Cape Town - CSR and
sustainability programmes form a crucial link with profitability, research
reveals – and they are also emerging as a key differentiator in the recruitment
process.
Corporate social
responsibility programmes are a key mechanism to boost engagement and attract
top talent, research among Top Employers across South Africa shows.
Effective CSR programmes
grow the three Ps: profit, people and planet, says Billy Elliott, Country
Manager of the Top Employers Institute in South Africa. Increasing this ‘triple
bottom line’ is a consistent pattern among Top Employers – and research shows
97% of Top Employers in the country have defined an organisation-wide CSR
programme.
Why you should be leveraging
CSR
The Top Employers Institute,
which certifies and recognises excellence in the conditions employers create
for their people globally, helps organisations stay on top of current HR Best
Practices. One of the areas that the Top Employers Institute research is how to
ensure an effective CSR programme.
The majority of Top
Employers across South Africa implement all these practices in their CSR
programmes, says Elliott. “Taking CSR seriously as a differentiator is as
essential in the competition for talent as it is for reputation-building among
stakeholders,” he adds.
“CSR and sustainability
programmes are the primary way that organisations demonstrate their willingness
to improve society and give back in a meaningful way,” says Elliott. “As such,
these initiatives are emerging as key mechanisms not only to make employees
feel proud and involved with the organisation, enhancing organisational culture
– but to attract new talent.”
How you should be leveraging
CSR
Forbes contributor
James Epstein-Reeves agrees that an effectively implemented CSR programme
can have a major impact on employee engagement and stakeholder relationships
and therefore, ultimately, profitability. Echoing Elliott’s sentiments on the
three Ps, Epstein-Reeves cites a link between CSR and innovation, brand
differentiation, employee engagement and even long-term cost saving.
Effectiveness requires
buy-in, points out Elliott. Across South Africa, 94% of Top Employers
consistently make information about their CSR programme freely accessible to
employees, and 87% consistently evaluate their impact and effectiveness. In
order to encourage employees to participate, over 75% grant special leave for
participation in CSR activities.
South African Top Employer
Thermo Fisher Scientific, for example, supports Stop Hunger Now, an
international body that coordinates the distribution of food and other
life-saving aid. Kirstie Bean, HR Leader - Africa, for the company, says via
Thermo Fisher’s CSR programme, Get Involved, employees from various divisions
work together to pack food hampers, sometimes up to 20,000 in one drive.
Leveraging CSR for the
long-term
Portia Bangerezako, Head of
Sustainability at Top Employer South Africa, Sanlam, says that as a financial
institution, Sanlam aims to help build economic resilience, and their progress
is reported annually in the sustainability report. The report links CSR to the
company strategy overall, and employees are encouraged to volunteer ideas.]
Some targets set by Sanlam
include reducing their own electricity and water consumption; a transformative
partnership with WWF SA, identifying strategic water sources (an open source
project which is accessible to all); and a high resolution water risk filter
tool to help individuals and companies determine their water risks.
Sanlam also
piloted a project that allowed for self-sustaining active ownership for
organised labour, intended to capacitate union members and enable them to query
issues pertaining to Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) targets. Sanlam
spent a total of R207 million on skills development for its employees and
R116,7 million on enterprise and supplier development in 2016.
Most of these goals are long
term. CSR is a marathon, not a sprint, but done right, it benefits all,
Bangerezako points out. “We continue to look at ways to improve our
business, our client service, our employees and the wider society, and are
committed to having a material impact on the Sustainable Development Goals.”
The Top Employers institute
helps leading employers around the world adapt to the rapidly changing HR
environment.