Flexible working, diversity & inclusion

As part of HSBC's commitment to an open, supportive and inclusive working environment, we recognise that our employees have different personal circumstances and want a suitable work-life balance. We support our staff to adopt flexible and alternative ways of working where possible, including working from home and different hours.

HSBC believes that to achieve sustainable success, we need to grow in a responsible way and meet the expectations of our customers, regulators, employees and the wider community. This belief is reflected in the values that are at the heart of our culture and guide us in our day-to-day operations.

We aim to be dependable, open and connected in everything we do. We want to ensure that our employees feel able to stand up for what is right, highlight potential risks and act with integrity, even when faced with pressure to act otherwise. To make sure everybody at HSBC lives up to these values, they form part of everyone's annual performance review.

Read our values in full.

Diversity and inclusion

We hire, develop and promote employees based on merit and provide an open, supportive and inclusive working environment. We want HSBC to be a place where everyone can be themselves and achieve their potential.

HSBC is committed to building a diverse and inclusive culture where all employees are valued and respected. Our approach is to connect with difference, embracing a variety of ideas and perspectives. As well as being the right thing to do, this helps us respond to the needs of our customers and develop better products and services.

As part of that culture, we work hard to ensure we have a diverse workforce and leadership team. We actively seek to attract and develop local talent in the communities where we operate.

We have more than 50 employee networks covering areas such as gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation and disability as well as underlying differences such as beliefs, ways of thinking, responsibilities and lifestyles. They help to make sure that HSBC offers a welcoming work environment and to maintain an effective dialogue between management and employees.

We also support our employees to adopt flexible and alternative ways of working, helping them to achieve their potential and balance their personal and professional commitments.

Read more about our commitment to diversity and inclusion.

In 2015, HSBC was named as one of the 10 best companies in Stonewall's Global Workplace Equality Index

Sustainability

We recognise that we have a responsibility to assess and manage the social and environmental impact of our decisions.

We are working to improve the environmental efficiency of our operations, from our buildings and IT systems to the way we travel for business. Our aim is to reduce the bank’s annual carbon emissions per employee from 3.5 tonnes in 2012 to 2.5 tonnes by 2020. We are helping our customers by financing low-carbon products, services and businesses. We have policies and processes in place to govern and manage potential social or environmental risks that may arise through projects we finance or customers in sensitive sectors.

We make a significant investment in community projects. These include education programmes and partnerships to help young people around the world to reach their potential, and the HSBC Water Programme, a five-year initiative to improve the provision of safe water and sanitation. We encourage employees to volunteer to take part in these and other activities. It is an opportunity for them to give something back to their communities and also develop skills that they can transfer to the workplace.

Read more about HSBC’s approach to sustainability.