Corporate citizenship and philanthropic strategy, principles and processes, including main priorities 

Through responsible, sustainable business practices and our commitment to giving back, we care for the communities and markets where we live and operate our business. Our Global Responsibility & Sustainability strategy at Nielsen includes all environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues that affect our business, operations and internal and external stakeholders. To activate this strategy, our Global Responsibility & Sustainability team oversees our global ESG approach and external reporting; employee engagement through volunteerism and pro bono donations of Nielsen data via our Nielsen Cares and Data for Good programs; and employee engagement and increased operational efficiencies through environmental sustainability efforts via Nielsen Green.

Nielsen Cares utilizes our data, expertise and associates to positively impact the communities in which we live and work around the world. Through 2018 and 2019, our Nielsen Cares efforts focused on four priority areas that represent critical areas of need we feel we are best equipped to address, given their strategic importance and our core competencies of our data, science and people. We will continue to update our approach to these and other areas as we evolve our business strategy, and as the most critical social and environmental needs change in our communities. 

• Hunger and nutrition: We help nonprofits better understand food issues to increase global access to food, reduce food insecurity and improve nutrition. The global data we collect about food pricing and consumption can provide nonprofits with the insights they need to drive more efficient and impactful programs.
• Education: We strive to enable the next generation of leaders to excel in areas such as reading, computer literacy and math. These efforts also directly benefit our business, as we rely on a workforce educated in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills.
• Diversity and inclusion: We help to empower diverse communities by increasing awareness of diverse consumer demographics and by driving career readiness for all. This area of focus reflects the importance of diversity and inclusion to our business, both in our workforce and in our efforts to accurately represent diverse communities in our measurement.
• Technology: Everything we do is rooted in leveraging technology to make an impact. We want to expand technology access and understanding, enabling nonprofits to achieve their hunger, education and diversity-related missions by tapping into Nielsen’s technical expertise, as well as growing their own skills to be more effective and efficient. Just as Nielsen’s business depends on technology, we recognize that social and environmental issues must be addressed in new ways through new solutions.

Guided by these four priorities, Nielsen Cares invests in communities through pro bono and in-kind donations, employee volunteering and direct corporate donations, as described below. 

Pro bono and in-kind donations: Because we believe in the power of our collective impact, involvement and investment, we pledge at least $10 million each year in pro bono data and in-kind products and services—part of a larger goal to contribute a cumulative $50 million in-kind from 2016 through the end of 2020. We have already exceeded this goal with record-breaking years in both 2018 and 2019: In 2018, we donated the equivalent of $21.2 million of data, products and services, and in 2019, we exceeded this previous record by donating $24.5 million in-kind. These Data for Good projects leverage our data and expertise in support of social and environmental causes where we can make a difference.

Employee volunteering: We provide each Nielsen associate with 24 hours of dedicated volunteer time annually, with a goal to log 300,000 total volunteer hours (including dedicated volunteer time and personal volunteer time) from 2016 through the end of 2020. In 2019, Nielsen reached this goal early by surpassing 370,000 volunteer hours after Nielsen Global Impact Day (NGID), our annual day of service. On Tuesday, June 18, 2019, almost 24,000 Nielsen employees from 92 countries volunteered across more than 1,500 events as part of our eighth-annual NGID.

Direct donations: Nielsen also makes direct corporate donations to relevant nonprofit organizations. We updated our internal Third-Party Donations Policy in 2017. It clarifies our requirement that all donations must comply with the Nielsen Code of Conduct (including the Anti-Corruption Compliance Policy) and cannot be given to certain types of organizations (such as political organizations or any group that discriminates on any basis).

For more information see our Nielsen Cares website.

Nielsen Foundation: The Nielsen Foundation, a private foundation funded by Nielsen, makes direct grants to eligible nonprofit organizations. The Nielsen Foundation seeks to bridge divides and enhance the use of data by the social sector to reduce discrimination, ease global hunger, promote effective education and build strong leadership. 

In 2018, the Foundation distributed $1.67 million across 58 organizations. In 2019, the Foundation distributed $1.71 million across 56 organizations.

The Foundation’s Data for Good grant program supports projects that use data in innovative ways and help bridge divides to catalyze long-term change by addressing one or more of the following goals:

• Increase access to skills, resources and opportunities.
• Influence public attitudes or behavior for positive social outcomes.
• Use data to inform positive social change.

In 2018, the Foundation launched two signature programs to promote education and inclusion: Discover Data (in collaboration with the Afterschool Alliance and Discovery Education) and the TechDiversity Accelerator (in collaboration with Tampa Bay Wave).  

For more information see the Nielsen Foundation website.

Community investment commitments and goals, and status

• Goal: Donate $10 million each year in pro bono data and in-kind products and services, and contribute a cumulative $50 million in-kind from 2016 through the end of 2020.
  • Status = Achieved. In 2018 and 2019 combined, Nielsen and our associates contributed $45.7 million in pro bono data, in-kind giving and skills-based volunteering to nonprofit organizations and academic institutions, more than doubling our annual $10 million goal during both years and achieving an all-time high for Nielsen overall.
• Goal: Contribute at least 300,000 associate volunteer hours from 2016 through the end of 2020.
  • Status = Achieved. We surpassed this goal in June 2019, a year and a half before our deadline.

In-kind and financial giving by year and categories, including breakdown by category

2018 giving totals: 

• Corporate contributions (including pro bono and skills-based volunteering value as well as corporate cash contributions): $22,424,633
• Nielsen Foundation grant total: $1,672,441

2019 giving totals:

• Corporate contributions (including pro bono and skills-based volunteering value as well as corporate cash contributions): $25,421,145 
• Nielsen Foundation grant total: $1,710,300

Outputs and outcomes of community investments, including KPIs for philanthropy

We measure the success of our pro bono contributions and community investment efforts based on internal and external performance indicators. The following are the business benefits of our community investments:

• Brand enhancement: Through our Data for Good platform, we see exciting new ways to further deliver on our brand promise of ensuring every voice counts in how we help to shape a smarter market and drive one media truth.
• Skill development: Through skills-based volunteering and pro bono work, employees develop and learn new skills that can be applied to client projects. We regularly survey Nielsen volunteers about their experiences and whether volunteering contributed to their work experience in any way, such as new skills learned or new connections made across our global organization. As of our latest survey, 81% of our associates say that volunteering strengthens existing relationships within their teams. 
• Employee engagement: Through volunteering, we strive for employees to gain a greater degree of engagement and satisfaction with their overall Nielsen experience. We measure this by cross-referencing data on employees who volunteer with our annual employee engagement survey, myVoice. We also survey volunteers annually following our Nielsen Global Impact Day, as well as our skills-based volunteers and volunteer leaders throughout the year. As of our latest survey, 76% of our associates say that volunteering helps them connect to Nielsen’s mission and purpose. 
• Innovation: Through skills-based volunteering and pro bono work, we strive to develop new methodologies and solutions outside of traditional contexts. While the nonprofit’s needs come first, we recognize the benefits of testing out new ways of solving challenges in a noncommercial environment.

The following are the social and community benefits and metrics we track:

• Number of nonprofits served, as measured through our employee volunteering platform;
• Number of students served through education programs; and
• Nonprofit effectiveness and efficiency, to ensure that organizations are better able to reach their target populations through Nielsen’s pro bono contributions.

Also, we regularly engage diverse consumers and organizations to share how their power and influence in the media and consumer goods industries—through their purchasing power and media consumption—shape markets and cultures. We measure this in part through the number of nonprofit volunteer and pro bono engagements that our Employee Resource Groups undertake, as well as the number of consumers/audiences reached with our Diverse Intelligence Series of reports.

Governance of charitable contributions, including grant funding applications process

Within Nielsen, our Global Responsibility & Sustainability team oversees and manages our global ESG strategy and reporting, Nielsen Cares (our social responsibility and hands-on employee volunteering efforts), Nielsen Green (our environmental sustainability activities) and our Data for Good pro bono program. This team reports to our Chief Legal & Corporate Affairs Officer and presents to the Nielsen Board of Directors at least once per year. 

To carry out our Nielsen Cares programs around the world, we maintain and support global volunteer leadership councils representing all geographic markets across the company. In coordination with these volunteer leadership councils, we also have local, volunteer Nielsen Cares leaders on-site in more than 90 countries around the world. These leaders work to identify local engagement opportunities with organizations and develop projects for associates to connect with their communities and with each other.

In 2020, we are incorporating Nielsen Cares and Nielsen Green leaders as Social & Environmental Responsibility Committee leaders in our newly launched, integrated Inclusion Impact Team structure, enabling closer collaboration with Employee Resource Groups to advance shared goals.

Any charitable contributions made by Nielsen corporate must be made to a registered charitable organization or entity and not to an individual or to an organization linked to a political party, politician or government official. Also, any donation to a third party must be done in accordance with Nielsen’s internal Third Party Donations Policy, which ensures that all third-party donations, including charitable contributions, are properly reviewed, approved and classified for proper reporting.

Donations to religious organizations for sectarian purposes are not permitted. Also, Nielsen does not support organizations that discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability status, age, marital status, protected veteran status or any other protected class. Nielsen funds may not be used for political contributions or to attend political events.

The Nielsen Foundation, a private foundation funded by Nielsen, is overseen by a Board of Directors and accepts grant applications by invitation only. All individual grants or agreements in excess of $50,000 require approval by the Foundation’s Board of Directors. The Grantmaking Committee (composed of at least four Directors and officers) reviews and approves all individual grants or agreements between $25,000 and $50,000, as well as any grants or arrangements proposed by a Director or officer for potential conflicts of interest. Executive Directors can individually approve grants of $25,000 and below. 

Foundation grant recipients must be tax-exempt nonprofit organizations, classified by the IRS, or the international equivalent. The Nielsen Foundation will not support organizations that discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability status, age, marital status, protected veteran status or any other protected class, and will also not support religious organizations for sectarian purposes. The Nielsen Foundation does not use Foundation funds to make direct contributions to candidates, political parties, PACs, super PACs, political committees, 527 groups or ballot question committees.

Employee volunteer and donation programs

We provide 24 hours of dedicated volunteer time to each Nielsen associate annually, with a goal of logging 300,000 total volunteer hours (including dedicated, paid volunteer time and personal volunteer time) from 2016 through the end of 2020. As of June 2019, we logged almost 370,000 volunteer hours—surpassing our goal a year and a half before our deadline. While this volunteering can take place anytime throughout the year, we also organize a worldwide day of service each year called Nielsen Global Impact Day (NGID). In 2019, our eighth-annual NGID mobilized almost 24,000 Nielsen employees from 92 countries across more than 1,500 volunteer events.

In addition, the Nielsen Foundation administers a Cause Cards program. Nielsen associates who log 12 or more volunteer hours in a quarter receive a Cause Card to direct a $200 donation from the Foundation to an eligible nonprofit, as a way to further recognize and increase the impact of their volunteer hours. Employees can receive up to two Cause Cards per calendar year. In times of disaster, the Nielsen Foundation has also matched donations to specific relief organizations.

Employee Volunteering Data

Facilitation of employee engagement with charitable partners

Nielsen provides access to a third-party employee volunteering software platform to enable associates to log their 24 hours of dedicated volunteer time from Nielsen, as well as personal volunteer time that they would like to track. This platform allows associates to plan large-scale volunteer events such as Nielsen Global Impact Day, as well as keep track of their individual volunteer impact. 

On a quarterly basis, we accept submissions and recognize Global Responsibility & Sustainability Champions, which include employees who have been nominated for their outstanding volunteer support and impact. They receive an email recognition of their nomination, with visibility by their direct manager, and are listed on our employee intranet page and internal social platform. 

Nielsen associates have also volunteered pro bono support to some organizations that have received grants from the Nielsen Foundation. For example, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media has received Data for Good grants from the Nielsen Foundation. The Institute has also received pro bono television ratings data from Nielsen that helped to facilitate new research on gender equity in children’s programming. 

The Cause Card program is administered through the Nielsen Foundation via our third-party employee volunteering software platform. Nielsen associates who log 12 or more volunteer hours in a quarter receive a Cause Card to direct a $200 donation from the Foundation to an eligible nonprofit, as a way to further recognize and increase the impact of their volunteer hours. 

Women-focused philanthropy

Nielsen CEO David Kenny committed to advancing the careers of women at Nielsen around the world by signing on to the LEAD (Leading Executives Advancing Diversity) Network CEO Pledge. The pledge emphasizes Nielsen’s commitment to increase women in senior leadership roles globally. Kenny signed the pledge in concurrence with International Women’s Day 2019, which is celebrated by thousands of Nielsen associates around the world. See more in the Diversity and Inclusion section of this report.

The Nielsen Foundation’s gender-focused Data for Good grants in 2018 and 2019 included the following:

• Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media:
  • 2018: To conduct and publish a major new, comprehensive impact study measuring the impact of the Institute’s work from 2004 to present, and to launch a campaign to amplify the reach and storytelling power of the Institute’s existing data and stories of impact.
  • 2019: Grant support for the continued development of the Geena Davis Inclusion Quotient (GD-IQ) media measurement tool.
• Women for Women International: To continue support for a multiyear, randomized, controlled trial that rigorously tests economic empowerment programmatic variations with 1,000 women in Nigeria, to more effectively understand what drives the profitability and sustainability of women’s self-employment in fragile settings. 
• Girl Rising: To move beyond siloed evaluations to achieve a deeper understanding to inform Girl Rising’s overall program design and delivery; and to aggregate past, current and future insights, data and results to create a comprehensive measurement and evaluation system that will allow for a real-time assessment of Girl Rising’s programmatic and media reach/impact across the globe.

Finally, one of the Nielsen Foundation’s signature programs is the Tech Diversity Accelerator at Tampa Bay Wave. The Nielsen Foundation and Tampa Bay Wave collaborated to launch the TechDiversity Accelerator in early 2018; the program is specifically dedicated to fostering the growth of diverse startups across the country. To be considered as a candidate for the TechDiversity Accelerator program, companies must be in an early development stage and at least 51% owned, controlled and operated by a minority, woman, veteran or LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender) person, or a combination thereof. 

See the Diversity and Inclusion section for more on our efforts in this area.

Alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Nielsen recognizes the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals to our world. As we strive to use our data for good to solve social and environmental challenges, we aim to align with the SDGs where we can make the greatest impact. 

While we consider each of the 17 SDGs to be important, we recognize the unique role that individual sectors and companies can play. As such, we have aligned the most relevant SDGs for our business with our ongoing strategy to use our core competencies—our data, our science and our people—to make a positive impact in this collective vision for our future world:

• SDG 1: No Poverty
• SDG 2: Zero Hunger
• SDG 4: Quality Education
• SDG 5: Gender Equality
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
• SDG 12: Responsible Production and Consumption

Examples of projects we have undertaken in the reporting period that align with our priority SDGs include the following:

• Zero Hunger: Helping develop new tools to reduce food waste 
• Reduced Inequalities: Using our Data for Good to identify pathways to advancement for Asian American women 
• Quality Education: Nielsen Foundation’s Discover Data program provides no-cost resources for educators 
• Decent Work and Economic Growth: See the Supply Chain Management section for details on our impact sourcing commitments

Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments and development programs, and operations with significant actual and potential negative impacts on local communities

We actively seek to engage with the communities in which we operate, to understand their needs and concerns and to make positive contributions. Since Nielsen does not have factories or large operational facilities, nor do our operations require large amounts of land or resources from the communities in which we operate, our local community impacts are limited. Relevant information is shared in the Human Capital, Supply Chain Management and Stakeholder Engagement sections of this report.

Mechanisms to gather community feedback

See the Stakeholder Engagement section of this report.