Texan by Nature is excited to recognize Cirrus Logic as a 2022 TxN 20 honoree for their leadership in conservation and sustainability. Cirrus Logic’s commitment to conservation, their projects, programs, best practices, and lessons learned are an example and inspiration for us all.

Honoree Industry and Size: Technology – Mid

 Company Overview: Cirrus Logic is a leader in low-power, high-precision mixed-signal processing solutions that create innovative user experiences for the world’s top mobile and consumer applications. With headquarters in Austin, Texas, Cirrus Logic is recognized for its award-winning corporate culture. 

CLEAN members and summer interns volunteering with Shoal Creek Conservancy to clean up Shoal Creek, which runs next to Cirrus Logic’s Austin headquarters.

What is Cirrus Logic’s conservation and sustainability mission and why is it important to your culture?
Cirrus Logic believes our actions across environmental, social, and governance (ESG) related issues will contribute to the long-term success of our business by delivering innovative, energy-efficient signal processing solutions that are designed to maximize energy efficiency. We believe our focus on business growth is complementary to our ESG goals and recognize our responsibility to embed sustainable policies and practices across our business as we work to reduce the carbon footprint of our operations and products. Our employees take pride in our commitment to be a good corporate citizen, strive to be thoughtful about our carbon footprint while also engaging our employees across ESG topics, and give back to the communities in which we live and work. 

How is conservation and sustainability a part of Cirrus Logic’s business strategy?
For Cirrus Logic, integrity is at the root of conservation – a commitment to the values we have as a company to develop products responsibly and sustainably and always with a passion for innovative ideas that drive new technologies. From working with our supply chain partners to empowering employees to reduce their carbon footprint, to philanthropy and engagement with non-profit organizations, Cirrus Logic believes that focusing on the environment is more than just good for business – it’s the right thing to do, and is a part of our everyday mission. 

 Our expertise lies along the boundary between analog to digital, where we can tackle difficult engineering challenges and help our customers create exciting products. We pride ourselves on providing low-power, high-performance solutions. With each new generation of component design, we look for ways to improve performance while further optimizing energy efficiency. Our ability to innovate and execute is built on an award-winning company culture that fosters productivity and a rewarding environment where employees are valued and motivated to succeed.

 As a fabless semiconductor company, Cirrus Logic relies on a world-class network of supply chain partners – foundries, assembly, and test facilities – to manufacture our products for customers worldwide. Cirrus Logic requires suppliers create safe working conditions and treat their workers with respect while maintaining environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing processes. We work closely with our suppliers to limit reputational risks, build customer loyalty, and deliver premium, high-quality products. 

“Cirrus Logic believes that being a good corporate citizen can positively impact our business while creating long-term value for our shareholders, employees, customers, and the local communities where we live and work. Our employees have also expressed enthusiasm for environmental stewardship and seek ways to positively impact our environment as individuals and a corporation through CLEAN, our sustainability resource group.”

-John Forsyth, President, and CEO

What are Cirrus Logic’s short and long-term goals as they relate to conservation and sustainability?
In FY22 (ended March 28, 2021), Cirrus Logic also took meaningful steps toward the development of an ambitious climate strategy. We are making our operations more sustainable through the transition from conventional to renewable electricity for our largest facilities. Using science-based targets as our guide, we have set a target to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 90 percent by FY30, compared to FY21. This demonstrates our commitment to make our operations more sustainable, and is above the minimum reductions (at least 4.2 percent average annual reduction) required to align with a 1.5-degree Celsius warming scenario set by the Paris Agreement. In an effort to achieve our target we will consider: 

• Implementing energy efficiency improvements to our facilities;  
• Expanding the use of renewable energy, for example through on-site generation and/or utility supplier contracts where available;
• Purchasing renewable energy certificates; and  
• Encouraging our co-located data center providers to use renewable energy. 

 Our Scope 1 and 2 emissions decreased in FY22 by 66 percent compared to FY21. This substantial reduction was primarily due to a significant increase in the amount of renewable electricity we purchased, with our Austin facilities fully transitioning to a 100 percent renewable electricity contract. This past year, we also replaced the lights in our Austin parking garages with LEDs, which we estimate will reduce lifetime carbon emissions by over 100 metrics tons.

Who in Cirrus Logic is leading your conservation and sustainability efforts and what are some examples of employee engagement in conservation and sustainability at Cirrus Logic?
Responsibility for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) oversight belongs to the Board of Directors with delegation to the Audit, Compensation and Human Resources, and Governance and Nominating Committees within their respective areas of expertise. Guidance for our program is provided by an executive steering committee, which is composed of the CEO and members of the leadership team, including finance, human resources, legal, and engineering operations. The committee reviews the program’s direction, addresses potential barriers, and supports the identification of ESG risks and opportunities throughout the year. Our ESG strategy is operationalized by a cross-functional team that includes members from investor relations, legal, and quality. The team reports progress to the Board of Directors twice annually. 

 Cirrus Logic developed an employee resource group (ERG) in FY22 dedicated to sustainability, the Cirrus Logic Environmental Action Network (CLEAN). The CLEAN ERG supports our employees’ environmental education and stewardship efforts and is intended to build a sense of global community. CLEAN is led by a team of employees representing our offices in Asia, the U.K., and the U.S, with more than 250 members committed to driving a culture of sustainability at Cirrus Logic and in their communities. For every US & UK member who joins, CLEAN adopts a honeybee in their honor through the World Wildlife Federation’s Adopt-a-Honey Bee program. We adopt an orangutan to honor Asian employees through the Orangutan Project. CLEAN has already conducted numerous trainings and activities since its recent genesis. CLEAN also aligns its volunteer opportunities with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and has hosted creek/beach cleanups, tree planting events, fireside chats with expert speakers, bike to work events, and sustainability book club readings. Even before the development of CLEAN, our employees have a long history of investing their time into making a real difference across a range of sustainability areas where we work and where we live. Our employees across the globe volunteered more than 880 hours last year to local causes they care about. Cirrus Logic often supports these efforts with financial assistance as well. 

 Cirrus Logic employees volunteering with Habitat for Humanity.

What conservation and sustainability programs and projects does Cirrus Logic lead and participate in?
We are committed to taking action to address the most significant environmental topics and creating a responsible/sustainable business environment that drives value by focusing on the following categories:

Energy and Emissions

• In 2021, we achieved our goal of fully transitioning 100 percent of our Austin facilities to renewable electricity contracts. In addition to these renewable electricity purchases, the chilled water used in our Austin buildings is supplied by a renewably powered district cooling facility. In FY22, 79 percent of our total electricity use and 76 percent of our total energy use were sourced from renewable resources such as wind and solar. 
• We provide 100% reimbursement for US employees to take alternative forms of transportation, such as local trains and buses. We also offer EV charging at our facilities as well as operate three park and ride shuttle services, serving North Austin, Round Rock/Pflugerville, and South Austin.
• We offer employees financial incentives to fly economy class on business trips to offset emissions.

E-waste

• As part of our waste reduction strategy, Cirrus Logic resells, donates, and recycles e-waste. In FY22, our e-waste program prevented approximately 380 computers from ending up in landfills. As part of our sustainability efforts, 200+ computers were donated to Latinitas and 180+ computers donated to the Edinburgh Remakery.

Green Infrastructure

• In FY22 we replaced the lights in various locations at our Austin, Texas headquarters with LED lighting, which is estimated to reduce lifetime CO2 emissions by over 100 metric tons.
• Our Edinburgh and London office buildings are highly rated on the BREEAM scale, a leading sustainability building assessment scheme, and all U.K. sites have an energy performance asset rating of B or above. 

How do you see the future of conservation and sustainability evolving, and what role will Cirrus Logic play in that progress?
Cirrus Logic believes that innovation is key to building a sustainable future. Organizations that value innovation at all levels – from products, services, and corporate culture – will provide the solutions to help combat our greatest global challenges. The workforce is a resource, and strong corporate cultures matter. Innovative programs to develop the modern workforce drives our employee programs that foster conservation – from recycling, to emissions reduction to community involvement initiatives helping to strengthen stronger urban communities.

How does Cirrus Logic quantify investment and return on conservation and sustainability?
To have better transparency of our environmental impact, Cirrus Logic has partnered with a global sustainability consultancy to disclose our carbon footprint. This process involved making assumptions about our current and future operations, simulating emissions reduction scenarios, and identifying opportunities to achieve our emissions target. As we continue to enhance our understanding of our carbon footprint we may reevaluate assumptions and update our targets as appropriate. We currently track our energy and water consumption as well as dollars invested in sustainability. As our ESG program continues to expand, we are working to expand the measurement and disclosure of our impact on the environment. In FY22, Cirrus Logic efforts included:

Upgrading to LED lighting at all Austin facilities. This project is estimated to reduce lifetime CO2 emissions by over 100 metric tons. Donating $1.9 million to philanthropic and charitable causes, this includes Cirrus Logic and employee-matched cash donations. This enabled us to support approximately 380 organizations worldwide. Some environmental causes we have supported include Tree Folks , Urban Roots ,Shoal Creek Conservancy.

What is the one lesson that Cirrus Logic has learned from your conservation and sustainability efforts that others can take back and think about applying within their own space?
Cirrus Logic recognizes the importance of sustainable investment in our local communities. We strive to foster the community relationships we have built and focus on sustainability efforts that both align with employees’ personal interest and our corporate values. In this ever-changing landscape, Cirrus Logic understands that there are always opportunities to grow and we will continue to adjust our company strategies to find solutions to current sustainability issues while reducing our climate-related risks for the future. 

Why is Texas an important home or base of operations for Cirrus Logic?
Cirrus Logic moved its headquarters to Austin, Texas from Silicon Valley in 1998. Cirrus Logic values Texas as the home to their corporation’s largest employee base due to the draw of the Austin community, a highly educated workforce, and the surrounding appeal of Austin and the beauty of the Texas Hill Country. The entrepreneurial spirit of Austin attracts top talent and allows the company to remain highly competitive in a global landscape. 

Learn more about Cirrus Logic’s conservation and sustainability efforts here:

Cirrus Logic’s Environmental, Social, and Governance