Sustainability management

Governance

ESRS 2 GOV-1; ESRS 2 GOV-2

Achieving STRABAG’s sustainability goals requires a management and accountability structure that involves all representatives within the Group. The following is a description of the most important bodies and committees of STRABAG SE that are entrusted with the oversight and management of sustainability agendas. Corporate-wide exchange makes it possible to discuss ongoing activities and set new steps. It also serves to identify negative impacts as well as risks and opportunities at an early stage, so that appropriate measures can be taken. The figure below provides an overview of the Group’s various bodies and committees.

Governance structure

Role of the highest governance bodies

Oversight of STRABAG SE is exercised by the Supervisory Board. The Supervisory Board is kept informed of all relevant issues concerning the company’s business development, including its risk situation and risk management, and is involved in decision-making processes through regular communication (at least four times during the financial year) and as warranted. The Management Board reports to the Supervisory Board at least once a year on the precautions taken to combat corruption. The Supervisory Board can also demand reports from the Management Board and inspect the company’s books, records and assets. The Chairman of the Management Board (CEO) reports to the Supervisory Board on sustainability matters, including strategic objectives and progress made, as and when required, or separately in an annual ESG update (since 2024). There was no separate sustainability committee during the reporting period.

The Group’s business activities are conducted by the STRABAG SE Management Board. The Management Board is responsible for maintaining the company’s financial balance and setting the strategic objectives. At the Management Board meetings (usually held every two weeks), the members discuss implementation of long-term corporate strategies in addition to the ongoing business. The topics of discussion also include sustainability, which plays a central role and is a separate agenda item at every Management Board meeting. Due to the Group-wide anchoring of the ESG management system, this agenda item is submitted by various departments who prepare comprehensive analyses that should serve the Management Board as a basis for setting its objectives. Selected topics that were introduced during the financial year include the electrification of our vehicle fleet, updates to Group policies and directives, and the stakeholder dialogue. Regular reporting at the Management Board meetings, as well as at other meetings and Group conferences, ensures that the Management Board stays informed of and can monitor the progress being made towards achieving the strategic objectives.

The inclusion of members of the Management Board in strategic sustainability initiatives and bodies, as well as the ongoing reporting, ensures that the STRABAG SE Management Board is regularly and promptly informed about material sustainability topics and their associated impacts, risks and opportunities, enabling it to make directional decisions within the Group as needed. The CEO and CFO are informed of and approve the results of the materiality assessment (including impacts, risks and opportunities). This process is anchored within the Group by the corporate sustainability policy.

In line with the international orientation and organisation of STRABAG SE, each member of the Management Board is responsible for one or more corporate entities, which are structured both geographically and/or by business area. The management of the divisions, central divisions and central staff divisions therefore plays a special role in overseeing the sustainability-related impacts, risks and opportunities affecting the entire Group by regularly and directly reporting to the Management Board.

The mechanisms described for reporting to the Management Board and the Supervisory Board ensure that both bodies are kept informed of current sustainability topics, including the sustainability-related risk situation, so they can fulfil their functions as management and supervisory bodies. In this way, information also flows into strategic considerations and significant transactions, particularly with regard to the expansion of new and market-oriented business areas. During the financial year, the Management Board and the Supervisory Board discussed, among other things, the procedure for setting science-based climate targets in line with the 1.5 °C goal. The further expansion of ESG risk management and its integration into other control and risk systems within the Group is working towards a robust basis for balancing economic, environmental and social aspects.

Besides the internal reporting mechanisms, active participation in external committees and forums also contributes to the sustainability expertise of the Management Board, including, for example, the support of Stiftung KlimaWirtschaft and participation in the European Forum Alpbach 2024.

The table below summarises the most important information on the composition of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board in the 2024 financial year.

Composition of the Management Board and Supervisory Board

	Name		Start of current period of office	End of current period of office	Gender	Year of birth	Nationality
Management Board
	Number of members	5
	Average ratio of female to male members	0%
	Dipl.-Ing. Stefan Kratochwill (chair)		19 February 2025¹	31 December 2026	Male	1977	Austria
	Klemens Haselsteiner, BBA, BF (chair)		1 January 2023	31 December 2026²	Male	1980	Austria
	Mag. Christian Harder		1 January 2023	31 December 2026	Male	1968	Austria
	Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Jörg Rösler		1 January 2023	31 December 2026	Male	1964	Germany
	Dipl.-Ing. Siegfried Wanker		1 January 2023	31 December 2026	Male	1968	Austria
	Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Alfred Watzl		1 January 2023	31 December 2026	Male	1970	Germany
Supervisory Board³
	Number of members	9
	Average ratio of female to male members	44%
Shareholder representatives
	Mag. Kerstin Gelbmann (chair)		24 June 2022	Until 2028 AGM⁴	Female	1974	Austria
	Mag. Erwin Hameseder		24 June 2022	Until 2028 AGM⁴	Male	1956	Austria
	Dr. Andreas Brandstetter		24 June 2022	Until 2028 AGM⁴	Male	1969	Austria
	Dr. Valerie Hackl		25 January 2024	Indefinite	Female	1982	Austria
	Mag. Gabriele Schallegger		24 June 2022	Until 2028 AGM⁴	Female	1972	Austria
Delegated by the works council
	Dipl.-Ing. Andreas Batke		1 October 2009	Indefinite	Male	1962	Germany
	Magdolna P. Gyulainé		1 October 2009	Indefinite	Female	1962	Hungary
	Georg Hinterschuster		13 October 2014	Indefinite	Male	1968	Austria
	Wolfgang Kreis		1 October 2009	31 July 2024	Male	1957	Germany
	Karl Gerdes		1 August 2024	Indefinite	Male	1963	Germany

1Stefan Kratochwill was appointed CEO of STRABAG SE on 19 February 2025 with immediate effect.

2Klemens Haselsteiner passed away on 17 January 2025.

3All members of the Supervisory Board are independent pursuant to Rule 53 ÖCGK.

4Annual General Meeting

Candidates for the Management Board or Supervisory Board of STRABAG SE should possess the relevant professional qualifications, personal skills and extensive experience in management positions. To ensure that the Management Board can optimally fulfil its management role and the Supervisory Board can optimally fulfil its oversight and advisory role, its members should be chosen to represent the broadest possible range of skills and experiences. This diversity includes, in particular, internationality, different professional and educational backgrounds, and age structures.

Potential members of the Management Board should also have at least ten years of experience in the construction industry or a related field and at least five years of management experience within the Group. Another requirement when selecting a new member is that the Management Board should be composed of an equal number of people with technical and commercial backgrounds. The maximum age at the time of appointment is 65. The composition of the Supervisory Board is determined by several mechanisms. The shareholder representatives are elected by the Annual General Meeting or appointed by shareholders. The employee representatives are appointed in accordance with the Austrian Labour Constitution Act (Arbeitsverfassungsgesetz, ArbVG).

Specific expertise in sustainability topics and the associated impacts, risks and opportunities is provided by experts from the various organisational entities. The Management Board and Supervisory Board can also call on external experts as needed.

The Steering Committee Sustainability (SCS) steers the corporate sustainability management and monitors the achievement of the strategic sustainability goals. The composition and staffing of the committee is determined on the basis of the business fields and as far as possible reflects our value chain. SCS members have responsibility for specific trades and topics.

The tasks of the Steering Committee Sustainability include:

approval of position papers, policies and guidelines on sustainability
monitoring of the strategy’s implementation and of the defined roadmaps to achieve the objectives
preparation of decision-making criteria for the STRABAG SE Management Board
formulation and further development of minimum sustainability standards

SCS decisions are made several times a year and when required by means of circular resolutions. A face-to-face meeting takes place at least once a year.

The ESG management is structured according to the topics of environment, social responsibility and sustainable corporate governance. Due to the breadth of these topics, they are covered and dealt with by a number of central organisational entities within the Group. These units are responsible for the integration of these topics by providing the framework and tools to implement the management decisions with respect to requirements, strategies and measures. These central organisational entities also make their expertise available to the STRABAG SE Management Board, the Steering Committee Sustainability and the divisions, central divisions and central staff divisions and play an advisory role in the implementation of the sustainability strategy and related requirements and measures. The organisational unit “Sustainability – Governance, Reporting & Data” supports the development of the governance structure for sustainability and is also responsible for organising and coordinating development and updates of the sustainability strategy as well as for corporate sustainability reporting.

The role of Human Rights Officer is another central function in ESG management. The Human Rights Officer is responsible for monitoring the management of human rights risks and the complaints procedure, as well as for controlling its effectiveness. They also advise the STRABAG SE Management Board as well as the division and central division managers responsible for fulfilling human rights due diligence. The Human Rights Officer acts independently.

The corporate sustainability network includes one nominated representative from each division, central division and central staff division. The purpose of the network is to facilitate the exchange of experience and knowledge within the Group and to share information on best practice examples. The representatives have the task of sharing information from the sustainability bodies (SCS, ESG management) with their respective division and of reporting to their management as well as communicating information about their own sustainability-related activities, actions and projects back to the network. The representatives also provide their specific expertise for Group-wide projects and inquiries. The sustainability network meets four times a year.

At the division, central division and central staff division level, implementation and application of the minimum sustainability standards and the associated measures are carried out in accordance with the legal framework. Working together with the ESG management organisation, the divisions, central divisions and central staff divisions are responsible for developing and implementing the roadmaps for their respective areas.

ESRS 2 GOV-3

Group-wide sustainability-related performance criteria for integration in incentive schemes are being evaluated. Defining, measuring and managing the corresponding target values (key performance indicators) remains challenging, however. As a result, sustainability criteria are not currently used in determining the remuneration of Management Board and Supervisory Board members.

ESRS 2 GOV-4

Due diligence refers to the processes and procedures that STRABAG follows to identify and adequately manage actual or potential adverse impacts on people or the environment. The core elements of due diligence can be found in the sustainability statement.

Core elements of due diligence	Reference in the sustainability statement
Embedding due diligence in governance, strategy and business model	Sustainability management
Engaging with affected stakeholders in all key steps of the due diligence	Our social responsibility; Own workforce; Workers in the value chain; Affected communities
Identifying and assessing adverse impacts	Impacts, risks and opportunities
Taking actions to address those adverse impacts	Our social responsibility
Tracking the effectiveness of these efforts and communicating	Our social responsibility

Value chain and strategy

ESRS 2 SBM-1

The construction industry, and with it STRABAG, faces enormous challenges. Containing climate change requires a significant reduction in greenhouse gases, particularly from climate-intensive industrial sectors such as construction. To meet the demand for housing and infrastructure, existing buildings must be modernised and new structures built to sustainable standards. Innovative construction methods are therefore needed to align these activities with new and future requirements in terms of energy efficiency and the use of land and resources. This obliges STRABAG to act with foresight but also makes it clear that the construction sector is a key industry for achieving sustainability targets.

STRABAG operates primarily in Europe and offers services along the entire construction value chain, especially in its core markets of Central and Eastern Europe. Our company’s activities are accordingly diverse as a result. Outside Europe, STRABAG is mainly focused on the English-speaking world and on the long-standing markets in South America and the Middle East.

The skills and expertise of our 86,883 employees who deliver our services are as diverse as our value chain. Partnership, trust and reliability are the core values we apply in our dealings with our stakeholders.

STRABAG maintains a dense network of proprietary production facilities to ensure the supply of construction materials from in-house resources. The most important construction materials include asphalt, concrete, cement, stone and gravel, which are used both for the company’s own needs and are offered for sale to third parties. A particularly high self-sufficiency rate (85%) is achieved for asphalt. The other building materials and raw materials used are largely purchased from external sources. We aim to increase resource efficiency by setting strategic targets to expand our expertise in the procurement and handling of construction materials, as well as in dismantling and recycling. This not only reduces our dependence on third parties but also helps to avoid the human rights risks and compliance risks that can arise from complex global supply chains. Our production facilities also play an important role in the decarbonisation of the Group, for example with the conversion of asphalt mixing plants to renewable energy sources. In addition to mineral-based building materials, STRABAG also uses renewable raw materials, including those based on wood, straw or hemp. With the acquisition of Naporo Klima Dämmstoff GmbH during the financial year, STRABAG expanded its product range in the area of sustainable building materials.

Considering the entire building life cycle during the planning and design phase is an essential aspect of future-oriented construction, particularly in light of trends such as increasing urbanisation and the climate crisis. Concrete political objectives, such as those set out in the European Green Deal, call for the low-emission construction and operation of buildings as well as higher renovation rates. Despite these targets, however, sustainability criteria such as those outlined in the EU Taxonomy are generally not yet incorporated into procurement processes. With TEAMCONCEPT, STRABAG follows a partnering model in which the client and contractor form a team right from the planning phase. STRABAG also offers additional planning-related consulting services (e.g. a sustainability potential analysis or green services), that specifically address the sustainability requirements of buildings and involve clients early in the planning process. Sustainable buildings benefit not only public-sector clients but also building users, as lower operating costs can be achieved during the usage phase (through energy-efficient heating systems, for example).

STRABAG’s range of services also includes the development of real estate, infrastructure and renewable energy projects. The Group develops, builds, sells and leases real estate projects with a focus on buildings that require fewer resources during construction and less energy during operation. In addition, STRABAG has a successful track record spanning more than three decades in concession models with a portfolio consisting of 41 public-private partnership (PPP) projects in the building construction and infrastructure sectors.

Construction is at the core of STRABAG’s business model, with the transportation infrastructure and building construction divisions accounting for nearly 70% of our output in 2024. In building construction, more than in transportation infrastructures, STRABAG outsources some of its work to subcontractors, enabling it to adapt its capacities more flexibly to the current market environment. Through these two divisions, STRABAG contributes to municipalities and other public-sector clients, primarily by expanding infrastructure, especially in the mobility sector, and increasing housing availability. STRABAG also receives long-term contracts and recurring revenue from its service offering for infrastructure maintenance.

In 2022, building operations accounted for approximately 26% of global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions (IEA, 2023). In addition to traditional facility management, STRABAG is expanding its service portfolio in the field of mechanical and electrical engineering services (M&E), with a particular focus on implementing and providing sustainable energy management solutions across a wide range of property types – including the company’s own real estate, existing properties and new builds, and highly complex facilities such as those in the healthcare sector – as a way to contribute to decarbonising existing buildings.

The depiction of the value chain to date reveals that vast amounts of resources and materials are contained within a building. In addition to energy consumption, the material demand of the construction sector has significant environmental relevance. Among other factors, the demolition, dismantling and deconstruction of buildings, which generates large amounts of construction waste and hard-to-recycle materials, as well as the low reuse and recycling rates of many building materials, contribute to making the construction sector one of the most waste-intensive industries (European Commission, n.d.).

The action area Reconstruction, Conversion & Refurbishment encompasses the required activities to sustainably use existing buildings and preserve both energy and material resources, including deconstruction, maintenance, renovation and modernisation. To achieve a truly circular economy, STRABAG also offers services related to demolition and dismantling, including the recycling of construction materials. The aim is to conserve resources, reprocess materials at a high standard and avoid landfill disposal.

STRABAG offers a range of services that align with global sustainability goals, but which, depending on how they are implemented, can also have negative environmental and social impacts. To minimise these impacts, STRABAG has defined a set of strategic sustainability goals and is continuously working on the sustainable transformation of the company. This includes the development of specific products and services, such as the use of sustainable building materials and construction methods, as well as measures to uphold our social responsibility towards our own employees, those in the supply chain and local communities.

To strategically anchor the high potential within our value chain, STRABAG adopted its first sustainability strategy in 2021 with a clear commitment to decarbonising the value chain by 2040. In the year under review, this strategy was expanded to include additional environmental, social and governance aspects.

In recent years, the importance of sustainability has continued to grow across all areas – ranging from legal requirements and shifting stakeholder expectations to the increasing specificity of scientific findings on climate change, biodiversity loss and other challenges. These developments call for a new approach, which at STRABAG is manifested in an updated sustainability strategy, adopted by the STRABAG SE Management Board in the first quarter of 2025 and now applicable across the entire Group.

The expanded sustainability strategy covers several focus areas relating to the environment, social responsibility and sustainable corporate governance. As a construction group, STRABAG’s activities have potential impacts in these focus areas that must be carefully considered, because STRABAG can influence them positively or negatively and because they involve both risks and opportunities.

Environmental

Decarbonisation: With a science-based reduction pathway, we are lowering greenhouse gas emissions across our entire value chain. By 2030, we aim to reduce our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 42% and our Scope 3 emissions by 25%, with the goal of becoming climate neutral by 2040.
Circular economy: We put circular economy principles into practice by reducing the consumption of primary raw materials, minimising waste and preserving resources at a high level of quality.
Biodiversity: By establishing a biodiversity management system, we minimise our negative impacts on the local flora, fauna and funga while contributing to the preservation of intact ecosystems.

Social

Our employees: Protecting and promoting the health of all our employees, fostering a strong learning culture and creating an inclusive work environment are key action areas for us to maintain our position as a top employer.
Human rights along the value chain: The value chain in the construction industry is complex – our social responsibility and due diligence therefore extend not only to our own employees but also to a wide range of other stakeholders, particularly suppliers and their employees.
Added value for society: By strengthening our positive dialogue with local communities, we can shape our impact responsibly for everyone.

Governance

Fair competition: To ensure its commitment to being a reliable business partner, contractor and employer, STRABAG encourages compliant behaviour, ethical conduct and a corporate culture based on partnership and trust.
Sustainable corporate governance: Sustainable corporate governance requires clear structures, processes and responsibilities. This helps to ensure business integrity and the early identification of impacts, risks and opportunities.

Stakeholder engagement

ESRS 2 SBM-2

Stakeholders have various opportunities to share their interests and views as a way of providing valuable input for STRABAG’s strategy and business model. Currently, STRABAG does not follow a fixed, structured approach to overarching stakeholder engagement. The wide range of options for engagement enables the flexible design of individual and targeted forms of collaboration tailored to the specific context and need.

The structured engagement formats for our own employees include the appraisal interviews that are held annually in accordance with the respective Group Directive, as well as the exit interviews conducted when an employee leaves the company. These conversations provide valuable insights that inform the continued refinement of our human resource development processes. When processing workplace accidents, the parties involved are included as needed and when possible to conduct a structured analysis of the events.

Our employees can raise their concerns and issues at any time through channels such as the whistleblower platform or the ombudsman service. Potential corrective actions, as well as regular evaluations of their effectiveness, provide valuable input for assessing our processes. STRABAG also relies on participatory formats, such as the adASTRA intrapreneurship programme and the ideas management. adASTRA has already led to the establishment of new companies that contribute to STRABAG’s strategic areas of action.

In addition to engaging with our internal stakeholders, we also seek the dialogue with other relevant stakeholders. These include, in particular, our customers, investors and suppliers. We also maintain contact with universities and the media, political institutions and NGOs as spokespeople for “silent” stakeholders such as nature. A variety of engagement formats encourage interaction and exchange between STRABAG and its stakeholders, including representation at trade fairs and industry events, stakeholder dialogues and the establishment of research collaborations. When updating our corporate strategy, we engage with analysts and investors through a dedicated event, as we did in 2023 with the Strategic Update 2030.

In September 2024, we organised a stakeholder dialogue on the topic of environmental and social supply chains. In addition to an expert presentation on human rights in the construction industry, the event focused primarily on dialogue and exchange formats. Participants included representatives from the STRABAG Group as well as external stakeholders such as suppliers, partner companies, clients and the scientific community. This diverse group covers a significant portion of the construction value chain, which is affected to varying degrees by new regulatory requirements and challenges related to the supply chain. Data availability was identified as a key enabler for meeting due diligence requirements and overcoming challenges, which will require close, collaborative business relationships. Feedback and networking opportunities, as well as follow-ups, laid the foundation for ongoing dialogue. Additional stakeholder dialogues are planned.

When it comes to our construction projects, affected communities and local residents are another key stakeholder group. Dialogue with these stakeholder groups is often required by law. A key undertaking to strengthen this dialogue is the planned implementation of a corporate-wide guideline for engaging local communities and residents at the project level.

Sources – Sustainability Management

European Commission. (n.d.). Construction and demolition waste. Retrieved 18 February 2025
International Energy Agency. (2023). Buildings. Retrieved 18 February 2025.