. One point of view is that the company is

only responsible to the investors in the company aka the Shareholders, this is also called the “Agency Theory”.

The other more evolved theory is the ‘Stakeholder Theory’, which states that a company not only has a

responsibility to its shareholders, but also to other stakeholders like its employees, its customers, the

environment and the society at large. It is quite clear from the global economic events that companies do not

work in silos and there is a huge impact on how they conduct themselves.

So, the question here is “What should a company do to avoid losing the trust of investors and ensure

sustainable growth?”. To answer this, we need to study how the governance mind-set of the company is

structured.

Firstly, it is important to look at the structure of the top management. It would be challenging if the top

management kept themselves involved in the day to day running of a company to ensure short term financial

gains and failed to focus on the long-term sustainability. To avoid this, the board of directors have a

responsibility to stay away from the day to day working of the company and need to safeguard the interests of

the shareholders and stakeholders. It is also important to have non-executive directors on the boards to bring

impartial point of views. Further, the segregation of roles of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, ensures

independent thinking on the boards and helps guide the company in the correct direction.

Secondly, it is important to look at how a company values its social responsibility. It would be naive for any

company to only focus on its financial gains through any means possible. Companies are organic and their

growth is dependent on the socio-economic environment, the natural environment, the human environment

etc. Thus, for them to sustain themselves, companies need to ensure that they are protecting these elements

rather than misusing them for selfish benefits.

Finally, it would be counter-productive if a company fails to promote the importance of ethical business

practices within the company’s philosophy. Companies need to ensure that their employees and stakeholders

like suppliers, customers etc. are acting in an ethical manner and with integrity. The “Tone from the Top” i.e.

the management of the company has to lay down the foundation and set an example for the employees and

stakeholders to follow.

3

Page 5: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

The aspects above compliment and supplement each other, and should collectively work in unison for good

Corporate Governance and Ethics.

III. ObjectiveThe objective of this Project is to uncover how a company can ensure good Corporate Governance practices by

assessing the Corporate Governance Culture adopted by Novo Nordisk.

The project will seek to understand:

1. Novo Nordisk’s corporate governance philosophy and how they have implemented them into ethical

and sustainable business practices;

2. The structure and composition of the Board of Directors, and their responsibilities;

3. How the Corporate Governance practices compliment Nova Nordisk’s business around the globe and

in different economies, i.e., Corporate Social Responsibility;

4. How Corporate governance practices have resulted in profitability for Novo Nordisk;

5. Importance given to ethical business practices within Novo Nordisk; and

6. Novo Nordisk’s approach to sustainable reporting and their adoption of the “Triple Bottom Line”

approach.

IV. Methodology: The following methodology has been used in the project to understand Novo Nordisk’s Corporate Governance

structure:

1. Review of the Novo Nordisk website;

2. Assessment of Novo Nordisk Board of Directors’ Charter, Remuneration Committee’s Charter,

Nomination Committee’s Charter;

3. Study of Novo Nordisk annual report and corporate sustainability reports;

4. Study of the Novo Nordisk Foundation;

5. Course material;

6. Secondary research has also been applied by referring to CSR websites, online newspaper articles and

research studies on the subject.

4

Page 6: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

Novo Nordisk A/S and its Corporate Governance Culture

1.Introduction to Novo Nordisk’s Corporate Governance Culture

Novo Nordisk is a well-seasoned company that has survived for ninety(90) years which included a world war.

The company has significantly grown in the area of diabetes research and hemophilia and has pioneered in

several medical advancements in the field. This is largely attributable to the company’s culture which adopts

ethical Corporate Governance practices to its core. Novo Nordisk has a broad definition of Corporate

Governance enshrined in the following words.

"The goals, according to which a company is managed, and the major principles and frameworks which

regulate the interaction between the company's managerial bodies, the owners as well as other parties, who

are directly influenced by the company's dispositions and business (in this context jointly referred to as the

company's stakeholders). Stakeholders include employees, creditors, suppliers, customers and the local

community".

2. Novo Nordisk and its Governance Structure

The definition above brings into picture the impact of the company on its stakeholders and the local

community. Novo Nordisk through its corporate governance model has tried to give life to the above definition

in the following ways:

- Novo Nordisk is a publicly listed company on NASDAQ Copenhagen and the New York Stock Exchange

(NYSE) and has a higher accountability to its shareholders, than a private company would. Being a

listed company also means that Novo Nordisk is required to adhere to regulatory mandates and

ensure compliances sanctioned on it. Over and above the regulatory requirements, Novo Nordisk has

also adopted the Danish Corporate Governance Recommendations and is almost a hundred(100)

percent compliant to them.

- The Company has adopted a two-tier board structure (see Diagram 1), i.e. where there are two

boards, one in a supervisory capacity and the other in a management capacity. The structure ensures

that there is an independent point of views. The executive management board can bring in the

concerns which are relevant to the company’s daily business and its employees; the supervisory board

can provide a growth strategy and a mature direction for the company. The supervisory board has a

bird’s eye view since its members are part of the company’s various committees.

5

Page 7: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

Diagram 1

s

Board of directors

Nomination Committee Audit Committee Remuneration Committee

Executive management

Organisation

Stakeholder TIER 1

TIER 2

Source: Novo Nordisk official website

- The Novo Nordisk Board is diverse and split in two levels to ensure that objectivity is maintained. The

top tier of Board of Directors consists of eleven(11) members out of which seven(7) are shareholder-

elected members. Further, five(5) within that are independent members, i.e. non-executive members.

The Novo Nordisk board structure is broadly in line with the Danish Corporate Governance

Recommendations. The Board has a diverse combination of people and almost fifty(50) percent are

women. The bottom tier consisting of executive management has six(6) members who look into the

daily running of operations from different business verticals. To ensure independence no person

serves on both the tiers simultaneously.

- In theory, there has been considerable argument between benefits of a unitary board structure as

against the tow-tier one. It is important to note that the accountability of any company primarily boils

down to how the board of directors and senior management execute their roles and responsibilities.

The people in these roles have considerable power for decision making, and it is recommended that

the roles of the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman should be split in order to achieve a balance of

powers for decision making, and also this would make the two-tier structure more effective. However,

in a research on “How two-tier boards can be more effective” [Bezemer, et al., 2014] where they had

analysed the Dutch two tier system, they tried to explain that for successful board management there

has to be a working relationship between the supervisory board and the management board, and

especially the management board should not hesitate in asking the critical question to the supervisory

board to avoid deadlocks in decision making.

6

Page 8: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

- Moving on, the Novo Nordisk governance structure has been designed to ensure that there is proper

judgement used while deciding on the other corporate governance concerns like executive and board

remunerations. To handle this, Novo Nordisk has an established Remuneration Committee consisting

of four(4) members of the board. The Novo Nordisk Remuneration Committee structure is although

not in line with the Danish Corporate Governance Recommendations which suggests, that majority of

the members should be independent including the chairman, which is not the case in Novo Nordisk.

An independent majority of a remuneration committee is important to ensure that remunerations are

not excessive or only in the interest of the senior management and board solely. Thus to handle this,

the Novo Nordisk Remunerations Committee primarily focuses on ensuring that correct benchmarking

is carried out as per European Danish and Nordic norms for making recommendation on the correct

levels of remuneration of the Executive management to the Board. The Remuneration Committee

also has an Employee representative to represent the point of view of the employees on

remunerations matters. Novo Nordisk has a documented Remuneration Committee Charter which

clearly outlines the responsibilities, membership, quorum to pass resolutions, etc.

- An audit committee has to work independent of the rest of the business thus the Novo Nordisk Audit

Committee consists of four(4) members from the Board only. The Novo Nordisk Audit Committee is

responsible for looking into, the external auditors appointed by shareholders, which is a Danish

regulatory requirement. Further, the audit committee in most companies are also responsible for the

internal audit, assessing the accounting and financial controls, regulatory compliance activities,

business ethics activities, including whistleblowing. Keeping in mind the definition of Corporate

Governance above, the Novo Nordisk Audit Committee has an oversight on financial, social and

environmental reporting, reviews of investments, long-term incentive programs, information security

etc., to ensure that the stakeholders concerns are looked into, as well as the communities. It is

pertinent to ensure that there is implementation of actions arising from the recommendations of an

audit committee.

- A Nomination Committee has been created to decide who are supposed to be members of the boards

and various committees and also executive management. The Nomination Committee assists in

decision making. It is important to note that in Novo Nordisk there are several overlapping members

between the Board and these committees to avoid conflicting decisions and keep the thinking unified.

3.Novo Nordisk & Corporate Social Responsibility

Novo Nordisk has been named the most sustainable company in the world by corporate analysts on many

occasions. This is because Novo Nordisk has a very deep routed philosophy on social responsibility and

commitment to sustainability. Novo Nordisk has adopted the “Triple Bottom Line” approach and this is in line

7

Page 9: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

with the clearly-defined commitment statements describing the “Novo Nordisk Way” i.e. “We are accountable

for our financial, environmental and social performance”. To understand it better, let’s look at the Novo

Nordisk corporate social responsibility initiatives and their impact more deeply:

3.1 Novo Nordisk & Investment:

Novo Nordisk has true commitment towards responsible investing and this is managed through the

creation of the Novo Nordisk Foundation (Foundation). The Foundation carries the vision of doing

research, and development of disease combating products. It also seeks to promote research at

universities and hospitals, within the health sciences and biotechnology fields. It important to note

that the Foundation takes the responsibility of ensuring that the Novo group of companies makes

significant improvement in the way people work and live (see Diagram 2). They promote innovations

in technology, products, services, market approach, and, strive to be the best place to work and

deliver competitive financial performance. In a nutshell, one can say that the Foundation ensures

satisfactory financial returns in a socially responsible manner. The Foundation also gives financial

grants to research workers based on open applications system. The Foundation’s board of directors

are a mix of representatives from different companies with the Novo Nordisk Group and investors.

Novo Nordisk A/S, the holding company, also carries the responsibility for ensuring that ethical

investments are made in research and development in life science companies.

Diagram 2

THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION GROUP

Novo Nordisk Foundation

Novo A/S

Novo Nordisk Novozymes

Investment in life

science

Grants

Source: Novo Nordisk Foundation website

8

Page 10: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

3.2 Novo Nordisk & People

Novo Nordisk’s main commitment is to its stakeholders who are impacted by the use of its products.

Novo Nordisk focuses on providing health care to those who need it and cannot afford it, especially in

the developing world. Thereby they have created a reputation of trust as a pharmaceutical company

in these impoverished countries. For example, the Kenyan Ministry of Health, together with Novo

Nordisk and the Kenya Diabetes Management and Information Centre, launched a six-month diabetes

awareness campaign in Nairobi to promote early diagnosis through screening, especially among low-

income populations. The campaign’s message – ‘It takes only five seconds to get your blood sugar

tested’ – is backed up with diabetes screening and education at public health care facilities and Faith

Based Organisations in selected counties, including Nairobi (Csrwire, 2015). There are several such

examples where Novo Nordisk has promoted low cost medical care for the poor. To further the cause

of providing cheap medical care, Novo Nordisk has taken up the initiative of providing ‘Access to

Insulin’ on the basis of differential pricing. They provide human insulin in least developed countries at

a price that does not exceed 20% of the average realised price for Europe, the US, Canada and Japan.

Novo Nordisk also provides financial support to the World Diabetes Foundation.

3.3 Novo Nordisk & Environment:

Novo Nordisk has also engaged in corporate environmentally responsible initiatives. It has actively

made efforts to decrease its carbon imprint in the world. It has worked on innovative ways to reduces

its CO2 emission up to 54% between 2005 to 2011. Further Novo Nordisk’s subsidiary Novozymes A/S

has reduced the consumption of water by 32% and energy by 38%. The Company now looks at using

renewable energy sources such as wind energy. There has been a very conscious effort by the

Company to be environmentally responsible. After all the interaction of a company is not only with

the humans but with the natural environment also. Another initiative taken up by Novo Nordisk is 3R

principle of ‘Reduce', 'Refine' or 'Replace which is the base philosophy due to which they discontinued

testing on live animals for new batches of medicines in the production lines. This is a notable move

towards animal ethics.

Novo Nordisk has also been recognized as a top green company and was one of the first

pharmaceutical companies to publish its environmental P&L Accounts. (Csrwire, 2015)

3.4 Novo Nordisk & its Employees:

Corporate social responsibility starts at home. In today’s work culture environment, it is important for

companies to look into the welfare and personal growth of its employees. A company has a bigger

responsibility to its employees than just paying salaries. The ‘Novo Nordisk Way’s’ philosophy also

builds in the requirement of “We have a healthy and engaging working environment”. Nova Nordisk

focuses on providing its employees a motivating work environment. It focuses on providing value

9

Page 11: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

based growth for its employees with transparency through a rewards program. They have several

initiatives to ensure that the health & safety of the employees, like, creating a smoke free

environment, physical activities, health check-ups, etc., and their efforts seem to be working as Novo

Nordisk always finds a top ranking in the “best place to work” lists on many forums. Example: Fortune

magazine rated Novo Nordisk #55th in 2016, in its best places to work assessment. (Fortune, 2016)

4. Novo Nordisk and Ethics

It is quite clear by now that Novo Nordisk’s Corporate Governance practices are woven into its working fabric.

We now seek to understand the processes and monitoring programs it has implemented to ensure that the

ethical business practices, internally and externally, trickle down at the organisational level.

4.1 Business philosophy

In 1997 Novo Nordisk made an effort to introduce a set of guidelines called the ‘Novo Nordisk Way of

Management’. These guidelines were a guidance for the management to refer to for ethical decision

making and sustainable business practices. These guidelines subsequently evolved into ten basic

“Essentials” to help all employees build core ethical values. The notable ones are: accountability for

financial, environmental and social performance; innovation to the benefit our stakeholders; healthy

and engaging working environment; and, most importantly, never compromise on quality and

business ethics (see Diagram 3).

Diagram 3

The Essentials: Novo Nordisk Way

1. We create value by having a patient centred business approach;2. We set ambitious goals and strive for excellence;3. We are accountable for our financial, environmental and social

performance;4. We provide innovation to the benefit of our stakeholders;5. We build and maintain good relations with our key stakeholders;6. We treat everyone with respect;7. We focus on personal performance and development;8. We have a healthy and engaging working environment;9. We optimise the way we work and strive for simplicity;10. We never compromise on quality and business ethics.

Source: Novo Nordisk Official website

10

Page 12: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

4.2 Sustainable reporting

In 2004, Novo Nordisk made a move toward sustainable reporting and for the first time published an

integrated report where it showcased financial and non-financial growth. The non-financial growth

factors published was an effort to bring transparency in the Corporate Governance structure and

related practices of the company. It was also an effort to show how the different types of ethical, legal

risks are being managed. The report also showed the approach to the remuneration package

components of the board and the executive management.

In the wake of the global financial crisis, Novo Nordisk managed to ensure profits largely due to the

confidence it had instilled in its shareholders. The 2010 annual report was supplemented with a

statutory governance report, as per the requirement of the Danish Financial Statements Act. The

report very clearly outlined what risks Novo Nordisk was willing to take for continuing business. As

mentioned earlier, Novo Nordisk has zero tolerance for unethical practices. The statutory governance

report also further outlined that, to strengthen the ethical practices and showcased an elaborate

control environment which was regularly audited by the Audit Committee group. As a general norm,

an Internal Audit group in a company is required to regularly ensure that the necessary checks and

balances are in place in the company’s processes. The Internal Auditors maybe externally appointed

auditors; thus, the objectivity and independence of the audit remains intact. Further, with respect to

financial reporting requirements, since Novo Nordisk is listed in NYSE, it falls under the purview of the

SEC. Thus, it would be required to conduct a SOX audit for financial controls as well, a requirement

which came into existence after the Enron scandal. This would further ensure tight controls in a

company’s processes.

There are several benchmarks that have been set out by the Danish Corporate Governance

recommendations. In the statutory governance report of 2010, Novo Nordisk has expressed the

extent of its compliance with each of these recommendations. These included recommendations on

interaction with stakeholders, corporate social responsibility, maintaining proper internal control for

functions and auditing the same. However, as per the statutory governance report 2010, Novo

Nordisk was not in compliance on the recommended procedures for the internal workings of the

Remuneration Committee and the Nomination Committee. In both the cases, the recommendation

was to have a supreme body that collectively analysed and made the decisions on the remunerations

and nominations. However, in case of Novo Nordisk, the Chairman was executing these

responsibilities solely. Additionally, in case of Nominations Committee the recommendation was that

a proposal should be considered from shareholders and members of governing bodies for nominating

members. This was not the case in Novo Nordisk, this decision was made by chairman. However, in

the 2015, the statutory governance report stated that the positions on these non-compliances had

been improved upon.

11

Page 13: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

4.3 Employee Ethical Business Conduct

Novo Nordisk demonstrates its ethical business conduct via teaching its employees the value of

ethical business practices. The broad scope of business ethics is applicable to all employees including

the board of directors. As per Novo Nordisk, no type of fraud or corruption practices are tolerated.

Also, there are ethical procedures to promote products since operating in the pharmaceutical industry

requires high degree of precaution before a product can be released to the consumer. Since Novo

Nordisk has operations around the world, including some of the countries with a high corruption

index, there is a likelihood of bribes and illegal payments. Thus, to handle such instances of unethical

activities, there is a business ethics compliance office which is headed by the business ethics board.

They are the ‘go to people’ who ensure the development, implementation and monitoring of the

Novo Nordisk business ethics strategy and take preventive measures. The company also has initiatives

for training its employees to make them aware of the business ethics culture.

5. Novo Nordisk and Triple Bottom line

Briefly described, the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) is an approach of ensuring a company’s sustainability by linking

its financial growth to its social and environmental growth. (see Diagram 4)

In 1996, Novo Nordisk initiated the TBL approach and slowly began integrating it into its working approach.

(Parisi and Hockert, 2009) By 2004, the company introduced the approach into the ‘objective’ section of its

articles of association, stating that “The Company strives to conduct its activities in a financially,

environmentally, and socially responsible way” This resulted in Novo Nordisk not only reporting its financial

growth but also reporting on its environmental and social growth.

Novo Nordisk used a long-term implementation strategy to ensure that the operational transition was smooth,

and it created long term benefits as well. For example, on the environmental front the reduction in CO2

emissions, although they were initially a heavy investment, brought in cost effectiveness in the long run. Novo

Nordisk invested US$20 million in a global energy-efficiency campaign that required all sites to appoint energy

stewards and conduct energy screenings every three years (Gunther, 2012). This seemed to have costs in the

beginning. However, this helped reduce the company’s energy costs.

Novo Nordisk has implemented the TBL philosophy in its approach to doing business as well. Another example

of this would be would be their investment in countries like Bangladesh where they have provided drugs at

cheap rates. The company believes that this is an investment in future markets.

Further, the TBL approach has been a part of the management and board strategy and has been diluted and

brought down to the daily operations of the company for the employees as well. Such an approach helps in

12

Page 14: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

employee motivation factors. They, feel themselves to be responsible and an essential part of the company as

the end result is something bigger than just creating financial profits.

Novo Nordisk has proved that in many ways the TBL approach works for the sustainable growth of a company.

Novo Nordisk’s website states that as per the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) Novo Nordisk a has

scored an 83 out of 100, wherein the environmental & social dimension, Novo Nordisk received a score of 10.

Diagram 4

Source: Novo Nordisk official website

In conclusion, it is quite apparent that Novo Nordisk has lead by example and shown that for companies to

operate on a large scale and to be financially successful while gaining returns for its shareholders, they need to

be involved with the elements that the company impacts. For a company to grow and gain trust of their

shareholders, it is now pertinent for them to act financially responsible whilst protecting the environment and

furthering social causes.

13

Page 15: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

References:

Articles of Association of Novo Nordisk A/S, 2016. Novo Nordisk. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/content/dam/Denmark/HQ/aboutus/documents/corporate-governance/articles-of-association-novo-nordisk.pdf> [Accessed on 15 January 2017].

Bezemer, J.B., Peij, S., Kruijs, L.D., Maassen, G. 2014. How two-tier boards can be more effective. [Online]. Available at: < http://www.governanceuniversity.nl/images/bestanden/6688-How Two Tier Boards Can Be More Effective Jan 2014.pdf> [Accessed on 09 January 2017].

COMPANY BENCHMARKING SCORECARD | 2016, 2016. Novo Nordisk. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/content/dam/Denmark/HQ/Sustainibility/documents/RobecoSAM-Company-Benchmarking-Scorecard-2016-Novo-Nordisk.pdf> [Accessed on 15 January 2017].

Csrwire. 2015. Novo Nordisk #15 on Top Green Companies in the World. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/38023-Novo-Nordisk-15-on-Top-Green-Companies-in-the-World> [Accessed on14 January 2017].

Csrwire. 2015. Diabetes Screening in Kenya – ‘It Takes Only 5 Seconds’. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/38080-Diabetes-Screening-in-Kenya-It-Takes-Only-5-Seconds-> [Accessed on 14 January 2017].

Fortune. 2016. Fortune: 100 Best companies to work for. [Online]. Available at: <http://fortune.com/best-companies/> [Accessed on14 January 2017].

Gunther, M. 2012. Corporate Knights. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.corporateknights.com/magazines/2013-global-100-issue/novo-nordisk-13272408/>[Accessed on 15 January 2017].

Health and safety, 2017. Novo Nordisk [Online]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/sustainability/actions/Employees-Safety/Health-and-safety.html> [Accessed on14 January 2017].

Our Access to Insulin Commitment*, 2017.Novo Nordisk. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/sustainability/actions/Access-to-care/Differential-pricing-policy.html> [Accessed on14 January 2017].

Parisi, C. and Hockert, K.N. 2009. CSR Investments at Novo Nordisk. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/learning/management_thinking/articles/pdf/novo_nordisk.pdf> [Accessed on14 January 2017].

Statutory Corporate Governance Report for 2010 cf. art. 107b of theDanish Financial Statements Act, 2010. Novo Nordisk. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/content/dam/Denmark/HQ/aboutus/documents/corporate-governance/Statutory-Corporate-Governance-Report-2010.pdf> [Accessed on 15 January 2017].

The Remuneration Committee, 2017. Novo Nordisk. [Online]. [09 January 2017]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/about-novo-nordisk/corporate-governance/remuneration-committee.html> [Accessed on 09 January 2017].

The 2012 social responsibility report of the Novo Nordisk Foundation Group , 2012. Novo Nordisk fonden. [Online]. Available at:

14

Page 16: Governance and Ethics - Project Response - Jaineet Kaur

<http://novonordiskfonden.dk/sites/default/files/nnf_csr_uk_2012.pdf> [Accessed on 14 January 2017].

What is Corporate Governance?, 2017. Novo Nordisk. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.novonordisk.com/about-novo-nordisk/corporate-governance.html> [Accessed on 09 January 2017].

WHAT IS THE FOUNDATION?, 2017. Novo Nordisk fonden. [Online]. Available at: <http://novonordiskfonden.dk/en/content/ownership-and-subsidiaries> [Accessed on14 January 2017].

15