CSR report highlights Codex commitment to a brighter future

Codex’s culture of giving back – to employees, to the community, to the planet – has resulted in a company that is exceeding all expectations.

In the hyper-competitive world of office supplies, family-owned Codex has shown that leaning into the softer side of the business – prioritising things like workplace culture, community support and sustainability – can deliver real growth.

What is the secret of Codex’s success? A large clue can be found in the shape of the company’s latest CSR report in which CEO, Patrick Murphy, talks of his role as a “champion of change” for staff, customers, even the wider community. Where others might see change as a burden, Codex sees it as an opportunity to do better.

In 2019, Murphy took over as CEO of the family business from his father Brendan – who founded the company in 1979 – and has been the driving force behind Codex’s rise and rise: as Ireland’s biggest B2B office supplier; as an official Great Place to Work; as one of Ireland’s Best Managed Companies; and perhaps most of all, as a company that puts people first.

“We have always been a people business,” nods Murphy. “Our products and services have changed, the workplaces we supply to have changed, but what has never changed is our commitment to people, talent and relationships.”

Codex is renowned for having one of the most engaged workforces in the sector, a tribute to the positive culture that Murphy and his leadership team have built. The company recently appointed a new Head of People and Culture, while rolling out an inclusive annual leave policy that has been benchmarked among the 90th percentile of all Irish SMEs.

A sense of shared purpose has proven to be a powerful driving force for Codex, and this extends to the company’s community involvement, where Codex sponsors DCU’s Access to the Workplace initiative while supporting organisations including Barretstown, AsIAm, DePaul, Focus Ireland, and the Alzheimer Society of Ireland.

These initiatives are part of the company’s ‘Codex Cares’ programme, which has contributed more than €150,000 to good causes since 2020. More recently, Codex has partnered with Irish biodiversity specialist Cloudforests to support the creation of forests and nature reserves along the Wild Atlantic Way, and in schools and community areas in Dublin.

Codex has also become one of Ireland’s leading designers of neurodivergent-friendly spaces for educational institutions and has provided DCU with a bespoke ‘quiet space’ for students.

“Like many Irish SMEs, we are simply trying to be a better, more responsible business,” says the Codex CEO.
“It takes time and effort, but it is the right thing to do and that means it is what we must do.”

Web: www.codex.ie