Singapore: Leading classification society Det Norske Veritas (DNV) has launched a new vision focusing on the environment and the need to balance the competing needs of business and society. 'Global impact for a safe and sustainable future' will chart DNV’s focus and direction in the years ahead.
Providing the long-term growth direction for its 7000 employees around the world, the vision statement, ‘Global impact for a safe and sustainable future’, builds upon the safety and quality hallmarks of the DNV brand to address two universal challenges, sustainable development and environmental conservation.
The vision sets the tone for the Norwegian foundation’s ambition – to gain long-term growth through global impact in areas where DNV’s competencies are unrivalled.
“At DNV, we have the purpose of safeguarding life, property and the environment. Through our risk management services, we strive towards this purpose every day by making an impact on our customers around the world, while improving their business performance safely and responsibly,” says DNV CEO Henrik Madsen.
Mr Madsen believes businesses need to invest in future sustainability as the society today faces increasing problems with climate change, pollution and fast-depleting natural resources.
“DNV is therefore devoting considerable attention to energy management and environmental issues, where we aim to introduce leading-edge solutions and practices that support our clients’ efforts towards sustainable development,” says Mr Madsen.
To achieve its ambition, Mr Madsen says DNV is now on an aggressive drive to strengthen its knowledge and expertise base through recruitment, continuous training, research, acquisitions and other strategies.
“Following the adoption of our new strategy, the emphasis is now on shaping and growing the DNV organization. Our business areas have been restructured to reflect a clearer industry sector focus and we recruited over 900 new employees last year to gear up for the growth required to meet the targets in our strategy.”
The changes have been well received in the marketplace and DNV has strengthened its position in all the sectors served.
“Our main priority is to ensure that DNV’s growth is sustainable as we expand further, which means we focus on the role that business can play in building the future,” says Mr Madsen.
“The more our activities can be seen as part of the customer’s value-adding chain, the greater the impact of our work to safeguard life, property and the environment. In this way we can help realise DNV’s vision as well as all our customers’ business goals.”
Internally, the new vision is creating positive ripples across the DNV enterprise.
Aided by a new organizational mindset, termed the T-shaped Leadership, DNV business units are actively sharing knowledge and competencies, while working towards their own business goals. In this way, the 300 DNV offices worldwide are able to progress collectively towards common goals without neglecting local imperatives, Mr Madsen explains.
A recent example of DNV’s innovative approach is the development of its Corporate Responsibility service, which helps companies manage their assets in a way that contributes to sustainable development.
“Corporate Responsibility is a service provided by our business area, DNV Industry. It fits well with our new vision and came about as a response to the market’s need for services that facilitate responsible use of resources. Corporate Responsibility will, among other areas, examine a company’s intangible assets, such as its reputation, people and business practices,” says Mr Madsen.
To cater to as many market segments as possible, Mr Madsen says DNV Industry is moving away from the provision of a fixed set of services towards a broader range of delivery modes, encompassing assessments, ratings, consultancy and training.
The Corporate Responsibility service will actively leverage the competencies and knowledge of DNV’s other business areas, such as DNV Maritime, so as to develop the best possible services and tools, he adds.
Such cross-business area teamwork is evident in DNV Singapore. Its premises in Science Park Drive are home to offices offering class, certification, consulting, software and energy-related services.
Along with DNV Petroleum Services located in Changi South, DNV Singapore exemplifies the exchange of competencies under the T-shaped Leadership concept, where a broad spectrum of maritime services is conveniently available.
Elaborating further, Mr Ragnar Hansen, regional manager of DNV Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, says DNV Singapore unites the collective strengths of Det Norske Veritas to deliver to clients the most comprehensive solutions.
“In the DNV culture, we put all our heads together to create opportunities and to overcome challenges. This spirit of unity has kept our business growing, and we’re confident it will lead us successfully into the years ahead as we work towards a safe and sustainable future for our clients, our employees, and society at large.”
Date: 2007-04-02