Strategies for sustainable development: use of a benchmarking tool to understand relative strengths and weaknesses and identify best practice

Abstract

This paper will describe the development and application of a methodology for assessing the progress being made by companies in addressing the challenges of sustainable development. The methodology is based on the identification of a number of attributes that provide indicators of progress in pursuit of sustainable development. Each attribute is then further described in terms of several key characteristics. Publicly available information from leading companies can then be analysed in terms of these attributes and characteristics and each company's relative progress can be assessed.The methodology has been applied to a number of leading companies. The companies were chosen to cover a range of different sectors and by reference to relevant indicators, including the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and the FTSE4Good. An initial study carried out in 2000 was repeated during 2002. The results can be used to identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of a particular company versus best practice in its sector and overall, and to show the progress that has been made by individual companies and by sectors between 2000 and 2002. The paper will present some illustrative results from the studies.

The practice of stakeholder dialogue between multinationals and NGOs

“…I NTEREST IN CORPORATE SOCIETAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) IS STRONG AND GROWING -WITNESS THE AMOUNT OF research on this topic, the number of conferences around the world devoted to it and the lengthening list of companies that publish CSR evaluations with their annual reports. A key aspect of CSR is the way companies interact with stakeholders (Dahlsrud, 2006;Downey, 2002;Hemming et al, 2004;Pedersen, 2006 The following section presents two models of stakeholder dialogue, which will be used to evaluate the emerging practice. Next, the dialogue practice of corporate MNC headquarters with NGOs is analyzed by assessing the fi ve elements we distinguished.…”

“…A key aspect of CSR is the way companies interact with stakeholders (Dahlsrud, 2006;Downey, 2002;Hemming et al, 2004;Pedersen, 2006). The concepts of CSR and stakeholder dialogue (or stakeholder engagement) are closely intertwined in the literature.…”

Governing Corporate Social Responsibility: An Assessment of the Contribution of the UN Global Compact to CSR Strategies in the Telecommunications Industry

“…state, market, and civil society). Three well-known market initiatives are the Dow Jones Sustainability Group Index, the FTSE4Good Index, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (see Hemming et al, 2004;Knoepfel, 2001;Timberlake, 2002, for a discussion of these initiatives). Companies and interest groups have also, in some cases in co-operation with NGOs, developed guidelines for assisting companies in shaping their CSR strategies (see Ligteringen and Zadek, 2005, for some examples).…”

Strategy Formulation And Csr Implementation On Company Performance(Study At Industrial Area Makassar)

“…Company's strategy is based on triple button line concept of Elkington [2] namely: profit, people and planet. The indicators used to measure the CSR-oriented corporate strategy variables was developed by Hemming et al , [19] [18], who prefers to wealth creation and adequate satisfaction for our stakeholders, primarily consisting of 1) employee, 2) consumer, 3) investor, 4) society, 5) environmental, and 6) suppliers perspectives. Strategic performance measurement is used to measure the performance appraisal of all aspects and functions within company, and its implications not only affects the short term but the medium and long term, as well as performance-oriented aspects of financial and non-financial performance, (Kaplan and Norton, 1996).…”

“…Kima Makassar, to assess company's performance improvement through CSR implementation integrated with corporate strategy. CSR-oriented corporate strategy constructs measured by indicator of sustainability progress indicator comparative evaluation (SPICE), developed by Hemming et al , [19]. The methodology is based on triple bottom line concept, Elkington [2], which combines measures of economic development with social and environmental responsibility.…”