Make the world a better place – and profit from it, too
Companies are coming under increasing pressure to demonstrate responsible behaviour with regard to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.
Press coverage of companies’ poor corporate practices ranges from the global story of Volkswagen cheating in its emission tests to the much more local case of a woman who was sent home from her job as a temporary receptionist for refusing to wear high heels.
But these are just two examples of companies failing to conform to publicly acceptable standards of fairness and responsibility.
It is hard to say when ESG began to take on importance in the modern day consciousness. Environmental issues certainly took a major step towards being accepted as a concern at the highest levels when Prime Minister Thatcher famously stunned the Royal Society and then the United Nations with speeches highlighting the “insidious danger” and prospect “of irretrievable damage to the atmosphere, to the oceans, to Earth itself.”
The strike by women demanding equal pay at the Dagenham Ford works in 1968 is an even earlier example of how publicity could be leveraged, this time to put pressure on an employer to conform to simple fairness. ESG issues have now taken on such a momentum that in the 21st Century, addressing them is now a major component of what companies do.
Rather than being forced to conform to acceptable ESG standards, however, companies need to recognise that embracing them is very much in their own interests. It is often the perception that ESG is somehow a costly concession to fanciful ideals.
In practice, there is an endless list of benefits in terms of working in cleaner environments, motivating employees, instilling confidence in investors and securing long-term corporate trust as well as the very financial consideration of avoiding fines and loss of customers.
There are also unlimited PR opportunities for companies to highlight their thought leadership and other initiatives in relation to ESG.
Recognition of these is now even acknowledged through industry events such as Charity Times’ Better Society Awards.
There need be no distinction between making a profit and making the world a better place. And using PR to both handle crises and positively promote corporate reputations is more essential than ever.
business, Communications, Corporate PR, corporate reputation, environment, ESG, publicity