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sustainability_partnership Sustainability at Böllhoff

Partnership field of action

We are a family business that focuses on people. That is why we feel particularly committed to social engagement and our social responsibility.

Logo of the field of action Partnership

Partnership

Social commitment and social responsibility

As a fourth-generation family business with regional roots, we have always put people at the heart of everything we do. This includes not only our employees, customers and business partners - but also the society in which we live. 

For us, sustainable business therefore means being a strong partner for society and giving something back. As a company, we are actively involved in social projects and support our employees in making their own valuable contribution to the common good.

Böllhoff supports a wide variety of projects, initiatives and associations that make an important social contribution - both in our home region of East Westphalia-Lippe and beyond. We are committed to education, art and culture, the promotion of youth sports and charitable projects. 

Michael W. Böllhoff and Wilhelm A. Böllhoff Members of the company management

More equal opportunities

Youth development at the Wolfgang and Regina Böllhoff Foundation

In 2006, Wolfgang and Regina Böllhoff founded the "Wolfgang and Regina Böllhoff Foundation" together with their children. The foundation was founded with the heartfelt desire to promote equal opportunities and fair access to education for young people. After all, social background and personal circumstances often have a strong influence on educational opportunities. 

Foundation Chairwoman Anja Böllhoff (2nd from right) with the program directors
Foundation Chairwoman Anja Böllhoff (2nd from right) with the programme directors

Youth development

The work of the foundation

With its two programmes "Ich will" and "Hand in Hand", the Böllhoff Foundation pursues the goal of supporting young people and young adults in their personal development - through individual support and 1:1 mentoring by volunteer mentors.

  • Education programme "Ich will"

    The "Ich will" programme (German for "I want to") supports pupils in years 8 to 10. Around 60 young people are currently being supported at two programme locations - in Bielefeld in East Westphalia and Finsterwalde in Brandenburg. Over a period of three years, the pupils are supported in their personal development, in achieving the best possible school-leaving qualifications and in making a successful transition to a career. 

    During this time, the young people are supported by a personal mentor, take part in community activities and receive needs-based remedial teaching. In view of the shortage of skilled workers, career guidance is also becoming increasingly important, for example in skilled trades. 

    Find out more about the "Ich will" education programme (German only)
  • Education programme "Hand in Hand"

    "Hand in Hand" was launched in 2016 in response to the refugee crisis. With this educational programme, the Böllhoff Foundation aims to support immigrant young adults in their personal, social and professional integration. 

    The ultimate goal is to strengthen the young people's self-esteem so that they can organize and shape their lives in their new environment independently after two years of support. They should arrive in society and feel at home in Germany. Around 30 young people are currently being accompanied and supported in the programme. In the "Hand in Hand" programme, individual 1:1 support for young people by mentors over a period of two years is also an important pillar of support. 

    Find out more about the "Hand in Hand" education programme (German only)

"Being able to support and accompany young people in their development is a great privilege. I am grateful that we can make a contribution to this together with our foundation work."

Anja Böllhoff
Anja Böllhoff Chairwoman of the Board of the Wolfgang and Regina Böllhoff Foundation
»

Interview on the foundation's work

Talking to Anja Böllhoff and Dr Wolfgang W. Böllhoff

Foundation Chairwoman Anja Böllhoff and founding donor Dr Wolfgang W. Böllhoff talk about the establishment of the foundation, the generation change in 2022 and the work in both programmes.

Find out more in the Böllhoff magazine

Support for youth sports

Sport and well-being are inextricably linked. This is particularly true for children and young people, who are encouraged in their development through sporting activity and learn values such as respect and tolerance through team sports. This is why it is important to us to support sports clubs both locally and nationally in their work with young talent. 

For many years, we have been sponsoring kits for youth football teams, for example, for whom their clubs are often unable to provide uniform kits. To date, we have provided more than 150 teams throughout Germany with kits.

The F-Youth of VfB Schloß Holte is happy about the new jerseys.
The F-Youth of VfB Schloß Holte is happy about the new jerseys.

For the region

Our head office has been located in Bielefeld in East Westphalia for over 100 years. We therefore feel a special connection to the people in the region and are involved in numerous local initiatives. We support these both financially and by actively helping to shape their social commitment.
  • "Initiative for our city - non-partisan and non-profit": this is both the guiding principle and the claim of the association founded in 1990 by a group of Bielefeld citizens. With its work, the association pursues the goal of supporting the image profiling of Bielefeld as a cultural and economic centre of the East Westphalia-Lippe region and at the same time is committed to the continuous improvement of the living conditions of the city's citizens. Wilhelm A. Böllhoff supports the association as Chairman of the Board, Dr Wolfgang W. Böllhoff and Anja Böllhoff are members of the Board of Trustees.

    To the website of the association (German only)

     

     

    Das Logo des Vereins Bielefelder Konsens: Pro Bielefeld e.V., welcher von Böllhoff unterstützt wird.
  • The aim of the foundation is to promote cultural life in Bielefeld. In particular, this includes supporting the work of the local art museum Kunsthalle Bielefeld by co-financing selected temporary exhibitions and expanding the art collection. Such assistance was and is necessary in order to compensate for the decline in municipal support and to help the Kunsthalle achieve a sufficient exhibition budget. Wilhelm A. Böllhoff is involved in the foundation as Chairman of the Board.

    Das Logo der Kulturstiftung Pro Bielefeld, die von Böllhoff unterstützt wird.
  • The Universitätsgesellschaft Bielefeld e. V.  association (Bielefeld University Society) is committed to promoting discussion and exchange about science in the region. At the same time, it promotes teaching and research, dialogue events, cultural offerings and the internationalisation of the university and awards competitions for excellent teaching (Karl Peter Grotemeyer Prize) and research (dissertation prizes). Böllhoff is represented on the board by Wilhelm A. Böllhoff and supports the endowed professorship for family businesses.

    To the website of the association (German only)

     

    Das Logo der Universitätsgesellschaft Bielefeld, die von Böllhoff unterstützt wird.
  • The association has been supporting international students at Bielefeld University and Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences for over 30 years in emergency situations and with various programmes. The aim is to improve the integration of international students in the university environment. Michael W. Böllhoff is involved in the association as chairman. 

    To the website of the association 

     

    Das Logo des Vereins zur Förderung internationaler Studierender in Bielelfeld, der von Böllhoff unterstützt wird.
  • The Bielefeld Medical Advice Centre is a specialised facility for girls and boys of pre-school and primary school age who are affected by violence. As a reliable cooperation partner of the youth welfare office, it clarifies suspected cases of neglect, abuse or sexualised violence, advises parents and caregivers and supports affected girls and boys with play therapy and diagnostic services. Protecting the children from further experiences of violence is the top priority.

    The associated support association was founded in 1993 to provide a secure financial foundation for the work of the Bielefeld Medical Advice Centre. Megan Böllhoff supports the association as chairwoman.  

    To the website of the association (German only)

     

    Das Logo des Fördervereins der Ärztlichen Beratungsstelle Bielefeld, der von Böllhoff unterstützt wird.

Volunteering together

The social projects in which our employees get involved in their free time are as diverse as our employees themselves. True to the motto "Doing good together", we not only want to acknowledge this commitment with our corporate initiative "Volunteering together", but also support it in a very practical way. We therefore support the social projects of our employees at all Böllhoff locations worldwide with additional donations. In recent years, numerous projects have been supported in this way.

Mitarbeiter der Böllhoff Gruppe stehen in Kreis und halten eine Hand in der Mitte zusammen.

Doing good together

Practical support for our employees' voluntary work

With our "Volunteering together" initiative, we have been supporting the personal commitment of our employees since 2010.

Find out more in the Böllhoff magazine

International commitment

Böllhoff's social and community involvement is not limited to our German sites. We also assume responsibility internationally in a variety of ways and try to make our contribution to education, health, culture and the environment.

  • Mechthild Böllhoff Foundation

    The purpose of the Mechthild Böllhoff Foundation is to promote social, charitable and ecclesiastical causes in the Holy Land, particularly in Israel, Palestine and Jordan. Special support is given to medical treatment for the needy and the education of young people. 

  • Instituto Böllhoff de Medula

    In 2019, Michael W. Böllhoff and Megan Böllhoff founded the Instituto Böllhoff de Medula association in Jundiaí, Brazil. The aim of the association's work is to enable a larger number of leukemia patients to receive a successful bone marrow transplant. To this end, the association initiates campaigns together with hospitals, universities and transplant centres. Twice a year, all employees at the Böllhoff site in Jundiaí are also called upon to donate blood and register as bone marrow donors. 

    To the website of the Instituto Böllhoff de Medula (Portuguese only)
  • École de la deuxième chance

    Every year in France, around 100,000 school drop-outs between the ages of 16 and 25 are neither in a permanent job nor studying or training. The École de la deuxième chance (second chance school) aims to help these young people in the department of Savoy. 

    They are gradually introduced to the expectations of the world of work and acquire the necessary knowledge and social skills to be able to integrate into the labour market in the long term. Böllhoff France supports this social project financially. 

  • Commitment to inclusion

    Böllhoff France has long been committed to inclusion with a wide range of activities, such as participation in the international DUOday initiative and a partnership with the Zicomatic association. The aim of this commitment is to offer equal opportunities to all talented people - regardless of disability or social background. 

    Since 2024, Böllhoff France has also been a certified member of GEIQ Industrie Savoie, the business association for integration and qualification in the Savoy department. This brings together industrial companies from the region that actively promote and implement the integration of people with disabilities and people furthest from the labour market in their companies.

"If our efforts are enough to save one life, we have already fulfilled part of our mission!"

Flavio Silva
Flavio Silva Böllhoff Managing Director Region South America and Head of Instituto Böllhoff de Medula
»

Sustainable orientation

Compliance and transparency

Company-wide guidelines and rules form the basis for the daily actions of all Böllhoff Group employees. This is because we can only be a reliable partner to our customers, suppliers and other stakeholders by acting in accordance with the law and regulations and by being transparent.

We record all rules in our globally applicable compliance guidelines, which are binding for all employees. The compliance guideline is part of the induction plan for employees who are new to the company. In addition, the guideline can be viewed at any time in several language versions on our intranet. 

With our compliance system, we ensure that rules and regulations are adhered to at all times and thus also protect our employees - in the spirit of working together as partners. 

Internal industrial sales team (four people) at the Böllhoff Czech Republic site

At a glance

Our compliance principles

Our actions are guided by six key principles:

Our actions are guided by six key principles:

  • Human dignity

    We respect human dignity and uphold human rights.

  • Respect and appreciation

    Our dealings with one another are characterized by respect and appreciation - both within the company and externally with customers and business partners.

  • Law and rules

    We comply with applicable law and internal rules that go beyond this.

  • Competition

    We reject all forms of corruption and bribery and respect free and fair competition.

  • Risk assessment

    In order to be a reliable partner for our stakeholders at all times, we operate a systematic risk management system.

  • Further development

    We are constantly developing our internal compliance system. We actively involve all employees in this process.

IT security at Böllhoff

The highest level of IT security is essential. It is important to ensure the protection of intellectual property and confidential information at all times - regardless of whether it concerns sensitive data from business partners, employees' personal data or our company data. 

To achieve this, we rely on firewall and VPN systems, virus protection systems and data loss prevention solutions, for example, which we continuously update and expand in order to meet the constantly changing threat situation. 

Ein Mitarbeiter am Standort Brasilien arbeitet am Computer

Equally important: At Böllhoff, all employees are involved in the topic of IT security and trained accordingly. Our IT security guidelines are available throughout the company. It sets out binding rules of conduct and provides basic knowledge on data protection and information security. We also organize security awareness training for all employees with computer access. 

In this way, we create a clear framework for action and at the same time raise awareness for the careful handling of digital information. In the future, we would like to further expand the number of our training courses and align the content even more closely with day-to-day work - for example with individualized training courses for different areas of the company. 

TISAX® certification

The successful security accreditation according to TISAX® shows that our measures for a high level of information security are bearing fruit. TISAX® (Trusted Information Security Assessment Exchange) is a cross-company assessment and exchange procedure for information security in the automotive industry. 

In the 2022 reporting year, we underwent the accreditation process for several companies in the Böllhoff Group for the first time. Accreditation of further divisions is planned for the coming years. 
 

Das aktuelle TISAX Zertifikat

The assessment was carried out by TÜV Rheinland i-sec GmbH. TISAX® results are not intended for the general public and can therefore only be accessed via the ENX portal at https://portal.enx.com

The following data leads to our assessment:

  • TISAX® Scope ID: S3RT0H 

 

Downloads

The current compliance guidelines and code of conduct of the Böllhoff Group

The two documents below provide an insight into our rules for day-to-day cooperation, both internally and externally. 

Guidelines for our reporting

GRI Content Index

Our sustainability reporting is based on the standards of the Global Reporting Initiative, or GRI for short.

To the GRI Content Index