Post on 17-Sep-2018
Corporate Social Responsibility …
Agenda
Thomas Cook Heritage
What is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Key CSR Elements
Community Relations Numbers and Trends
Developing a Strategy
Benchmarking, Management & Recognition
Benefits to Businesses
Summary
Corporate Social Responsibility…
Thomas Cook‟s Heritage…
Thomas Cook, a philanthropist, created the first package holiday out of a sense of social responsibility
He believed that everyone would become better educated through travel
Built on the principles of positive social interaction
As far back as 1841 Thomas Cook was actively engaged in charity and community relations and was
passionate about making a difference
Today, this is part of what we call „sustainability‟ – ensuring our business has a positive impact on
people and the planet – saving money and ensuring we are here for another 180 years.
Corporate Social Responsibility …
What is Corporate Social Responsibility…?
“Your business dose not exist in isolation”
Employees, customers, suppliers and the local communities are all affected by your business and what
you do”
“CSR is about understanding your business impact”
Consider how you would use this impact in a positive way……
“Be seen to be a responsible business”
Going beyond the minimum and following straightforward principles that apply to whatever size of your
business”
“Building a reputation sets you apart”
Companies often favour suppliers who demonstrate responsible policies as this can have a positive impact
on how they are perceived by customers. Customers don’t just prefer to deal with responsible companies,
but insist on it!
“Reducing resource use”
Waste and emissions management doesn’t just help the environment- its saves you money too!
“CSR can help you improve your business performance”
Looking ahead, you can cope with any new laws or restrictions. You can avoid costs such as wasted
energy or paying unnecessary waste fees. Happy employees could mean improved retention.
Corporate Social Responsibility …
Key CSR Elements:
Employees:
How you treat them…doing more than simply complying with legal requirements
Training and development are a critical aspect of good retention
Employees are better motivated and more productive.
Leverage their expertise to support local community projects.
Customers:
Ensure that any collateral is written in plain English- no hiding anything in the „small print‟
Open and honest about your products
Develop good customer relations processes ..should something go wrong
Listen to your customers.
Understanding the wider impact of your business can help you develop new products and
services.
Suppliers:
Chose your suppliers carefully. Check their employment, health & safety and environmental
practises. Your reputation can be damaged if they have poor track records.
Try to use local ones if possible….helps you support the local community and reduces energy
wasted and or carbon emissions from deliveries
Ask them if they have responsible working practise or their attitude to CSR.
Corporate Social Responsibility …
Key CSR Elements
Local Community:
A good reputation will bring local customers and increase sales
You may find it easier to recruit
A positive relationship with the local authority could make life easier for the business and in many
cases local authorities prefer to award contracts to businesses with a record for community
engagement
Support local charities (staff volunteering or in- kind support)
Sponsor a local event.
Environment:
Look at creating more recyclable products or less packaging
Source more responsibly
Buy more locally
Work with suppliers/distributors who also take steps to minimise their environmental impact.
Corporate Social Responsibility...Numbers
UK Companies
Invested
£1.4b in CSR
How do people benefit?
44% improved their
quality of life
350,000
employees
involved
How do employees
benefit?
43% develop job
related skills
2.9m working
hours
contributed by
employees
110m Beneficiaries
Source: London Benchmarking Group 2010 Annual Report
46,000
organisations
supported
Contributions as
a % of pre- tax
profits
1.41% vs.
0.82%(2009)
Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy…
Four Key Areas of Engagement…
Thomas Cook identified 4 main areas that would form the basis of its Community Relations &
Charity strategy and consists of:
Education & Industry: Given the current economic climate and Government cuts there are
number of areas and opportunities that could be developed
Employee Volunteering: Create an environment that encouragers employees to engage more
within their local communities and support activities that will benefit the area or population
Corporate Community Engagement: Company representation and involvement in the
community and business groups is a way of gathering information and influencing government and
regional enterprise
Charity & Cause Related Marketing: Given the current economic climate expectations from
charities for sponsorship and giving will increase.
Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy…
Best Practice
Education & Industry:
Employee Volunteering:
Learning about Business & Enterprise: More than12,000 students attended education centres based at Coca -
Cola factories across the UK.
Give As You Earn: Payroll Giving. Over 2,800 employees take advantage of the scheme donating over £250,000 to
charities of their choice.
Corporate Engagement:
Charity & Cause Related Marketing:
StreetGames -Young Volunteers: Investing £1m over 3 years.
Each year over 3,000 volunteers receive training to coach children in various sports such basketball, rugby
and athletics.
The project operates in over 80 locations across the UK.
CSR Strategy Best Practice…
Benchmarking , Management & Recognition…
Benchmarking: Measuring success is essential in order to determine the impact of your CSR
programme. There are a number of third party tools that can be used :
Most FTSE 250 publish Sustainability/CSR reports online
Business In The Community (BITC)
London Benchmarking Group (LBG)
Internal Reporting Mechanisms: This is a key element that will need to be put in place in order
measure performance. Look to develop your own set of Key Performance Indicators (KPI‟s).
Management “Walk the Talk”: Central to this is practicing what we preach - demonstrating to internal
and external audiences our commitment to our CSR strategy.
Management Standards: Consider working towards a recognised management standard – example
(Environmental Standard ISO14001). These can be used to publicise your ethical, environmental and
social responsibility approach
Recognition: An agreed programme across all the businesses communication channels ensuring a
continual feedback process on how your CSR activity is working. Ensure that employees, customers,
suppliers and the local community know what you are doing.
Corporate Social Responsibility…
Proven Benefits Businesses…
Risk Management: The way a company discharges its social & environmental responsibilities can
impact on its “licence to operate”
PR & Brand Reputation: People‟s direct experience of the behaviour of your business in the community
is a powerful factor on whether they feel favourably towards you
Positive Staff Impacts: Support for staff volunteering schemes in order to carry out good works in the
community. Research has proven that staff have shown improvement in:
Communication skills
Ability to help others ( coaching/mentoring)
Adaptability (be effective in different surroundings/tasks)
Influencing/negotiations (resolving conflicts/persuading others
Wining Business: More and more people want to buy from businesses they respect. CSR can be
particularly effective for targeting ethical companies, public sector and not- for- profit organisations.
Reward & Recognition: “Celebrate success !” An agreed programme of communication across all
internal publications ensuring a continual feedback process on how both your staff and community activity
is working.
Corporate Social Responsibility…
Summary “Develop a CSR Vision Based on Key Principles …”
The key principles that should be considered are:
Have clear leadership, governance and values.
Help develop employees and the future workforce to build successful
working lives.
Influence behaviour through your products & services
Benchmarking and measuring success is essential in order to determine
the impact of your CSR programme
Manage social, environmental, and economic impacts in the supply chain.
Invest in the communities in which you operate and those communities in
greatest need.
Network and work with other organisations and companies to promote
action and greater change.