Can you talk about you or your company’s efforts relating to renewability, sustainability or other environmentally- friendly activities?

Sustainability is a core part of StarHub’s strategy, business, and operations, and we are humbled to be recognised by Corporate Knights Global 100 as the world’s most sustainable telecom service provider in 2023.

In 2022, the team completed a comprehensive inventory of our carbon emissions to set actionable decarbonisation goals for 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. Our decarbonisation strategy is centred on reducing and optimising energy usage, embracing renewables, and adopting responsible business practices. We have also taken proactive steps to launch innovative green tech solutions to help our customers lower their carbon footprints, and ensure proper care is taken in our procurement and vendor selection.

We prioritise employees’ physical and psychological well-being as well as talent management, and this is manifested in our policies, procedures and practices. We support diversity and inclusivity, and actively recruit a diverse workforce, integrating neurodiverse individuals. In 2022, StarHub was ranked 7th in Singapore for policies and commitment to gender equality. Our CSR programmes are purposefully designed to bridge the digital divide in our community and raise awareness of environmental issues. We support causes that utilise our expertise in telecommunications to provide unprivileged individuals with connectivity, and sponsor access to life skills, facilitating equal opportunities to learn, grow, empower and impact lives.

Governance is traditionally an area StarHub has performed well in. We spare no effort to give our investors and stakeholders confidence – in the way our business is run, and our operations are managed. We adhere to the highest levels of accountability and transparency, and fully comply with the SGX-ST Code of Governance. Our efforts are reflected in the multiple governance accolades garnered by the team each year.

In tandem with StarHub’s accelerated pace in sustainability, the legal team has upskilled to support new sustainability related contracts such as procurement of renewables and carbon credits, sustainable finance and green procurement, and also enhance our business policies.

Why are in-house lawyers well-placed to drive change in their organisations?

In-house lawyers are natural advocates for change, being skilled in reviewing new legislative requirements, assessing new opportunities and defining business risks and benefits. We underpin confidence to our commercial colleagues, in adopting new measures that benefit the company. At the same time, lawyers are able to signpost the necessary guidelines to protect value. Most in-house teams work with the board of directors, management and stakeholders across the whole organisation. This gives in-house lawyers broad networking opportunities that facilitates collaboration, and an ability to see a broader perspective of the business and its transactions.