Starting the Journey toward Corporate Social Responsibility
By Cori Cunningham
Leader Communication
The growing emergence of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in
the marketplace raises the question: What does it take to get there?
How do companies make the leap from deciding to embrace the values
of CSR to creating a culture around it?
To hear Carly Fiorina and other business leaders describe the process,
it takes leadership that communicates a clear collective vision
and inspires employees to look beyond their self-interest for the
greater good. Fiorina, Chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard, was
keynote speaker at the 2003 Business for Social Responsibility Annual
Conference in Los Angeles. While outlining the main points of HP's
extensive social responsibility programs, she offered words of encouragement
to companies who worry that it may take years to reach that point
and wonder if it's worth it:
"I think one thing I would say to you is not to worry too much
about having the perfect strategy or answering every question of
your critics. If you believe that the sustainability of your company
is in play, if you believe that you can make a difference in a way
that is meaningful to your customers, and your partners, and your
shareowners, and your employees, just start the journey."
Creating a Culture of Social Responsibility
One company's experience of creating a culture of social responsibility
was related by Paul Dolan, President of Fetzer Vineyards, who in
the mid-80's chose to veer from standard operating winemaking procedures
and remake his company in the vision of sustainability. There is
much to be said about Fetzer Vineyard's remarkable journey to becoming
an environmentally conscious grower, producer and marketer of wines
(readers can find the full story in Dolan's recently released book
"True to Our Roots: Fermenting a Business Revolution").
One point that stands out is how Dolan credits the successful transformation
of the company in part to the ability of Fetzer to "create
a context that inspired people to respond. . . to the challenge
of building a sustainable business."
According to Dolan, "With the right culture, sustainability
shifted from a concept of concerted action; it was woven into the
fabric of the company, not dictated from above." Dolan attributes
the creation of this culture to "providing an environment where
contribution is important," which as a result, inspires employees.
One example of employee activities growing out of this company culture
is a culinary program for kids that a Fetzer chef and gardeners
initiated and implemented.
Dolan also stresses the need to "start generating the conversation
and make it fun" so that employees feel a part of the process,
not that the process is forced upon them. He relayed how his company
communicated its new, catchy mission of E3—economics, equity
and environment—to employees in a playful way to which they
could all relate.
Judith Samuelson, executive director of the Business and Society
Program at the Aspen Institute, emphasized the importance of having
buy-in at the top. Samuelson shared a key finding from the Ford
Foundation study, "It really matters who is in the executive
seat," as anyone who has tried to push a new concept through
at his or her company knows. Without senior management support,
little happens.
Bottom Up and Top Down
The Business and Society Program at the Aspen Institute, which is
designed to help business executives integrate financial success
and social and environmental progress, addresses that reality. This
program takes two distinct approaches to leadership cultivation
-- bottom up and top down.
The former has to do with equipping tomorrow's leaders with the
skills necessary to run CSR-friendly businesses. Its signature program,
"Beyond Gray Pinstripes," provides information on innovative
MBA programs and faculty that are incorporating environmental and
social impact ideals into their curriculum. The latter, with an
eye on the present, focuses on providing support to current top
executives, notably during Business Leaders Dialogues where leaders
come together to discuss the role and purpose of the corporation
in society.
By virtue of their presence at the conference, it was clear that
most, if not all, attenders had the support of senior management
or were senior managers themselves. Yet, what about those individuals
whose leadership does not yet support or embrace social responsibility?
What recourse do they have?
Paul Dolan recommends that employees become involved on a small
scale (such as participating in a walk) and do so in the name of
the company with the aim of attracting the attention and interest
of management. He maintains that it is essential to "generate
conversations about social involvement and sustainability and pull
[senior management] in."
Carly Fiorina's words of encouragement for those faced with the
huge task of integrating social responsibility into a business when
little to no framework exists are simple: "Just start the journey.
Don't wait for perfection. Don't wait until all the pieces are together.
Don't worry that your company doesn't have every single policy or
written value statements. Just start the journey, and keep going.
"We have been at this for more than six decades, and we still
have a lot to learn. But, of course, the greatest opportunity missed
is the one that is never tried in the first place."
Reprinted with permission of onPhilanthropy (www.onphilanthropy.com)
Copyright (c) 2004 Changing Our World Inc.
Cori Cunningham is a Director in the Philanthropy Division
of Changing Our World Inc., a national philanthropic and fundraising
services firm, combining innovation with sound fundamentals.
You may contact the author at: ccunningham@changingourworld.com
Discuss this topic with other IABC members at: www.iabc.com/memberspeak.
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