Category Archives: ESG

Examining Humana’s 2011 CSR Report: Targeting Well-being, Increasing Focus on Supply Chain

07 Monday Jul 2014

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Humana_2010-2011_CSR_ReportHumana recently released its 2010 and 2011 CSR report. What’s news about that?

For one, with this report, the health insurer became the first in its sector to follow GRI guidelines. Second, it lays down the foundation for upcoming efforts in building a sustainable supply chain and consciously partnering with NGOs and nonprofits in furthering well-being for all.

I sat down with Jim Turner, Humana’s Director for Media and Public Relations and Catherine McGlown, Humana’s CSR Lead to discuss the report — and what’s ahead for their teams.

How does Humana define CSR?

Turner: “Humana defines CSR as our dedication to making business decisions that reflect our commitment to improving the health and well-being of our members, our associates, the communities we serve, and our planet. Our CSR platform – Healthy People, Healthy Planet, Healthy Performance – represents that.”

What’s the significance of being the first company to issue a GRI report in the health insurance industry?

McGlown: “We’re excited about it, as you might expect. We won’t be surprised to see other insurers at least seriously consider following suit. As stakeholders demand increasing transparency and accountability, reporting with a recognized framework is one way our industry can continue to build trust with our members, associates, shareholders, regulators and the community at large.

“The publication of Humana’s 2010 & 2011 CSR Report using GRI guidelines (self-declared at a level C) shows that Humana is leading the health insurance industry in the larger trend of reporting out on environmental, social and governance data. CSR reporting is growing, both internationally and nationally. GRI estimates the number of North American reports with a GRI index increased by 35 percent between 2010 and 2011; we are proud to be a part of that growth.”

What metrics are discussed within the report?

  • Humana’s pledge to reduce building energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and annual energy expenses by 10 percent each, over the course of 2012, from a 2009 baseline.
  • Formation of Humana’s Network Resource Groups for African-American associates; Hispanic associates; caregivers; and gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender associates. Since the report publication, Humana has launched another group for military veterans.
  • Humana’s report also discusses the company’s plan to hire 1,000 or more veterans and/or their spouses for a variety of roles across the company, as part of the Humana Veterans Initiative. Humana has hired more than 400 military veterans and military spouses since the initiative began in August 2011. Military Times EDGE named Humana Military Healthcare Services as one of its 2012 “Best for Vets” employers. On this year’s list, Humana achieved the highest ranking of any health care company.

What have been some of the challenges of CSR reporting in a highly regulated industry?

Turner: “We’re used to being very careful about how we handle people’s health and well-being information. We have to be. This was no different as we compiled information and data for this year’s CSR Report. We wanted to be extra sensitive to how our associates and external stakeholders would view the report and how we frame sometimes-sensitive issues.”

Does Humana have community engagement initiatives only in the markets you do business?

McGlown: “Through our Medicare operations, Humana does business in all 50 U.S. states, so the answer is yes. That said, we certainly consider markets where we do business and where our associates live and work when evaluating community engagement initiatives, but those are not the only qualifying criteria. Humana’s dream is to help people achieve lifelong well-being – regardless of where they live. As Humana is now a national company, we’re working hard to become good corporate citizens in all of the communities where we do business.”

A few examples:

  • Humana has partnered with the nonprofit KaBOOM! to build multigenerational playgrounds across the country – with the most recent build in Marion, Iowa – they have built a total of 11.
  • The Humana Well-Being Tour is travelling the country for eight months, stopping in different communities and meeting people where they live to give them a fresh perspective on healthy living. This national mobile health initiative includes pedometer distribution, biometrics stations and virtual games focused on health.
  • If enrolled in a Humana health plan, Humana associates and their families can participate in an incentive-based program called HumanaVitalitySM. Rooted in science, this program encourages individuals to create a goals-based health plan and rewards individuals for healthy choices—such as losing weight, staying active and eating better—by awarding points redeemable for purchases. In addition to benefiting Humana associates, this program enables Humana to build the business case for workplace wellbeing and encourage other companies to invest in employee health.
  • Humana’s Signature Program Team Up 4 Health, located in Eastern Kentucky, uses the power of personal relationships to influence people’s behaviors towards better health and lifelong well-being. Its mission is to curb chronic diseases—such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity—which are among the most common, preventable and costly health problems in the United States. This two-year pilot is a partnership with Microclinic International, Citizen Effect and community partners.

How do you see the company’s commitment to community engagement helping Humana’s long-term sustenance?

McGlown: “Well-being is much like CSR in that it is a journey, not a destination. We prioritize walking alongside people in their journey, and one of the ways through which we can continue to drive wellbeing is through community engagement. Meeting people where they are and encouraging them to make changes in their lives that yield lifelong well-being (purpose, belonging, health and security) is a win-win.”

What CSR initiatives will Humana focus on in the next two to three years?

McGlown: “Humana will spend the next two to three years building upon the foundation we have set. One area of focus for Humana is its supply chain. Humana is identifying ways to deepen its sustainable procurement efforts, as follow-up to a supplier assessment conducted in 2011, as well as ways to increase its spend with diverse suppliers.”

Turner: “In terms of environmental work, in addition to our energy-savings targets, Humana is working on a green real estate project. For our owned facilities, we’re developing a scorecard to determine the highest-impact locations for green retrofits. For potential new properties, we’re integrating consideration of LEED potential into our RFPs and site searches.

“We have also made a multi-year commitment to continue our work with KaBOOM! Over the next three years, we will build more than 40 multi-generational playgrounds in high-need communities to encourage well-being through play.”

What do you hope to get out of your CSR report?

Turner: “The establishment of our formal CSR efforts began with both senior-leader support and organic associate activities – our CSR platform of Healthy People, Healthy Planet, Healthy Performance reflects who we are. Humana’s stakeholders – including our members, employees, and the communities in which we do business – expect a certain level of transparency from us¸ and we aimed to provide them with that through our CSR Report.”

McGlown: “This first GRI report was a tremendous learning experience. Going forward, we’re looking for ways to deepen our reporting, including possibly striving to report at the B- level in our next report.”

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary section Talkback on June 28, 2012.

The True Value of CSR Reporting: In Conversation with Campbell Soup’s VP for CSR

07 Monday Jul 2014

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The soon-to-be-released report will mark Campbell Soup’s fourth CSR Report. This report comes amidst a CEO change – Denise Morrison took on the chief job at Campbell Soup last year joining a small group of women CEOs in the Fortune 500 – and a period of what Director of Diversity & Inclusion Kevin Carter calls a time of “deep introspection” for the company.

Carter’s note is well taken. With the economy sputtering and flailing, reports continue to suggest that consumer confidence and trust remain low. For a food manufacturer then, this means not only staying ahead of the curve of quickly changing taste preferences but also understanding its unique role in encouraging nutrition across an increasingly complex and fragmented consumer base.

And amid a tepid economy, where does the true value of CSR and sustainability reporting lie? Can these reports and the effort required to produce them extend beyond an exercise in sharing key metrics, the year’s highlights – and a few, incredibly sparse media mentions – to true learning experiences for companies to better their processes and make gains that help them and their communities become more sustainable?

The True Value of CSR Reporting

Dave_Stangis_CSFor VP of Public Affairs and Corporate Responsibility, Dave Stangis – his third report since taking the job at Campbell Soup – the true value of Campbell Soup’s reporting goes far beyond setting the right goals and reporting on the progress.

“The true potential of CSR reporting* is that while companies go through this chronological reporting effort once a year, the organization and business units are executing their strategies and working on metrics year-round. The process of reporting creates an opportunity to build a Campbell Soup Britannica or World Book to work off of and use as a record of the company’s progress,” he said in a recent interview.

“All year-long, we are collecting examples, building the narrative, monitoring our progress and continually evolving materiality assessments,” he continued. Often, great examples of progress emerge that would otherwise never rise to the spotlight in a multinational company.

“As you dig in, you find cross-functional teams working together on strategy, benchmarking, indicators, etc. There are, of course, always things to improve on but the stories and ideas that emerge from this heels dug in reporting exercise are incredibly useful in moving our company forward,” he said.

Connecting the Dots: Recognizing the True CSR Heroes

In recent weeks, CSRwire readers read from a number of top executives at Campbell Soup on their stories and contribution to the 2012 CSR report. Trish Zecca discussed the fine balance between nutrition and taste while Amanda Bauman discussed how the company is tackling hunger and obesity in its communities and Dr. Daniel Sonke gave us an in-depth account of the relationship between agriculture practices and corporate sustainability. Finally, D&I Director Kevin Carter offered his insights on how the company is prioritizing intercultural teams, moving diversity beyond compliance, and tentatively dipping its toes in social media.

For Stangis, these are the true heroes.

“These are the people who are behind the images and stories in the report. They are invested in the business Campbell_Soup_Volunteersand their work and there is a discernible amount of pride and work ethic that goes along with that,” he said.

“For our CSR Communications Manager Niki Kelley – creating this report is her life for six months and I’ve told her, she’s the one who knows more about the entire company than anyone else in the company.”

5 Questions for Campbell Soup’s VP for CSR

What is Stangis most proud of in the latest CSR report?  “It’s the nuances that a lay reader won’t realize but that are critical to the progress we are making,” he said. To explain further, we decided to play five questions:

1. Whose Interested:

“We continue to evolve our understanding of our various audiences [for the CSR report]. We want to connect with our employees on the frontline as well as in the C-suite. We need to impact our neighbors and make the content relevant to our customers and consumers. Most readers are looking for quick snapshots and I want to validate, reinforce and build trust and credibility in that short timeframe.”

2. What’s New:

“We’ve really worked hard on strengthening the wellness and nutrition metrics from a product perspective…we’re not driving a health ultimatum, but we are offering more healthy choices for consumers. Readers that pay closer attention will notice a growing sophistication in our strategies and metrics across the board. This report also includes the first full description of our Healthy Communities Initiative that we’ve launched in Camden, NJ.”

3. What’s Often Hidden:

“We work hard to make sure nothing gets lost in the details, but there is a ton of content that most readers will miss on a casual glance. The CEO Letter can give the readers a sense of how Denise Morrison thinks and interacts with the CSR and sustainability strategy.”

“We’re bridging from an employee engagement (only) mindset to a performance culture that leverages engagement to drive better business results. This isn’t something that is immediately obvious to external readers but it’s a priority for us.”

4. What’s Measured Gets Managed:

“Last year we discussed our community programs but this year the report really talks about these in a strategic and measurable manner. We continue to advance our metric set from product conception to societal impact. We’ve mapped our production sites with the WBCSD Global Water Tool and as we’ve brought our Community and Foundation functions into tighter alignment with our CSR and Sustainability strategies, we are shifting from measuring activity to measuring outcomes.”

5. Uncharted Territory: 

“The big news this year from a sustainability perspective is our traction on renewables. We’ve had smaller efforts in the past but in 2011 we went from dipping our toes in the water to flipping the switch on one of the largest solar installations in the country. This represents a cultural shift for the company. Large scale renewable projects just weren’t in our solution set and now we are evaluating new renewable opportunities across our plant network that reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and save money.”

Solar_Panels_at_Campbell_SoupFor Campbell Soup, a global footprint means a holistic vision of sustainability that encompasses its products, employees, communities and supply chain.

And for Stangis, publishing an annual report is not only a testament to his team’s efforts but also a way to measure what’s not working. Having led CSR at Intel before joining Campbell Soup, Stangis is a veteran in the world of CSR reporting, and has seen firsthand the evolution of the sector.

“What comprehensive reporting does today is set up a process that continues to position the company in the long-term. This wasn’t the case when we started reporting. Now we’re anticipating issues and breaking down communication silos that are inherent in the company,” he explained.

Challenges Ahead: More Data, Clarity of Purpose

Any regrets? “We need to keep pushing ourselves for better data every year, especially for our international footprint. It’s only when you dig in that you realize how much better a fully integrated measurement and reporting system would be,” Stangis confessed.

The journey – as for most companies taking on the responsibility and challenge of reporting on their corporate social responsibility and sustainability efforts – is far from over.

And as a seasoned sustainability executive, Stangis understands the daunting task that lies ahead for Campbell Soup in a crowded market, evolving taste preferences and the continuous challenge of consumer education.

“We still have to plug people into what we are doing, the reason why we are doing it [and make it make sense],” he said, noting that it isn’t just the external stakeholders that need the dots to be continually connected for them.

“We have to do a better job at communicating the strategic intent and shareowner value delivered by a comprehensive CSR program.  Our internal teams, our C-suite – it’s our job to help them understand  the story across the board.”

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary section Talkback on May 24, 2012

Missing Voices: Green Business Leaders Discuss Representation at Rio+20

07 Monday Jul 2014

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Co-written with Martha Shaw 

Nearly 100 sustainable business leaders crowded onto the 10th floor of the UN Church Center in New York City on
May 1st to join a conversation with Chantal Line Carpentier, Sustainable Development Officer and Major Groups Program Coordinator of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and other UN representatives.

The topic: To hear from the “missing voices” of over 200,000 entrepreneurs from organizations including the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC), Social Venture Network, Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE), B Lab, CSRwire, Green America and ‘buy local’ green business networks.

The meeting was hosted by The Temple of Understanding, and organized by Martha Shaw, to explore ways that founders of socially and environmentally responsible ‘triple bottom line” businesses might bring their voices to Rio+20, and beyond.

“We Must Raise Our Voice Now”

David_Lavine_Missing_VoicesASBC’s David Levine started the conversation by stressing that the gathered entrepreneurs are conscious of their global counterparts who are also running businesses that presuppose green practices and help serve social needs while making money.

“Whether they are social enterprises, micro enterprises, women’s groups or development groups, they all carry the same sensibilities of a triple bottom line. They are finding a balance between profits, social and environmental goals,” he said. “This voice is missing in our country today because a monolithic voice led by multinationals dominates all dialogues.”

Levine ended by emphasizing that this is the opportunity for the entrepreneurs to market their leadership and present their pioneering work on a global stage as a way of creating shared value. “This voice is new and we must raise it,” he ended.

“Define Sustainable and Green Business”

Green Maps SystemGreen Map System‘s Wendy Brawer picked up where Levine left by adding that until we define what “sustainable business” means, creating this coherent voice will be hard.

Jumping into the dialogue, CSRwire CEO Joe Sibilia made it clear that “any business that integrates the human condition into its operations, whether you call it humanity or spirituality, is sustainable. These entrepreneurs are using business to create a values-driven and sustainable world,” he said. “Financial gains cannot be the only objective. It’s that simple.”

Eco-preneurs at Rio+20

Temple of Understanding’s Grove Harris interjected by adding that it is “practices like the ones Joe is highlighting that need to be voiced at Rio+20. It is important to bring these issues to the table by showing business practices that manifest in social value.” She also added that traditionally, non-governmental organizations have not proven sophisticated enough to support our future and voices. “We need business to be there.”

Joe_Sibilia_Missing_VoicesMore examples of mission-driven business enterprises solving many social and environmental problems, including the eradication of poverty, were offered, as was a comparison to the restraints of multinational corporations who are bound by law to act in the best interest of stockholder profits.

Though Sibilia, Harris, Brawer and B Lab’s Peter Strugatz offered several examples of supply chain relationships among green businesses and corporations going green, they also pointed out that many other models exist for ways the world can do business outside the restrictions of a corporation.

United Nations: Collaborate & Lead The Conversation

After hearing everyone out, Chantal Line Carpentier, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Officer and Major Groups Program Coordinator, took the floor to urge the attendees to work with the UN in representing their issues at Rio+20.

She also emphasized clarifying ambiguous language about sustainability and suggested that the sector come to an agreement on what “private public partnerships mean” and “how you can help influence policy and regulatory frameworks.”

“Consider this as a strong call for leadership. There is a lot of talk about business doing more but how? Show us, offer best practices, define CSR, and align practices with the United Nations Global Compact guidelines,” she said.

Carpentier also recommended that the entrepreneurs make an effort to demystify the language around lifecycles, supply chain analysis and sustainability.

Finally, Tess Mateo, an advisor to the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), pointed out that the Women, and Indigenous People Major Groups would be good allies and recommended that we remain cognizant of working together with the other enterprises in promoting our voice on the global stage.

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary sectionTalkback on May 2, 2012.

Bob Willard’s Business Case for Sustainability: A Better Way to Make a Bigger Profit

03 Thursday Jul 2014

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The constant struggle between business’ social and environmental responsibility and investor demands is already an old tale. “The field has stretched and magnified so quickly that even though I have only been doing this work for three years, it feels like 10,” confessed a fellow attendee at a recent conference.

It’s true. Increasingly, more of us – those of us who eat, drink, sleep and dream CSR and sustainability – succumb to the comfort of believing that the sector is steadily progressing toward safer, clearer, more transparent practices.

But are we?

With Wall Street continuing to demand quarterly results, stringent returns on investments and short payback periods, are we really supporting sustainability in its truest sense? The examples, after all, are endless: Apple’s factory standards, Goldman Sachs’ unethical business practices, Chevron’s continued governance malpractices as reported by the Amazon Defense Coalition, and a new report that calls Wal-Mart’s sustainability championship as mere greenwashing.

As the CECP’s Margaret Coady remarked recently on CSRwire Talkback, how can sustainability executives tie consumer expectations and investor pressure into cohesive strings of action? Are the two sides completely incompatible?

Bob_Willard_The_Sustainability_AdvantageBob Willard, author of The Sustainability Advantage – and the updated The New Sustainability Advantage – recently held a well-attended webinar organized by the Toronto Speaker Sustainability Series [TSSS] on objections handling for sustainability executives. Some of his lessons – which you will soon be able to download as a useful reference guide, courtesy TSSS – focus on identifying mind shifts, behavioral change, graciousness and emphasizing education.

Now, Willard is traveling to New York to present at the Ethical Sourcing Forum on March 29 – 30, 2012 on connecting these lamentations with the business case for sustainability. A former IBMer, Willard’s work is renowned for its articulate arguments and concrete examples. His book is a firestorm of information and data. Here’s what the founder of Interface, the late Ray Anderson, said:

Bob Willard has performed a service of inestimable value: quantifying the business case for sustainability. By focusing at the level of the firm, Willard has bypassed the overriding but somewhat esoteric question, “How long can the rape of Earth by the modern industrial system go on before ecological collapse?”

The answer to this big question lies in the cumulative effect of millions of firms, large and small, waking up to the untapped profit potential that’s all around them. Bob Willard has shown how to capture that potential in real profits. Consequently, the answer to the big question is: Let the rape stop now; there’s a better way to make a bigger profit. Read this book to learn how.

Willard believes that until recently, there has been little evidence expressed in business language to show executives actual benefits from sustainability strategies. But that sustainability strategies can drive new bottom-line opportunities, avoid impending risks, and be a catalyst for business innovation, even in an economic recession.

While there are speakers aplenty who can talk about sustainability today in logically constructed sentences, there are few who have decades of experience to back up their arguments and can not only envision sustainable capitalism but show us how to get there. Willard falls in the latter category. So, if you are in the New York City area, join the CSRwire team at the Ethical Sourcing Forum to learn and engage with the leader himself.

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary sectionTalkback on March 16, 2012.

Empowering Women Through Education: Talbots and BSR’s HERproject

03 Thursday Jul 2014

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It is often said that an empowered woman can lead to happy families, successful team projects, and a flourishing economy.

BSR_HERproject_1With women increasingly accounting for a higher proportion of our workforce — and supply chain — empowering them with healthy alternatives, training and access to medical information is critical. BSR’s HERproject has a similar objective in mind. The project, built around private-public partnerships, believes that businesses that invest in educating and empowering women in the workplace enjoy higher efficiencies, lower absenteeism and turnover rates, and higher return on investments.

In fact, “BSR’s HERproject has demonstrated the power of providing women’s reproductive health education in the workplace to transform individual lives, workplaces, and communities,” says Marcus Chung, Director of Corporate Responsibility at Talbots, a women’s apparel, shoes and accessories retailer.

Chung, in partnership with BSR’s Racheal Yeager, will lead a session at the upcoming Ethical Sourcing Forum in New York on some of the results, challenges and lessons learned from collaborating closely on implementing HERproject in Talbots’ contract factories.

Public-Private Partnerships to Drive Women Empowerment

Talbots has partnered with BSR since 2010 on creating, investing in and implementing curriculum to educate female garment workers around the world. What makes partnerships like these tougher to implement – but much more critical to push for – is that these workers are not Talbots employees – and the factories are not owned by Talbots either.

Return on Investment: BSR's HERproject“HERproject emphasizes partnering with local NGOs to deliver training to high potential workers, who in turn become internal trainers. We focus on health and nutrition issues which ultimately lead to increased confidence and competency among the workforce,” he says.

Chung admitted that besides higher rates of productivity, participation and loyalty, these exercises also help discern high potential candidates for leadership opportunities.

So far Talbots has launched the project in its factories in China, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Vietnam.

An Educated & Healthy Employee

There are some side benefits too, he agrees. “At one factory in Vietnam, management told me that other factories’ workers were approaching them to ask how they could join the factory to take advantage of the educational and training opportunities,” he says.

They have since seen higher rates of applications pour in.

For Talbots – a women-centric brand – this initiative has been crucial in driving social impact and demonstrating worker responsibility. But, according to Chung, it is much more than that. “HERproject also made it very easy for us to scale and take our philanthropic platform across our factories in a very real way,” he says.

“Of course it also helps with vendor dialogues: Our conversations with our suppliers and vendors used to be restricted to garment costing and quality. Now we have much more dynamic conversations.”

For retailers and manufacturers, HERproject, he says, offers a practical way of working with nonprofit partners and internal champions to bridge the complex cultural and economic divides that surround a global company’s supply chain.

Statistics have shown that a woman shunned is a dangerous woman. While an educated and empowered woman invests in the future and drives change for her family, herself, and her employer. Who wouldn’t want such a powerful employee on your side?

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary sectionTalkback on March 1, 2011.

PwC Canada Releases 3rd Annual CSR Report: Staying the Course

03 Thursday Jul 2014

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PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Canada released their third annual corporate responsibility report today. It’s nothing groundbreaking. But nor is it pages and pages of images and quotes from top leadership interspersed with hard-to-evaluate statistics.PwC_CR_Report_2011

In true PwC fashion, the report details commitments and achievements in 2011 only to quickly move on to highlighting challenges and the firm’s key plans for 2012 followed by an affirmation of the firm’s social and environmental strategy.

The pressure on firms big and small to report on their non-financial activities is significant. With the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) officially launching in North America last year, CSR and sustainability reports are set to multiply in coming years. What always challenges me are the motivations behind the reporting: Is it simply peer pressure or do firms learn something from the process? Moreover, is the act of reporting an exercise in external communication or more of an introspective activity to improve processes and strategies?

I caught up with James Temple, PwC Canada’s Director of Corporate Responsibility for some insights:

What was the most important lesson learned from the often stressful exercise of putting this report together?

Every time we work on our Corporate Responsibility Report, we’re reminded that this is an evolving journey and one that requires us to be open to adapting to changing ideas, personalities and approaches to developing the most transparent narrative possible.

When you involve such a large number of stakeholders in such a rigorous process, all of whom are passionate about their work and the cause, it can prove to be a balancing act that requires a balance of leadership, managing expectations, and the ability to communicate with empathy and effectiveness.

Most importantly, the process has helped us finesse a blended approach that respects standard reporting frameworks and our unique firm culture and structure to develop a narrative that is representative of the success (and the challenges) we face along the way.”

The report mentions plans for a new three-year strategic plan to guide the next phase of PwC Canada’s CSR program. Any insights you can provide into that?

Over the next few months, we will be completing our environmental scan and a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis to ensure that we are being thoughtful about our dynamic marketplace conditions along with gaining valuable input from our Global Network of Firms.

Philanthropy plays a crucial role in targeting social and environmental challenges through nonprofit partnerships but it’s often the strategy behind these donations that helps make them effective. Any insights on what works well for PwC’s B2B industry?

From the 2011 CR Report: “In 2011, PwC contributed a total of $2,533,000 in charitable donations and sponsorships to community organizations across Canada.”

At PwC Canada, we have adopted a strategy that focuses on educating employees and other stakeholders about the most effective ways to give back to their communities.

We encourage people to utilize our PwC Canada Volunteer Continuum that spells out how a person or organization can deepen their engagement with the charitable sector while developing their skills and experiences.

This could include the ways people use their skills to volunteer, how they look at sharing their community experiences, calling on their business networks for support, or how to allocate their personal or organizational resources in the most effective way possible.  Our approach is rooted in the regular feedback we receive from the not-for-profit sector and considers impact (not just dollars and cents).

What are some points of achievements from the report that you feel especially proud of?

In the fall of 2010, PwC hosted a series of roundtable discussions with representatives from the not-for-profit sector, public and private foundations and major corporations called the Capacity Building Roundtable Project.

The purpose of the project was to raise awareness about how corporate funders could better allocate their resources to help the not-for-profit sector become more sustainable and deliver lasting results within their communities.

The report concluded with a step-by-step process that addressed critical needs identified by the community that could have the most immediate and scalable impacts.

One of the critical findings was the need to encourage other corporations to provide not-for-profits support for core operational expenditures, and ensure they build time for grant recipients to reflect, take risks and test new innovations into grant proposals.

How do you define success in CSR reporting? Metrics? Media mentions? Or a set of internal goals?

We encourage our employees and other stakeholders to integrate a CR mind-set into their day-to-day business operations.  We want to inspire and empower people to look for ways to embed good CR practices into their decision-making frameworks.

A great example of how we’ve engaged our stakeholders in a CR dialogue was through the Citizen’s Reference Panel. PwC Canada brought together people from across Ontario to discuss their views on how to build a more sustainable and cost-effective healthcare system across the province.   We published a piece of thought leadership outlining the results, and it’s something that will help our business, the public and governments have better insights into the development of new healthcare strategies.

Our firm can play in helping to shape the debate on sustainability issues impacting businesses today.

Success means knowing you’ve done everything you can to help develop the CR conversation.

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary sectionTalkback on February 27, 2012..

Sustainability & Your Supply Chain: Risks, Metrics & Opportunities

03 Thursday Jul 2014

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What combination of education, training and technical solutions does it take to compel change through your organization as well as your supply chain?

It is a question that continues to dog manufacturers and retailers big and small as supply chains grow complex and social and environmental challenges multiply. What role should companies play in educating – and engaging – their suppliers? What’s ethical? With Sustainability Reporting becoming a mark of competitive advantage, how can organizations best track their performance?

The upcoming Ethical Sourcing Forum will kickoff its two-day conference next month by putting Coca-Cola, Intel, Bic, the International Trade Centre (ITC) and Intertek on the hot seat to try to answer some of these complex questions.

Ethical_Sourcing_Forum

The panel, led by me, will not only offer best practices but also discuss specific tools that the companies have either developed or collaborated with their nonprofit partners on, to track and examine sustainability progress with their suppliers.

For a preview of what promises to be a compelling session of benchmarking and teasing apart a sensitive topic, I turned to Mathieu Lamolle, a market analyst with the ITC for some insights.

An Ethical Supply Chain

The ITC, a United Nations agency for trade related technical assistance, has one goal: To help businesses become more competitive in global markets, speeding economic development and contributing to sustainable development.

Part of this goal, Mathieu told me, is a “Standards Map web tool for organizations to analyze, map and compare themselves according to an array of 75+ sustainability standards in supply chains.”

“We also want to enable any organization that has its own code of conduct and assessment protocol to benchmark what they are doing against others. They can benchmark their own corporate practices and see how they measure up against other companies and sustainability standards.”

Ranging from small companies, traders and suppliers to retailers, importers and others, this new tool will encourage data sharing for the purpose of internal benchmarking with the ultimate goal being an ethical and efficient supply chain.

While it remains strictly a business-to-business tool for now, Mathieu emphasized that there are plans to eventually roll it out for general consumption and public benchmarking as well.

Benchmarking Sustainability Progress

StandardsWhat’s especially promising about ITC’s new tool is its abject emphasis on sharing for the purpose of benchmarking. The organization’s role as a UN neutral intermediary between public-private partnerships further helps break through the risk-averse behavior that often delays well-meaning initiatives within organizations.

Although, so far the tool has found resonance with participants for the primary purpose of internal tracking and public sharing of information on the Standards Map web tool, Mathieu admitted that the true value of the tool “is going to unfold when we can spread the news globally” and allow people to compare the true progress being made by participating organizations on educating and training their supply chains. “The more people use it the better it is,” he said.

The impact of such a global tool can prove to be significant in an industry that is evolving and constantly juggling multifold standards and regulations. Want to learn more about the Standards Map? Wondering how you can use the tool to track your organization’s sustainability progress?

Join us at the Ethical Sourcing Forum for a lively discussion that will focus not only on available tools, but also how to best manage metrics, challenges of a global supply chain and whether any of the present panelists’ tools can be customized to work in your industry.

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary sectionTalkback on February 22, 2012.

Dow Chemical: Extracting Business Value out of Sustainability

03 Thursday Jul 2014

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After more than a decade of negotiations, there’s news today that Dow Chemical has agreed to clean up 1,400 residential properties in Midland, Mich.

The root cause: A Dow Chemical plant located in Midland, also home to its headquarters, responsible for polluting the area with dioxin for a better part of the late 1990s.

Dow Chemical has had a long history of pioneering research and innovation in sustainability, from collaborating with nonprofits on driving solutions — it was named one of the most sustainable companies in Brazil in 2011 — to industry-wide partnerships on reducing their products’ environmental footprint.

But no number of accolades or ratings can hide the immense environmental and social footprint of the company’s operations, domestically or internationally. Or as many would opine, help erase a history of soil, air and water contamination.

So, how does the chemicals giant prioritize sustainability to drive its long term business plan? And how are these complex social and environmental challenges defining this strategy? Neil Hawkins, Dow Chemical’s VP for Sustainability & EH&S offers some insights:

Top Sustainability Challenges of 2011:

1. Accounting for the value of nature

We’re entering a new phase of integrating the value of nature into the corporate balance sheet through a breakthrough 5-year collaboration with The Nature Conservancy. This partnership will determine the value of ecosystems to Dow’s operations.

Scientists from both organizations are developing tools and testing models together that we will eventually share with other companies and the science community. In early 2012, we will issue a public progress report on the collaboration, as well as a broader update on Dow conservation projects around the globe.

2. Market adaptation to sustainable solutions and innovation

There is a significant divide between environmental and social issues, and the appetite of markets to adapt, and sometimes pay, for new solutions that address these issues. Bringing innovation to market is a costly proposition filled with economic and political volatility, lack of clear and consistent regulation, and lack of guarantees for ROI.

Despite these headwinds, we are addressing megatrends and challenges by staying focused on our mission and values, and through unwavering investment in our innovation pipeline.

Aspirations for 2012: Where does CSR / Sustainability fit?

In 2010, Dow passed the midpoint of its second set of 10-year sustainability goals – the 2015 Sustainability Goals.

In 2012, we will work on our next set of goals, building on the momentum of the past 20 years, and find ways to drive Dow’s science and people into unprecedented areas of leadership, collaboration, innovation and change.

These goals serve as a strategic guide for leveraging business to address global challenges from accelerating urbanization, rapid population growth and increasing demands on natural resources. Prioritizing the safety and wellbeing of Dow people will also always be at the core of how we measure success.

With sustainability at the root of our mission, vision, and values, sustainability and CSR don’t just “fit” in – they drive decision-making, investment choices, hiring practices, and employee engagement at Dow.

Sustainability, in particular the pursuit of more sustainable chemistry, also gives our innovation engine a clear target.

Predictions: Extracting Business Value from Sustainability

Companies will become more proficient at extracting business value from sustainability commitments and practices

The chemical industry, among others, will continue to move beyond sustainability as an obligation driven by outside forces, toward uncovering tangible economic value that drives both top and bottom line growth.

The economic value of sustainable development can and should influence all decision-making – including capital investments, recruiting, marketing, product design, R&D and service functions. Companies will need to become savvy life cycle practitioners, innovators and collaborators.

By looking externally at unique partnerships, and internally at deeply integrated sustainability through employee engagement and accountability, companies will unlock new areas for growth by harnessing the value of sustainability.

The critical role chemistry plays in solving world challenges will continue to move to center stage.

Our world is facing pressing challenges including water supplies, energy sources and affordable housing. Mitigating the impacts of these challenges and managing our natural resources worldwide requires the manufacturing industry, and in particular, the chemical industry, to play an enabling role by discovering and implementing new technologies.

Chemistry is fundamental to our lives. It enables more than 96 percent of all manufactured products.

As a company, we’re committed to driving innovative solutions through chemistry, such as the POWERHOUSE Solar Shingle, which transforms a typical house into a dynamic power generator.

Then there are efforts such as the United Nations’ 2011 International Year of Chemistry that put the power of chemistry on a global stage.

But more attention is needed to accelerate science-based solutions, increase collaboration, and attract new generations into rewarding STEM careers – where the problems of today and tomorrow will ultimately be solved.

Originally written for and published on CSRwire’s Commentary sectionTalkback on February 17, 2012.