Sustainability report

Volunteerism & giving

Edwards Lifesciences’ work to encourage volunteerism and giving supports our aspiration of passionate engagement that strengthens our communities.

Definition

Dedicating time, talent and resources to communities where Edwards’ employees live and work, and supporting community health and well-being. Our volunteerism and giving work centers around increasing Access to Healthcare, another material topic.

Management approach

Edwards Lifesciences believes our work can inspire hope and better lives for our patients, employees and communities. Volunteerism and giving are a strong part of our unique corporate culture. Many of our employees feel personally connected to our philanthropy and identify this commitment as a key reason why they are proud to work at Edwards.

Philanthropy at Edwards Lifesciences

Edwards strategically aligns our Global Corporate Giving program with our mission to enhance care for cardiovascular and critically ill patients and strengthen our global communities. These initiatives include grants from the Edwards Lifesciences Foundation, strong employee volunteerism, donation of our medical innovations for indigent care, corporate donations and employee gift matching from our Foundation.

Goals of our Global Corporate Giving include:

  • Achieve our Every Heartbeat Matters initiative goal that, by 2020, our philanthropy will support the education, screening and treatment of 1.5 million underserved people
  • Expand awareness of cardiovascular disease, its prevention and treatment with an emphasis on heart valve and critically ill patients
  • Enhance support and access to care for underserved heart valve and critically ill patients
  • Support research and education to increase expertise and innovation in treating heart valve and critically ill patients
  • Strengthen the communities in which our employees live and work
  • Leverage the time and talent of our employee volunteers to positively impact our communities
  • Establish trusted partnerships to further leverage impact
  • Operate consistently with the principles of Edwards Lifesciences’ Credo

Edwards has a strong community giving presence around the world, yet that presence is especially prominent at our corporate headquarters in Irvine, California. We open our facilities to host programs, fundraisers and meetings for local nonprofit organizations, such as United Way and American Heart Association. We also provide externships for members of local organizations such as Girls Inc. and Achievement Institute of Scientific Studies and regularly bring students onto our campuses to tour and learn about what it means to work in medical technology and understand the paths our employees took to get where they are today.

Employee volunteerism & giving

Edwards’ employees are caring individuals with a shared mission to improve lives. We encourage employee participation in philanthropic activities every year. We aim to achieve 100 percent global employee participation in a charitable activity of their choice each year with specific participation goals of 100 percent for the SLT and an increase in global participation as measured by the Employee Engagement survey.

Edwards’ Strengthen Our Community committees are cross-functional groups of passionate employees dedicated to living Edwards’ Credo of “creating a community unified in its mission to improve the quality of life around the world.” These committees organize our volunteerism efforts globally, connecting Edwards’ volunteers to meet community needs. Each individual committee is empowered to volunteer their time and talents according to both local community needs and the interest of employees in their region. Notably, Edwards provides platforms, tools and resources for our employees to find a way of giving back that is meaningful and relevant to them.

Whatever an individual’s desire to give back, Edwards strives to support and nurture that culture of giving and allow each employee to give back a few hours of Edwards’ time. In Irvine, the Strengthen Our Community committee has annual co-chairs that lead corporate wide volunteer initiatives that benefit the Foundation’s largest, key partners. These co-chairs bring creative thinking, new energy and new relationships, both internally and externally, to volunteer initiatives that are making a difference in our local community. The co-chairs are given opportunities to build new leadership and communications skills, outside of their day-to-day job opportunities: it’s a win-win for the company and the community.

Edwards’ culture of giving also comes to life through our Employee Resource Groups, organizations that lead communities of employees from similar backgrounds/interest areas in representing that employee group in the community. You can find more information about our ERGs in our Talent Management section of this report.

The Edwards Lifesciences Foundation

The Edwards Lifesciences Foundation strengthens and supports our passion for helping people around the world. This governance map outlines/indicates the Foundation’s governance structure.

Governance map

Corporate
Governance
Environmental
Health & Safety
Ethics &
Compliance
Product Safety
& Quality
Foundation
Talent
Management
Supply Chain
Management
Overview
Edwards takes pride in our strong management practices that mitigate risk, ensure accountability and enhance performance on our material topics. Our governance maps illustrate Edwards’ internal responsibility structures for managing a selection of our material topics. These maps underscore our commitment to transparency and our Aspiration of Excelling as a Trusted Partner and Global Leader Through the Quality of Our Work.
 
Please click on any of the five categories to review our governance structures and practices.
Corporate Governance
How does Edwards decide its strategy?
  • Strategy Setting
    Our Audit and Compensation and Governance Committees, and the Board of Directors as a whole, are responsible for developing Edwards’ corporate governance strategy.

    Our Corporate Secretary stewards our corporate governance efforts and represents the Board of Directors during engagement calls with stockholders. A representative from the Board of Directors, the Presiding Director, sometimes participates in calls with the shareholders and closely collaborates with the Corporate Secretary in advance of and during the calls. Stockholder feedback informs corporate governance evaluation. The Board of Directors reviews the stockholder feedback reports and incorporates feedback into their considerations when reviewing governance strategy.

    On a quarterly basis, the Corporate Secretary reviews current best practices, analyzes the impacts of governance changes on our business and advises the Board of Directors on considerations relating to governance questions, challenges or feedback.
How does Edwards execute its strategy?
  • The Compensation and Governance Committee and the Audit Committee are the two committees of Edwards’ Board of Directors. Their charters can be found on our website. They oversee execution of our corporate governance and sustainability strategy throughout the year.

    The office of the Corporate Secretary, Investor Relations, the office of the Chief Responsibility Officer, the Corporate Vice President and General Counsel collaborate to execute Edwards’ corporate governance strategy.

    Performance Incentives
    Edwards evaluates corporate governance personnel using compensation mechanisms such as awarding long-term incentives. To evaluate our Board of Directors, our Compensation Committee submits recommendations to our CEO who evaluates individuals based on their performance management objectives. Additionally, we view our stock performance as a way in which our strategy is being evaluated by shareholders.

    Our Board and ELT are incentivized to promote best corporate governance practices through performance management objectives which influence compensation. Additionally, our Board conducts self- and peer-evaluations annually that are prepared for and tailored to each Board member by the General Counsel.
How does Edwards engage and communicate?
  • Communication Practices
    Edwards communicates Corporate Governance efforts through the Annual Proxy Statement and other securities filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Additionally, the Sustainability Council publicly communicates Corporate Governance initiatives through the Sustainability Report.

    Edwards educates employees on corporate governance information through the Titanium book.

    Stakeholder Engagement
    The Board is presented with the status of stakeholder engagement and feedback received during the engagement in the quarter during which the feedback was obtained. Shareholder outreach on corporate governance, executive compensation and sustainability occurs at least twice a year. The Board reviews feedback, evaluates best responses, discusses reasonable approaches, and responds appropriately on behalf of the company. The 2018 Proxy Statement details how the Board has responded to stockholder feedback over the year and has changed our governance profile.

    Stakeholders can communicate governance concerns by contacting investor relations or the office of the Corporate Secretary and raising concerns during one of the semi-annual outreach campaigns. Our CEO, our CFO and VP, Investor Relations, members of our Executive Leadership Team, reach out to shareholders quarterly in addition to regular institutional stakeholder engagements. Our Investor Relations team and Corporate Secretary collaborate when feedback is received. During some of the engagement sessions, our Presiding Director participates after receiving training.
Environmental
Health & Safety
How does Edwards decide its strategy?
  • Members of the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and Corporate EHS team (CEHS team) collaborate to develop Edwards’ EHS strategy which is subject to approval by the CFO and CEO.

    The Senior Director of EHS and Sustainability, a member of the CEHS team, re-evaluates the strategy annually and produces an annual EHS report. This report is shared with the business unit leaders and the CFO who provides critical updates to the CEO. Our CEO shares updates on EHS performance with the Board of Directors annually and as needed if issues arise.

    Every five years, the Vice President, Corporate Services and Members of the CEHS team create new EHS strategies that are based on benchmarking, industry standards and leading sustainability frameworks. Edwards aligns our EHS strategy and disclosures to the Global Reporting Initiative, Dow Jones Sustainability Index survey, Carbon Disclosure Project (Climate), and the Task Force for Climate-Related Disclosures.
How does Edwards execute its strategy?
  • Regional Strategies
    The Corporate EHS function develops EHS policies and procedures appropriate for Edwards’ global operations. These include global policies on EHS risk management, reducing accidents and preventing pollution. The Senior Director of EHS and Sustainability, a member of the Corporate EHS team, then develops plant strategies based on EHS performance, reviewed by the CFO and CEO. Each Operating Unit EHS function develops additional tailored policies and procedures appropriate to its activities and local regulations, needs and cultural attributes.

    Executive Leadership and representatives from the CEHS team approve plant-level requirements. The Facility EHS teams and the plant managers are responsible for ensuring that the EHS policy is followed at each facility.

    Removing Conflicts of Interest
    The Corporate and Operating Unit EHS programs are governed as separate entities to ensure objectivity during internal audits. Each team reports audit results, injuries and environmental findings to its respective management teams.

    Corporate EHS:
    • Focuses on compliance, risks and opportunities, EHS due diligence, pollution prevention and reduction of injuries for both manufacturing and nonmanufacturing entities
    • Reports to the Corporate Vice President of Finance, The Vice President of Corporate Services, the CFO and the CEO
    • Monitors and reports EHS performance, including compliance, reduction of injuries and pollution prevention, on an ongoing basis to site and corporate management teams of each Operating Unit

    Operating Unit EHS:
    • Facilitates and assesses EHS performance, including EHS headcount, EHS employee development, ongoing expenses and projects aimed at reducing injuries and preventing pollution
    • Report to the Business Unit Leaders through the supply chain management leadership, Corporate VP, Global Supply Chain
    • Individual Operating Units deploy and monitor the EHS Management System, including manufacturing sites and regional offices, who are directly accountable to their corresponding Business Units or corporate divisions

    Performance Incentives
    Our CEO is evaluated annually for his role in achieving our strategic long-term Aspirations; EHS is as an integral part of Edwards’ Aspiration to excel as a Trusted Partner with our stakeholders and community. The Senior Director of EHS/Sustainability and the VP of Corporate Services’ bonuses are based upon policy execution. Edwards includes EHS criteria in performance reviews for relevant employees and incentivizes performance using recognition, rewards and compensation.
How does Edwards engage and communicate?
  • Feedback Mechanisms
    Through our “Ask Mike” Channel, the Corporate Services team receives employee and vendor EHS feedback and questions for our CEO. CEHS team leadership and Corporate Services draft answers to these inquiries that the CEO reviews before publishing all questions and answers on Edwards’ internal website.

    Any employee may report a grievance related to EHS practices anonymously through Edwards’ Speak-Up program and Integrity Hotline. All grievances made through the Global Integrity Program are reported through Edwards’ Chief Responsibility Officer (CRO). External persons may submit EHS-related concerns through Edwards’ Global Integrity Program. If Edwards receives feedback, the CRO reviews it and directs it to CEHS leadership who investigate, document findings, and return it to the CRO who then determines whether further action is needed.

    Communication Practices
    Edwards uses several methods to engage and communicate EHS information and progress with stakeholders: public reporting, our “Ask Mike” channel, grievance mechanisms and employee training.

    Edwards communicates its EHS progress via our annual Sustainability Report and supplemental EHS report. Additionally, our Environmental Health & Safety policy and performance commitments are included in Edwards’ Titanium Book of Global Business Practice Standards.

    Please see our EHS report for details on our EHS-specific employee training. Every plant conducts employee and contractor orientation that contains EHS information and safety training for their position.
Ethics &
Compliance
How does Edwards decide its strategy?
  • Setting Our Strategy
    Our CEO and Chief Responsibility Officer (CRO) collaborate to set Edwards’ Ethics & Compliance and Corruption & Bribery strategy; as our leader, the CEO sets the tone while the CRO drives the strategy. They both oversee fostering a strong ethical culture and advancing a best-in-class compliance program. The Board of Directors approves and oversees the program.

    Our CRO oversees our Global and Regional Ethics and Compliance Teams, is a member of our Senior Leadership Team and has primary responsibility for Ethics & Compliance and Corruption & Bribery. Our CRO reports to the CEO and the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors.

    Our cross-functional compliance committees discuss, review and approve all regional and global policies and procedures: The Regional Compliance Committees (RCC) include regional senior leaders and are chaired by a regional compliance officer while our Corporate Compliance Committee (CCC), chaired by the CRO, is comprised of executive team members, including business unit leads and functional heads. The Global Ethics and Compliance team proposes corporate compliance goals which are discussed with and approved by the Executive Leadership Team (ELT). Progress to goals are discussed by the CRO with the ELT and Audit Committee of the Board, and by regional compliance officers (RCOs), who support the compliance committees and ethics teams, with the RCCs.

    Performance and Monitoring
    Our Global Business Practice Standards, known as the “Titanium Book,” are publicly available on our website. Any changes to the Titanium Book must be approved by the CCC, ELT and the Board. The CRO and the Ethics and Compliance Teams perform bi-annual compliance risk assessments which drive future strategies.

    To continually improve our Ethics & Compliance and anti-Corruption & Bribery program, the CRO and regional compliance officers work closely with global and regional medical device industry associations and legal consultants to stay abreast of, engage with and incorporate any new developments such as industry codes of conduct, working guidelines or best practices. The Ethics and Compliance Teams monitor publicly available information about the Ethics & Compliance and anti-Corruption & Bribery performance of our peers and the CRO reports to the CCC, ELT and the Audit Committee of the Board.

    Our Ethics and Compliance Teams measure our performance through many channels. One channel is the assessment of Edwards’ culture through our compliance survey which measures trust, fear of retaliation and willingness to speak up. Our Ethics and Compliance Teams communicate with regional and corporate leadership and the CRO if any issues surface.
How does Edwards execute its strategy?
  • Implementing Our Strategy
    Our Chief Responsibility Officer (CRO) oversees daily implementation and reports monthly to our Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and quarterly to the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors. Our Corporate Compliance Committee provides support and guidance to the CRO. The Committee meets quarterly to discuss progress. In addition, our regional compliance officers chair RCCs that oversee compliance at a local level.

    The Ethics and Compliance Teams monitor compliance policies and procedures and drive changes through system upgrades, training and education.

    We require all employees and distributors to receive training on and certify their commitment to the Titanium Book, while the Audit Committee of our Board members receive education on the Book and our policies. Please see the Management Approach section of Ethics & Compliance and Corruption & Bribery for more detail.

    Strategic Incentives
    Our CEO and CRO share a specific performance management objective (PMO) to “foster a strong ethical culture and advance a best-in-class compliance program”; this directly impacts their bonus compensation.

    Edwards’ Aspirations include “Excelling as a Trusted Partner and Global Leader Through the Quality of Our Work”. Edwards expects all employees to practice our core competencies and this is codified as a criterion in our performance reviews. Our Ethics and Compliance Teams work with Human Resources to establish integrity-related performance criteria. Any violations or misconduct are communicated to both the offending employee and their manager for review and may be considered during the employees’ performance evaluation.

    The Ethics and Compliance Teams provide awards to employees for courageous ethical behavior, as well as for speaking up about improvement opportunities. Employees receive Heart Awards, recognition and financial compensation for promoting ethics and compliance and preventing corruption and bribery.
How does Edwards engage and communicate with our stakeholders?
  • Communicating Our Progress
    We communicate progress to all our stakeholders in our annual sustainability report.

    The Regional Ethics and Compliance Teams educate our employees through in-person training, online training on our learning management system, compliance newsletters, email communications, meetings and calls.

    Incorporating Feedback
    In conjunction with Titanium Book certification, we survey professional employees annually on topics such as fear of retaliation and whether they have reported misconduct. In addition, the Ethics and Compliance Teams gather internal feedback through our Integrity Helpline, investigations, monitoring findings and bi-annual risk assessments, and the RCC and general employee communications.

    The Ethics and Compliance Teams conduct a direct, personal follow up with all deviant survey responses and periodically follows up with all misconduct reporters until investigations conclude. They provide global and regional risk assessment results to the RCC and CCC and collaborate to develop risk-mediating action.

    To track program effectiveness, the Ethics and Compliance Teams, in collaboration with ELT, develop metrics and compliance goals each year. Regional compliance officers gather data to measure these metrics and goals and send it to the Global Ethics and Compliance Team who aggregate and share findings with the RCCs and other leadership teams. The CRO also presents findings to the CCC, ELT and Audit Committee of the Board.
Product Safety
& Quality
How does Edwards decide its strategy?
  • Setting Strategy
    With guidance from the Board of Directors, the CEO and the Corporate Vice President of Quality (CVP of Quality) set Edwards’ Product Quality and Safety strategy, policies and targets. The CVP of Quality is responsible for evaluating company performance and aligning our strategy to relevant product safety regulations. Our CVP of Quality assesses product quality and safety data through a company-wide dashboard and provides quarterly updates to the Board of Directors and executive leadership.

    The Vice Presidents of Quality for the Business Units and Regions (VPs of Quality) and VP of Quality Strategy and Execution who report directly to the CVP of Quality, support the strategy development process. The quality team develops a centralized corporate quality strategy that focuses on quality control measures and global regulatory compliance. The VPs of Quality in the business units are responsible for product-level specifications to ensure compliance with applicable regulations.

    Regulatory Compliance
    As a medical technology company, Edwards must comply with strict regulations regarding the design, development, manufacturing and distribution of our products and services. We must comply with regulations set by regulatory bodies all around the world, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), National Competent Authorities in the European Union, and various international organizations.
How does Edwards execute its strategy?
  • Strategy Execution
    Our Corporate VP of Quality (CVP) is responsible for the development, implementation and maintenance of our Quality System.

    The CVP conducts quarterly reviews with the CEO, the Executive Leadership Team and Board of Directors to inform them of significant quality issues. The reviews address opportunities to improve Edwards’ Quality System, policy and objectives. These ongoing assessment activities empower Edwards’ Vice Presidents of Quality, Business Units and Regions to implement changes and mandate corrective action. The Edwards Management Representatives, who report to the VPs of Quality for the Business Units and Regions, help communicate and disseminate the strategy to employees throughout the company.

    Performance Incentives
    Our Corporate Vice President of Quality, our Vice President of Quality Strategy and Execution, and other Vice Presidents of Quality collaborate to establish a performance dashboard comprised of 6-7 specific components. All Quality and Global Supply Chain personnel are evaluated based on the dashboard’s performance and achievement of the dashboard goals. All employees who report to the Vice Presidents of Quality are responsible for and evaluated by 6-7 specific criteria aligned to the dashboard.

    Corrective Action Process
    If a product fails to meet safety or regulatory requirements, a cross-functional team performs an in-depth assessment to determine whether a Field Corrective Action is needed. In the case of a product issue, the Field Corrective Action Team will reclaim the distributed product or contact the affected customer. This team includes the Corporate VP of Quality, Regulatory and Clinical; Vice President of Product Safety (a former cardiothoracic surgeon); head of Quality Compliance; and the Quality Management Representative of the relevant business unit.
How does Edwards engage and communicate?
  • Employee Product Quality and Safety Training
    Edwards requires every employee, regardless of department, to complete detailed quality training programs during our onboarding process. Beyond the fundamentals, training content and employee performance expectations are specifically defined for each role. Edwards also requires employees to undergo mandatory training on or to review pertinent procedural updates.

    Feedback Mechanisms
    The Product Quality Teams, collaborates with our Research & Development departments and manufacturing team to monitor post-market product performance and manage a feedback loop to continually make product improvements. Additionally, physicians provide feedback on how we can develop our products to best meet their needs.

    Communication Methods
    Edwards communicates our progress and engages our stakeholders through our sustainability report and our website. Additionally, we report to all major regulatory bodies around the world, including the National Competent Authorities. Complete information on recalls is available through the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) publicly available database for medical device recalls.
Foundation
How does the Edwards Foundation decide its strategy?
  • Strategy Setting
    The Edwards Lifesciences Foundation is structurally independent from Edwards Lifesciences’ business and plays a key role in Edwards Lifesciences’ philanthropic giving strategy. The strategic importance of giving back to the community through the Foundation’s work is set by the Foundation’s Chairman of the Board and Edwards’ CEO, Mike Mussallem.

    The Foundation’s Board of Directors sets the philanthropic strategy. The Board includes eight senior leaders at Edwards:
    • CEO
    • Corporate vice president of Public Affairs
    • CFO
    • Chief Scientific Officer
    • Corporate Vice President of Quality, Regulatory
    • Clinical Corporate Vice President of Human Resources
    • Corporate Vice President of Critical Care
    • Vice President and Association General Counsel

    The Foundation Board reviews the strategic plan annually to ensure that our philanthropic contributions leverage maximum global impact. The Executive Director of ELF develops the Foundation’s strategy with the Global Corporate Giving Team with counsel and ultimate approval from the Foundation Board. The Foundation’s Officers and members of the Administrative Steering Committee (ASC), comprised of 20 Edwards employees from around the world, also help set the philanthropy strategy.

    The Board also annually evaluates the Foundation’s cash grant giving goals and the impact of cash grants for the Foundation’s signature philanthropic initiative, Every Heartbeat Matters (EHM). EHM comprises ~70% of the Foundation’s annual cash grant budget. Every Q1, the Foundation Executive Director and the Global Corporate Giving team evaluate the prior year, gathering feedback from the Foundation Board of Directors, all ASC members, and non-profit partners and make necessary changes to the applications and grant cycle process to improve operations for the following year.

    To solicit feedback, evaluate our EHM performance and ensure we are on target to achieve our goals, the Executive Director of the Foundation and the Global Corporate Giving team receives robust impact reporting from our partner non-profit organizations at the end of every year. The Global Corporate Giving team also conducts rigorous reviews, analysis and audits of at least 10% of our EHM partners’ impact on an annual basis.

    Our Foundation work aligns with UN SDG number 3 and number 10.
How does the Edwards Foundation execute its strategy?
  • The Executive Director of the Foundation is responsible for the implementation of the philanthropic strategy. The Executive Director oversees both the Global Corporate Giving team, who is accountable for target achievement, and the Administrative Steering Committee, who help to execute the philanthropic strategy by partnering with and supporting charitable organizations across the world.

    The Administrative Steering Committee and the Strengthen Our Community Committees, comprised of employees from different team and regions across the globe, works with the Global Corporate Giving team to encourage employees to engage with our global non-profit partners. All employees are responsible for maintaining our culture of volunteerism and giving. With support and leadership from Strengthen Our Communities committees, and the Global Corporate Giving team, employees volunteer with community organizations, donate dollars or skills to a charity and encourage organizations to apply to the annual grant cycle of the ELF.

    At select annual regional employee events, the Chairman, Foundation Executive Director and the Global Corporate Giving team recognize outstanding Edwards employee volunteers. They are granted a ‘gift for giving’ — donating $1000 to the charity of their choice.
How does the Edwards Foundation engage and communicate?
  • Communication Practices
    Transparency is key to our Foundation — we disclose extensive philanthropy data on our website. The Foundation communicates our progress through our annual sustainability reports as well as our philanthropy reports. Both are posted on our website and placed in lobbies and gathering locations throughout Edwards’ buildings. We also provide the reports to each Foundation partner and new Edwards U.S. employees during orientation. All new employee orientations include information on the Foundation, the Strengthen Our Community volunteer programs and how to get involved.

    The Global Corporate Giving team, the Administrative Steering Committee and the Board of Directors of the Foundation communicate Edwards’ philanthropic strategy and commitment through regular All Employee Meetings, external conferences and community events, and at annual recognition events for the Foundation’s non-profit partners.

    Additionally, the Chairman of the Board presents Foundation information during the business’ annual shareholder meeting. The Global Corporate Giving team also discusses our philanthropic strategy with interested stakeholders at the annual shareholder meeting.

    Feedback and Engagement Mechanisms
    The Global Corporate Giving team uses internal communication platforms, social media platforms and external-facing public websites to both gather feedback from the public and employees and share information with the community. The Global Corporate Giving team responds to all email, phone or online inquiries received by the Edward Lifesciences Foundation. The Executive Director and Global Corporate Giving team share compiled feedback and other material information with the Board during quarterly meetings.

    The Global Corporate Giving team supports the Foundation Officers in conducting collaborative summits that convene our non-profit partners of the Every Heartbeat Matters initiative, with the goal of furthering philanthropic impact by providing platforms for networking and encouraging collaborative programming. The Global Corporate Giving team also participates in industry surveys to share data and help our peers conduct benchmarking.
Talent Management
How does Edwards decide its strategy?
  • Strategy Setting
    At Edwards, talent management encompasses the topics of Employee Attraction, Recruitment, Engagement, Development, Retention and Diversity and Inclusion.

    Edwards’ leadership understands that our greatest assets are our employees and the unique knowledge and skills they bring to our work. Attracting, developing and retaining talent is fundamental to the success of Edwards. Edwards’s practice is to employ, develop and retain employees on the basis of merit, qualifications, potential and competence, without regard to an employee’s gender, race or any other protected characteristic. The Board of Directors, CEO and Executive Leadership Team help determine the company’s fair and equitable pay policy.

    Edwards’ talent management strategy begins at the top of our organization: our CEO has measurable and reportable Performance Management Objectives (PMOs) around talent management, increasing diversity and building an inclusive culture. The Board updates the CEO’s PMOs annually and the CEO is accountable to the Board of Directors for making progress toward the goals. Every year, the Edwards Executive Leadership Team (ELT) establishes key operating drivers (KODs) that steer the company toward short, medium and long-term goals. The ELT then works together to identify strategic talent related imperatives that are critical in driving KOD success. Each strategic talent imperative is owned by an ELT member and an HR leader.

    For Diversity and Inclusion, ELT leaders set and oversee the strategy and support for our Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). Each ERG has an ELT sponsor and is led by Edwards employees. The Corporate Vice President of Human Resources and the Corporate Vice President of Quality and Regulatory lead the new Executive Steering Committee, which also includes other ELT ERG Sponsors. The Director of Talent Management leads the Edwards Diversity Council, which includes the employees that manage the ERGs. The Executive Steering Committee nominates and approves the employee leaders of the ERGs. We aspire to continue to expand the ERG network. These groups include the Network of Women, MultiCultural, Friends of Veterans Network, Generations, Rainbow Alliance and enable.
How does Edwards execute its strategy?
  • Strategy Execution
    Edwards demonstrates our commitment to employees by ensuring equitable and fair pay practices and by providing a work environment that recognizes each individual as an important member of a culturally diverse, global Edwards team. We aspire to be an employer of choice and do so through our culture, educational opportunities, competitive pay, benefits and other efforts.

    Based on the KODs, cascaded from the company and CEO PMOs, the ELT and respective HR owners develop and execute initiatives for each strategic talent imperative. Initiative owners determine project direction, including resources involved, goals setting and milestones for success. The HR PMO office manages all strategic talent initiatives and goals to ensure alignment with business objectives and annual progress. The Corporate Vice President of Human Resources reviews strategic talent imperatives every quarter. The HR PMO office tracks the strategic talent imperatives as well as talent-related projects and global initiatives that incorporate two or more cross-functional teams.

    The HR PMO office reviews all projects using the same criteria. A resource dashboard collects and relays information and updates on each of the key projects so that the HR Advisory Board and project teams can stay in close communication regarding direction and progress. The HR Leadership Team (HRLT) and additional members make up the Advisory Board and they measure success of completed projects against the initial timeline and deliverables. The Advisory Board reviews the status of all critical talent-related projects every two to three weeks depending on the activity. The Advisory Board also reviews a sampling of projects each meeting.

    Edwards supports several professional development practices and programs for employees, including:

    · The Edwards Talent Development Review (TDR) assesses the strategic talent needs of the organization, measures current talent capabilities and provides support to employees in reaching their professional goals. Line managers conduct TDRs for their direct reports to connect with employees, identify professional growth priorities and understand the best way to support the needs of their function and the team members. Line managers relay information up through their team lead. The CEO and Chief Human Resources Officer conduct a TDR with each ELT leader on their respective organization annually. Information from the TDR informs managers on discussions with their employees on areas such as strengths/development needs, stakeholder feedback, succession and potential career paths.

    · Edwards understands the value of mentoring, and we continually work to expand our mentorship programs. We currently offer a variety of programs including traditional, paired mentoring, mentoring specific functional populations, global mentoring and flash mentoring.

    To attract and recruit top talent, Edwards provides competitive compensation and benefits packages. With the support and involvement of our Board, the executive team and external consultants, we regularly review our pay practices and compensation structure for potential pay disparities across gender and race. Through this process, we can identify statistically significant pay disparities and determine a course of action on how they can be addressed.

    Our Global Career Framework (GCF) provides role alignment, career pathways and ensures equitable pay. Through the GCF, all Edwards employees are slotted by job function and level into career bands based on duties and responsibilities. We follow the GCF to ensure internal equity and to align with external benchmarks to remain competitive in both individual contributor and leadership tracks. We annually benchmark global job grades and salary structures against similar positions in the market.

    We assign every employee a Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP). Employees can reach out to their corresponding HRBP for support and insight into the resources we offer and opportunities available.
How does Edwards engage and communicate?
  • To communicate our Talent Management strategy and engage employees, Edwards uses several different methods.

    To provide context around talent goals and explain global strategy to HR employees, our Corporate Vice President of Human Resources holds a quarterly virtual meeting. For employees at the senior manager level and above, we hold an annual HR Summit at our headquarters in Irvine, California. At the HR Summit, the Global HR leadership team reviews strategy updates and key projects. Our Corporate Vice President of HR also hosts hours where she is available for questions and discussions through our internal chat function. During these chat hours, HR employees can ask talent management questions. We also send out a worldwide Human Resources newsletter that covers different programs and updates at the company, such as diversity and inclusion efforts.

    For all Edwards employees, we conduct an Employee Survey approximately every 18 months to measure employee satisfaction across a variety of dimensions, including quality, trust, empowerment, involvement, engagement, retention and charitable activities. Edwards distributes the survey in multiple languages. This feedback helps us sustain and protect what we do well and respond to opportunities as they arise. Our Executive Leadership Team reviews survey results selects priority areas for development and implements action plans at both the corporate and functional levels.

    Additionally, Edwards hosts ERGs to support and engage our employees. ERGs focus on employee inclusion and awareness, as well as networking and outreach. Each group hosts learning opportunities and events to strengthen the Edwards community and underscore our commitment to diversity and inclusion.

    Edwards also maintains internal webpages to communicate our talent management strategy. Edwards’ intranet site contains employee resources and, specifically, a Diversity and Inclusion site that includes tools and resources for our employees. The site provides an ERG launch kit for new ERG leaders.

    Employees also have the opportunity to submit questions to our CEO through our Ask Mike channel and Speak Up helpline.
Supply Chain Management
How does Edwards decide its strategy?
  • Strategy Setting
    Edwards’ Global Supply Chain (GSC) is responsible for the plan, source, make and deliver functions of our business, ensuring that our products effectively reach providers and patients. Our Global Supply Chain (GSC) strategy is an overarching, multi-year strategy with five pillars that guides our GSC and Quality work. We revisit and update our strategy annually and determine a strategy for each of the five pillars. The five pillars of the strategy are 1. Enable growth, 2. Invest in quality and reliability, 3. Drive efficiency and asset effectiveness, 4. Transform the supply chain through innovation and 5. Build talent and organization. The approach to each pillar includes actions for Edwards employees at all levels. As part of the initial process of setting this strategy, the Global Supply Chain Leadership Team and Corporate VP of Global Supply Chain identified future aspirations that guide our metrics, strategies and initiatives. The Corporate Vice President of GSC drives the process of determining and updating our strategies, and the Senior Director of GSC Strategy and Analytics conducts the annual review and refresh of the goals and pillars supporting our strategy.

    Strategy Alignment
    The GSC and Quality Leadership Teams conduct an annual strategic plan review. The group’s strategic plan looks across a 7-year horizon and assesses specific questions, capabilities and aspirations to ensure that we are prepared to meet the company’s long-term needs. The group also works very closely with the four product lines to ensure alignment with goals, strategies, and plans for growth. During the Annual Operating Plan (AOP) process, our team refreshes the GSC initiatives and resourcing approach in accordance with the business plan. The AOP focuses on the resourcing needs and goals for the upcoming operating year. The GSC team has a designated Strategy Process Champion, who sets policy deployment and meeting agendas and works with project teams to get information in front of the GSC team for review.
How does Edwards execute its strategy?
  • Strategy Execution
    To execute our GSC and Quality strategies, we ensure alignment on goals and the availability of resources with input from the Global Supply Chain Leadership Team (GSCLT). During this process, the GSCLT identifies and secures the resources needed to reach the goals for that year and reviews progress. The members of the GSCLT align their PMOs with those of the CEO, to ensure support of the broader direction of the business.

    The GSCLT assigns a project lead to be responsible for each GSC initiative and drive it across the business. Each initiative has a sponsor from the GSCLT who reviews updates and ensures that the right team is in place to reach the objective.

    To execute the strategy at the local level, supervisors/managers at all Edwards plants hold daily production meetings to review performance metrics from the previous day and week. This practice ensures leaders in all plants understand the overarching strategy and that they are active in executing daily changes necessary to reach goals.

    Performance Monitoring
    To align strategy across Edwards, the GSC team has one GSCLT member in each business unit. Additionally, PMO Leads sit on the GSCLT and is primarily responsible for strategy development and execution for the GSC.

    The Edwards GSC works closely with our Quality team in setting and checking progress against goals. We also have a team that works directly with company Research and Development teams to ensure manufacturability of products and the successful integration into our supply chain at launch.

    Monitoring External Suppliers
    We have policies to monitor external suppliers, and processes for engaging our partners in the greater Edwards supply chain strategy. Within the Strategic Sourcing Team, there is an Advanced Sourcing Team and a Category Leadership Team. All Research and Development teams have Advanced Sourcing Team representatives to ensure Edwards selects the right suppliers during the product innovation process. Experts and category leads who own relationships with our external suppliers comprise our Category Leadership Team.
How does Edwards engage and communicate?
  • Internal Communication Practices
    To align all Edwards supply chain employees on the goals and direction of the group, we post visuals of the aspirations and strategies at all manufacturing sites. Every plant has an individual scorecard that tracks progress toward site-specific goals. Plant leadership updates the scorecards regularly to update all employees regarding performance and conduct regular Town Hall reviews to share key information.

    Edwards hosts an annual two-day summit with all of the GSC directors to discuss the updated strategies. Each function of the supply chain holds a series of town hall meetings throughout the year, during which leaders roll out new projects or provide updates on existing projects. Managers conduct ongoing reviews of individual employee PMOs to monitor progress and alignment with overarching goals. Every employee has an individualized PMO outlining their role in contributing to the company strategy.

    External Communication Practices
    We rely on our suppliers to help us create industry-leading therapies for cardiovascular disease. Our Responsible Supply Chain Policy outlines our expectations for suppliers, which include fair labor practices, environmental responsibility, workplace health and safety, ethical practices, protection of human rights, socially responsible behavior and legal compliance. We integrate supplier input in the design and manufacturing of new products by including supply chain employees on most research and development product teams.

    We hold supplier summits with our strategic suppliers, distribute key elements of the GSC vision and strategies, run a supplier portal and provide a scorecard to update suppliers on their performance against our expectations to engage employees and external suppliers in our strategic plan. A Change Management Group within GSC develops and publishes a quarterly newsletter that goes out across the global supply chain in both English and Spanish. The Change Management Group reports up through the GSC Head of Human Resources/Change Management. Edwards plans to integrate sustainability considerations into our procurement practices.

Program types supported by our Foundation:

  • Every Heartbeat Matters – Programs that educate, screen and/or treat underserved people to reduce the global burden of heart valve disease
  • Community – Programs that strengthen the communities where our employees live and work, and leverage the time and talent of our employee volunteers
  • Other – Programs that meet other vital community or patient needs; these often include education and awareness campaigns, research, and/or direct care for underserved patients

In 2019, the Foundation is launching a new grant program intended to encourage more Edwards employees to give back their time and talent to the community. The Edwards Foundation Volunteer Grant program accepts grant invitations, in partnership between an Edwards employee and a non-profit organization, to help off-set small costs related to community service projects. This program offers an opportunity for Edwards Foundation to drive more impact in our local communities. Additionally, we align our Foundation giving with employee engagement through our foundation’s employee matching gift program, which matches donations to non-profit organizations up to $5,000 per employee each year.

Annual performance

Employee volunteerism and giving

Our employee engagement in philanthropic activities is truly global. For example, in Switzerland, many employees are particularly passionate about giving back to people with disabilities. They actively support organizations dedicated to helping those with disabilities, such as the Special Olympics and Trako School of Life. Likewise, in Australia, the team has rallied in support of a local school for children with disabilities, helping in the classrooms, cleaning up the landscaping and doing projects on the school entrance to ensure that it’s easily accessible for all of the students. In Singapore, employees focus on the hunger crisis in their local community, so the local Strengthen Our Community committee regularly fundraises and volunteers at Food from the Heart, a local food bank.

Edwards is energized by our work to support those in need and we seek to embed this spirit throughout our culture by encouraging our employees to give back. In our biennial all employee survey, last completed in 2017, 77 percent of our global employees reported they participated in at least one charitable activity in the past 12 months, as compared to 74 percent in 2015 and 72 percent in 2013. Every year, we seek to inspire more charitable activity with an aspiration of reaching 100 percent participation each year, including our Executive and Senior Leadership Teams.

For example, two co-chairs have led the United Way Workplace Giving Campaign in Orange County the past two years, a major fundraising and community awareness initiative where employees in Irvine donate money and time to underserved Orange County residents via partners of the local United Way. Over the past two years, the funds raised have increased 4 percent and 5 percent, respectively.

Additional community activities at our global facilities included:

  • Our employees in Haina, Dominican Republic, served on each of the quarterly pediatric cardiac surgery missions of International Children’s Heart Foundation, providing language translation between the English-speaking medical staff and the Spanish speaking families of children undergoing open heart surgery
  • Edwards’ Korea team partnered with Korea Heart Foundation on a walkathon event, “One More Step,” driving awareness on heart disease in Korea; at the event, in Olympic Park in Seoul, Edwards employees distributed educational materials, including leaflets, quizzes and educational videos
  • In Israel, employees helped to refurbish a building for a local non-profit organization MAKSAM, which gives at-risk youth in Hadera after-school mentoring, tutoring and support
  • Our employees in Costa Rica assembled more than 25 wheelchairs and delivered them to low-income people with disabilities
  • In China, employees regularly visit and support the children in Shanghai Baby Home, a home for orphaned and abandoned  children with special needs

In 2018, our Employee Resource Groups made a commitment in their charters to strategically give back in ways they are passionate about. For example:

  • The Hispanic Organization Leadership Association (HOLA): led an extern program where 36 Edwards employees offered workplace mentoring to 24 Hispanic students from Achievement Institute of Scientific Studies. They also supported heart screening of low-income Hispanic community members in Santa Ana in partnership with Lestonnac Free Health Clinic
  • Network of Women (E.NOW): more than 150 employees filled jars with toys and wrote cards of encouragement for over 500 children with cancer for the Jessie Reese Foundation
  • Rainbow Alliance: hosted various activities for LGBT Center of Orange County, Radiant Health Centers and Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)
  • Friends of Veterans Network: 30 Edwards Veteran employees built a home for a homeless veteran, in partnership with Habitat for Humanity
  • African Heritage Network: members of this network mentored students in STEM with Innovos Robotics, and supported an externship program where students were placed within different departments at Edwards to gain workforce understanding and experience via 100 Black Men of Orange County

In 2018, many of our employees and regions went above and beyond to give back, in celebration of our 60th anniversary as a company. In Irvine and Singapore, employees celebrated by sorting and packaging 60,000 nutritious and fortified meals to people living in extreme poverty – totaling 120,000 meals in 2018 alone. More than 500 employees participated in these food packaging events. Additionally, across 12 offices in Europe, employees raised funds for eight European charities, donating $60,000 USD (including Foundation matches).

More than 25 Edwards leaders serve as members of various non-profit Boards of Directors, helping to strategically guide the mission and impact of community organizations across the globe. In 2018, Edwards launched a Senior Leadership Team Board Training Program, where interested Senior Leadership Team members can receive training on how to be an impactful Board member, including an overview of non-profit governance, strategy and financials. At the end of the training, the Senior Leadership Team members are then matched to local, national or international non-profit organizations that need their individual skills on their Board.

The Edwards Lifesciences Foundation

In 2018, Edwards Lifesciences Foundation encouraged applicants of the Community Grant program to apply for general operating support grants. Grants issued in the Community Grant program are generally smaller, with an average amount of $5,000. Grants are issued to non-profit organizations that Edwards has multi-faceted relationships with: we are most often not just providing grant support, but also volunteering our time, serving as a Board member or advisory member, and donating supplies via supply drives.

We have deep relationships with these organizations, and we understand the challenges they face in meeting their operating costs, such as salaries, utility bills and new equipment. In response, in 2018, we issued $179,000 in general operating support grants to support these organizations. These grants represented eight percent of Community grants, and we look to grow that total in the future.

Our philanthropic contributions

In 2018, Edwards contributed $8.7 million in philanthropic giving across the globe. This includes $7.1 million in cash grants from our Foundation.

In 2014, we committed our philanthropy to impact the global burden of heart valve disease by supporting the education, screening and treatment of one million underserved people by 2020. In 2018, our partners achieved our goal early. Now, we are reaching for 1.5 million by 2020.

By partnering with over 60 cardiac- and patient-focused non-profit organizations, we’ve been able to impact the global burden of heart valve disease by educating, screening and treating over 1 million underserved people in over 35 countries. For more information on Every Heart Matters, click here.

We rigorously measure and report the performance of this initiative to ensure our data accurately reflect our impact in underserved populations. Since 2014, because of Every Heartbeat Matters:

  • 60 non-profit partners joined the initiative
  • Approximately 900,000 underserved people have been impacted by public health education
  • More than 17,000 clinicians caring for underserved patients have received training
  • More than 80,000 underserved people have been screened for heart valve disease
  • Nearly 5,000 underserved people have received heart valve treatment
  • The initiative has reached underserved people in 36 countries

By 2020, the company and Edwards Lifesciences Foundation expect to invest approximately $30 million in this initiative.

Our aspirations

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Passionate engagement that strengthens our communities

Material topics
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From California to India, Our Employees Volunteer Around the World

Edwards’ employees have adopted a local high-needs Orange County school, Washington Elementary, and partnered with the United Way. Through this partnership, Edwards has supported this high need elementary school for the past two years. “It’s really important that kids have that personal connection with people in the community,” says Principal Jackie Ochoa. “Our students really benefit from that, and I think the Edwards volunteers benefit from knowing they’re making a huge difference in the lives of our students.” An Irvine-based Human Resource Project Manager has been leading a team of over 25 employees, the Washington Elementary School Volunteerism Committee, who have facilitated over 12 projects. They have wrapped their arms and resources around this school, providing food over school breaks, running classroom specific supply drives before the start of every year, leading STEM activities and starting an after-school STEM club, mentoring students via playing soccer at recess, donating used i-Pads and personal items, reading to students, and cheering the students and their families on in a “red carpet rally” when they come back for the first day of school. Via the United Way Giving Campaign, Edwards has also been able to fund a Financial Empowerment Center at the school, where a financial coach now sits on the campus full-time, providing financial coaching and guidance to families and community members in the school environment that they know and trust.

The Edwards Foundation also funds programs in Nepal and India, including CardioStart, Thoracic Surgery Foundation, Nepal Heart Foundation, and Stanford BioDesign. CardioStart travels to Nepal four times a year to support a heart center in nearby Kathmandu and recently led a public education session for 500 children and their families at a school in Bkathapur, Nepal. Education included: 1) how to identify Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD), 2) what to do if symptoms are identified, 3) and hygiene tips on how to prevent RHD. Our employees distributed 500 toothbrushes and toothpaste that were packaged by volunteers at the Edwards Mumbai office. In partnership with the Thoracic Surgery Foundation, Mumbai volunteers also packaged patient care bags for adults and children, which were given to the nursing staff at Monmohan Cardiovascular Center for distribution to patients. The Nepal Heart Foundation conducted a heart screening of more than 300 students at a local school, where 30 people received an echocardiogram, and identified two of those with valve disease – a young teacher and a 13-year-old student.

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HOLA Employee Resource Group gives back to community

Employees from our Hispanic/Latino Organization for leadership and Advancement (HOLA) ERG hosted “Science Friday” events in 2018 for students from the Achievement Institute of Scientific Studies (AISS), which guides academically motivated, economically disadvantaged high school students interested in pursuing a career in the STEM fields. “Science Fridays” include an overview of the medical technology industry, product demos and workshops, tours of development and testing labs, hands on science experiments, and career panels where students learn about how Edwards employees landed in their career paths. Select students were also able to extend their experience into a four-week externship program, taking their career insight and hands on experience working in the medical technology field to another level.

“I truly appreciate the opportunities you give us to stay at Edwards on Fridays. Thank you for allowing us to gain more knowledge and experience in the STEM fields. We will take these opportunities to their full advantage and make sure we do our best to succeed in order to better the future!” ~ Lorena Castaneda, AISS Scholar