Workshop for ESG risk management and compliance with the requirements of ESG regulations – Automotive industry

October 17, 2023 | Kragujevac

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, with the support of the German Organization for International Cooperation GIZ, launched the Responsible Business Hub RBH customer service for all domestic companies that export to the German market or plan to do so in the future. The goal of this customer service is to provide support to companies in Serbia to understand and properly work on the implementation of the German Act on Due Diligence in Supply Chains, as well as on all other regulations in the field of the green agenda.

According to the new German law that entered into force on January 1st this year, domestic companies that are in the supply chains of German companies have the obligation of due diligence through the following activities:

  • Establishing a risk management system
  • Resolving internal jurisdiction in the company
  • Conducting regular risk analyses
  • Giving a statement of principles
  • Establishing preventive measures in the sphere of own business and towards direct suppliers
  • Taking corrective measures
  • Documentation and reporting

In order to promote the importance of risk management and analysis in every company, we organized consulting workshops for companies from several different industries. We introduced the present companies to the principles of risk analysis, the importance of quality risk management, and the importance of appointing a responsible person within the company.

During the workshops, the participants had the opportunity to apply the learned concepts of risk management by conducting a short analysis of the company's exposure to risks in the field of environmental protection and human rights under the professional supervision of Deloitte experts.

As a result of the workshops, we received an overview of the most important risks for each of the five sectors and created a plan for further activities.

Workshops started in Kragujevac with companies from the automotive industry. Domestic companies from the automotive industry that are in the supply chains of German customers are well prepared for all the new requirements arising from the new regulation of the European Union, however, they still face certain challenges and problems. The availability of natural resources as well as the availability and cost of energy is something that all companies struggle with. Finding labor and training employees is a challenge for companies, and it is accompanied by unfair competition and problems of a geopolitical nature.