SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) today announced the release of its first sustainability report, which highlights the key measures of SAP's corporate environmental, social and governance performance, as well as its products and services that help enable more sustainable operations of its customers. The SAP Sustainability Report 2007/2008 is an important step in the company's ongoing dialogue with stakeholders regarding how SAP can best perform as a company, build software solutions that promote sustainable operations at customers and play a leading role in the public policy debate.

SAP's approach to sustainability is to holistically manage social, environmental and economic risks and opportunities for enhanced profitability, reputation and compliance. The report issued today tracks SAP's footprint in areas such as facilities management, business travel, water use and waste management.

"SAP is in a unique position when it comes to sustainable development," said Léo Apotheker, co-CEO, SAP AG. "Along with ensuring that our business operates in a sound and ethical manner and leaves a minimal environmental footprint, we are also responsible for providing information technology solutions that help businesses of all sizes better manage their sustainability performance. As a result, we aspire to take a leadership position by addressing social, environmental and governance challenges on a global scale - and ensuring that sustainability performance continues to be an intrinsic part of SAP's corporate and product strategy."

Employing Web 2.0 Tools to Encourage Collaboration on Sustainability

Based on its successful working model of collaboration and co-innovation - and acknowledging that the topic of sustainability requires both transparency and stakeholder engagement - SAP has issued an open call for dialogue to define the company's top corporate sustainability issues, as well as product and service solutions.

Using Web 2.0 tools, SAP is fostering an exchange with key stakeholders to challenge and guide SAP's approach to sustainability. Interested parties can log on to the SAP Collaboration Workspace to share their views on SAP's sustainability efforts, secure feedback directly from SAP and interact with other like-minded stakeholders. SAP has also arranged for an online sustainability stakeholder survey at http://www.sapvote.com/ and set up a direct email address for inquiries and feedback at sap_sustainability@sap.com.

Ongoing Dedication to Education, Transparency and Governance

SAP has a long history of driving initiatives that aim to improve education, transparency and governance by working with customers, educational institutions, NGOs and government organizations around the world.

Selected 2007 highlights and activities include:
• SAP was recognized by FTSE4Good and the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, the latter ranking SAP number one in the software sector.
• SAP was included on The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list that rates companies' performance on social, environmental and strategic governance issues.
• SAP was one of 50 global companies selected for the Global Challenges Index that was launched in September 2007 by The Hanover Stock Exchange and oekom research AG, an independent rating agency for the environmental and social performance of companies.

Helping Companies Manage Their Own Sustainability Performance

For more than 35 years, SAP has defined enterprise resource planning (ERP) and has helped companies of all sizes manage resources effectively and responsibly by optimizing and transforming their business processes. SAP software solutions, such as those for governance, risk and compliance (GRC) and supply chain management (SCM), enable businesses to implement their own sustainability strategies.

"Since the rise of enterprise resource planning, enterprise software has played a vital role in enabling profitable and sustainable operations for businesses around the world," said Henning Kagermann, co-CEO, SAP AG. "SAP strives to maximize both our accountability as a technology provider and our responsibility for our own operations. The report issued today is a major step in an ongoing dialogue we will maintain with employees, customers, investors, partners and stakeholders from the public and civil society sectors to keep sustainability at the forefront of all business activities."

About the Report

The report was prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G3 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines and has been GRI-checked to achieve "C" application level certification. The SAP Sustainability Report 2007/2008 is available for download at http://www.sap.com/about/sustainability/index.epx.

About SAP

SAP is the world's leading provider of business software (*), offering applications and services that enable companies of all sizes and in more than 25 industries to become best-run businesses. With approximately 76,000 customers (includes customers from the acquisition of Business Objects) in over 120 countries, the company is listed on several exchanges, including the Frankfurt stock exchange and NYSE, under the symbol "SAP." 

(*) SAP defines business software as comprising enterprise resource planning and related applications.

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "should" and "will" and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements.

All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.

Copyright (C) 2008 SAP AG. All rights reserved.
SAP, R/3, mySAP, mySAP.com, xApps, xApp, SAP NetWeaver and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries all over the world. All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies. Data contained in this document serve informational purposes only. National product specifications may vary.

Note to editors:

To view video stories on diverse topics, visit www.sap-tv.com. From this site, you also can embed videos into your own Web pages, share video via email links and subscribe to RSS feeds from SAP TV. No registration is required. To preview and request broadcast-standard video digitally or by tape, log on to www.thenewsmarket.com/sap, where registration and video is free to the media.

For customers interested in learning more about SAP products:
Global Customer Center: +49 180 534-34-24
United States Only: 1 (800) 872-1SAP (1-800-872-1727)

SAP

SAP

SAP’s strategy is to help every business run as an intelligent, sustainable enterprise. As a market leader in enterprise application software, we help companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: SAP customers generate 87% of total global commerce. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers’ businesses into intelligent enterprises. SAP helps give people and organizations deep business insight and fosters collaboration that helps them stay ahead of their competition. We simplify technology for companies so they can consume our software the way they want – without disruption. Our end-to-end suite of applications and services enables business and public customers across 25 industries globally to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference. With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve people’s lives.

More from SAP