60 Vodafone Group Plc Annual Report 2025 Risk Management Mitigating activities
Strategic report
Governance
Financials
Other information
The global risk framework assists in providing a consistent approach to measure and manage our risks by considering the risks’ potential impact, likelihood, and our tolerance. It is important to establish the context and to understand the environment in which we operate. We categorise our risks into different risk-types (strategic, operational, financial, or legal and regulatory) and identify whether the source of the threat is internal or external. This helps us effectively treat risks by avoiding, transferring, mitigating, or accepting them. Furthermore, this categorisation allows us to provide appropriate oversight and assurance for each of our risks. Each risk is assigned to an executive risk owner, who is responsible for implementing adequate controls and necessary treatment plans to manage risks within acceptable tolerance levels. While risk owners handle the mitigation implementation, the ARC and RCC provide an oversight over the risk management strategy as well as challenge the tolerance levels of the risks through in-depth risk reviews. Refer to
pages 56 and 57 for more detail on our principal risks. Read more about the Audit and Risk Committee on pages 86 to 91 Adverse changes in macroeconomic conditions We have a resilient business model. We
Adverse market competition We monitor the competitive environment in all markets and react accordingly to both consumer and business needs. We have initiated Group-wide programmes focused on the customer pillar of our strategy, increased investments in brand and customer experience, as well as launched innovative new products. We continue to evolve our tariffs and offers to provide a differentiated customer experience through benefits, such as flexible contract terms, refurbished devices, and social tariffs. In addition, in many markets we utilise ‘second’ brands to compete more effectively and efficiently in the value segment. Disintermediation Our increasingly deep partnerships with Big Tech companies and the potential to leverage the new Digital Markets Act have improved our ability to defend against customer ownership risks. In addition, we continue to focus intensively on improving our customers’ experience, strengthening our proposition, and bundling digital services for consumer and business markets to enhance customer loyalty.
Adverse regulatory and policy environment Geopolitical tensions and ongoing conflicts amplify the risk of adverse regulatory action. We actively monitor the external horizon, gather intelligence to inform decision-making, and proactively engage with policymakers, regulatory authorities, customers, and relevant stakeholders to find mutually acceptable ways forward. As a last resort, we uphold our rights through legal means.
Company transformation We have governance structures in place, sponsored by the ExCo, to align on potential changes. These structures consider implications, risks, and mitigating actions across all relevant dimensions.
Cyber threat Our cyber security strategy has a risk and control framework to manage cyber risk to our networks and services. Our framework aims to identify, protect against, respond to, and recover from threats. We measure control effectiveness across all parts of the Company and have an in-house team of experts in cyber security. We embed security by design into our products, services, and internal operations. Protective controls mitigate the effect of most threats; however, when attacks are successful, we focus on rapid response to minimise business and customer impact. Root cause analysis provides continuous improvement and drives action. Click to read more about our approach Supply chain disruption We are closely monitoring the evolution of the geopolitical environment. This enables us to respond to emerging challenges and to comply with evolving regulations, economic sanctions, and trade rulings. We also mitigate our exposure through multi-year contracts with key suppliers, demand and inventory planning in anticipation of extended lead times, and continuing to execute our optimisation strategy for network infrastructure logistics. to cyber security in our fact sheet: investors.vodafone.com/cyber
continue to keep a close eye on the possibility of recessions, which could manifest differently across our various jurisdictions. For our consumers who might be affected by an economic downturn, we offer competitive options and social plans in the markets in which we operate. We have a long average life of debt, which reduces refinancing requirements, and all of our bond debt is effectively held at fixed interest rates. Data management and Privacy Our data and privacy strategies are designed to continually reduce the risk. We regularly conduct reviews of our significant privacy and data risks. Based on the analysis, we use a risk-based approach to improve our prevention and detection strategies. When incidents occur, we identify the root causes and use these lessons learned to improve our controls. Read more about our approach to data management and privacy on pages 46 and 47
IT resilience and transformation Our global policy, supported by Key Performance Indicators (‘KPIs’), outlines the steps to quickly recover our most critical technology assets following a disaster. The adoption of cloud computing is enhancing the distribution of our systems. We have prioritised the delivery of IT transformation and modernisation programmes, adopting incremental delivery to improve governance and to realise benefits sooner.
Network resilience and infrastructure competitiveness To reduce the impact of service disruptions, we have established recovery goals for our critical assets. A global policy outlines KPIs that underpin the resilience and security of technology services. A dedicated assurance programme supports the implementation of this policy. We work with mobile industry and regulation authorities to secure suitable mobile spectrum to promote the best interests of the mobile network operators. Additionally, we are expanding our FTTH footprint, where feasible, and upgrading our cable networks, especially in the areas that are underperforming.
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