In an article based on the findings of a number of surveys and data collected (2), Robert G. Eccles and George Serafeim (Harvard Business School) argue that companies should actively integrate sustainability into their financial reporting and, more specifically, in their quarterly earnings.

The surveys are showing a sharply increased interest in sustainability by both company executives and investors and, at the same time, a lack of meaningful, effective communication between the two on companies’ sustainability strategies and practices.

Turn two stories into one or risk having your company being labeled as engaging in greenwashing

According to Eccles and Serafeim, corporate executives are, without a doubt, missing an opportunity to discuss, through earnings calls, their companies’ sustainability approach and initiatives with investors. Companies should, as Eccles and Serafeim aptly put it, “turn two stories into one” and talk about their most important environmen­tal, social and corporate governance (ESG) issues in quarterly earnings calls, not least because:

• Integrating sustainability into financial performance reporting and, above all, quarterly calls – demonstrating how the two, sustainability and business performance, are in fact interconnected – shows that a company not only has a sustainability strategy in place but, more importantly, implements a sustainable strategy: a strategy that “enables a company to create value for its sharehold­ers, while at the same time contributing to a sustainable society”.

• Quarterly earnings calls – which include Q&A – provide an invaluable, concrete opportunity for engagement, dialogue, sharing of information and receiving feedback from key investors on a company’s  sustainability and business performance. This is in contrast to the various reports produced by a company (such as an annual or sustainability report), where communication is one-way.

As Eccles and Serafeim conclude, “a sustainable strategy needs to be discussed in the usual quarterly calls”. If this does not happen, a company “should simply accept the fact that it has a sustainability strategy, not a sustainable strategy” and at worse that it is “greenwashing”.

References:

This article was compiled using an article by Robert G. Eccles and George Serafeim (Harvard Business School) in the Journal of Applied Corporate Finance. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses but made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the article’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the link below:

(1) http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Publication%20Files/JACF%20A%20Tale%20of%20Two%20Stories_f511f187-3656-4aa5-9a83-52988d5b5570.pdf

(2)  All the sources referred to by Robert G. Eccles and George Serafeim in their article can be seen at the link above. Two important sources are  a) Accenture and UN Global Compact, “A New Era of Sustainability CEO Study 2010,” June 2012.  b) MIT Sloan Management Review in collaboration with The Boston Consulting Group, “The Innovation Bottom Line,” Winter 2013.

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According to the 2015 Cone Communications Millennial CSR Study, based on the findings of a survey among 1,003 18- to 34-year-olds, Millennials show strong support, in a number of ways, for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts by companies. More specifically:

• 91% of Millennials would change brands to a cause-related one  Tweet This! (of comparable quality and price)

• 87% of Millennials would buy environmentally or socially beneficial products and 59% bought such a product in the past year

• 88% of Millennials would stop buying products from a company with bad business practices

• When deciding what to buy or where to go shopping, 81% of Millennials take into account a company’s social and environmental initiatives

• 70% of Millennials would pay more for sustainable products

• A company supporting a social or environmental cause would be seen more positively by 93% of Millennials

• For 86% of Millennials companies should not just make profits but tackle social and environmental issues

• 81% and 82% of Millennials, respectively, would like companies to report on their progress in their CSR efforts and generate and communicate outcomes

References:

This article was compiled using a study by Cone Communications. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses but made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the study’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the link below:

http://www.conecomm.com/research-blog/2015-cone-communications-millennial-csr-study

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The UK-Cyprus Enterprise Council, in association with RCB Bank and PGD Strategy Ltd presented in London, at the Connaught Hotel in Mayfair, on the 26 January 2017, the seminar “Cyprus Banking and the financial services sector”.

Our editor Simon Pitsillides addressed the event, speaking on “CSR: Building trust with key stakeholders in the banking and financial services sector”, as stakeholder engagement is one of the main pillars of CSR/ sustainability reporting in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Guidelines.

A key question every company should ask is: Which stakeholders can hold your company back or stop it from reaching its objectives?  Tweet This!

This is followed by action: identifying your company’s most important impacts on these key stakeholders (e.g. clients, suppliers, shareholders, local communities, NGOs or local government), stakeholder engagement and the process of measuring, managing and changing. Such a structured, methodical approach has many benefits:

1) The interests of your key stakeholders are aligned with the objectives of your company, by taking continuous action to remove possible obstacles to successful outcomes.

2) Through engagement and with action to address your stakeholders’ reasonable concerns and interests, trust is built with your key stakeholder groups. A solid foundation is provided for your company to succeed in the long-term by building and maintaining a favourable reputation and relationships with key stakeholders.

3) A solid foundation, for good communication with responsible CSR, is created.

Good communication is evermore important in the digital age we live in. Information is instantly and freely accessible throughout the globe and this applies to companies, too: people are able to instantly access information about your company’s policies, the impact of its activity, its reputation, with or without your consent. Whether you are aware of it or not, conversations could be taking place about your company and people take action and make choices based on what information they have available. Research by well-recognized institutions is clearly showing that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism. A CSR/Sustainability report done responsibly proves and communicates your company’s positive contribution to our world.

Other speakers at the seminar included:

• Peter Droussiotis, Chairman, UK-Cyprus Enterprise Council and Chairman, PGD Strategy Ltd
• HE Euripides Evriviades, Cyprus High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
• lgor lshchenko, Head of RCB London
• Sir Christopher Pissarides, Nobel Laureate in Economics and Regius Professor of Economics, London School of Economics
• Dmitry Chudakov, Senior Vice President, Head of Domestic Business, RCB Bank Ltd

Key facts about the Global Reporting Initiative:

• Over 80% of the world’s largest 250 corporations issue Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reports using GRI’s Sustainability Reporting Standards
• GRI has global strategic partnerships with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations Global Compact, with its Standards enjoying synergies with the guidance of the International Finance Corporation, the International Organization for Standardization’s ISO 26000, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the Earth Charter Initiative
• GRI is focused on taking action on what matters where it matters: companies identify their impacts on the environment and stakeholders, measure, set targets, take action to minimize their negative impacts and increase their positive impacts, report the outcomes in their CSR report
• Under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2010 the UN Global Compact adopts the GRI Standards as the recommended reporting framework for companies to communicate on progress made
• GRI provides its well-recognized Standards to address the 17 Sustainable Development Goals set out by the UN. The guide “SDG Compass – The guide for business action on the SDGs”, developed by GRI, the UN Global Compact and the WBCSD, details how companies can take action to solve our world’s most pressing problems.

The post CSR: Building trust with key stakeholders in the banking and financial services sector appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

Good communication is evermore important in the digital age we live in. Information is instantly and freely accessible throughout the globe and this applies to companies, too: people are able to instantly access information about your company’s policies, the impact of its activity, its reputation, with or without your consent. Whether you are aware of it or not, conversations could be taking place about your company and people take action and make choices based on what information they have available.

Two key questions:

Responsible ESG/sustainability reporting acts like a radar for companies by enabling them to be proactive, foresee risks and take action before situations spiral out of control. The well-recognised GRI Standards for ESG/sustainability reporting are an important tool used globally to instill trust in people in our ever-connected world where there is increasing concern about climate change and the protection of our fragile environment. Equally important is that with the GRI Standards, your company gets to build trust and deal responsibly and conscientiously with its impacts on its key stakeholders (clients, suppliers, shareholders, local communities, NGOs or local government) who can hold it back or stop it from reaching its objectives. For instance, it is a well-known fact that trust is a key element in a relationship with clients. By building trust your company creates loyalty and long-term commitment to its services and brands.

Also read:

• How to use the GRI Standards ASAP to accelerate positive change
• License to operate – Millennials
• Case Studies: How companies are cleaning their supply chains of bad environmental and social practices
• Case studies: How companies are affecting positive change on the economies and societies they operate in and rely on for profit/growth

Simon Pitsillides
Sustainability Reporting and Marketing Communication Strategy Expert. Simon is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM) a Fellow of the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals (FISEP) and a Chartered Marketer, and holds an MBA in Marketing. He is a GRI and ISEP Trainer, the publisher of www.sustaincase.com and owner of www.fbrh.co.uk. Simon teaches the FBRH GRI Standards, CPD and ISEP Certified Course (venue: London School of Economics (LSE). 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-pitsillides

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

FBRH GRI Standards Certified & ISEP recognised Sustainability Course | Venue: London LSE

By registering for the next 2-day FBRH GRI Standards Certified & ISEP recognised course you will be taking the first step in gaining the many benefits of sustainability reporting.

References:

1. Cornelissen, J. (2011), Corporate Communications: Theory and Practice, third edition, Sage, London.
2. Jefferson, S. & Tanton S. (2015), Valuable Content Marketing: How to make quality content your key to success, 2nd Edition, Kogan Page, London.
3. Damian, R. (2015), Understanding Social Media: How to create a plan for your business that works, Kogan Page, London.
4. http://www.fbrh.co.uk/csr

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