Building Long-Lasting Partnerships with Government and NGOs
According to a recent report by the Pacific Basin Research Center in Orange County, California, business executives are increasingly collaborating with government Tweet This! and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to integrate sustainability into business practices and enjoy the multiple benefits of these collaborations: improved reputation and credibility, increased employee engagement, opportunities to reach new markets, among others.
There are, however, differences between these two types of partnerships, with each requiring a different approach. Imagine driving a car: these differences are like the rules of the road, on the one hand, and other conditions, such as weather or a traffic jam, on the other. Government regulations are like the rules of the road: they must be understood and followed, and rarely change. Other conditions, just like NGOs’ concerns, need more regular attention, change often and have to be properly planned for and managed.
As regards collaborations with government, industry leaders being assembled by government to deal with a specific topic or government participation in broader industry initiatives are both beneficial forms of engagement, for both government and business. When it comes to partnering with NGOs, a healthy tension should be created, with constructive criticism – not forgetting that NGOs serve different purposes, compared to businesses.
Two examples that embody the abovementioned principles are the Tropical Forest Alliance 2020 (TFA 2020), with companies like Walmart and Unilever creating a global network aimed at eliminating deforestation from supply chains (an initiative that attracted and involved several NGOs and governments), and CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), an organization which works with companies (but also cities, states and regions) to disclose information and report on their environmental performance.
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