• Connectivity of information
• Materiality
• Strategic focus and future orientation

Key observations:

The key component of the report is Aegon’s value chain on page 12, which explains how the company strives to turn capital and talent into benefits for all stakeholders. Putting trust at the centre of its value chain, Aegon describes how the company works to protect and increase the value entrusted to them. The whole report is linked to this chain in combination with the long term material issues identified on page 13.

Aegon introduces its materiality determination process, by mapping issues according to degrees of importance to Aegon and their stakeholders.  Based on this mapping the company describes how issues are prioritized to identify the most important ones that link directly to five key trends; (i) global aging, (ii) economic uncertainty, (iii) changing regulations, (iv) rise in new technology and (v) responsible corporate behaviour. Many issues feed directly into the key trends, particularly employee engagement, risk & capital management, product performance and customer service.

Furthermore, the five key trends are linked to their value chain, as well as key risks and opportunities as shown in a table on page 14 and 15.

In the rest of the report the company goes into detail for each of the sections of the value chain and gives context to the main elements of performance. The report is well-structured, concise and easy to read.