Corporate Social Responsibility & Sustainable Development

Course Overview Corporate Social Responsibility covers a broad range of distinct issue areas, ranging from labour issues to human rights to environmental concerns, and from corporate philanthropy to corporate governance to ethical business practices such as product safety and avoiding corrupt business payments. It is important to understand that institutional investors are increasingly concerned about the CSR/Sustainable Development behaviours of the companies they are prepared to invest in. Corporate behaviour that undervalues CSR considerations, even on the part of celebrated companies, may lead to corporate underperformance or, worse, disaster. Investors with $35 trillion under management, representing more than 20% of all the shares in all the stock exchanges in the world, have pledged that they will integrate CSR considerations into investment analysis and decision making. This training course deals with the range of CSR issues that have become so prominent in the recent past and as with the Corporate Governance course, helps you to make the business case for implementing CSR. In 1992, 26 multinational companies published CSR reports. In 2012, almost 7,000 of them did. The course emphasises recent developments in CSR and how to integrate CSR within your organisation’s operations. Attend this high-level 3-day course and learn: The extent to which a whole range of issues represent both sustainable business practices and the minimisation of risk: - Labour issues - Human rights issues - Environmental concerns, especially water usage and climate change - Product safety - Corrupt business practices - Marketing and advertising How to integrate CSR considerations within business operations Who Should Attend? This course has been specifically designed for the benefit of: Board Members and Executive Management involved in operational functions such as finance, corporate strategy, human resources, corporate communications and governmental affairs Senior Managers with specific responsibility for CSR or change programmes Risk Managers Purchasing Managers Company Lawyers Investors Asset Managers Methodology At each point in the course, learning is consolidated through practical case studies from various industries. Extensive use is made of representative media coverage and DVD documentary material. Active participation is encouraged to ensure understanding and reinforce concepts.
Day 1 Corporate Social Responsibility The Broad Dimensions of Corporate Social Responsibility Labour issues Human rights issues Environmental concerns Corporate philanthropy Corporate Governance Ethical business practices: product safety, responsible advertising, anti-corruption, fair taxation The Business Case for CSR Investor interest Changes in business thinking Changes in consumer thinking The business benefits - Investor relations and access to capital - Competitiveness and market positioning - Employee recruitment, retention and productivity - The minimisation of litigation risk - The ‘license to operate’ The Growing Influence of ‘Stakeholders’ The background Identifying a company’s ‘stakeholders’: the contextual problem Case studies: Toyota: The recall Nestlé: The problem with Greenpeace over palm oil BP: The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico Proctor & Gamble: The problem with bloggers Financial Crisis: the ‘Occupy’ movement Partnership with Stakeholders Case study: Community protests in the extractive industry Labour Issues Health and Safety Non-discrimination in Employment Wages and Hours Child Labour Forced Labour Listening to Workers: Freedom of Association and Bargaining Bullying and harassment Case study: The clothing supply chain; the toy industry Day 2 The Environment and Sustainable Business Practices Environmental Concerns The sustainable use of natural resources Energy conservation The reduction and disposal of waste Implementation steps and life-style thinking Involving suppliers and customers Emerging trends in corporate sustainability Environmental Concerns: Water Scarcity The background to water scarcity Water risks in the value chain Risky sectors A phased approach to managing water-related issues Environmental Concerns: Climate Change Update on the latest findings: the 5th IPCC Report Assessing climate risks in business operations Corporate strategies for adaptation: the experience to date Understanding International and Company Codes of Conduct ISO 26000 United Nations Global Compact SA 8000 Selected Company Codes: Coca-Cola, Disney, Microsoft, Nike and selected codes from emerging market companies Day 3 Other Dimensions of Ethical Business Practices Marketing and Advertising The CSR dimensions of marketing and advertising The social importance of marketing and advertising The controls on inappropriate marketing and advertising: an overview of law and self-regulation worldwide Product Safety The regulation of product safety Product recalls Reputational damage Case studies: The contaminated milk scandal in China; the horsemeat/beef scandal in Europe; the Dreamliner aircraft Fair Taxation Taxation as a CSR issue The OECD’s Action Plan The G20 and greater cooperation on tax matters Corrupt Business Practices The background: the international dimensions of corruption The OECD anti-corruption regime The United Nations anti-corruption regime Regional approaches: Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East Strategies for Integrating CSR within Business Operations The buy-in from the Board of Directors Disclosure Embedding CSR within the corporate DNA - Employees - Products and services - Operations - Supply chain - Transportation & logistics