Corporate Responsibility Reporting - Its Growing Importance in Global Business

Nov 14, 2011 4:00 PM ET

Corporate responsibility reporting - its growing importance in global business

Two new reports reveal the growing importance of corporate responsibility reporting as part of the core strategies of leading global companies.

A KPMG InternationalSurvey of Corporate Responsibility Reporting 2011, survey shows that even amid the pressures of a tough economy - and maybe because of it - more U.S. companies are formally reporting their Corporate Responsibility (CR) activities to stakeholders.

Similar evidence of the growing importance of corporate  responsibility was presented in a 'BSR/GlobeScan State of Sustainable Business Poll 2011,' released last week at a BSR Conference 2011 in San Francisco.

'Even with the current uncertainties in the global economy, companies remain highly focused on the value of sustainable business strategies,' said BSR President and CEO Aron Cramer. 'This year's survey indicates that sustainability holds a critical, valued seat at the table when it comes to defining corporate strategies for growth.'

Krista Bauer, director of Global Programs at GE and also a speaker at the BSR Conference in San Francisco stresed the fact that corporate responsibility strategies open the door to new ways of looking at business.

'For every dollar that we spend, how many people do we impact? And for every activity that we engage in, how do we make it sustainable,' she said.

'It's got nothing to do with units out the door, with margin to the company, or with any sort of commercial angle or metric. And that's been entirely liberating because it has opened our eyes to a lot of things … that GE doesn't make but that GE can enable,' she added.

 

To continue reading about the importance of sustainability reporting, click here.   About GE
GE (NYSE: GE) is an advanced technology, services and finance company taking on the world’s toughest challenges. Dedicated to innovation in energy, health, transportation and infrastructure, GE operates in more than 100 countries and employs about 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com.
 
Citizenship at GE is more than a program or a set of good intentions - it is a full-time commitment built upon cultural behaviors and actions. These actions are integrated with business strategy and have defined goals, strategies and metrics that make it actionable and accountable.
 
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