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Focus on Env ironment & Corporate

Responsibil ty Communications

T r ends and Best Pr act ice in

T r ends and Best Pr actice in

Jane Tay lor and K er r y Wastel

BSI

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Britis hLibraryCataloui nginPublicati onData

Aca ta log ue e ordforthisb okisa va ila ble romtheBrit ishLibra ry

BSIord er e.BIP2103

ISBN0-5 0-486 1-0

TypesetinA kzidenzGroteska ndMinionb Helus,Brig htona ndRochest er

Print edinGr a tBrit a inb MPG

A boutt hea ut hor s xi i i

E xec ut i vesumma r y xvi i

1 Int r od uc t i ont oc ommu i c a t i ngCRandt heenvi r onment a la gend a 1

TheCRa g en a ,environmentan sust aina bled evelo ment 1

Howdoesanorg a niz at ionad res t hewholeCRa g en a ? 3

Tren sincorp rat eresp nsibi t y 3

2 Int r od uc t i ont oc ommu i c a t i ons 7

Commu ica t ionsoverview 7

Theroleofc ult ureint heCRag en a 12

Makey urcommu ica t ionst ra t eg ywork 1

3 The s ent i a lgui d et oc ommu i c a t i ngy urCRa gend a 2

Onesiz edoesnotfita ll 23

Theesent ialCRcommu ic t iong uide 2

Summa ryoft hekeycommu ica t ioncha lleng es 32

4 Whyc ho set oc ommu i c a t eCRandenvi r onment a lper for manc e? 3

UKGovernment ust aina bi t yst ra t eg yt o2 2 3

Op ort unit y:impro ingenvironment a lperformanc of r

o p rt unit yforfinancia lg a in 4

St a keholder areasking(an wantt herig hta nswer !) 41

CRrep rt i g :of ringp t ent ia lincrea seinbra ndva lue? 4

Result sof a ilngt oprovideCRinforma t ion 48

5 E xt er nalc ommu i c a t i on–wha tmes a ged oy uwa ntt oc onvey? 4

Set t ingavisionfory urext erna lcommu ica t ions t rat eg y 4

Informa t ionpa cka g ing :ext erna lcommu ica t ionformat san t ools 52

Resourcinganewcommu ic t ions t rat eg y 54

6 Int er na lc ommu i c a t i on:wha ti st hemes a ge? 5

Ninekeyint ernalmes a g es 57

Teninit ia t ivest ocommu ic at et hroug ha ct ionint heworkpla e 5

Guidet oint er na lcommu ica t ions 5

Commu ica t ionplan ing :st ruct uringy urint ernal

commu ic t ionprog ramme 6

Chang ingint ernalcult urea nda t t it udes 6

7 Howh manbeha vi our ,l i fest yl esa ndl ear ni ngc a nc ont r i but et o

ef c t i vec ommu i c a t i onofaCRa gend a 6

8 St akehol d erd i a l ogue–t r end sa ndbes pr a c t i c e 8

TheA a rh sConvent ion 86

A A 10 0 ES:A ccou t A bi t ySt a keholderE g ag ementSt a ndard 87

A nn alGlo alSt akeholder ep r t ing 89

9 For ma lext er na lgui d el i nesa ndfr a mewor ks–t r end sa ndbes pr ac t i c e 9

Mea surementan rep rt i gofCRperforma nc :whichst an a rd? 93

TheGlo a lRep rt i gInit iat ive(GRI 95

TheA c cou t A bi t yA ssuranc St a ndard(A A 10 0) 95

Depa rt mentoft heE vironmentF oda ndRura lA ffa ir (DEFRA ) 9

E vironment almana g ement yst em(EMS)ext ernalrep r t ing 98

B sines int heE vir onment BIE)A nn a lE vironmentIn ex 10

UKDepart mentofTra dea ndIn ust ry(DTI Fra mework 10

Confdera t ionofBr i shIn ust ry(CBI Pro eSeries 10

TheNa t ura lSt ep(TNS) a ndF rumfort heFut ure 103

A dvisoryCou ci onB sines an t heE vironment A CB )che klst s 10

Ot herg uida nc eforme suringa ndbenchma rkingCRperfor ma nc 105

10 L ega lr eq ui r ement sfori nfor ma t i ond i sc l osur ea ndr epor t i ng 10

Operat i ga ndfinancia lreview(OFR)an en a nc ddire t or

rep r (EDR)r eq uirement s 10

E vironmentA g enc ya ndloca la ut horit ypublcreg ist er 1 1

E vironment al nfor ma t ionReg ula t ions EIR)2 0 1 2

1 Ca sest ud i es:c omm uni c a t i onsa ndbes pr a c t i c e 1 5

Int rod ct iont ot hed elveryofCRperforma nc einpra t ic 1 5

Ca sest udiesinbrie 1 5

Indept hca sest udies 1 9

A ppend i x1:Gl os a r y 13

A ppend i x2:R evi ewofr epor t i ngfr amewor ksa ndmoni t or i ngt ool s

d esc r i bedi nCha pt er8 13

Se t ion1:TheGlo a lRep rt ingInit ia t ive(GRI) 1 7

Se t ion2:TheA ccou nt A bi t yA ssura nc St an a rd(A A 10 0) 1 9

Se t ion3:Depa rt mentoft heE vironmentF odan Rura lA ffa ir

Se t ion4:E vironment a lma nag ement yst emext erna lrep rt i g 14

Se t ion5:B sines int heE vironment BIE) a ndB sines int he

Commu it y(Bit C) 145

Se t ion6:UKDepa r t mentofTradea ndIn ust ry(DTI 14

Sec ti on7:C onfd er at i onofBr i ti shInd u st r y(CBI 14

Se t ion8:TheNat ur alSt epFra meworka ndF rumfort heFut ure 14

Se t ion9:A d visoryCou c ilonB sines a ndt heE vironment A CB ) 148

A ppend i x3:W ebsi t est owat c h 15

E vironment almana g ement yst ems 1 3

Profsional nst it ut ionsan busines represent a t ives 1 3

Listoff igures

Fig ureE1.1:Theruleoft humbg uidet oCRcommu ica t ionb t hint erna lly

Fig ure2.1:Es en alcomp nent sof ommu ic t ionmodels 9

Fig ure2.2:Themult i-per spe t ivemodelof ommu ica t ion 10

Fig ure2.3:Basicfor msof ommu ic t ion 1

Fig ure2.4:Sevenprinciplesoforg a niz a t iona lcommu ica t ion 1

Fig ure2.5:Cult ureint heworkpla ce 14

Fig ure2.6:Tenprinciplesforcompet i vesuc es 17

Fig ure4.1:V isionforasust a inable ut ure 39

Fig ure4.2:Consumer pu ishcompaniesforCRba dpra t ic 43

Fig ure4.3:CEOswhot hin sust aina bi t yisvit a lt oa nycompa ny 4

Fig ure 1:Reasonscorp r at eresp nsibi t ycommu ica t ionsfa il 5

Fig ure 2:Tenrulesforg et t ingt heext erna lsust ainabi t ymes a g ea cros 52

Fig ure 3:Ele t ronicCRorenvironment ep r che kls 5

Fig ure6.1:Ninekeyint ernalmes a g est ocommu ica t ereg a rdingt he

org a niz a t ion’sCRprog ramme 5

Fig ure6.2:Commu ica t eima g ina t ivemes a g es:t enq uickt ipswhichg o

bey n t henorminenvironment a lcommu ica t ions 59

Fig ure6.3:K eyfa t uresofhig hperformingint ernalst a kehold ereng a g ement 59

Fig ure6.4:Seniormana g er ’int erna lcommu ic t ion–whatt oav id 61

Fig ure6.5:W hereint erna lcommu ic t iont en st ositinorg a niz at ions 6

Fig ure6.6:Exa mpleofint erna lcommu ic t ionformat san t ools 6

Fig ure6.7:TheSust a inabi t yInt eg ra t ionGroup(SIGnet )sust aina bi t y

lt era cyski s umma ry 65

Fig ure6.8:Johari’sWin ow:at oolt oca pt uredif renc esa nd/orsimiar it ies

ink owledg ebet we nt ea ms 6

Fig ure6.9:Beha viouralt ermsprompt he t 68

Fig ure7.1:Risk,b redoma ndmot iva t ioninle rning 75

Fig ure7.2:TheTa keMa keEconomy 78

Fig ure7.3:TheBor owUseRet urnEconomy 78

Fig ure7.4:Tea chingdoesnoteq ual ea rning 7

Fig ure7.5:Dist anc lea rningbes pra ct ic ereq uirement s 84

Fig ure8.1:St ag esan element soft heA A 10 0 ESfra mewor kforq ualt y

st akeholdereng a g ement 8

Fig ure1 1:Re yclnga tMart i Ba kerA ircra ftCompa ny 128

Fig ure1 2:TheGre nRoof re t edont hero fofBarcla ys,Cana ryW ha rf 1 3

Fig ureA 2.1:TheGlo a lRep rt ingInit iat ive(GRI) rep rt ingprinciplesfrom

Sust a inabi t yRep rt ingGuidelnes2 0 1 8

Fig ureA 2.2:TheGRIfra meworkforCRrep rt ingfromGRISust aina bi t y

Rep rt ingGuidelnes2 0 1 8

Fig ureA 2.3:TheA A 10 0Seriesbasedon‘t hecoreprincipleofinclusivit y’

fromA A 10 0A ssur anc St a ndard2 03 1 9

Fig ureA 2.4:TheDEFRAsumma ryofba sicprinciplesinCRrep rt ing

Fig ureA 2.5:Ext ernalpres ureso er la pwit hbusines cult uret ocrea t ea

foca lp intfora ddit ionalriskornewo p rt unit y 14

Fig ureA 2.6:Thecomplexint er ela t ionshipbet we nsust a inabi t yis ues

a ndsociet alrea ct ioncrea t espres uresont heo erat i genvironmentfor

org a niz at ions,lea dingt oincrea seinb t hdire ta ndin ire tcost s 1 0

Ja eTay lorB c(Ho s)CEnvMIEMACert EdACSM

Ja neisaChart eredE vironment als (CE v),aFul Memberoft heInst it ut eofE

viron-ment a lMa nag er an A ssesor (MIEMA )an a nhonour g rad a t efromExet erUniver

sit yCa mb rneScho lofMines

Sheha sabroa dan longexperienc inenvir onment a lconsult a ncyan t ra ining ,ha ving

workedwit hinorinpa rt ner hipwit hawidera ng eofprivat ea ndpublcse t ororg aniz a

-t ions,frommajormult i at iona lst osma llt omediumsiz edent erprises,NGOsan loca l,

reg iona la ndnat iona lg overnment

Ja ne ha s workedt hroug houtt heUK an USA sup ort i gclent s incommercia l a nd

in ust rial environment al manag ement implementation prog rammes an corp rate

resp nsibi t yeng agement Sheisa lsoaq ua lifiedfurt hered c t iont ea cher,a ndha s

con-sidera bleexperienc ofwrit i ga nddelveringcommercia la ndin ust rialt rainingpa

k-a g es, in dire t an dist a nc le rning format s She is t he a ut hor ofseveral na t ionaly

a ccredit edenvironment a lt rainingcour es

Ker yWa t el BSc(Ho s)DipAc ou tic sMB AIEMA

K er yhas ome 6yea rsexperienc int he nvironmentin ust r ya ndisag rad a t eofb t h

t heUniver it yofHert fordshirean W est minst erUniver it y.Sheha sworkedin

consul-t ancy,fre la nc an wit hcont r act or t hroug houtt hist imedevelo ing ,implement inga nd

sup ort ingenvironment almana g ement yst ems,t ra iningan sust aina bi t ya g en a san

environment a lproje tma na g ement

Warmt ha nksa ndbes wishest o:t heorg a niz a t ionswhohavea ssist edwit ht he a sest ud ies

present eda tt here roft hisg uide;t hema nyin ivid alsworkingint heseorg a niz a t ions

(t ooma nyt omen onin ivid a lly)whog enerouslysharedt heirt houg ht sa ndpro ided

suchinsig ht ful nformat iont ofa ci t a t edevelo mentoft hisg uide;t heva riouspublsher

whoha veprovidedpermis ionfort hea ut hor t oreprod uc ma t eria lq uot edint hisg uide

Than st oChrisSheldonofGre nIncka ndJonat ha nSiveroft heBrit ishSt an a rdsInst

i-t ui-t ionfort heirg uida nc a nden les sup or inprod c ingt hisg uide.Than salsot oour

dea rfrien sa ndfmiywit houtwhomt hiswouldnothavebe nwrit t en.Ja net han sher

Da d;hewasag rea tcommu ica t or

“Atfi r people efus eto eli eve h tas trangenewthi ngca nbedone…Thentheys eei tcanbe

don Then i t i s done a nd al the world won es wh i t was not done enturi es a o.”

Fr a nc es Hod gson B r net t ,The Seret Garden(191 )

Int roduc t ion

Thisg uided escribest hekeyme ha nismsfort heint eg rat ionofCR(corp ra t eresp nsibi

-it y)pra t ic sint oeveryd ayorg a niz a t iona lt hin inga nddoing :commu ic t ionofy ur

CRag en a

Commu ica t ionofa norg aniz a t ion’sCRprog ra mme,an it slong ert ermvisionsuchas

progres t owa rdasust a ina bi t yg oa l,iscrit ic lfort hea ssociat edconc pt sa ndp lc iest o

bet a kenon-b ard.Corp rat eg overna nc an la bi t yisahotis ueinfina ncialmarket s

a ndbusines performanc in ic t orin exes.Med iasourc snowke nlyexploreCRper

forma nc an t heseis uesareprimemed iafod erwit hp t en a llyfa t a limplca t ionst o

busines long evit ya ndreput at ion.Severa lma jormult i a t iona lsha vese nsomesig

nifi-ca ntconseq uenc s, notjus int ermsofreput a t ion,butalsodire tneg a t iveimpa ct st o

sharepric ,asar esultof dver emediaco era g e

To whatext entdoesa compa nyt ake on-b ardcorp rat eresp nsibi t yr ep rt i gan

commu ica t ing ?Thep t ent ia lisva sta ndt heo p rt unit yexcit ing–howf r houldy u

g eton-b a rd?Y ourCRag en a a nbeoneoft hre t hing s(orint ra nsit ionbet we nt wo):

procrast ina t ea ndwa ittose whatha ppens

‘Nocha ge’ s nota v iableb sines opt ion

Int he ur entp lt ica l,e onomic n environment a lclma t e, nocha ng e’is implynota

via blebusines o t ion.ACRcommu ica t ionsst ra t eg ywhichisst ruct ured,in o at ive

a ndin erentt osust a ina blebusines pra t ic smus bet helong -t ermg oalan mus be

embed edint oeverybusines syst em.Thisg uideisa bouthowt oa chievet ha tg oal

W hat is sust ainabi it y in business?

St ra t eg ica lly,it ’sa bout e og nit ionoft heint er elat ionshipbet we nsocia l,environment al

a ndfina ncia lconc rnst hatma yresultfromt heimpa ct sofong oingbusines a ct ivit ies

These onc rns,i.e.socia l,e onomica ndenvironment a l,a rek ownast het ripleb t t om

lneofsust a ina bi t y

Sust a inabi t yinpra t ic isa boutowner hipof ct ionsa ndresp nsibi t iest ot hewider

environmentan commu it y.Itc nalsoha vesig nifica ntfina ncialsaving s,a ndhenc

a ffctp t en alprofitmarg ins,a sabusines be omesmore ficienta ndst re mlnedan

wa st a g e,inal a re s,is ed c edt hroug hefct iveCRint eg ra t ion

Sust a inabi t yencompa sseskeyis uest ha tca na fcta norg aniz a t ion’sperforma nc esuch

a st eamworkinga ndimpro ement st ot heworking ,lvinga ndbusines environment

Tore chsust a ina bledevelo mentmea nsba la ncingt hene dsof a hf ct orint het riple

b t t omlneinea chde ision,t oensuret hatea chcomp nentisconsid eredasa nint eg ra l

pa rtof veryda yorg a niz a t iona lpra ct ic e

Howdoy ucommu ic t et hisimp r t a ntpa rtofy urorg aniz a t iona ndwha taret he ur

rent ep rt ingt ren sa ndbes pra t ic sincommu ica t ions?Ea horg aniz at ionwi ha ve

dif rent t reng t hsa ndwea knesesonwhicht obuidan t heinforma t ionpro idedint his

g uidewi helple dy ut hroug ht hera ng eof ra meworks,g uidelnesan rese rchinCR

commu ic t ions

CR is now mainst ream

TheCRpa ceq uickensa samult it udeofpres ures,notle s leg isla t ionan increa sedcost s

ofnon- enewa ble resourc s, prog res ively forc org a niz at ions t o embra ce a new wa y

oft hin ing

Thewin owfort he‘wa ita ndse ’o t ionforCRhasclosed;t heonly pt ionleto ent oan

org a niz a t ionisa ct ion.Thecorp ra t eresp nsibi t ycha lleng ehasbe omema inst re m,

enablng companies t o demonst rat e not only t heir commitment t o environment al

impro ement s,butt oencompas t he ul spe t rumoft heirworkineveryare of orp ra t e

resp nsibi t y,e.g h ma nrig ht sa ndcommu it yrelat ions

Recog nit ionoft hewholet opicof nvironmenta ndCRisincre singg lo aly.Towork

int ernat iona lly,part icula rlyinE ro e n t heUSA ,sup ler a ndcust omer incre sing ly

a skfordemonst ra t ionofa norg a niz a t ion’scommit mentt oCR

S how ca n a n org a niz a t ion commu ica t e a nd delver a g rou dbrea king corp ra t e

resp nsibi t yprogrammet ha ta dds ea lva luet ot hebusines ?

A n ov erv iew of t his guide

Thisg uide imst opro ide no erviewt ot hisincrea sing lywidet opic,describingt he ur

rentan fort hcomingis uesa ndpro idinga na idt obes pra ct ic

ISO14 63, En i ronmentalma a ement—En i ronmentalc mmuni cati on—G ui de li nes

a dexamples ’ , a imst o fa ci t at e t he int erna t iona l exchang eofg oodsa ndservic s an

develo mut ua lco pera t iona cros everyare of ommer ce,e.g int ele t ual,scient ific,

t ech olog ica l,a nde onomica ct ivit y,a ndfa ci t at est akeholdereng a g emen b t hint er

na lan ext erna l.This up ort i gg uideha sbe npublshedt ocomplementISO14 63,

pro idingpra ct ic lt oolsan exa mplesofhowt his t a nda rdmig htbea ppled

Thisg uideof r awa yt hroug ht heva sta mou t sofresea rch,leg isla t ion,bes pra ct ic a nd

fra meworks ur ou dingt het opicsof orp ra t eresp nsibi t ya ndc ommu ica t ion

pro-c s es.Dipint ospe ificse t ionsorchapt er st ha ta remos relevan or e dt hroug hfrom

co ert ocoveran wideny urk owledg ean u der t an ing frep rt i ga ndcommu

i-ca t ingt heCRag en aofy urbusines.Beencourag ed,a nda k owledg et ha ta lt houg h

t her eisalott oco er,commu ica t ing ourCRa g en aisa chievable n t hejourneyca nbe

inspiringa ndmot iva t ing ,notonlyfort heexecut iveb a rdbutfort hosewit hint he

busi-nes an t hest a keholder relat edt ot henat ureofy urwork

Cha pt er 1a nd2lo kmorecloselya twhatismea ntb CRcommu ica t ions,pro iding

expla nat ion, rese rch an det ai for review a nd use as y u consider y ur o t ions t o

develo y urCRcommu ic t ions t rat eg y.Thekeyt oc ombiningt het wot opicsofCR

a ndcommu ic t ionsist ohavea nu der t an ing f a cha ndhowt heyca nln a ndwea ve

t og et her.Cha pt er3pro idesaq uickst a rtg uidet oreviewingy urCRcommu ica t ions

a g en a Ea chorg a niz a t ionwi r esp n u iq uelyt ot he ha lleng ean t hisiswher eidea s

a ndq uest ionsarepresent edt ost a rtt heproc s of onsideringy urorg aniz at ion’sp

si-t ion,cur entan in e dfut urea ct ions

Chapt er4pro idesaba ckg rou dt osomeoft hedriver behin CRcommu ica t ionsan

consid er t he UKGo ernmentSust aina bi t y St ra t eg y How CR commu ica t ions a re

commu ic t edext ernalyan int erna llywi va ryineveryorg a niz at ion,a lt houg hb t he

ver yna t ureofc ommu ica t ionswi o erla p.Get t ingitr ig ht ,av idingt hepit fa lls,wi help

ensurey urCRmes a g e isg et t inga cros , isu der t oodan fci t a t es fedba ckfrom

st akeholder Chapt er5focusesonext ernalcommu ic t ions,t het ypesofst r at eg yused

a ndt heformat sa ndt oolsava ilablet osup or an develo t his.Chapt er6lo ksa tnine

keymes ages a ndinit iat ivest ocommu ic t ewit hiny urorg a niz a t iont hroug ha ct ion

wit hint heworkpla ce

Animp rantaspe ttoCRcommu ic tionis u der tan ingh manbehaviour an

howpeo leas imiateinformationan t anslateitintou der tan ingan le rning

Thisisdiscus edinChapter7.Inorder obringab utchangetoaCRagen aan

com-mu ic teitefctively, y umus considerthatif mplo e sorotherp tentialsak

e-holder havenopriork now ledgeofCR ,thena ormofle rningan ed c tionmus tak e

pla e Tel ng’ is one thing , le rning an doing are tw o other Chapter 7 ex plores

u der tan ing ofh man behaviour in respe t ofinformation delvery Stak eholder

engagementisanimp r antaspe tofCRcommu ic tionsan Chapter8lo k sat ome

ofthespe ificguidesan bes pra tic document relatedtoCR ,fromtheAarh s

Con-vention(19 8)toBSE nv ir nme ntalCommunicationGuid e(2 0 ).Chapter9provides

rese rch onthe k eyformalex ternalguidelnes an framew orks The guidelnes dis

cus edinclu etheGl ob lRe po tin Initiativ e,theAccountAbil ityAsura ce Sta d ard

(AA10 0)an Env ir nme ntalMa a e me ntSyste ms 14 01an EMA S).Withal the

dif-frento tionsavaiable,theoverviewof a hwil helpde idewhichis hebes CR

com-mu ic tionvehiclefory urcompany

Behin al t hebes pra t ic an cur entt ren s inrep rt i gt here are incre singleg al

req uirement sforinforma t iondisclosurea ndt hesearediscusedinCha pt er10.Fina lly,

in Cha pt er 1 , several ca se st ud ies a repro ided t o show how dif rentorg a niz at ions

ha vet a kenon-b a rddif rentelement soft heCRa g en aa ndhowt heyhave ommu

i-ca t ed it in t heir org aniz at ions These a re splt int o brie ca se st udies a nd more

in-dept hreviews

The role of c ommunic at ion in t he CR agenda

Commu ica t ion, b t h int erna l an ext erna l,is acrit ic lpa rtofa n org aniz a t ion’sCR

infra st ruct ure.If ompaniesa ret o‘inform’ext erna lst a keholder an not imply‘disclose’

t ot hem,abroa dinsig hta ros va riousint erna lcompanydisciplneswi ber eq uiredt o

pro idet heba kg rou dforp sit ive xt ernalrep rt ing ,i.e.notonlyconfinedt ot he

nvi-ronmentorCRdepa rt ment Thisisd et ot hediemmast ha tca nariseinCRt hin ingan

t hene dt oensurea nyproc s ofpriorit iz ingiso en,t ransparentan clea r

CRisu iq ueint hisne dt oc l up nabroa dvariet yofski sa ndc pa it yrig hta cros a n

ent ire ompa ny,i.e.notjus t he ompa ny’s‘sust aina bi t yprofsiona ls’t odelveraresult

Int ernalCRcommu ic t ionreq uirest eamworka cros depa rt ment ala ndsit eb u da ries,

a imingformult ilat era lbuy-in,b t hint erna llya ndext ernaly.Desig nan implement a

-t ionoft heint erna lcommu ic t ionst ra t eg ywi ne dt obeinspiring ,relevanta ndmos

imp rt a nt ly,freq uentan t woway,t opro idet hebasisof mes a g eofsubst a nt ive hang e

a ndcommit mentext erna lly

Ext erna lCRcommu ic t ionsar enotonlya boutaforma la nn a lrep rt ,butoc ur

con-t i uouslyint heda yt odayru ningoft heor g aniz a t ion.F rexample,a ust omerma yask

inasho ift het imber oldcomesfromaF rest rySt ewa rdshipCommis ionsourc ,ora

newre ruitmayaskCRq uest ionswhenma kingad ecisionift heywa ntt ojoinacompa ny

Int heseinst a nc s,a ndmanymor e,t heresp nse a nimpa ctont heorg a niz at ion’s uc es

insomewa y

Thereq uirementforbasicsust aina bi t ylt erac yinaworkforc ,pro idingper on elwit h

basic k owledg e, an emp wering cros -depa rt ment t ea ms wi pro ide t he buiding

blocksforowner hipoft heorganiz a t ion’sCRcha lleng e.Inad it ion,t hep t ency f xt er

na lcommu ic t ionswi been anc dif clea rfocusa cros t hebusines c nbe

demon-st ra t eda ndCRisca pt ureda spa rtoft hebusines st ra t eg y.ACRst ra t eg yt ha tisperiphera l

t oc orp rat est rat eg ywi fi

Theenvironmentprofsionan t hewiderbusines commu it yhavebeg unt odevelo

g rea t erma t urit yin environment a la ndCRt hin ing V a rious ext erna l fra meworks for

a sses mentof compa ny’sCRan environment alprog rammesucha sA c cou t A bi t y,

Glo a l Rep r t ingInit iat ive et c ha ve be ndevelo ed, a ndpro iderea list ic, consist ent

ext erna lrep rt ingt ools.Thisg uidesumma riz est heext erna lrep rt ingfra meworkscur

ren yinusean t hecircumst a nc sinwhicht heymig htbesuit a ble

Ext erna lfra meworkspro idedemonst ra ble,ext erna llyverifiedevidenc of company’s

sust a inabi t yc ommit ment sa ndpriorit ies,an verifyperforma nc inrespe tof:

t herang eofCRtopicsc pt ur ed

Ina ddit ion,ext ernalrep rt i gfra meworks,an mea surementt ools ucha st heK PIs key

performanc in ic t or ) develo edb DEFRA(Depa rt mentoft heE vironmentF od

an Rural Afair ) enable companies to benchmark their performanc on the

sus ainabi ty journey; pro iding the ad ed value ne ded to b ls er long- erm

sust a inabi t ygoalswit hshort ert ermbeneit s

Oneoft hemos sig nifica ntpro lemsinCRcommu ica t ionsisg et t inga cros amesa g e

t hatisbelevedt obesinc rea nda c ura t eb re ipient s,a ndnot imply‘g re nwash’–a

t ermcoinedb environment a lpres ureg roupsfor companies whohavemadeclaims/

promises t ha t havesubseq uen ybe nc led int o q uest ion Int ernaly an ext ernaly,

commu ic t ions ne d t o re og niz e t he org a niz a t ion’s cur ent lmit a t ions, i.e a void

simply‘sel ng ’t he‘g re nmes ag e’ inst ea da ck owledg et ha tt heorg a niz at ionisont he

roa dt osust a ina bi t ya ndha snotyetarr ivedatt hedest ina t ion

Mult i-dimensional c ommunic at ions

Ext erna lcommu ic t ionsha vet odemonst rat esust ainabi t yhasbe na ssimia t edint o

t hehe r toft hebusines inor derforCRrep rt i gt ohavet heint eg rit yreq uiredt oad res

a nd/or t a yst a keholderconc rns

Theorg a niz a t ion’scommu ica t ionprog ra mme(int erna la ndext ernal shouldpro ide

superlat iveinsig htint ot heorg a niz at ion’su dert a nd ingofit sCRcha lleng e,a nda

‘be-leva ble’desiret odelvert ang ible,me sura bleimpro ement

Int erna lan ext er na lst a keholder wi lo kt oy ut ocommu ica t eatal levels(Fig ure

E1.1).Y ouwi beexpe t edt o:

Showsust a inablepra t ic sa s t heya reev lvingt hroug houtt hecompa nyan y uwi

a chieveresult sont heb t t omlne,t hebra ndan wit hint het ea mst hatd elveredit !

A n org a niz a t ion’s commu ic t ion framework wi ne d mult i-d imensiona l fedba k

lo ps;wit houtlst eninghowdoesa norg aniz a t ionk owt hemes a g ehasbe nhe rd,or

in e dt hemes ag ewa sre eiveda ndu der t ooda sint en ed?

Fe d ba ckpro idest heo p rt unit yt oc pt ureide s,a ndcola t ein ica t or t omea suret he

conc rnsofst a keholder Thisiscrit ica linforma t ionwhenpriorit iz ingaCRprog ramme

b t hint erna llya ndext erna lly

DelveringaCRrep r isasig nifica ntinvest men lst eningist hekeyt oensuringo t ima l

ret u rnfromy urinvest men i -deinedorlarg elyproc ed ra l,onewa ycommu ica t ion

wi fi t odelverprog res –proa t ive nd ea vour t oc pt ure e dba ckmus bepa rtoft he

pa cka g e.If ommu ica t ioniswort ht heinvest ment oa ret hefedba ckme ha nisms

Required: st akeholder engagement (al of t hem,

not just a selec t f ew!)

St a keholder ,b t hint ernalan ext ernal,haveincre sing lyhig hexpe t at ionsinrespe tof

c or por a t e r esp nsibi lit y (CR) Invest or s a r e a wa r e oft he p t en a l c ost s ofp or CR

Me ningful and me s r able

C r edible and c halenging

F r equent and focu e

Tw o way a d mult i-dimen ion l

performanc a ndincrea sing lyca llup nc ompa niest og obey n t heba sicleg aldisclosure

req uirement s

TheOpera t inga ndFina ncia lReview(OFR),whichwasd et ocomeint oforc from2 0

a ndreq uireda nelementofst a t ut oryenvironment a lrep rt ing ,iscur en yu derdebat e

a ndu derg oinga ddit ionalconsult at ion However, int heint erim,c ompa nies ne dt o

buidont heba sisoft hisp t en a lleg a lreq uirementfordisclosur e,wit hinforma t iont ha t

re s uresinvest or oft heircommit mentt oimpro eperformanc inana re wherecost s

ha vebe nan wi con n et orise

Akeyfocust osuc es inext erna lst a keholdereng ag ementisbuidingong oingpa rt ner

ships,workingwit hext erna lint erest edpart ies.F rexample,pa rt ner shipswit hNGOsa re

incre sing lya ea t ur eofCRbes pra ct ic ,pro idingarout et oin o at iona nden e v ur,

a ndult imat elypro iding‘… newformsofsocialent erprisea ndanewt ypeofblen ed

busines va lue’(Sust ainA bi t y)

A norg a niz at ion’sCRprog rammeshouldhave long ert ermsust aina bi t yg oal

Commu-nica t ing ext erna lly how t he org a niz a t ion int en s t o delver excelenc in corp ra t e

resp nsibi t y,a ndworkt owa rdssust a inabi t y,isnowacrit ica laspe tofa n organiz a

-t ion’sbra nd.Itwi impac tnotonlyt heinvest or/cust omerbase xt erna lly,butint ernalyit

wi impa tonh manresourc es, re ruit men infcteveryaspe tof norg a niz at ion’s

fu ct ionfromdesignt hroug ht od elvery

Looking at ex amples in prac t ic e – c ase st udy

summary of learning point s

Casest udiesa ndot herresea rchq uot edint his ep r demonst ra t est ha tcompaniest ha t

ha vef redbes int hep t ent ialymud dywat er of redibi t yar et hoset ha tha veconsis

t en ycommu ica t edt heirCRprog ra mmeint erna llyan ext er na lly,wit h ab ld

com-ment ary,n rt uringan ha rnes ingfedba ka ndset t ingcha lleng ingg oa lsaspa rtof

clea rlydemonst ra blecorp ra t evision

However,evenif wel- t ruct ured,mea surablea nd‘fromt hehea rt ’mes a g eisdelvered,

who is lst ening ? A cros t he sust a inabi t y a g en a , compet encies, u dert a nd ing an

req uirement sa mongst a keholder va rywidely.ACRmes ag ewi belos u les delveryis

desig nedarou dima g ina t ive ommu ica t ionprot ocols,encompasingavariet yofmedia

a ndinformat st ha tg owel bey n t het ra dit iona lan ua lCRrep rt

Int erna l CRcommu ica t ionsreq uire cha mpionsa cros depart ment a lan sit eb u

d-a ries,aimingformult ila t era lbuy-in,int ernalya ndext erna lly.Todelveranext er na l

com-mu ic t ionst ra t eg y,org a niz at ionsne dt oeq uipint ernalper on elwit ht hek owledg e,

enlg ht enedt hin ingan skilst odelvert henewa g en a Ina ddit ion,a ndpro a blymore

imp rt an y,ify ufost eranewmin sett ome tt he ha lleng e,int erna lper on elwi be

t heorg aniz at ion’sCRambas ador –inspiret hem!

Thec sest udiesdescribedint hefina lchapt eroft hisguide,a ndot herresea rchq uot ed

t hroug houtt het ext ,demonst ra t earang eof ommonfct or inorg aniz a t ionst hatha ve

be na blet oa chieveincre sedprofit a bi t ya saresultofimplement ingenvironment a la nd

CRcont rols,t hesearea sfolows

K ey c ommunic at iv e c harac t erist ic s f or high

B sines esan org aniz a t ionst ha thavehig hperformingCRst an a rdst ypic lyfl int o

t heprofiebelow.Theywi g eneralyha ve:

Q

ame ani ngulgoal, a dbelieveinit.Theorg aniz a tion’sv isionan c or eva lues hine

fromeverypar ofit sbusines pr ofie,CRa nden v ir onment a lawa r enes c anbese n

a sembedd edintot hecompan y’sdaytodaya cti v ities;

Q

s peci fi cgoalsfo impr veme nta downers hipoftheirCRimp ct.Theor ga niz a tionis

a bletod emonsra t ec le ru d er t an ingofit sc orp rater esp nsibi tyimpa ct s,a nd

howitisad res ingt hem.Theyc nc le rl yd escribe,b t hint ernall yan ext ernall y,

wha tst rategiesa r einplac etoma int a incontin a limpr ovemen a ndhowt ha tfit s

intot heo era llbusines plan;

Q

s k i llsa dtrai nin Org aniz at ions t ha t haveexc eledint heCR a g en ahaver obus

interna lt rainingprogra mmes;t heyin ves inr eg ula ra ndva riedt raininga ndid ent ify

CRa nden v ir onment alr ela t edskilsforjo pr ofies.TheCRelementofworkpla c e

a cti v ities is c lea r a nd sup or for red ucing impa t s is ev id ent w it h awa r enes

ca mpaignset c.Theorg a niz a tionencoura g esper on eltot a kea na cti ver oleint he

or ga niz a tion’s CR pr ogra mme an to ‘fel’ par oft he o eral ac hievemen e.g

t hr ought ea ms,c hampionsetc

Qcleara dacounta leperfo ma c track in Ther eisuseofr eg ularmonitoringan

performanc e t a c king tools interna ll y, u ti z ing externa l st an a r ds to prov id e

verifia blea ndcredibleperforma nc eimpr ovementd at a.Ther eisalsouseof xt ernal

benc hma rkingsystemstoeval uatea ndrep r marketp sit ion;

Qevi denc ofeng gi nginopen,wi derdebatewiths tak eholders.Therew il berobus an

r eg ula r c ommu ica tions an fedba c k mec ha nisms w it h NGOs, in vest or , loc l

c ommu ity, emplo e s an ot her gr oups who might have an interes in t he

c ompa n y’sCRperforma nc e;

Qcelebrationof chi eve me nts Externa lawa r dsar eentered,pr ov idingc ompa niesw it h

c elebrat iona ndext ernalr ecognition.Int ernalawar d sa r einplacet opr ov id eafocus

forca pt uringan enc oura gingbes pra t ic e

Ift hi spr ompt edi d ea s,c a pt ur et hemnowwhi l et heya r efr eshi ny urmi nd !

CR and the envir onmental

agenda

Whyshouldanorg aniz at ioneng ag einenvironment a lorbroa dercorp ra t eresp nsibi t y

commu ica t ions?

The CR agenda, env ironment and sust ainable

Whatd es itmea ?

Simple conomicsdict a t est hating lo a lt ermswe an otcon n et o‘spen ’t heea rt h’s

na t ura l ca pit al (non- enewable resourc es such a s oi , we have t o st ar lvingon t he

income,i.e.prod c ean consumeresourc st ha tca nberenewed

TheBru d an Rep rt , W orldCommis iononE vironmenta ndDevelo men

pro-videduswit haworkingdeinit ionofsust aina bi t yin1987: develo mentwhichme t st he

ne dsoft hepresentwit houtcompromisingt hea bi t yof ut ureg enera t ionst ome tt heir

ownne ds

Sinc t hisembry nicst ag e,t hewider‘sust a ina bi t ya g en a ’ha snowa rriveda sac nt ra l

t hemeofint erna t iona ldebat ean invest orconc rn,a ndma ny rg aniz a t ionsa reresp n

-ingt ot hiswit haCRorenvironment al mpro ementag en a.Tosup or t hismo ement

forchang e,va riousNGOsa ndot her t a keholder int hesust ainabi t ydeba t ehaveworked

t opro idea na ppledu der t a nding fwhat ust a ina bledevelo mentmea nsinpra t ic ,

e.g ‘TheNa t ura lSt ep’t hroug ht he2 2 V isionproje t b B idingFut ures)

A tit ssimplest ,sust a ina bledevelo mentforanorg aniz at ionisajourneyt owa rdsasynerg y

of ommu it y,busines an environmen buidingat apest rybet we nt hemra t hert ha n

t hehist oricfra ct ureda pproa ch.A tit score,re og niz ingan a ct ingup nt heint

erdepen-dency et we nenvironmen socia la nde onomic a ct or an t heint eg rat ionoft hese a

c-t or shouldpr ovidemut ual ong -t ermbeneit ,an holdt hekeyt oase ure ut ure

1

A norg a niz at ionisnot ust a inableifitisnotfinancia llyse ure,butneit herwi itbese ure

ifitdoesnothavet hesup or oft he ommu it yit ervesort he nvironmentfromwhichit

dra wsit sma t eria lsa nd‘lf sup ort ’.Thatisexact lyt hep inta twhichsust a ina ble

devel-o mentr ecog niz est hesymbiosisbet we nmoney,peo lea ndenvir onmen itist heset ha t

a rein erentinit smea ningan it sg oa l

Dostakehold rs ac t ualyund rsta dwhatt heCRagenda mea s?

Resea rchu dert a kenb A ndrewDa rnt on(Ma y2 0 ),onbeha lfofDEFRAfolowing

t heir‘Doy urbit ’ca mpaig n,reve ledt ha tpublca wa renes an u der t an ing fkeyt er

minolog yplayedala rg eroleint heout comeoft heresp nsesa ndsubseq uenta da pt a t ionof

beha vioura ndcult ure

A lt houg ht heCRa g en aisse na sahig hlevelrep rt i gproc s ,howt hisa t ualyg et s

t akenon-b ardinbusines syst emsan u der t oodan implement eda tsho flo r,fa

c-t oryor it elevelaret wop t en a llydif rentt hing s

Da rnt on’s esea rchin ica t est ha tpeo lea reoft enawa reoft hephrase‘sust aina ble

devel-o men butma nywereu a blet oexpla inwha tita ct ua llymea nt However, whent he

discus ionbe amerelevantt oda ilylvesort hecult ureathome,t hent hoseint erviewed

were ke n t o discus t he comp nent isues t ha t make up sust aina ble develo ment

This revea ledarang eofsocia l,e onomic a ndenvir onment a lconc rns most lyrelat ed

t o common a spe t s a ssociat ed wit h t heir da ily lves such a s rub ish a nd a nt isocial

beha viour

A severyorg aniz a t ionhasit sownu iq uediver it yofper on ela ndst a keholder ,itwi

ne dt ot a keau iq ueviewofit sCRst ra t eg y.Thereore,howt heCRa g en aisu iq uely

a ssimia t edan commu ica t edb ea chorg a niz a t ion,isc rit ic alt oit ssuc es ,con n al

develo menta ndimplement a t ion

Thisg uidet oCRcommu ica t ionslo ksat omeoft hebes pra ct ic sas ocia t edwit h

com-mu ica t inganorg aniz at ion’s esp nsibi t yt oevery nerelat edt ot he xclusivena t ureof

it so erat ions.Itc nberelevantt opeo ledire t lyinv lveda ndemplo edb y urorg a

ni-z a t ion,an t hosein ire t lya ffct ed,sucha ssup ler an loca lcommu it ies.Onawider

sca le,itis elevantt oa llre ipient sin ire t lya ffct edb a ompany’scont ribu ont oint er

na t iona lisues,suchasg lo a lwa rminga ndint erna t ionalt ra de

How does an organizat ion address t he whole CR

Howanor g aniz a t ionembra cest hisnewa g en at oensuret hatt heenvironment a lan

commu it ypa rt sofsust a ina bi t ya reln edint ot hefina ncia lconc rnsofa norg aniz a

-t ion’s t ra t eg yisama t t erofwidesco ean int erpret at ion

A nev lu onar yproc s isha ppeninginorg aniz a t ionsa cros t heg lo ea ndcommu ica

-t ionan ed c t ionisakeya re indevelo mentofsust aina bi t y.W it houtt his,profs

ion-a ls ca nnotdelver wide owner hip oft he ne d a nd jointdevelo mentofsust a ina ble

solu ons

Int eg rat i gcorp ra t eresp nsibi t yint oorg a niz at ionsisa boutt ea msworkingt og et her,

commu ica t ingt hea ima ndu der t a ndingt herulesoft heg ame.Itisa lsoa boutworking

a s int eg rat ed commu it ies, pla cing crit ica l imp rt a nc on encoura g ing fedba ka nd

develo ingu d er t an inga ndowner hipinot her

Throug hknowledg e,st akeholder a rea blet oplayt heirpa rtint hewidersust a ina bi t y

chaleng e,an int urnt hisemp wer t hemt osha rebes pra ct ic wit hot her s.Useof va

ri-et yofbusines t ra ininga ndcommu ica t iont oolswi delvera ninclusivemes a g e,an in

t hismult imediaworldt here re n mberoft oolsa va ilable

Trends in c orporat e responsibi it y

Sust a inA bi t y,ast ra t eg icmana g ementconsult ancyan t hin -t a nk,describest hre waves

relat i gt oa norg a niz at ion’s esp nsibi t ya ndsust a ina bi t y.Thet hre wavesha vet he

folowingfa t ures:

•

fir twave:19 0sa nd19 0s.Ty pifiedb t heriseofNGOsa ndanemerg ent‘gr een’

mo ement e kingt oc ha ng egovernmenta ppr oa c hestot hea g en a Theworldord er

wa sc ha ra teriz edb t heColdWar t at usquo;

•

sec on wave:late 1980st oea rl y19 0s.Ma rket s,bigbusines a ndt heirbran swer e

firml ypla c edint heNGOa ndmediasp t lighta tt he n oft heColdWa r,folow inga

seriesof nv ironment a la ndsocialc t asr ophes;

t hir dwave:p s 2 0 ,ormor et he‘d ow n-waveperiod’ folow inga nint enseeraof

glo a liz at ion a ndofa nti-glo a liz at ion.The ma inbusines focus isincr easingl yon

r esp nsible glo a liz a tion, enterprise a nd in o at ion in t he commu ity/socia l an

en v ir onment e tor Chang esinglo alan c orp ra t egoverna nc ea r erequiredtobe

st r eng t henedfolow ingmarketd ema nd

Sust a inabledevelo mentisakeyg overnmentp lcyrele t ingpublc wa renes a nd

con-c rnforenvironment a lisuesa ndt here lst rainont he nvironmentfromphysica l

devel-o ment lan fi ,g rou dcont a minat ion,na t ura lresourc deplet ion).Thereisoft enabig

t imelagbet we nenvironment a lca usea ndefct Theimpa ctof ct ionsa ndout comesa re

nota lwa yscle rlyvisibleoru der t ood

W ake-up c al s

Stat eoft heworld

Noone a nd oubtt heurg encyoft hene dt ocommu ica t ea a llforcha ng e.TheE g lan

a ndW a lesE vironmentA g encyRep r for2 0 log s1,250seriousp lut ionincident sin

2 03 a lone Ca rb n dioxide, met ha ne an nit rous oxidelevelsare a ta n a llt imehig h

(c rb nemis ionswerere ordeda tles t ha n1bi iont on esin19 0,cur en yin2 0

some6bi iont on esof a rb narebeingemit t edan ualy)an wa st ecost sa re sc alat i g

(asdema ndincrea sesa long sidelan fi t a x)

Thisdoesn’tonlyafctourownba ckya rdbutt hepla netasawhole,fromg la cia lmelt ingt o

deorest a t iona ndincre seddesert ifica t ionoft hesub-Sa ha ranreg ions.A llorg a niz at ions

cont ribu ngt ot heseenvironment a la ndforc dsocia lcha ng esha vea no p rt unit yt o

reviewt heircur entpra t ic san commu ica t eatcorp ra t elevelhowt heya rema na g ing

t heir esp nsibi t iest ot hemselves,t heircur ent t a keholder an fut ureg enera t ions

Realt yst rikes

TimW irt h,t heUn erSe ret a ryofSt a t eforg lo a la ffir int heClnt onA dminist ra t ionof

t heUnit edSt at esGo er nmen eloq uen ysa id, The conomyisawholyowned

subsid-ia ry ft he nvironmen ,whichsumsupdepen enc onourenvironmenta ndln sitint o

t hebusines a g en a

Then,a sDrE wardW ilsonremin edhisa udienc (a tt heJoh Cha ffeMemoria lLe t ure

onScienc a ndt heE vir onmentint heUSAin2 01) ‘foreveryper onint heworldt o

re chpresentA merica n levelsof onsumpt ionwit hexist i gt ech olog ywouldreq uir e

fourmorepla nete rt hs’ Heg oesont op intoutt ha t‘h manit yhasawa keneda tla stt o

t herea lit iesoft henat ura le onomyt ha tu derlest hemar kete onomy Inot herwords,

t hefinancia lp u dont heb t t omlneis,a ndwi con n et obe,a fct edb t heurg ent

ne dt oincrea seenvir onment a lprot ect ion

Cle rlyt heUSAisb nomea nsat ypica lexa mpleofg lo a lconsumpt ion,butiti ust ra t es

t hene dt ot hin int ermsof‘sust aina bleconsumpt ion’ Thatist hefinit enat ureoft he

resourc sineveryda y,u sust aina bleuseindevelo ednat ions

ChrisPa t t eninhisB CRad io4Reit hLe t urein2 0 en t led‘Respe tfort heEart h’

describedt hedeinit ionofsust aina bi t yputforwa rdb Bru d a ndan p st ulat esan

a lt erna t ivedeinit ionhesourc dfrom‘afr ien ’ ‘W eshouldlvehereonea rt ha st houg h

wewereint en ingt ost a yforg ooda ndnotjus fort hewe ken ’

S ,ify uha vede idedt obuidcorp ra t eresp nsibi t ya ndenvironment a lbes pra ct ic

int oy urbusines cult ure,t hisg uideisa bouthowy uca ncommu ica t eit Theg uidewi

helpy ut odemonst r at ey urcompanyispla nningt ost ickwit hit scommit ment st oCR

a ndnotjus ‘st a yfort hewe ken ’whis it ’sinv g ue

Comeon-b ard,embra cet heo p rt unit yor esig ny ur elft obat t lingt het idea ndal t he

busines riskin erentint ha to t ion!

Ha st hi spr ompt edi d eas?Ca pt ur et hemher e:

Communic at ions ov erv iew

Nosing lesolu onwi delvery urCRcommu ica t ionprog ramme;y une dt ot akea

broadviewa cros t hebusines a ndimplementara ng eofo t ionsatdif rentt imesan

wit hdif rentfocuses

Commu ica t ionshouldbereg ular ,inava riet yoformat s,an usinganimaginat ivea

rchi-t ecrchi-t ure,notforg et t ingfedba ck.Remember,anorg a niz at ion’sint raneta ndwebpa g esa re

notapa nac eat oa lly urCRcommu ic t ionchaleng es.Bea rdwel an Holdennot et ha t :

‘A llorg a niz a t ionsne dc ommu ica t ionsyst emst ofu ct ion,whet hert heseareo ert ly

re og niz edor ubc onsciouslyt a kenforg rant ed

Theimp rt a nc of re t i gefct ive ommu ica t ionsisbe omingmorea ndmore rit ica l

a snewt ech olog iesan ext ernalpres uresmea nacompa nymus workha rdt oke pa

compet it iveedg einbusines A st hework-lf bala nc et hicbe omesmoreimp rt an

ma nyemplo e sare lsolo kingforbet t erint ernalworkingrela t ionships,u der t an ing

a ndme ningt ot heirjo s, an in e dlves.Mes a g est o a ndfr omt heworkforc a re

be omingmoresig nifica nt Polt ica l,socia la nde onomict ren swi a lsoinfluenc a t t

i-t udesa ndcommu ic t ionsint heemplo ment ela t ionship a ndt hesemaywel cha ng e

a ndev lveovert ime

Def i it ion ofc ommunic t ion

Whent hin ingab utcommu ic t iont herea rema nydeinit ionst oconsider.TheOxo d

En ls hDicti on rydescribesita s:

‘n u n 1t hea c t ionofc ommu ni c a t ing.2 l et t erormesa ge.3(c om mu ni c at i ons)mea ns

of send ing r r ec eivi ng infor mat i on, su c h a s t el ep one l i es or c omp t er s.’

R ol nson, Broadfield an E w ards (Org nisation l Be haviour a d An l ysis, p57 )

describet he olowingdesc ript iondat i gba ckt oMerih uein19 0: A nybehaviourt ha t

2

result sina nexc hang eofmea ningormut ualexcha ng eofa ct s,t houg ht s,o inionsor

emo-t ions’ Thist a keson-b ardt hefolowing :

•

u les t he mes a g e c ontent is mu t uall yu d er tood t hen c ommu ica tion ha s not

t akenpla c e;

•

c ommu ica tionsca nt akepla c einman ydif r entforms

Baguley(19 4,p )deinescommu ic t iona s‘t heproc s t ha toc ur whenidea s,infor

ma t ionan felng sa re onveyedbet we nin ivid a lsorg roupsofin ivid alsfordelber

a t epurp se’

Deiningcommu ica t ionisnot imple.However,fort hepurp seoft hisg uide

‘commu-nica t ion’ist a kent omea nt ha tt heinforma t ionexchang e:

t hata tlea stt woin i v id ua lsorpa rt iesa r er equir edtopart icipa t e

Acommu ica t ionc nbeshor t ermorinst a nt ,a sinag re t ing ,d ire t ionsorasimple

req u est ,oritca nbepar of moredevelo edlong -t ermpla nor t r at eg y.Thisg uide

pro-videsinforma t iononcommu ic t ionsa spar ofint eg r at i gcorp ra t eresp nsibi t y(e.g

environment a lmes a g esan p lc s) t oawideau ienc an explor eshowt oefct ively

commu ic t emesag est oembedast ra t eg yint oeveryda ya ct ivit ies

Aimsofb sines c ommunic t ion

Generaly,t hekeya imsofint erna lbusines commu ica t ionsar et o:

•

pa ssonrequest sa ndinst ructions;

•informemplo e san c olea g uesab u tnewpr oc ed ur esorp lc es;

•

fostertea mworkinga ndbuidow ner hipof s ra teg

Thet ypic laimsof xt erna lbusines commu ic at ionwi inclu e:

ra isingawa r enes ,int er es a ndult imatel yfinancial n ves menttot heorg aniz at ion,e.g.

d evelo ingp siti vebra ndawa r enes ;

ca pt uringmarketintel g enc ean eng a ginginexterna ld eba t e,i.e.benc hma rking

Communic t ion a aproc es

Itmus a lsobere og niz edt hatcommu ic t ionisaproc s ,wit hara ng eof a ct or t ha t

influenc t he proc s The mult i-per pe t ive model ofcommu ic t ion, as shown in

Fig ure2.1,summa riz est hera ng eof a ct or t obet akenint oconsidera t ion.Mos

commu-nica t ionsfolowasimiarproc s ,a lt houg ht herea reseveralvaria t ionsont his.Thef

ol-lowingdescript ionsa pplyt oe chst ag e:

Employe inv olvement

Fig ure2.2(fromRol nson,Broadfieldan E wa rds,19 8) n ica t eshowimp rt antitis

t ot akea ccou toforg a niz a t ionst ruct ure,cult ure n ot heru iq uea spe t st oabusines

Theya llha veanimpa ctint hecommu ica t ionproc s Rol nsonetal,amongot her ,

describeamult i-per pe t ivecommu ic t ionmodelt ha ta t ivelyinv lvest he

environ-menta swel a st he ommu ica t ions en eran rec eiver

Emplo e inv lvementc ommu ica t ions a reproc s est hata llow emplo e st o ha vea

g re t er sa yin busines mana g ement Oneoft hec sest udies att he en oft his g uide

describes a g ood example oft his a t t he B C A nysor ofcommu ica t ion inv lving

emplo e inv lvement ne dst o be clea r onit sdimensions a nd ne ds t oconsider, a s

phra sedinBea rdwel a ndHolden(19 7):

•Thedegre eofin vol vement t he xt enttowhic hemplo e sinfl uenc et he ina ld ecision)

•Thelevelofin vol vement atjo d epa rtment alororga nisa tional evel

•Thefo msofinvol vement direct ,in ir ectorfina ncia l)

•Thera geofsubje tma t t erbeingc onsid er edint hein vol vement c heme

communicato (Simplfied

fomRol nso ,B roadfield

andEdwards,19 98)

F rmsofc ommunic t ion

Commu ica t ion t a kes pla ce in t hre dist i ct for ms: verba l, non-verbal a nd writ t en

(Fig ure2.3)

Byit snat ure,verba lcommu ica t iona ssumest hatefct ivelst eningski sa rep s es edb

t hoset owhomt hemes a g eisad res ed.W rit t encommu ica t ionisincrea singinp

pu-la rit yd et o a dvanc sinITa ndint erna l mes a g ing ,e.g e-mai, int ernetan int ra net

Non-verba lcommu ic t ionist heonlyformt ha treq uiresfa ce-t o-f c commu ica t ions

ta ki ngac c ou ntoft heonseta ndgr owi ng o u l a r i t yoft el ephonec onfr enc esandm eeti ngs

T h e te rm ‘qu ality com m un ication s’ is re gu larly m e n tion e din com m un ication re fe re n ce

b ok an dre fe rs oth es atis factionofb thth ese n de rs ’a n dth ere ce ive rs ’n e e dsi nth eproce s s

These ormsof ommu ica t ionca nt a kepla ce tan mberofdif rentlevelsa nd

dimen-sions.W henconsideringhowt ocommu ica t eelement sofy urCRa g en a ,lo ka tt he

t ypesof mplo e inv lvemen a sdiscusedbelow

•

Contr l,e.g.worker orworker an mana g er tog et her:

– tea mworkingrequir esr oleplan inga ndorg aniz a tion;

– c anbemore om pl e xandt i m econsu mi ngt ha nsm a ll erg rou ps,i e.consu l ta t i ona l

•

Co-determi ned–workcou cis,u ionset c

•

Cons ultati on l–g enerall yt wowayin vol v ing:

– jo enric hmen a ppraisals,qua litysurveys,cult uralora t t it ud esurvey ;

– skilsr equir edb gr oup‘le d er’t omaket hecommu ica tionpr oces efct i ve;

– gr oupc onsult at ions,oftenr equiringmor einterper ona lt hant ec hnica lski s;

– seniorma nag ementc onsid eringan discus ingsug g esionstopreventt hembeing

t ime-wa st inga ndhav inganad ver eefctonmora le

•Communi cati on l–la rg eme ting san tea mbrieing s:

– p pula rfa c e-to-fa c ea ppr oa c h;

– o p rt unitytor e-en a nc egoa lsa nda ims;

– ke ptoat imefra me(id eall ymaxof 0min);

– gi veo p rt unityforquest ions;

– c onsid ert heimpa tift hene da risestoc nc ela tshor not ic e

•

Ino mati on l–not ic eb a r ds,mag a z ines,newslet ter etc

– g enera ll ytopd ow n;

– ca nva ryinqua litya ndc ontentd epen ingonhowest ablsheditisint hebusines

c ommu ica tionsystem;

– lmitedo p rt unityforfedba c k;

– mayberest rict edb editoria lc ont r ol

Princ iplesoforga iz t ion c ommunic t ion –‘t hesev en Cs’

These commu ic t ion principles a re re og niz ed in t he rese rc h a ndare described in

Rol nsoneta l.Inshort ,commu ica t ionisacomplexproc s butt hesevenprinciples

showninFig ure2.4helpt oiden fyimp r t a ntaspe t st oconsiderinbusines an org a

ni-z a t iona lcommu ica t ions

1 Complete e s–typic lyr elate tothemes a eitselfandf i dingoutwhat he

r ec iverof hemes a ewantsorne dstok ow

2 Co c is n s –u eplainEngls andavoidu ne es ar yr ep tition

3 Co sid ratio –s owb nef itstothere d randmakemor eu eof hewor ds‘you’

than‘me’or‘ Emphasizeid asor hemesmostr elevant other ec iverof he

c mmu ic tion

4 Co c r ete e s–u esp cif icf actsandf igur es(makingthemrelevant othe

r ecipient)

5 Clarity–makethemes a ecle r,u es or tsentenc s,he dings Simplcityof he

mes a eisimp rant oavoidc nf usion

6 Co rte y–u eta t,thoughtf ulnes anda pre iationinyourc mmu ic tion

Con id radir ectandanindir ecta pr oac handwhatismosts ita leinagiven

situation

7 Correctn s –u ether ightleveloflangua e(ie.f or malorinf or mal) and

c mmu ic tionme n (wr iten,vis al etc.)f or hegr oupthec mmu ic tion

mes a eisaime at

Figu re2 4 :Se e

princ iplesoforg aniz to al

commu nicato

Not et ha twit hCRan environment a lcommu ica t ionsy uwil loft enne dt oconveya

simiarmes a g e, butt o dif rentg roups an levels ofpeo le Ta ke t heseven Cs int o

a cou tan besuret haty urc ommu ica t ionis elevantt ot here eiver –t hisma ymea n

severaldif rentcommu ica t ionst ra t eg iest odif renta udienc s

The role of c ult ure in t he CR agenda

(see also C hapter 9)

Thewa wed t hings aroundhere

Thecult ureofa nor g aniz a t ionissomet hingwhichL n berg(19 0,inRol nsonetal

reer to as an invisible motive forc ofde ply ing rained ideolog ies, a forc that

g ives peo le somet hing in common a nd is u iq ue t o a pa rt icula r g roup or org a niz

-a t ion Itis somet hingt hathas a commonframe ofreerenc , a symb lcsig nifica nc

a ndt hedet a ilsofwhicha reca rriedinmin srat hert hanonpa per Ot her deinit ions

inclu e t he simple ‘t he wa ywe d o t hing s ar ou d here’ (De l a nd K en edy 1982) t o

t he more d et aied‘ideolog ies, beles an d eep- etva lues whichoc ur in a llfirms…

a ndareprescript ivefort hewa ys inwhic hpeo leshouldworkin t heseorg a nisa t ions’

(Ha rrison19 2)

Cult ure is considereda soft a spe t in peo le’s min s, somet hing someone may

sub-consciously ca rryoutorworkt owards The mea ningofcult urec n exis atdif rent

levelsan Schein(inRol nsoneta l) iden fiesa‘la yeredconc pt ua liz a t ionof ult ure’

basica ssumpt ions–suc ha st heba sisonwhic hin i v id ua lsa r er espe tedort heba sisof

t hefirm’sabi tyt oc ompete

Ast rongcult ureisa ssociat edwit hawel-develo ed,superiororg a niz at ionan cont a ins

t het wo element sofint ensit yan sha red es Int ensit yreer t o t helevelof ommit

-ment t he emplo e s or member of the busines or company have t o t he c nt ral

va lues.Sha red es ist heext entt owhichabusines sharest hesa mecoreva luesbet we n

member