Thursday, 18 June 2015

EXECUTIVE BRIEFING SEMINAR ON CSR - Program Outline - June 24, Vancouver Canada

See more information here or register here.  There are 30 participants and five spots left.

The Segal Building
Beedie School of Business,
500 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC

Program Outline (Draft)


8:15 – 8:45
Breakfast and registration

8:45 – 9:15
Opening Prayer - Dennis Joseph, Councilor, Squamish Nation
Participant introductions
9:15 – 10:15
What happened and how did we get here? 
An insightful look at what laid the groundwork for and is driving the growing social expectations and how they are manifesting.

History of CSR in 15 minutes
Terry Gray, World Vision

Why does business exist? TEDx Video
Alex Edmans, Professor, London Business School

Vignettes on
Profit AND Purpose, Shareholders AND Society
Wayne Dunn, CSR Training Institute
10:15 – 10:45
Break

10:45 – 12:00
Panel:  Responding to growing societal expectations
How are leading players responding to growing societal expectations and demands.  Partnerships, Policy, Action, What works?  What doesn’t?  Why?
A panel discussion with rubber meets the road examples and discussion from industry, NGOs and Government

Case study of a Foundation, a group of companies, a foundation and growing societal impact;
Stephen Nairne, CEO, Lundin Foundation

Insights, examples and action from work with Levis Strauss, Body Shop, United Nations, International Finance Corporation, etc.
Sara Clancy, CSR 4 Africa

NGO on a mission.  How and why World Vision embraced private sector collaboration to enhance its impact on people, communities and poverty

Terry Gray, World Vision
12:00 – 12:45
Environmental expectations, pressures and realities. 
An overview of evolving global expectations and responses on environmental performance include voluntary standards, emerging issues and market based carbon solutions

Environmental performance, overview of evolving global expectations and responses on environmental performance include voluntary standards and emerging issues
Dani Bryant, Environmental Lawyer, Fasken Martineau

Environment and markets, carbon markets and projects, environmental footprints, exciting opportunities and emerging issues

James Tansey, CEO, Offsetters
12:45 – 1:45
Lunch & keynote speaker


CSR and Market Value, how CSR was and is core to creating hundreds of millions of shareholder value for Oceana Gold.

Mick Wilkes, CEO, Oceanagold

1:45 – 2:45
Economic development and community benefits best practices 
An examination of strategic approaches and outcomes from various sectors  including detailed exploration of individual case studies

CSR on the ground: How Newgold integrates economic development, community benefits and indigenous engagement into core business practice
Silvana Costa, Newgold


Community Collaboration: How community engagement and collaboration, especially First Nations, is integral to Steelhead LNG’s approach to business.


2:45 – 3:15
Break

3:15 – 4:45
What in the world?  Discovering and facilitating alignment
Overview of global development frameworks and CSR. From the Millennium Development Goals to the Sustainable Development Goals and where CSR fits.

It’s your turn now!
Strategies and approaches for leading and managing in the dynamic and complex space where business meets society meets government.  
Group work on custom case studies.  Craft strategic approaches to one of the cases (or more) and report back to the group.

4:45 - 5:00
Closure and presentation of certificates

See more information here or register here.  There are 30 participants and five spots left.


Sunday, 24 May 2015

How much water does that strawberry cost?

How much water does a strawberry cost?

Do you care?  Should you care?  Maybe it is kind of important to think about how much water, or clean air, or healthy ecosystem, things cost. 




Water is valuable.  It is important to make conscious choices about how we spend it.


Before you read further – if you are reading this to get an answer to that question you should stop now.  You won’t get it.  If you want to (maybe) get pushed to thinking about it a bit differently, then you might enjoy the next 500 words…

But, you won’t get an answer…  You may find a new way of thinking about cost though.

What do you think when you hear How much water does a strawberry cost?  Does it sound weird?

Wait, think about it.  Water is one of the most important things on this planet.  It is finite.  Shouldn’t we want to know how much water it takes to produce something?

If you think this irrelevant go to California’s Central Valley, indeed all of California and watch the struggles for the declining amount of available water. Almonds, strawberries, people, lawns, fish (yes, fish) and many more interests all ‘need’ water.  Some will get much less than they ‘need’.

Suddenly, strawberries that cost less water will have a competitive advantage, and consumers may become interested in how much water a strawberry costs.

It isn’t just water.  Our planet has a finite amount of a lot of things that our lives depend on.  And a finite amount of ecosystems and other resources that make our planet able to support so many billions of us.

We’ve proven remarkably incapable of managing them prudently.  Far beyond the California water situation.  Check out what Berkeley based Global Footprint has to say. 
Do we fit on the planet?


Today humanity uses the equivalent of 1.5 planets to provide the resources we use and to absorb our waste. This means it now takes the Earth one year and six months to regenerate what we use in a year. http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/world_footprint/

Not good management, especially if you think some of the other creatures on the planet deserve something too.

So, what does that all have to do with How much water does that strawberry cost?  If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.
If you don’t pay for it you won’t manage it?

So, maybe we should know how much water something costs? 

How much water does your designer jacket cost?  How much carbon?

Your iPhone?  Your Xbox?  Your favourite TV show?

What about education?  How much water does a degree cost?   The list goes on.

Even to How much water does that beer cost?   Beer can cost a lot of water.  But, some companies are taking big steps to manage it.  Some aren’t.  Would you like to know How much water your beer costs?

Some companies are measuring things like this.  I was pleasantly surprised this week, while reading the sustainability report of Eldorado Gold, a Canadian gold mining company that is not recognized as a sustainability leader.  Yet, they tracked water usage around gold production, and have made impressive steps at managing it.

I’m sure other companies are doing similar, with water and other important natural capital inputs.

Wait, what is natural capital?  There are a few definitions that people use.  I like to think of natural capital as those resources the planet provides for us and which people and industry are not really paying the full price to use (or abuse).

Things like water, like clean air, like ecosystems.  For the most part we use and abuse water and air and such at the cost of acquiring them.  As water gets more scares it costs more to acquire but is the price really a market price?  Are we paying the full ecosystem cost of taking that water from nature?

Same with abusing air.  Industry (and individuals, for those of us who occasionally want to point at others as the problem) are starting to pay some cost for managing how much we mess up the air and the atmosphere.  But, not nearly the true cost.

This is a long debate and we won’t try to resolve it here, even though it is important.

Back to how much water that strawberry costs…

Do you think we should know how much?  Or should we even care?

Do you think it important to know how much of our earth’s ecosystem resource are used by the different things in your life?

Do you trust industry and governments to manage these resources without measuring them in relation to outputs?

If you answered these questions like I do then you may want to ask How much water does that strawberry cost?   

And keep asking until it becomes not weird to ask because everyone knows that we should know how much of our planet’s ecosystem is used for the products and services that we buy.
How many planets do we have?

…remember… How much water does that strawberry cost?   

Sunday, 29 March 2015

Who? Me? Responsible for CSR?



Shared Value requires Shared Responsibility:  Whose Responsibility is Corporate Social Responsibility?

Watching some of the discussion on corporate social responsibility it sometimes seems like governments, communities, NGOs and everyone else expects to sit back and have somebody (aka business) deliver CSR to them on a silver platter.

WRONG!!

Corporate Social Responsibility is not something a company does to or for communities, governments or others. 

To be successful and sustainable it takes a shared and collective responsibility with all stakeholders.  How could it be any other way?

Yet, far too often we see major stakeholders, governments, communities, NGOs and others, placing all the responsibility on companies, almost as if they expected them to play the role of Government (or Santa Claus). 

Sometimes too, we see companies sitting back and trying to leave the responsibility to other stakeholders, including often other companies or industries.

Neither approach will work very well.
All partners are in the same boat.
If the boat floats all will benefit.  If it sinks everyone gets wet.

Those communities and organizations that are pro-active in organizing and planning CSR activities and sharing in the responsibility with companies, will find that they simply get more value at the end of the day.  And, they will gain more capacity as well, and more ownership over their destiny.

Those companies that take the lead AND have projects where ALL stakeholders take appropriate responsibility will find that more value is created for stakeholders and shareholders.

If CSR is about aligning interests so that more benefits can flow to more stakeholders (including shareholders) how does it make sense that all responsibility should be on the company or other partner to organize and do.

Surely Shared Responsibility is where everyone should be trying to get to.

Let’s assume that through a collaborative consultation process a mining company and local community identified that improvements in education and health were priorities.

  • What is the role and responsibility of the community and local organizations?What is the role and responsibility of local government?
  • What is the role and responsibility of the Sector Ministries (Education & Health)?
  • What is the role and responsibility of the company?
  • What is the role and responsibility of NGOs and other development actors with an interest in education and healthcare?


Think about what the roles and responsibilities should be.  Then think about how the project would normally play out.

This way works:  In successful examples the various stakeholders will all play a proactive part in the overall project, exhibiting leadership, collaboration and initiative as required. 

The project is truly made up of partners, working together and through their collaboration and collective responsibility helping to achieve results that none of them could achieve on their own.

This way, not so much:  In other cases one partner (often business, but not always) is looked at to lead and take the bulk of the responsibility.  Other stakeholders sit back and expect benefits to come to them.  

Regardless of which partner, or partners are left with the bulk of the responsibility, the project won’t succeed nearly as well as if there was a collective sharing of responsibility.
Do your CSR projects sometimes end up looking like this?
Ironically, in projects where the bulk of the responsibility is left to one or two partners, they are the ones that get blamed if things don’t work perfectly. 

Is it any wonder that some get frustrated and, if they keep going, end up frustrated and cynical.

So, Whose Responsibility is Corporate Social Responsibility?

Look at any CSR projects that you are involved in. Is there a collective responsibility?

If not, why not?

And, what will you do to change that and facilitate collective responsibility.

Blaming the partners who have been carrying the responsibility probably isn’t the most productive response.  Training and encouraging all partners to accept a fair share of responsibility is a far better way to go.
 
Sharing responsibility across partners and stakeholders can drive project success and make the work more fun
 
 CSR can be an effective mechanism for creating value for society and shareholders.  But, it doesn’t work well for anyone if responsibility and ‘ownership’ is not shared amongst all stakeholders.

------ 

To read other CSR Articles and Thoughtpieces by Wayne Dunn click here>>>

Wednesday, 11 March 2015

Tweets, posts and thoughts from the past weeks

 A collection of Tweets and Posts from the past weeks.  Some interesting (I hope!).  Some not so much.  Excuse the formatting.  Blogger doesn't seem to like cut and paste.

Global perspectives on CSR in mining. Slides from keynote to BC Mining Forum 2015 http://bit.ly/1GrzAKT

Mining schools hi-tech on social value creation! Mining industry’s painful lessons and the progress they’ve made learning them have lots to offer to hi tech as society’s expectations evolve  http://linkd.in/1D0Lpdm

Drink beer to support climate change!  Perfect plan for St. Patrick’s Day.
24 breweries sign climate change declaration. http://bit.ly/1MoAg5K @triplepundit @leonkaye

Acknowledge progress and push for more  McDonald’s To Source Antibiotic-Free Chicken in USA http://bit.ly/1G6aFfP @gmcheeseman @TriplePundit

Many stakeholders but no winners Great article on Artisanal Mining by Paul Klein in Triple Pundit http://bit.ly/1Mb3WoP 

Local Content Success.  now available in #CSR Knowledge Centre http://bit.ly/LocalCSR #PDAC2015

Dealing with growing social demands in mining  World Bank Panel @PDAC  http://bit.ly/1C3VfKW #PDAC2015

Walmart’s sustainability train is barreling down the track!  http://bit.ly/1AdvBN3  Jen Boynton  @triple Pundit  Rob Caplan  @robbyk

Stakeholder Engagement Series 
Many of you have asked that I pull together some of my recent publications that deal with stakeholder engagement into a set.  Haven’t quite done that but below you have a list of articles and links to the LinkedIn Posts.


If missing Aboriginal women is a domestic violence issue is ISIS recruiting an adolescent issue? @M_A_W_inCanada

Stakeholder engagement series. 
List of #CSR Thoughtpieces on Stakeholder Engagement from the CSR Knowledge Centre http://bit.ly/1EwKMaK  http://bit.ly/CSRknowledge

Is CSR Dead?  Dying, hibernating, irrelevant, or working just fine? http://bit.ly/CSR-Dead  @triplepundit @marcstoiber

CSR Communications
CSR Communications seems to be a hot topic right now so I thought I’d share links to some of our recent related publications.  If interested feel free to read, download and share. 
 
·       Internal CSR Communications Suck:  http://bit.ly/1Az4TSD 
·       7 strategies for engaging internal stakeholders:   http://bit.ly/1BOFGWF
·       11 mistakes to avoid in CSR Communications:  http://bit.ly/1qQMM9t
·       Eleven strategies for maximizing value from CSR:  http://bit.ly/17uzlDG  


CSR Communications seems hot. Here are 3 short publications. Good, bad & ugly  http://bit.ly/1Az4TSD  http://bit.ly/1GiJHlJ http://bit.ly/1zAvyxV

Internal CSR Communications Suck!  We need to get better at creating internal alignment.  CSR Thoughtpiece posted to Slideshare http://slidesha.re/1B0kga4

Wow Safeway! Sustainable transparent seafood. Trumping Whole Foods.  Great work   http://bit.ly/1GeDaIU @triplepundit @JenBoynton

Pay it forward Pizza! Great model. Align business, customer, social and community and make $ @mwartman1 http://bit.ly/1DE3fCS

We are really bad @ internal CSR Communications. Should align from planet to shareholder to people in company   http://linkd.in/1Edi3HM

Good CSR communications aligns the dots from planet to shareholder to people in company. @RepublicofEvry1 good example

CSR Partnerships. Theory and Practice.  Lecture & Role playing scenario.  Delivered in Nairobi Kenya, Feb 2015   http://slidesha.re/1CI5qA2

Internal CSR Communications Suck! And us CSR Pros are to blame  http://bit.ly/1Dr47e6

Sustainable Brands Seeks Entrepreneurs for Startup Business Competition bit.ly/1CHXst4 #CSR

Consumers want to see greater #CSR in the processed #food sector says @globescan consumer report @Foodanddrinkfed

4 strategies for local content success.  Local content can be the best ROI of any CSR investment.  Posted on Slideshare http://slidesha.re/1vVQUb4

Until CSR Pros speak ‘What’s in it for them’ to Finance, Ops & Engineering, CSR is a sandbox and toys in the corner of the business!

 The Rise of Sustainable Fibers in the Fashion Industry
Interesting and insightful. By Leon Kaye @ Triple Pundit  http://bit.ly/1DClOG6

Industry, Community & Engagement: Who is responsible? Lecture & Role playing scenario.  Delivered in Nairobi Kenya, Feb 2015   http://slidesha.re/17ndFII

4 strategies for local content success.  Local content can be the best ROI of any CSR investment.  New blog post http://bit.ly/1CwgBeQ

8 million tonnes of plastic dumped into oceans each year! Remember, we don’t got another planet. http://bit.ly/1vHsFNr

Industry, community & engagement. Strong, respectful & insightful dialogue on extractives and communities in Kenya. Credit @CanHCKenya @ihrb @KimothoWangui

Big business advocating stronger environmental regulations.  Can Govt keep up?
Interesting discussion in the Guardian.  http://bit.ly/1FsPepy Guardian article by @matt_gitsham

Communication is key whether you’re selling soda or social change.  Effective and appropriate communications can add societal and shareholder value to Corporate Social Responsibility efforts.. bit.ly/1DYPyuC  Interesting series in the Stanford Social Innovation Review   Also see CSR Communications: 11 mistakes to avoid  http://bit.ly/1zAvyxV

Plastic Bank: Plastic waste to $currency!  Brilliant!
Alignment of social, community, environmental and shareholder interests.

Bridgestone's Sustainability Hub: A Dialogue on Solving Survey Fatigue (for itself and others) http://bit.ly/1KweOwx Great work @bridgestone