Governance Documents

We believe that good corporate governance serves the long-term interests of stockholders, strengthens the Board and management, and further enhances the public trust 3M has earned from more than a century of operating with uncompromising integrity and doing business the right way.

Our corporate governance principles govern how we do business on a daily basis, enabling us to outperform and lead the way to sustainable growth. Our governance principles provide a framework that defines the roles, rights, and responsibilities of different groups within the organization, the Board’s role in risk oversight, public policy engagement, and the company’s commitment to the environment and sustainability. 3M’s Board of Directors oversees the Chief Executive Officer and senior management and ensures that appropriate procedures and controls are in place covering managements’ activities in operating the company on ethical grounds on a day-to-day basis.

Among our corporate governance highlights, a few examples are as follows:

• Risk Oversight – the Board overseas the company’s risk profile and management’s processes for assessing and managing risk, both as a whole Board and through its committees;
• Long-Term Strategies – the Board annually approves long-term strategic plans and capital allocation strategies, aided by strategic priorities to drive key value creation levers and corporate fundamental strengths;
• Director Orientation and Continuing Education – our orientation programs familiarize new directors with the company and their role, and our continuing education programs assist directors in maintaining skills and knowledge necessary to perform their duties.

The Board has adopted the following governance guidelines and committee charters, which in conjunction with 3M’s articles of incorporation and Bylaws, form the governance framework of 3M. In this section, you will find various documents that describe our corporate governance framework.