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What the world needs now is another multi-tiered, comprehensive online resource for helping investors and corporate leaders track and manage sustainability, corporate social responsibility, CSR reporting, and socially responsible investing. I actually don’t know anybody who really believes this. The fact is we already have way too much information, too many sites, too many indexes and ratings – and not nearly enough useful, digestible knowledge.
And, yet, the information databases, Web portals and news aggregators continue to proliferate.
The latest entry is SustainabilityHQ™, founded by the New York-based Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. This new, subscription-based online platform is designed to track the activities and influence of “watchers” such as market players and influencers. Institute Chairman/CEO Hank Boerner said the platform is designed to “help users ‘watch the watchers’ so that both corporate and investment managers can better understand and participate in” investors’ rising expectations about the sustainability, social responsibility and corporate governance of public companies. SustainabilityHQ, formerly known as INSIGHTS-edge™, offers a free trial demo, after which time a site license fee is charged.
In her October 12, 2010 CSRwire column, contributing writer Elaine Cohen offers some good insight into the new service, which has four sections: ESG & Sustainability, U.S. Public Employee Pension Funds, Sovereign Wealth Funds, and Asset Managers.
I can’t go into detail here about other platforms that offer additional, adjacent or redundant information, but here are some you may want to look at: Social Investment Forum, SocialFunds, AccountAbility, Global Reporting Initiative, Dow Jones Sustainability Index, Carbon Disclosure Project, FTSE KLD 400 Social Index, Global Environmental Management Initiative, CSRwire, Calvert Social Index, and so on. And every one of them offers a wealth of information, usually for a membership or subscription fee.
The bottom line is socially responsible investing is big business: accounting for $2.7 trillion in professionally managed U.S. portfolios. Knowing where to invest and what to look for are major challenges; buyer beware! Socially responsible investing information is also big business. And the “buyers” – the providers and consumers of the information – are rightfully wary, confused, concerned and overwhelmed.
Maybe SustainabilityHQ will prove to be the ultimate full-service, easy-to-use solution. Or could it be just one more gas guzzler on the information superhighway? The proof will be in its own sustainability and attraction power because I’m sure “the next big thing” announcement is due out any day now. And then another. And another…
“You get what you pay for” and “there’s nothing like being there.” Those adages may be true in many cases, but here’s an exception: yesterday’s “Engage CSR 2010” virtual conference, sponsored by PR Newswire and CSRwire.
Titled “The Growth of Corporate Social Responsibility in a Socially Connected World,” the free online conference was a mix of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and social media best practices. The speaker lineup was as good as you’ll find at any premium conference: Mike Wallace of the Global Reporting Initiative; sustainability experts from Merck, Intel, Microsoft, Campbell’s Soup, BT Group and UPS; and several widely renowned, highly engaged consultants. And there were more than 1,000 attendees.
Over the course of 5½ hours, there were two keynote presentations and four panel discussions. The best moments came in many forms:
- GRI reported a sixfold increase in CSR reporting over the last 10 years. About 4,000 companies will report in 2010; 76,000 transnational companies won’t report.
- CRD Analytics presented data on the heavy correlation among corporate brand performance, financial performance and CSR performance.
- BT explained the role of an external leadership panel in its CSR program; members are encouraged to say what’s on their minds.
- Intel said social media enables the company to include “the good, the bad, but not necessarily the ugly” in its CSR communications.
- Several speakers mentioned the trends of adding CSR data to annual reports and adding financial data to CSR reports.
If you’re interested in reviewing the archived presentations, click here for free access. It will be 5½ hours very well spent. And don’t let the price fool you.
You know how international consensus standards can influence your organization and the regulations and stakeholders you deal with. Consider the impact of the ISO 9000 quality standards and the ISO 14000 environmental management standards. Next up: a proposed ISO 26000 standard on social responsibility.
The 109-page draft from the International Organization for Standardization is wide-ranging, covering organizational ethics and governance, transparency, human rights, labor practices, the environment, consumer issues and community involvement. Here, you’ll find lots of best practices and guidance, but, as the draft moves toward review and approval, and then potential adoption by organizations and countries, the stakes rise.
Included among the draft recommendations are the following stipulations:
1. An organization should, “at appropriate intervals,” report on its social responsibility performance to affected stakeholders.
2. Reporting should be “balanced,” including not omitting “relevant negative information concerning the impacts of an organization’s activities.”
3. Social responsibility reports and claims should be independently verifiable.
4. Organizations should seek ongoing dialogue with their stakeholders.
5. Organizations should develop mechanisms for resolving conflicts or disagreements with stakeholders.
As a voluntary consensus standard, it won’t be prescriptive or mandatory, but it will be influential, global and widely referenced by friends and foes alike.
