Values and Beliefs of Bata Shoe Organization
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Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................. 3
Business as a Service ............................................................................................................................... 3
Our Products and Our Customers ........................................................................................................... 4
Our People .................................................................................................................................................. 5
Teamwork and Communications ............................................................................................................. 6
Teamwork ................................................................................................................................................ 6
Communications ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Our Suppliers .............................................................................................................................................. 7
Fairness and Integrity ................................................................................................................................ 7
Profitability ................................................................................................................................................... 7
Our Shareholders ....................................................................................................................................... 8
Our Communities ....................................................................................................................................... 8
Health and Safety ....................................................................................................................................... 8
The Environment ........................................................................................................................................ 9
Our Culture and Shaping Our Future ...................................................................................................... 9
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Introduction
When Tomas Bata founded his business in 1894 in Zlin, Czechoslovakia, he had a
vision of a dynamic enterprise that would serve its customers and its community.
Today's Bata Shoe Organization (Bata) continues to be inspired and guided by this
philosophy of service and corporate responsibility.
Bata has always maintained that a business must have values in which people
believe as part of a strong culture understood by all. Bata's shared culture, shared
values and shared beliefs have been the foundation of its approach to its customers,
its employees and the communities in which it operates.
The purpose of this website is to communicate those values and beliefs to
employees and through them to others so that they will all have a clear
understanding of the unique culture of Bata.
A Brief Look at Bata
Bata is a multicultural and multilingual global enterprise.
Our name is synonymous with shoes worldwide and we are leaders in
our industry in many of the countries in which we operate. In fact,
almost 1 million people buy "Bata" shoes every working day of the year through Bata's selling outlets.
Although we operate in many countries that have different business and social characteristics, we still
have the same value system throughout our Organization.
Business as a Service
"We saw that through our enterprise we were bringing a new hitherto unknown life
to our region and that with its development the general well-being and education of
our people was being raised."
- TOMAS BATA
When Tomas Bata wrote those words more than 65 years ago, he was emphasizing his long-held belief
that the value of business to society includes the wealth and employment it creates and the products and
service it provides to consumers. This belief has always been part of the Bata culture - that our business
has a role to play in improving the lives of all of our customers, employees, suppliers and communities.
We believe that while achieving our business objectives, we should take into account the interests of
these groups. We also take into account the different social, economic and environmental aspirations of
the communities in which we operate.
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Our Products and Our Customers
We provide outstanding products and service to our customers.
At Bata, we serve our customers:
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By creating and offering unique products that embody excellent design, quality, comfort and value
for money;
By handling each of our customer's service needs courteously, quickly, thoroughly and fairly.
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OUR PRODUCTS
At Bata, we produce shoes for every walk of life. Thus we understand shoes and all the
processes involved in producing them.
We believe in earning the enduring goodwill of customers for our products and by our service to
them by:
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Offering products that provide value for money;
Ensuring that our products meet all required standards of consumer health and safety;
Guaranteeing the quality of our products;
Developing and maintaining a high standard of quality in all our products and services;
Monitoring closely the changing wishes and needs of our customers;
Developing products of consistent quality that are significantly superior to major
competitors;
Continuing our research and development and strong technology base to offer innovative
and superior products and services.
OUR SERVICE
At Bata, we see a sale as the beginning of a relationship, which is to be nurtured by excellent
service.
For example, we:
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Promise only what we can deliver;
Strive for consistent levels of service and shopping environment at all our retail stores;
Give our trained front-line service staff the authority to satisfy customer complaints without
delay.
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Our People
"We believe that the fundamental vitality and strength of our Organization lies in our
people."
- THOMAS J. BATA
Our ability to meet our customers' needs depends on the knowledge, imagination, skills, diversity,
teamwork and integrity of our people. We ensure this by recruiting and retaining the best people
available.
We are also guided by the principles of non-discrimination and respect for human rights and individual
freedoms for all employees of Bata companies.
Thus we do not allow discriminatory practices and we provide equal treatment and opportunity to all, no
matter their gender, age, race or religion.
We are committed to being socially responsible employers and our human resources programs are driven
by this commitment.
We look for and honour education, skill and experience and above all, commitment to the Organization
and its success.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
We encourage our people to use their experience, skill and inventiveness to improve the
operational and commercial success of Bata.
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This provides opportunities for greater job satisfaction and personal development, while
helping the worldwide Organization achieve its objectives.
ACCOUNTABILITY
We also believe in aligning decision-making power with responsibility at all levels of the
Organization so that our people are accountable for the activities and results over which they
have control.
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REMUNERATION AND REWARDS
We provide remuneration and benefits that are fair and competitive both within the footwear
industry and within the respective countries and local communities in which we operate.
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We maintain programs that reward our employees for performance. In addition, we try to
match the individual employee's ambitions with Organizational goals.
TRAINING AND ADVANCEMENT
We provide opportunities for personal development and advancement.
We do this by:
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Running local courses for training and improving skills;
Organizing several national and international courses at all levels on a regular basis for
teaching new technologies and systems;
Encouraging life-long learning
Teamwork and Communications
Teamwork
Working as part of a team produces a sense of belonging for Bata people. Every employee should feel
that he or she is contributing in a significant way to the team effort and can call on others to help.
This also gives our people a sense of pride and accomplishment in their work. Thus we encourage our
people at all levels in all disciplines to act as a team for the benefit of all.
Communications
We create a climate whereby all employees have a chance to freely air their concerns and express their
opinions with the assurance that these will be fairly considered.
We foster this open two-way communication at all levels for a number of reasons:
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To motivate and enhance commitment;
To help employees understand how their job performance affects Bata profitability;
To ensure that employees are familiar with the activities and performance of their company.
We deal in good faith with all employees and employee representatives at all times.
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Our Suppliers
We seek the best suppliers who reflect our values.
We select reliable, excellent quality suppliers and sub-contractors who support our values and beliefs and
we develop long-term relationships with those suppliers based on mutual respect.
We maintain these relationships through the following practices:
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We are fair and truthful in all our dealings with our suppliers;
We foster long-term stability in our supplier relationships in return for value, quality,
competitiveness and reliability.
We exchange information with our suppliers and integrate them into our planning processes.
Fairness and Integrity
We operate with fairness and integrity in all our dealings.
We believe in dealing fairly and with integrity with all our customers and suppliers and in all our business
relationships. We strive to conduct our business in a manner that earns the respect and confidence of our
people, customers and the community.
We do this by leading by example and thus we:
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Do not offer or accept improper payments;
Avoid conflicts of interest;
have zero tolerance for corruption;
Comply with the laws and regulations of each country where we conduct business;
Refrain from involvement in political activities in the conduct of our business in all countries;
Do not engage in unfair hiring practices.
We also avoid practices that limit competition and we:
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Refrain from seeking or participating in questionable payment or favors to secure competitive
advantages;
Respect the tangible and intellectual property rights of others;
Do not acquire commercial information by dishonest or unethical means.
Profitability
Being profitable is a requirement, not only for shareholders but also for employees and the communities
where we operate.
Being a profitable Organization is essential for Bata for a number of reasons:
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It ensures our long-term prosperity and growth;
It enables us to attract and retain the best people to work for us;
It allows individual employees to grow in their career with the Organization.
It enables us to contribute to the well-being of the communities in which we operate.
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Our Shareholders
Bata's level of profitability should ensure that our shareholders receive consistent and growing returns on
their investment.
We have our shareholders' interest in mind.
To this end, we:
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Endeavor to secure a consistent and growing return on our shareholders' investment;
Protect and increase our corporate assets;
Encourage communication with shareholders.
We also recognize that financial success and shareholder value are directly linked to our reputation as a
trusted investor and a "neighbor of choice". Therefore, we take this into consideration when making
business decisions.
Our Communities
We are an active and involved part of our communities.
We are committed to being a good corporate citizen and to contributing to the well-being of the
communities and countries in which we operate. We do this by becoming involved with our communities
through charitable donations, educational and cultural contributions and employee participation in
community and civic affairs.
In addition, we believe in:
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Collaborating with people in the communities who are dedicated to raising standards of health,
education, workplace safety and economic well-being;
Promoting sustainable development in the areas in which we operate and striving to play a
leading role in preserving and enhancing the natural environment;
Respecting the integrity of local cultures;
Involving employees in two-way communication with communities on Organizational values and
our commitment to corporate social responsibility.
Allocating a share of our profits to enhance the well-being of the communities in which we
operate.
Health and Safety
The health and safety of our people are first and foremost.
We believe in providing a safe, clean, attractive and stimulating workplace for all our employees and
working conditions that protect each employee's health and dignity. Thus in some areas in which we
operate, we have built medical and recreational facilities for the use of our employees, their families and
the community at large.
We manage our operations with the conviction that all injuries are preventable and all identifiable risks to
health can be contained. To that end we maintain high standards for the health and safety of all
employees making it a primary concern of management and a requirement in the design and operation of
our facilities.
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We protect employees from avoidable injury and illness in the workplace by:
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Providing appropriate safety training for our employees along with occupational health services;
Establishing health and safety committees in all our companies, which constantly investigate
areas of potential risk.
Looking into and implementing recommendations from safety committees.
The Environment
To protect our people, customers and communities and to protect our natural
environment in order to help sustain human development globally.
- BATA'S ENVIRONMENTAL MISSION STATEMENT
We implement our Environmental Mission Statement by:
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Taking those practical steps necessary to prevent or lessen any adverse impacts on the
environment that may result from our operations and products;
Regularly evaluating compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations and Bata
Guidelines;
Minimizing waste and maximizing recycling wherever appropriate;
Seeking to achieve the most efficient use of energy and other raw materials;
Striving to introduce best practice environmental standards in all countries in which we operate;
Working with local communities to be a leader in environmental concerns and practices.
An Environmental, Health and Safety Guide has been issued to all Bata companies. This document
provides a list of Bata Environmental Principles and Guidelines.
Our Culture and Shaping Our Future
We have a unique culture that embraces change, adapts to it, and uses it to shape our future.
We are an Organization that recognizes that change is inevitable. We embrace change, adapt to it, and
see it as a positive force in our day-to-day operations.
At the same time, we know that the success of our Organization has been built on our legacy of values
and beliefs, "the Bata culture". As change around the world accelerates, this common culture will become
more important than ever.
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With shared values and a striving for excellence,
we will be able to achieve our Mission:
To be successful as the most dynamic,
flexible and market responsive worldwide organization with footwear as its core business.
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