1.4 Interests and views of stakeholders

Introduction

As a listed company with a long and proud history in the Netherlands, we have an intricate stakeholder landscape. We engage with our internal and external stakeholders in different ways, on different levels and on different topics to better understand their interests and the way our activities affect their decision-making process. This helps us understand which topics are most material, and are of greatest significance to our stakeholders.

Understanding the expectations of stakeholders helps PostNL allocate resources effectively on relevant topics while focusing on adding short-, medium-, and long-term value. In addition to our day-to-day contact with stakeholders, PostNL also engages through regular and topic-specific stakeholder dialogue to understand our stakeholders' insights, priorities and expectations. These discussions provide valuable input and help us decide what topics we need to focus on and how to make a positive difference. More information can be found in the Our operating context chapter, and Our value chain and material topics below.

Key stakeholders

PostNL operates in a dynamic environment where effective engagement with diverse stakeholder groups is critical to its success. The financial market cluster, comprising investors, capital providers, and financial rating agencies, focuses on PostNL's financial performance and long-term value creation, while government and regulatory bodies ensure compliance and policy contributions in a highly regulated industry. Additionally, PostNL actively interacts with the media, communities, and industry peers to maintain transparency, foster social responsibility, and address market trends. By adopting a comprehensive and proactive stakeholder engagement strategy, PostNL builds trust, strengthens its market position, and demonstrates its commitment to sustainability and corporate responsibility. For more information see the stakeholder engagement table on the next page.

At PostNL, our key affected stakeholders are our customers, consumers and end-users, our people, and our business partners. We prioritise their needs and interests as they are essential to the success and sustainability of our company, and hence provide additional information on these stakeholder clusters and our stakeholder engagement.

Customers, consumers and end-users

PostNL operates a major delivery network in the Benelux, ensuring accessible and reliable parcel logistics and postal services. Continuous investment in service quality is made through the enhancement of out-of-home channels like parcel lockers and retail points, digital platforms and services, and improving access for persons with disabilities. Stakeholder views, in particular those of consumers and end-users, are a critical input to our strategy and business model. This customer-centric approach helps strengthen relationships and foster long-term alliances, essential for strategic growth.

Our people

In response to increasing competition, price pressures, and a tight labour market, PostNL evolved from operating with separate business lines to a central corporate strategy. This strategy, with its nine strategic priorities, focuses on ensuring business sustainability and workforce engagement. By mitigating potential negative impacts on our workforce resulting from business pressures and promoting positive outcomes such as employee engagement, health, and well-being, PostNL strengthens its competitive position while maintaining employee satisfaction.

To further integrate its ESG strategy, PostNL engages its workforce to identify material ESG topics and involve them in shaping the corporate strategy. In 2023, the company organised a stakeholder dialogue on 'Social presence and responsibility,' which informed our 2024 DMA. This dialogue provided new insights, such as the view that community engagement is a shared responsibility among relevant partners in the value chain, which were used to define our material ESG topics and further shape our ESG strategy.

Employee feedback, gathered through the PostNL Employee Engagement monitor, plays a critical role in shaping HR strategies. Participation in decision-making processes is ensured through works councils (ORs), with each business unit having its own OR. These councils not only advise but also approve or reject certain decisions, particularly those that could have a direct impact on employees. This multi-layered approach to workforce engagement, combined with the company’s strategic focus, helps PostNL create a work environment that supports its employees and contributes to the long-term success of the organisation.

Business partners

PostNL integrates stakeholder views, including those of suppliers and value chain workers, into its strategy and business model. This engagement has been crucial in defining material ESG topics and shaping PostNL’s sustainability strategy. As part of our double materiality assessment, we involved stakeholders, including delivery partners, to identify impacts, risks and opportunities.

To further support our suppliers and value chain workers, we are committed to building strong and ethical relationships across our supply chain, which enhances our resilience and operational efficiency while upholding our sustainability commitments. Additionally, PostNL has implemented broader supplier engagement channels, beyond just delivery partners, ensuring that feedback mechanisms capture insights from a wider range of stakeholders to strengthen collaboration. To further support our suppliers and value chain workers, we have implemented third-party risk management for Parcels Netherlands and Belgium, focusing in particular on addressing human rights topics in delivery partner contracts and dialogues. Additionally, through our supplier engagement channels, including a sounding board for delivery partners, PostNL periodically gathers feedback on strategy and collaboration impacts.

PostNL engages with stakeholders on topics such as environmental, social, and governance (ESG) matters, through stakeholder dialogue and materiality assessments. This engagement helps shape our corporate and ESG strategies, integrating stakeholder views into key areas such as social presence and responsibility. Insights gained from these dialogues emphasise broad community engagement as a shared responsibility across our value chain. To further enhance customer experience, PostNL uses the competitive net promoter score (cNPS) as a primary customer loyalty metric. This allows us to focus on delivering distinctive customer experiences and continuously improve our services. Regularly tracking NPS enables us to gather actionable insights from consumer feedback. We combine this feedback with operational data, studying links like the NPS of a consumer who received a parcel and the logistics journey of that delivery. These insights directly drive improvements, such as new delivery options, products, or expanded services.

Stakeholder involvement in the DMA process

PostNL’s stakeholder engagement strategy is comprehensive and multifaceted, addressing the unique needs and concerns of each stakeholder group. Through regular and transparent communication, proactive engagement, and a commitment to sustainability, PostNL builds strong, trust-based relationships with stakeholders. This strategic approach not only ensures organisational success but also contributes to our broader societal and environmental goals, reinforcing our position as a leader in the logistics and postal industry.

Our commitment to stakeholder engagement is further reinforced by our adherence to the CSRD. As part of the double materiality assessment (DMA), we conducted consultation sessions with a diverse group of internal and external stakeholders to validate our identified impacts, risks, and opportunities. Using stakeholder clusters and groups, we ensured the inclusion of our most relevant and important stakeholders, gathering valuable input on PostNL’s broader sustainability performance. Governance plays a critical role in this process.

The Board of Management is regularly updated on key sustainability and stakeholder engagement initiatives through the CSRD Steerco meetings, keeping them informed on the latest developments and strategic decisions. Additionally, the Supervisory Board receives quarterly updates on our ESG efforts and progress through ESG Committee meetings, held three times last year. These meetings provide comprehensive insights into our sustainability performance and reinforce the alignment of our strategy with stakeholder expectations. More information on the Board of Management and Supervisory Board’s involvement in the DMA process can be found in the following Double materiality assessment section below.