MOST SIGNIFICANT RISKS

Demand for KONE’s products and services and the competitive environment are impacted by the general economic cycles and especially the level of activity within the construction industry. As China accounts for close to 30% of KONE’s sales, a sustained market decline in the Chinese construction industry, in particular, could have an adverse effect on KONE’s growth and profitability.

Geopolitical tensions and protectionism continue to expose KONE to various business risks. In addition to the potential adverse impacts on the general economic activity, geopolitical tensions and protectionism could impact the competitiveness of KONE’s supply chain, and lead to increased costs from trade and customs tariffs. A significant portion of KONE’s component suppliers and global supply capacity is located in China.

In addition to the level of market demand, competitiveness of KONE’s offering is a key driver of the company’s growth and profitability. A failure to anticipate or address changes in customer requirements and in competitors’ offerings, ecosystems and business models or in the regulatory environment could result in a deterioration of the competitiveness of KONE’s offering. Furthermore, ongoing structural changes in the competitive landscape of the elevator and escalator industry and customer consolidation in China, for example, could affect market dynamics and KONE’s market share.

Engaged employees with relevant competencies and skills are key to the successful execution of our strategy. With the business models and ways of working changing in the elevator and escalator industry, KONE needs new organizational capabilities and new competencies on the individual employee level in the field of, for example, digitalization. At the same time, competition over skilled field workforce is increasing and securing the needed field resources and their competence management is critical. A failure to develop and retain the needed capabilities or obtain them through recruitment could have an adverse impact on KONE’s growth and profitability.

The majority of components used in KONE’s supply chain are sourced from external suppliers. In addition to this, KONE uses a significant amount of subcontracted installation resources, has outsourced some business support processes and collaborates with partners in digital services. These expose KONE to component and subcontracted labor availability and cost risk and continuity risk in partnerships. A failure to secure the needed components or resources or quality issues within these could cause business disruptions and cost increases.

As one of the leading companies in the industry, KONE has a strong brand and reputation. Issues that impact the company’s reputation or brand could have an effect on KONE’s business and financial performance. Such reputational risks could materialize; for example, in the case of an incident, a major delivery issue or a product or service quality issue. Matters concerning product integrity, safety or quality could also have an impact on KONE’s financial performance and affect customer operations.

KONE’s business activities are dependent on the uninterrupted operation, quality and reliability of its manufacturing facilities, sourcing channels, operational service solutions and logistics processes. KONE’s, its suppliers’ and customers’ operations also utilize information technology extensively and KONE’s business is dependent on the quality, integrity and availability of information. Thus, KONE is exposed to IT disruptions and cyber security risks, as operational information systems and products may be vulnerable to interruption, loss or manipulation of data, or malfunctions which can result in disruptions in processes and equipment availability. Any breach of sensitive employee or customer data may also result in significant penalties as well as reputational damage. Such cyber incidents could be caused by, including but not limited to, cybercrime, cyber-attacks, computer malware, information theft, fraud, misappropriation, or inadvertent actions from our employees and vendors. Also physical damage caused by fire, extreme weather conditions, natural catastrophes or terrorism, among other things, to these operations, could cause business interruption for KONE or its suppliers.

The majority of KONE’s sales and result are denominated in currencies other than the Euro, which exposes KONE to risks arising from foreign exchange-rate fluctuations. KONE is also exposed to counterparty risks related to financial institutions, through the significant amounts of liquid funds deposited with financial institutions, in the form of financial investments and in derivatives. Additionally, KONE is exposed to risks related to the liquidity and payment schedules of its customers, which may impact cash flow or lead to credit losses. Significant changes in local financial or taxation regulation could also have an impact on KONE’s financial performance, liquidity and cash flow.

The assessment and analysis of KONE’s most significant risks also covers nonfinancial risks. In line with the requirements of the Finnish Accounting Act, KONE has identified the most significant non-financial risks regardless of their materiality for KONE as a whole. The typical impact of the non-financial risks materializing would be reputational damage. In addition to the risk mitigation actions described below, KONE aims for transparent and reliable communication in order to prevent reputational risks and to enable proactive management and learning from incidents, should they occur.

Environmental risks

KONE actively identifies, assesses and monitors the development of existing and emerging environmental risks. Continuous environmental risk assessment process is included in KONE’s ISO 14001 environmental system requirements and management activities. For example, environmental risks are managed by conducting internal and external audits, by regularly tracking compliance requirements and our environmental performance and by actively participating in different environmental research and discussion forums.

Although environmental risks related to KONE’s business are overall not very material, the most significant identified environmental risks relate to climate change. Preparing for extreme weather conditions and minimizing potential damages or interruptions to our operations and delivery chain is an ongoing activity. Climate-related risks can also materialize due to introduction of new environmental legislation potentially causing increases in our cost base.

Social and employee related risks

Safety is a top priority at KONE and potential safety incidents are among the most significant social and employee related risks. Incidents are mitigated through, for example, extensive training and communication, consistent safety management practices, standardized maintenance and installation methods and regular process audits. Major repairs or retrofits in public infrastructure locations may also affect the daily life of many people and therefore, may have a reputational impact. Both safety and quality have a key role in product design, supply, manufacturing, installation and maintenance and they involve strict quality controls. KONE also follows globally implemented principles in how to manage potential incidents and implement improvements.

Human rights related risks

The most significant human rights related risks are in the supply and delivery chain and are related to terms and conditions of work. All new suppliers must sign KONE’s Supplier Code of Conduct which sets out our ethical business practice requirements, including the standards we require in terms of labor and human rights. On the basis of the a risk assessment conducted in 2019, we are prioritizing our work on human rights in the supply chain and have set up a human rights network and are preparing a pilot project for supplier assessments.

Anti-corruption and bribery related risks

KONE requires its employees and partners to adhere to high ethical standards and to comply with its Code of Conduct, Distributor Code of Conduct and Supplier Code of Conduct. These codes cover numerous compliance topics, including competition law, trade sanctions compliance, and labor and human rights issues, as well as prohibiting corruption and bribery. Unethical business practices among KONE’s employees or various stakeholders could cause reputational damage for KONE as well as a possible financial impact. The risks of such behaviors and practices materializing are included in the scope of KONE’s regular audit programs. In addition, processes introduced under our Global Delegation of Authority policy help to mitigate the risk of unauthorized payments, donations and sponsorships. We have introduced more stringent disclosure requirements in China for conflicts of interest and this work will continue worldwide in 2020. The most important action for internal mitigation continues to be the development of KONE’s corporate culture through training and awareness building.

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