In the Inspired People & Brands series, this time we talk with Sanna van Doorn. We approached her for the role of CSR & Corporate Affairs Officer at our client Spadel – known in the Netherlands for the mineral water SPA – and she started there in February of this year.

You started in this new role in February of this year. How did it come to this?

When you approached me for this position, I was still working as a consultant at a Corporate Affairs firm for various clients: from FMCG to energy. That has an exciting dynamic, but you are and always will be an external consultant. No matter how closely you work with your clients. That’s why I wanted to practice a function at the intersection of Corporate Affairs and sustainability within a company. The choice for Spadel was quickly made. It is not only a family company with a long history and a clear vision of the future, but also a flat structure. That gives strength and we really like it. You (WerfSelect) quickly realized that this organization and way of working suited me well.

What does that CSR challenge look like ?

As a mineral water producer, we depend on nature. That is why it is so important that we do everything we can to operate sustainably and protect nature. This is also reflected in the four pillars of our CSR strategy: pure, green, local and together. A big challenge for us is of course to make our packaging more sustainable, but also to reduce our negative impact on the climate. On the latter front, we took an important first step this year. For example, all of our brands have recently become completely climate neutral. So the impact of a bottle of SPA on the climate has been neutralized. But we are not there yet. Over the next 10 years, we want to reduce CO2 emissions in the chain by a further 42%, in order to ultimately have zero emissions of our own by 2050.

And for you as a CSR & Corporate Affairs Officer, what does your day look like ?

I am constantly monitoring the state of our CSR policy, anticipating developments and opportunities that can contribute to our positioning in the Netherlands. You need different people to do that. It is a continuous interplay between internal and external. Your own colleagues naturally play an important role, but you also need partners. Counterparts from the industry, customers, media, stakeholders, in short, the broad outside world. You have to involve stakeholders, engage in dialogue and take action together.

A challenge in Corona time ?

It is a crazy time yes, but there have also been great developments in our industry. For example, the cabinet recently decided to introduce deposits on small plastic bottles by the middle of next year. My colleagues were already advocating this in 2019 and it is now really going to happen. In our view, a necessary step to combat litter and improve the quality of recycled materials. And beyond that, it’s a matter of thinking around. A few weeks after I started, Corona arrived and yes, then you have to build your network and make contact in a different way, both with colleagues and externally. I’m in that phase now. Normally I would have already gone out to make personal contact, but now it requires a different way of approaching people, more through email and virtual cups of coffee. We are also trying to connect with the outside world in a different way as a company. For example, we recently organized a webinar on C02 neutral. We also remain active on our Source of Change platform where we share news about our actions on sustainable packaging.

What is the most important personal goal you want to achieve in your current role?

The goal an sich is that within now and five years Spa will be perceived as an innovative and sustainable brand/company committed to the future. But I have learned that you can make a very nice five-year plan, but you can still never foresee what will happen. Therefore, in my view, you should never be blinded by plans.

What is it that keeps you awake?

I don’t lie awake easily anyway and always try to focus on what does work. But corporate sustainability and dealing with plastic is a big challenge for any company in the beverage industry. When I tell those around me that I work for Spadel, I certainly get critical questions sometimes. That is right and good. Then I can talk about all the things we do to make our packaging more sustainable and also explain the complexities. By law, mineral water must be bottled at the source. So packaging will always play a role in our industry, but ideally in a way that is good for people and the planet. To do this, we need to look not only at adapting our current packaging, but also at developing new business models such as recycling and launching new formats. That’s our big challenge. Packaging is really a difficult issue, you shouldn’t underestimate that.

Suppose I want to start CSR/CSR tomorrow? Where do I start?

The first step is realizing that it really is a long-term thing. Of course, there are always steps you can take in the short term, but the big steps – such as reducing your climate footprint – require years of commitment. It then of course helps if the CEO and management are fully behind this and there are also people in the organization who are dedicated to the subject. I always say: CSR is not a sprint, it is a very long marathon (laughs). By Mathanja Klop, Senior Recruiter at WerfSelect