Vodafone 2024 Annual Report

Vodafone Group Plc Annual Report 2024

Strategic report

Governance

Financials

Other information

Operating in a rapidly changing industry Our governance

The long-term trends that are shaping our industry and driving new growth opportunities. Mega trends

Our business is underpinned by our strong governance and risk management framework.

Connected devices

Governance The Board held seven scheduled meetings this year to discuss key strategic matters, our purpose and culture, our people and stakeholder interests. The Nominations and Governance Committee evaluates the composition and performance of the Board and ensures an appropriate balance of independence, skills, knowledge, experience and diversity. The Audit and Risk Committee provides effective governance over the appropriateness of financial reporting of the Group, including the adequacy of related disclosures, the performance of the internal audit function and the external auditor and oversight of the Group’s systems of internal control, risk management framework and compliance activities. The Technology Committee supports the Board with fulfilling the technology strategy for the Group, including assessing risks and exploring new innovations for future growth. The ESG Committee oversees our Environmental, Social and Governance (‘ESG’) programme, including our purpose, sustainability and responsible business practices, and our contribution to the societies we operate in under our social contract. The Remuneration Committee advises the Board on policies for executive remuneration and reward packages for the Chair, executives and senior management team.

– A wide range of new devices, across all sectors and applications, are increasingly being connected to the internet. – The Internet of Things (‘IoT’) is expected to create huge value for businesses and society, unlocking new efficiencies by delivering real-time information. – As the number of IoT devices increases, physical assets are also communicating with each other in real-time and new digital markets are being established giving birth to the ‘Economy of Things’. – Businesses demand reliable and secure mobile connectivity as transactions migrate to online channels and apps. – In Africa, increasing smartphone penetration drives the adoption of digital payments. – Network operators and a range of FinTech startups are using mobile payment applications to sell additional financial services focused products such as insurance and loans. – The cloud is increasingly utilised by businesses and consumers as a more efficient way of sharing compute capacity and services. – SMEs increasingly understand the benefits of cloud technology but lack the technical expertise or direct relationships with cloud specialists to make an effective transition to the cloud. – This presents an opportunity for network operators to play a role as a partner to support smaller businesses on their digital transformation journeys. – The full range of potential applications and long-term impacts of Gen AI are only starting to be understood. – The technology is widely expected to drive significant economic benefit globally through productivity increases and new business opportunities. – Potential applications include AI-generated content for marketing campaigns, customer care and back-office activities.

Click or scan to watch our Vodafone Business investor briefing: investors.vodafone.com/ vtbriefing

Digital payments

Click or scan to watch our Digital Services investor briefing: investors.vodafone.com/ digital-services

Read more on pages 70 to 99

Click or scan to watch our Non- Executive Directors speak about their roles in short video interviews: investors.vodafone.com/videos

Adoption of cloud technology

Risk management Risks are not static and as the environment changes, so do risks – some diminish or increase, while new risks appear. We continuously review and improve our risk processes in order to ensure that the Company has the appropriate level of support in meeting its strategic objectives. Our risk framework clearly defines roles and responsibilities, and sets out a consistent end-to-end process for identifying and managing risks. We have embedded the risk framework across the Group as this allows us to take a holistic approach and to make meaningful comparisons. Our approach is continuously enhanced, enabling more dynamic risk detection, modelling of risk interconnectedness and use of data, all of which are improving our risk visibility and our responses. Our Board oversees principal and emerging risks, which are reported to the various management committees and the Board throughout the year. Additionally, risk owners are invited to present in-depth reviews to ensure that risks are continuously monitored, and appropriate treatment plans are implemented to bring each risk within an acceptable tolerance level.

Click or scan to watch our Vodafone Technology investor briefing: investors.vodafone.com/ vtbriefing

Generative artificial intelligence (‘Gen AI’)

Click or scan to learn more about how Vodafone works with artificial intelligence (‘AI’): investors.vodafone.com/ artificial-intelligence