Social and Relationship Capital

Building empowered communities by fostering collective prosperity

Integrated and aligned with national and global standards
Material Topics

Community Development

Customer Satisfaction

Sustainable Supply Chain Management

BRSR Principles
BRSR 2023-24
UN SDGs

₹1,592 Crore

CSR spending
in FY2023-24

~76 Million

People reached
cumulatively

Management Approach

Reliance recognises that strong social and relationship capital, woven from community development, customer satisfaction and responsible supply chain management, is vital for its long-term success. Guided by an overarching Corporate Social Responsibility Policy and Reliance Group Business Partner Code of Conduct, Reliance integrates the social fabric into its value chain. Fostering trust among communities ensures the social license to operate, enhancing brand reputation and customer loyalty.

Community Development

During FY 2023-24, Reliance Foundation continued to traverse the remarkable path of impacting millions across India. With a CSR spend of ` 1,592 Crore, the Foundation focused on initiatives such as strengthening climate resilience across India’s rural communities, building a world-class sport ecosystem, developing talent at the grassroots, enhancing women’s livelihoods through entrepreneurship and facilitating nature-based solutions for disaster risk reduction. For further details regarding the Company’s CSR initiatives, please refer to the Reliance Corporate Social Responsibility Report 2023-24.

Customer Satisfaction

Recognised as one of the ‘Five Cardinal Principles of Value Creation’, customer satisfaction plays a crucial role in the Company’s ambitious vision. The Company consistently seeks input through extensive customer satisfaction surveys for continuous improvement. Regular surveys of all products/services are conducted as part of a well-established Quality Management System.

Oil to Chemicals: Continuous Quest for Customer Value and Market Innovation

Reliance O2C is actively embracing circularity and consumer integration for customer-centric value creation. Scaling chemical recycling technologies yields application-specific green products, opening doors to high-value, high-potential customers within new value chains. The Company meticulously analyses the specific needs, pain points, affordability levels and supply chain constraints within each business.

Reliance Retail: Delivering Value, Engaging Consumers and Fostering Partnerships

The cornerstone of Reliance Retail’s success is its dedication to the “4Cs” guiding principle:

Collaboration: Through its digitally enabled supply chain, the Company has partnered with lakhs of merchants, making them self-reliant and competitive.

Consumer Engagement: The Company continuously deepens its engagement with its existing customers while expanding its reach. By integrating online and offline channels, the Company serves across the length and breadth of the country.

Creativity: It continuously creates and innovates new products, formats and platforms to delight and serve its customers better.

Care: Resolving customer issues and shortening the transaction time have been prioritised to ensure the best possible experience for customers and employees alike.

Reliance Fashion and Lifestyle ensures a smooth customer experience with the mantra “Get Your Basics Right” enabled by initiatives such as Trial Room Champs to improve trial room experience, implementing display hygiene as per planogram and driving specialised initiatives focused on revamping customer journey at the billing counter. Periodic and focused training for the store staff and daily monitoring and faster complaint closure through the Reliance One Member Account (ROMA) application reduced the average turnaround time for complaint closure to 4.1 days for FY 2023-24. In addition, a retail National Operations Center (NOC) monitoring channel improved the customer service aspects. As a result of these initiatives, the Net Promoter Score (NPS) for Trends increased by 7 points.

The AJIO business also undertook various initiatives – reducing delivery Turnaround Time (TAT) by one day through partner management, enhancing chatbot capabilities to improve coverage of customer queries (expanding coverage to 85%), providing seamless customer care experience with a 99.5% answer rate of all the queries and revamping the customer journey to provide visibility of every step and improve return pickup speed. This led to an improvement of 11 points in NPS.

Driving Digital Transformation and Building Customer Loyalty

During the year, Reliance Jio was the operator of choice with industry‑leading net subscriber additions of 42.4 Million and over 3x net port-ins compared to its nearest competitor. Jio continuously strives to offer next-generation connectivity and digital solutions to all Indians, which is reflected in its ahead-of-the-curve investment in rolling out 5G and fixed wireless solutions. With a vision to drive digital inclusivity in the country, Jio network is present in ~6,20,000 rural villages and covers over 99% of India’s population.

Sustainable Supply Chain Management

Reliance’s Business Partner Code of Conduct (BPCOC) outlines the fundamental principles expected of the Company’s partners and emphasises integrity and compliance. The BPCOC also champions fair labour practices, prohibiting child labour, forced labour and discrimination, while promoting safe and healthy work environments. Additionally, the Company actively collaborates with external agencies to conduct third-party evaluations of high-spend suppliers to attain a comprehensive evaluation of their sustainability practices and alignment with RIL standards.

Sustainable Procurement Framework at Reliance O2C

Reliance has established the Sustainable Procurement Framework to drive environmental and social responsibility across the value chain. The Framework encompasses RIL’s Vision, Guiding Principles, governing mechanism, Supplier Code of Conduct, collaborative approach with suppliers, capability building and sustainability metrics.

The Framework is drawn from the following guidance principles:

Reliance has also established a robust management programme to ensure effective implementation and ongoing monitoring of the Sustainable Procurement Programme, comprising a team of Sustainable Procurement Champions led by Programme Managers. The Company ensures the effectiveness of internal processes and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) through regular validation. The Company also collaborates with external agencies to provide objective and independent assessments of the Company’s sustainability efforts.

Capacity Building and Supplier Collaboration

Reliance ensures regular engagement with suppliers through webinars, provides them with tools and resources and imparts specialised internal training sessions aimed at fostering a deep understanding of sustainability. Supplier on-site assessments are carried out during the empanelment of new suppliers. During FY 2023-24, 17 suppliers were assessed for empanelment by a cross-functional team of technical experts and 299 vendors were audited for quality inspection for critical high-quality equipment at their site before despatch. The Company also assesses suppliers through qualitative and quantitative surveys. In FY 2023-24, 2,255 suppliers delivering materials and services worth over ` 14,000 Crore were assessed. Basis the assessments, corrective actions and improvement plans were recommended to the suppliers.

Reliance is committed to supporting local communities and providing equal opportunities to MSMEs. During FY 2023-24, 185 marginalised local suppliers and 1,976 MSME vendors provided materials and services worth ` 35 Crore and ` 5,529 Crore, respectively. In addition, to support the local economy and sustainable supply chain, the Company sourced ` 5,450 Crore worth materials and services (by spend) from the local vicinity of Reliance sites.

Several initiatives are being pursued to meet the requirement for training internal stakeholders on sustainable programmes. Furthermore, the Supplier Code of Conduct has been revised to incorporate the key aspects of sustainable procurement and shared with all the suppliers for reconfirmation.

As part of its Sustainability Excellence Programme, Reliance is working with an independent third party, EcoVadis, for sustainability performance assessment of supply chain partners covering 21 parameters across four areas: environment, labour and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.

Fostering Partnerships at Reliance Retail

Empowering small businesses is crucial to Reliance Retail’s success. The Company has digitally woven a web of support for lakhs of merchants, granting them access to resources, markets and the autonomy to thrive. The Company further strengthened this commitment by acquiring Metro India.

Supply Chain Sustainability at Jio

As a part of its commitment to decarbonise along the 1.5oC decarbonisation pathway, Reliance Jio has committed to reducing its Scope 3 emissions. With upstream emissions contributing to the majority of Reliance Jio’s overall GHG footprint, suppliers play a key role in Reliance Jio’s net zero journey. It is mandatory for suppliers to comply with the requirements of the Code to become preferred business partners. Reliance Jio has also instituted review and oversight mechanisms to monitor compliance with the Code in areas with elevated risks. Reliance Jio has engaged with EcoVadis to assess the ESG performance and GHG emissions of its suppliers.

Way Forward

Reliance’s skilled workforce, a profound market understanding, in-house research capabilities and a data-driven culture position it at the forefront of innovation. They also serve as a global testament to its unwavering commitment to quality, customer-centricity and adaptability. Further, these qualities enable Reliance to undertake targeted initiatives that empower communities, improve access to education and healthcare, and foster sustainable livelihoods. The Company fulfils its responsibility as a corporate citizen by balancing progress and preservation to champion responsible sourcing and eco-friendly practices throughout the supply chain. Collaborating with partners to reduce environmental footprint, ensuring fair labour conditions and prioritising local suppliers will be integral to the Company’s journey ahead. The Company aims to continue earning customer trust and affection through strategic investments, digital transformation and an unwavering focus on delivering exceptional experiences.