Stakeholder engagement

To guide our strategy and priorities, we engage key stakeholders to understand the top global environmental, social, and governance challenges.

We continually look to our stakeholders to help us increase our understanding, broaden our awareness, and draw on their expertise to inform our strategy and policies.

Stakeholder engagement varies greatly by geography, type, and function. For example, we frequently engage 3M employees globally through communications and events with diverse content based on our top focus areas.

We believe stakeholder engagement should be based on candid and authentic dialogue — grounded in 3M’s Principles — and should contribute to the evolution of our strategic priorities.

Our 2022 Global Impact Report (PDF, 70.1 MB) contains multiple examples of our stakeholder engagement.

Every two years since 2014, 3M is assisted by GlobeScan, an independent research consultancy, in better understanding our stakeholders’ perspectives.

In 2021, we aligned our priorities based on our most recent 2020 assessment, which explored stakeholder perceptions of 3M’s sustainability strategy. The stakeholders consulted were representative of 3M’s four business groups and all regions of operations, and included:
 

• Customers
• Suppliers
• NGOs
• Corporate/private sector
• Academics
• Consultants
• Government
• Media
• Finance
• Trade associations
• Think tanks

Following the GlobeScan assessment, we analyzed insights and inputs from stakeholders and developed the sustainability priority matrix. The matrix also demonstrates how our Sustainability Goals align with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Because we are a diversified company, several other ESG-related topics and performance indicators relevant to various sectors of the company will also be included in our Global Impact Report.