450 Posts Found

Benchmarking is a frequently used buzzword that merely glamorises a simple idea. It means comparing the performance of products, activities, processes or organisations (‘systems’) against a selected standard: the benchmark. Experience suggests that benchmaking is often misused, not through a deliberate attempt to mislead but as a result of not understanding the data involved.

Content: Article | Authors: Antonio Mazzariello, Charles-Peter Nai, Jürg Huber, Rudolf Schwob | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subjects: Best Practices, Social Responsibility (ESG)

Ever provocative, Peter Drucker turns his attention to the “bigger” picture of social structure and the care of community amongst the pluralistic and autonomous private, public, and social sector organizations.

Content: Article | Author: Peter F. Drucker | Source: Leader to Leader | Subjects: Miscellaneous, Social Responsibility (ESG)

Companies that have embarked on sustainable development initiatives recognize that measuring progress is critical to success. Companies are exploring not only why and how to reach sustainable development goals, but also how to calibrate how well they are doing. The challenge is that, for many facets of sustainable development, there is no agreed-upon context or consensus for measurement. When a company sets its sights on … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Authors: Eric Turner, Jonathan Shopley, Virginia Morris | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

The field of social-purpose investing is growing and becoming more sophisticated. Should investors expect lower returns to benefit society? A new Harvard Business School study examines the question.

Content: Article | Author: Manda Salls | Source: Harvard Business School (HBS) Working Knowledge | Subjects: Finance, Social Responsibility (ESG) | Industry: Investing

CSRwire has launched the CSR Directory: Resources for Promoting Global Business Principles and Best Practices, a directory of worldwide organizations working on all aspects of corporate social responsibility.

The interactive directory provides contact information for more than 700 organizations, with listings of the senior leaders and websites for each organization. Searchable by organization and key contact, the directory provides cross-referenced entries in 25 categories and … [ Read more ]

Content: Online Resource | Source: CSRwire | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

For companies that want to make sustainable development a reality, building organizational learning capabilities can be invaluable. Organizational learning has proven very effective in bringing about lasting change and fundamental innovation. In fact, every company interested in capturing growth through innovation and change has needed to develop critical organizational learning capabilities to meet its goals.

When these approaches take hold in an arena such as sustainable … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Authors: Bryan Smith, Joel Yanowitz | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subjects: Organizational Behavior, Social Responsibility (ESG)

MNCs face the most difficult dilemmas because they operate in countries with widely diverging socio-economic and environmental conditions. The lesson from the last decade or so is that regulation and self-regulation are both needed.

Content: Article | Author: Ans Kolk | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

The objective of this article is twofold. The first part will look at the new field of sustainable investment activity, and examine how it works. The second part provides more detailed insights into what is expected from companies, focusing particularly on the growing opportunities for a fruitful dialogue. Much of the argument is based on the experience of the Triodos Meerwaarde Fund, part of the … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Céline Louche | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

Industry is showing unprecedented interest in the business potential of sustainable development, an approach to developing long-term prosperity by integrating strategies for economic success, environmental quality, and social equity. In a recent Arthur D. Little survey on business and sustainable development/ for example, 95 percent of companies responding viewed sustainable development as genuinely important, and 83 percent saw business value in implementing sustainable initiatives. At … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Authors: Gilbert Hedstrom, Peter Stroh, Stephen Poltorzycki | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

Harvard Business School professor Lynn Sharp Paine had been studying corporate malfeasance long before the Enron debacle. In this book she attempts to introduce readers to an “emerging new standard of corporate performance one that encompasses both moral and financial dimensions.” Based on her researching, teaching and consulting experiences over the past 20 years, Paine has amassed an in-depth understanding of corporate values. She uses … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: Lynn Sharp Paine | Subjects: Ethics, Social Responsibility (ESG)

While the Balanced Scorecard is widely discussed in the business world, there is little empirical evidence of its usefulness. The answer to this question is key for those who want to explore the integration of environmental and social actions using the Balanced Scorecard. To contribute to this discussion, Francesco Zingales and Kai Hockerts look at examples from literature and practice of the Balanced … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Authors: Francesco Zingales, Kai Hockerts | Source: INSEAD Knowledge | Subjects: Management, Social Responsibility (ESG)

Michael Porter is perhaps the management ‘guru’ most listened to and respected by corporate boards and executives worldwide. But his keynote speech on the role of corporate philanthropy at The European Academy of Business in Society’s 2nd Colloquium at Copenhagen Business School in September 2003 provoked strong reactions from an audience of mainly European academics and business managers. Here Mette Morsing, associate professor and director … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Michael E. Porter | Source: European Business Forum (EBF) | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

Could Wall Street become the vanguard of environmental activism?

Content: Article | Author: William Greider | Source: GreenBiz.com | Subjects: Finance, Social Responsibility (ESG) | Industry: Investment Banking

This report provides decision-makers in business and environmental nonprofits with the practical tools required to launch or improve effective partnerships. Designed as a compendium of best practices and key learnings, this report targets practitioners who recognize the enormous potential of nonprofit-industry partnerships but need a framework for approaching structured collaboration and a compact, handy reference to aid implementation. Our objective is to outline critical success … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Source: Erb Environmental Management Institute and Green Business Network | Subjects: Nonprofit, Social Responsibility (ESG)

At an October 2002 forum, 37 senior environmental executives from 20 companies representing a diverse group of industries — including broadcasting, electric utilities, chemicals, aerospace, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications — discussed their own definitions of environmental excellence. Here’s what they had to say.

Content: Article | Author: Steve Rice | Sources: Environmental Quality Management, GreenBiz.com | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

A 2002 analysis of nearly 1,000 environmental, health, and safety initiatives spanning more than 40 countries indicates that industry should prepare for more stringent requirements for managing chemicals, addressing global warming, and preventing workplace accidents.

After screening more than 2,000 regulatory initiatives, the researchers identified 865 EH&S initiatives. A detailed analysis of these 865 initiatives against the existing regulatory framework and current industry practices revealed … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Source: GreenBiz.com | Subjects: Legal, Social Responsibility (ESG)

Socially responsible investors don’t want their money to support companies that do things they disapprove of, such as selling tobacco, alcoholic beverages or weapons. They may be willing to sacrifice some financial returns for their convictions—but how much must they give up? In one of the first studies of socially responsible investing on a risk-adjusted basis, Wharton’s Christopher C. Geczy, Robert F. Stambaugh and David … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Source: Knowledge@Wharton | Subjects: Finance, Social Responsibility (ESG) | Industry: Investing

Why your company should tally up those emissions and tell the world.

See also: What Every Business Should Know About Climate Change
Content: Article | Author: Joshua Skov | Source: GreenBiz.com | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

“Efficiency” is one of those terms everyone believes they understand but find surprisingly difficult to define…Economic efficiency is the point at which the value of the marginal product equals its price or, more generally, where the benefits from using an additional unit of resource equals the cost needed to acquire it…What of the efficiency of the two other legs of the triple bottom line, environmental … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Brad Allenby | Source: GreenBiz.com | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)

Globalization is a fact. Most people, though, still live on a regional basis. Globally operating companies who want to succeed must consider the regional preconditions that they operate under. This article shows how large corporations can set up reliable performance measures at a project level.

Content: Article | Authors: Hubertus M. Mühlhäuser, Justin Keeble, Richard Eagar | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subject: Social Responsibility (ESG)