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Responsible Business Masterclass for CSR professionals and members of CSR committees (also available bespoke and in-house)
Taking the Lead – engaging, embedding and integrating CSR in your organisation
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
We all know that responsible business – corporate social responsibility (CSR) – is now firmly on the agenda. Why? Because the ethical concerns and the commercial imperatives are lining up together. Today, it’s as big an issue for business leaders as it is for environmental lobbyists. Already we can see attitudes towards corporate and social responsibility directly affecting business value as shareholders examine standards of corporate governance more closely.
The ‘right thing to do’ is rapidly emerging as the ‘best way to do business’.
So the question is no longer should we take CSR seriously? It’s how do we take CSR seriously? And as the in-house CSR function develops as a profession, so it is increasingly being asked to lead, co-ordinate and engage the whole organisation in CSR.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
This masterclass is designed for in-house CSR practitioners trying to influence and engage with Senior and Non-executive Directors, CSR Committees, Company Secretaries, shareholders, employees, supply chains and other stakeholders. Our aim is to help you:
- Further develop the skills and the knowledge you need to truly take the lead on CSR and embed the principles and practices within your organisation.
- Develop and use the concept of personal social responsibility.
- Review and consider the authenticity and integrity of the CSR programmes in your organisation.
- Identify any areas for innovation and business transformation from the CSR agenda.
This is a full day, or two day, masterclass, starting at 9.30 am and running until 4 pm and is limited to a maximum of 12 delegates.
DEFINITIONS AND ISSUES
The debate continues over definitions – ‘corporate social responsibility’; ‘corporate responsibility’; ‘sustainable development’; ‘responsible business’. So what do we really mean in principle and what, in practice, are the key issues?
In principle
- An ability to recognise that a company’s activities have a wide impact on society; and those developments in society, in turn, impact on the company’s ability to pursue its business successfully
- Active management of the economic, social, environmental and human rights impact of activities both locally and across the world, generating benefits for its own operations and reputation as well as for the communities in which it operates
In practice
In practical terms, the key issues for CSR professionals include:
- How do we embed CSR in our business?
- How do we link it to business strategy?
- How do we engage our board and senior management?
- How do we engage and enthuse employees?
- How do we measure our progress; what are reasonable, realistic yet meaningful targets?
- How do we move beyond the aspirations of carbon neutral, climate change to practical programmes that link into the business?
- How do we ensure our supply chain shares our values?
HOW DO WE ADDRESS THE ISSUES?
Determine your own priorities
We can provide the framework, coaching from tutors, advice on critical issues from recognised experts, and opportunities to interact and network as you share experiences. But we want you to set the agenda, which you can do through a pre-session telephone call with one of our in-house team.
The final programme is set from the participants’ issues identified during the pre-session interview. Typically this might include:
- Objective-setting for the day
- A presentation putting CSR as a concept and the CSR issues identified from the group into context
- Practical case work using case studies that are based on either the participants’ companies or industry sector, covering for example:
- Engagement internally.
- External engagement and impact assessment (Stakeholders).
- Embedding.
- Integrating with business objectives and strategy.
- Identifying areas for innovation.
- Aligning PSR and CSR.
- Setting up – or making more effective - board level CSR committees.
- A presentation and debate on where CSR might go in the future.
- Individual problem sharing and working through possible options and solutions with a focus on practical solutions.
- Review of practical tools and techniques, for example:
- Development of a SWOT diagram or PEST analysis for your organization, setting out what the ways forward might be, the hindrances, benefits etc..
- Development of some CSR indicators which you could apply to your organization which would show the progress you are making.
- Development. by each participant, of a personal action plan .
- Commitment, close, review and evaluation against the objectives.
BESPOKE OPTIONS
The masterclass has been set up to enable you to participate, as an individual, in a broadly based event and benefit from the interaction you will enjoy with people from other organisations. However there are other options available. If your organisation has a dedicated CSR Committee, we can run a specific masterclass or series of masterclasses for all its members. The masterclasses would cover whatever issues you consider to be critical to your business. But you may wish to consider any or all of the following business themes:
- Climate change
- Evaluating your energy portfolio
- Taking your organisation carbon neutral
- Capturing value
- Engaging employees as ambassadors
- Risk readiness
- Internal communications
- Personal social responsibility and transparent leadership
In addition, specific topic experts can attend your masterclass depending on the business critical issues included on your agenda.
WHO WILL BE RUNNING THE SESSION?
Your masterclass will be facilitated by:
- Adrian Henriques: Professor of Accountability and CSR at Middlesex University Business School; author and opinion former
- George Frynas: Professor of CSR and Strategic Management at Middlesex University Business School
- Jane Fiona Cumming: Strategic advisor and corporate planner in CSR. Her particular area of expertise involves the identification of emerging risk factors and the development of stakeholder engagement and communication programmes
Contact
For more information, please contact Jane Fiona Cumming on +44 (0)20 8840 4450 or email janefionac@article13.com.
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