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Vision, strategy and objectives

Vision

Our vision is for National Grid to be the foremost international electricity and gas company, delivering unparalleled safety, efficiency and reliability, vital to the well-being of our customers and communities. We are committed to being an innovative leader in energy management and to safeguarding our global environment for future generations.

Strategy

Our strategy is based on focus, integration and discipline as follows:

Focus	We are focused on a clear business model, based on the ownership and operation of large scale asset intensive businesses within our principal growth markets of electricity and gas delivery infrastructure in the UK and US.
Integration	We aim to run our businesses in an integrated way – organising our activities along lines of business, supported by effective and efficient shared services and information systems. This involves deploying proven processes, common systems and best practices within each business, supported by common operating principles and safety and environmental standards, seeking to maximise the competitive advantages that come from being an international organisation, balanced with the need to provide excellent service to customers and to maintain and build local relationships with other key stakeholders.
Discipline	We aim to be disciplined in the application of best practice, increasingly standardising our approach to the way we operate and finance our activities. Our aim is for rigorous financial discipline, ensuring that we have the capital we need to grow, while maintaining the investor confidence that comes from a disciplined approach to our balance sheet.

Objectives

Building on our strategy, we have set ourselves objectives to deliver our vision of becoming the foremost international electricity and gas company. By achieving our objectives we aim to deliver sustainable growth and so create value for our shareholders.

Delivering our strategy	– Create lines of business – Build operating model - common systems and processes, sharing best practice – Invest in new businesses where there is value for our shareholders – Exit businesses not in our core markets
Operating performance	– Improve safety – Improve efficiency – Improve reliability – Improve customer service – Deliver our capital investment plans
Talent	– Identify and develop talent and skills – Improve engagement and performance – Enhance inclusion and diversity
Relationships	– Help investors understand our value – Improve relationships with customers, regulators and governments – Work effectively with suppliers – Deepen our involvement with communities
Environment	– Lead on climate change – Manage and remediate contaminated land – Protect the environment – Be efficient in our use of natural resources
Financial performance	– Increase profits and earnings per share – Obtain appropriate returns on our investments – Maintain financial discipline – Increase dividends and shareholder returns

 

Our strategy is underpinned by our commitment to corporate responsibility, including the core values that we expect our management and employees to operate by.

Responsibility

– Operate to the highest standards of corporate governance – Conduct our business in a lawful and ethical manner – Live our core values of: • Respect others and value diversity • Take ownership for driving performance • Demonstrate integrity and openness in all relationships • Work together as one team

 

We describe what these objectives mean, how we plan to achieve them and the progress we have made this year, in the performance summary and performance against our objectives sections of this Operating and Financial Review. More information on our corporate responsibility and business ethics objectives is included in the Corporate Governance section.