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Tan Sri Zarinah Anwar, Chairman,
Securities Commission Malaysia
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Currently, leading practitioners in Europe are moving away from CSR to corporate responsibility (CR) because CR includes the wider issues of governance, ethics and environment. Dropping the word ‘social’ is a conscious act to avoid placing too much emphasis on the social aspects of business, i.e. being philanthropic and focusing too much on ‘giving back to the community’ activities.
CR covers governance and ethics and all aspects of the ‘Triple Bottom Line’. More important, it allows business leaders to recognise that there is no conflict between CR and profitability, despite the feelng many instinctively have that there must be a trade off between CR and profits.
With this greater emphasis on CR, businesses should be able to integrate good governance and an ethical approach when deciding which business to be in. CR also makes the board think about how the company conducts its business and where it could be exposed to damage brought about by irresponsible behaviour in its value and supply chains. CR affects the three performance dimensions that create economic value over the long-term, i.e. the company’s ability to invest in and support its
Natural capital by minimising its environmental footprint
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Social capital by making society a better place through its contributions
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Human capital by investing in the skills and development of its people
By focusing on CR, businesses are encouraged to think about how their operations affect the environment, community and society, and how to be responsible for the ways in which they make their money, not merely what to do with the money once they have made it.
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