Adding value as a starting point for CSRD implementation

VDL Groep, an international industrial family business based in the Netherlands, will need to start complying with the CSRD requirements in 2025. The company has chosen to approach compliance as an opportunity to generate sustainable value. Ton Wijnen, a member of VDL's Groep management, and Mark Tesselaar from PwC, who is supporting VDL Groep in this process, share their experiences and insights to date. ‘We are hereby establishing a link to passing the company on to the next generation.’

VDL Groep is an authentic Dutch family business, founded in 1953 in Eindhoven by Pieter van der Leegte. With DAF and Philips as its first customers, the company has grown into a conglomerate made up of over 100 subsidiaries across 20 countries with around 15,000 employees. VDL Groep is primarily active in high-tech, mobility, energy, infrastructure tech and food tech. Since its inception more than seven decades ago, the company has remained loyal to its home base in the Brainport Eindhoven region, symbolised by the presence of the Dutch flag in the company logo.

Wijnen has been part of the group management team since September 2023 and has been given the responsibility of implementing the CSRD process. VDL Groep has opted to integrate CSRD into its business strategy and add value in terms of sustainability.

‘Our decision to take the CSRD seriously fits seamlessly within our culture and vision as a family business,’ explains Wijnen. ‘We are always thinking in terms of the long term. At VDL we do not just see the next generation as the future of the company – it literally involves passing the baton on from generation to generation. This long-term approach means that sustainability is deeply rooted in our corporate culture, without directly labelling it as ESG or CSRD.’

‘We realised that seeing the implementation of the CSRD solely as a compliance issue would stop it being fully embraced by our organisation. It certainly doesn't suit a bureaucracy-averse organisation like VDL. We have therefore actively chosen to emphasise the ambitions and opportunities that sustainability offers. In doing so we can make a difference both for ourselves and for society. Focusing on ambitions and the difference you can have makes it far easier to get everyone onboard.’

This is also very necessary as the implementation of CSRD in a large and diverse company like VDL Groep always comes with challenges. Wijnen acknowledges that – just as in society as a whole – there are differences in the way in which management and employees view sustainability. ‘There are directors who are leading the way on this issue, a large majority who are waiting to see, and a few who consider it less important. It’s our task to get everyone involved.’

The Van der Leegte family members on the management board not only endorse the current course but are also visibly committed to the cause. Wijnen: ‘They stood beside me on stage when we presented our plans to the management team. This prompted people to think “hmm, this is clearly important”.’

VDL's approach includes a wide range of sustainability initiatives, ranging from technological innovations to strategic partnerships that pave the way for a greener future. Examples include the development of eco-friendly solutions which drive market transformation such as electric buses and advanced robotics for the greenhouse horticulture sector.

While the right initiatives and prerequisites for CSRD implementation are now in place, Wijnen recognises that this alone is insufficient for a company. ‘The ongoing challenge remains how best to link our future vision to compliance. Although we have a positive focus on the areas where we can have an impact, we still have to comply with the regulations. We need to convince all managers to become involved so they do not presume that they will take care of it at the head office.’

'Taking a standard approach is not enough,’ says Tesselaar with regard to PwC's role in this trajectory. ‘We have to carefully consider what fits the culture and needs of the company, and it is important that our guidance aligns with the organisation. There’s a quote hanging up in VDL's building from Wim van der Leegte: “It's easy to make things difficult but hard to make them easy.” We've taken this as our starting point for the project.’

‘Implementation of the CSRD cannot be accomplished in one go. The highest priority has to be given to the data and we have a clear understanding of what needs to be reported, namely the compliance aspect. In addition, we aim for empowerment, striving to enable the organisation and its people to actively engage with the topics themselves. In this way you create added value. The CSRD trajectory is never easy but by working step by step together we can make it simpler. The guiding principle is that VDL should be able to manage things themselves.

In my eyes, what makes VDL truly unique is that, especially considering the size of the company, they stay so true to themselves. We at PwC respond to this by not bringing in an endless number of templates and planning documents which can cause a company to lose grip and insight. Instead we get things moving via conversations with the various stakeholders, enabling the organisation to proceed on its own with the various topics.’

So what advice does Wijnen have for other companies working on the implementation of the CSRD? ‘A key issue is the awareness that this is an irreversible transition which is sure to happen. I would also advise having ‘adding value’ as the starting point for the CSRD implementation and ensuring compliance with the regulations.’

Tesselaar agrees: ‘The CSRD and other sustainability topics will greatly broaden the way companies are managed. It is essentially the governance of the 21st century.’

VDL has called its future sustainability plans ‘Alexander’, which happens to be the name of the youngest child of the Van der Leegte family. ‘We were looking for a title that was catchier and more appealing than “the CSRD trajectory”. As we made the connection to passing the company on to the next generation, Alexander’s name came up. It was the best way we could find to emphasise how the future is at stake here.’