Responsible Business Conduct

Responsible Business Conduct – our "License to Operate" 

The Compliance function at KONGSBERG is responsible for commercial compliance, trade regulations, privacy and human rights.

A strong corporate culture and ethics are essential for achieving our goals and are integrated into our values. They guide employee behavior and shape our identity and reputation. As a global company with an extensive supply chain, our approach to anti-corruption, bribery, and business conduct has implications for many people along our value chain. We have a robust quality and compliance regime to ensure that we adhere to the laws, rules, and requirements set by the industries and countries that we operate in. We are committed to compliance with laws and regulations, ethical behavior, sustainability, good governance and respect for human rights, maintaining an open dialogue on ethical issues. We aim to lead with a best-practice mindset, across the Group in reporting and transparency requirements.

We have clear guidelines and principles towards internal compliance risk assessment, covering environmental, social, and governance (ESG) topics and these are applied in all business decisions and processes throughout the organization. We align our processes with the UN Global Compact and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

The Defence Industry

Modern defence requires advanced systems. KONGSBERG provides high-tech solutions in close collaboration with the Norwegian Armed Forces, tailored to national needs and aligned with Norway’s defence policy and international obligations through the UN and NATO. Our systems are also vital to international defence operations. We engage with local communities to ensure mutual benefit and prioritize safety in all environments – from land and sea to space.

Export Compliance

Norway enforces some of the world’s strictest defence export regulations. KONGSBERG complies fully with national requirements, including transparency and approvals from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We also ensure adherence to international export control laws across all partnerships and subsidiaries, supported by a robust internal control and training program.

Compliance Training

Our risk-based compliance training course covers all employees within KONGSBERG and its subsidiaries. Programmes are tailored by role and frequency, covering management, expatriates, and key business functions. Training addresses topics including anti-corruption, export control, economic sanctions, antitrust, and more – with a strong focus on identifying and managing ethical dilemmas.

We have a robust compliance program with dedicated employees and effective tools for due diligence, traceability monitoring, and auditing. Our Ethics and Compliance Program ensures that our business practices are aligned with our values and applicable laws and regulations in the countries where we operate.

We focus on three pillars:

Prevention
We seek to embed a culture of integrity and ethics across the Group and with the business partners in our value chain.

Detection
We encourage and support employees and third parties to speak up and raise concerns. We perform control and monitoring to measure compliance and to provide assurance.

Response
We have tools to investigate and perform due diligence. We take a risk-based approach and where appropriate, sanction, confirmed breaches of our Code or governance. We also use concerns and due diligence to manage risk and improve our program. We continuously monitor our program to align with good practice and legal and legislative requirements.