Kathryn J. Nobrega, Senior Program Director, Amherst, MA
Today's EHS professionals can provide additional continued value by building and leading corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. Learn how Sara Broadbent, STC's CSR practice leader brought her EHS career to the next level and joined this evolving and expanding specialty practice area:
What is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) exactly, and why is it needed?
There are many different definitions, but the most simple is "business doing what is right." Most industry CSR programs focus on ethics, labor, EHS, philanthropy, and management systems.
CSR is needed because if you look at how our world is operating today, you see that the power of corporations includes the power to create jobs. In the past, governments could be depended on to provide for and support their citizens. Now governments around the world today find it hard to create jobs.
The United Nations realized that in order to alleviate poverty, they had to work with business. They couldn't rely only on governments, some of which were powerless, others were corrupt, to create jobs. In forming the Global Compact, the UN came to believe that business has the power to stamp out poverty in the world.
This was a big change and a major driver for CSR world-wide. The UN hadn't previously worked with business - as it wasn't seen as part of its mission. The old assumptions have changed.
How did you get started in CSR?
I started officially in CSR while at Seagate Technology, in my role as Executive Director, EHS. The nature of CSR is a matrix program working with many different parts of the organization. Because Seagate's EHS organization was already accustomed to working in a matrixed arrangement, EHS was chosen to facilitate the CSR function. I was chosen to lead in this area because I had experience with other business units from EHS responsibilities and Six Sigma projects.
Seagate developed a CSR program as the result of a direct challenge from HP. As one of our major customers, they said in effect that we challenge you to have a program like ours.
Back then, around 2002, everything was strictly voluntary. At the time, Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) assembled a small working group of electronics companies and under their auspices, this working group explored our common issues. That's when we decided that we needed a single code and audit practices to help suppliers understand their responsibilities.
This working group evolved into the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), which issued its Code of Conduct in 2004.
It was a real mark of success that the electronics industry was able to come together and agree to a common standard.
What are the best ways to develop CSR programs?
My approach is to start by looking at what is in place. Evaluate what currently exists against benchmarks such as codes, standards, even the programs of other leading CSR companies. For those in the electronics industry, once the EICC Code of Conduct was in place, it was easier-we could evaluate our strengths and weaknesses against the Code. At Seagate, we addressed our weaknesses by building new programs, and strengthening those that were existing. For example, we already had an environmental management system (EMS), which was a strength that we could build on.
In other CSR areas, like labor, more work may be needed. For example, human resources policies may only be local, which prevents pointing to a company-wide standard, like a prohibition against child labor.
It is important to document your CSR program-having it in writing makes it easier for customers and other interested parties to clearly understand what the program encompasses and the program status.
And it's important to recognize that CSR is not static-you don't just create a program and then you're done. It's changing-the company changes, the world changes. For example, no one could've foreseen the role of conflict minerals. Now companies are wondering, "how are we going to comply with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations?"
What are the major differences and similarities between EHS and CSR management?
The major difference is the scope. The scope of CSR is so much greater than EHS. The implication for EHS professionals is that you have to broaden your experience beyond traditional EHS activities. You have to become knowledgeable about sustainability, labor and ethics requirements. Lots of companies also include philanthropy in their CSR programs, which is also outside the traditional EHS boundaries.
It comes down to understanding a myriad of business issues outside of EHS. You have to be able to work with people of various expertise. You have to understand enough of the partnering business organization's concerns to be effective. Because so much is of CSR is still voluntary, you have to build what will work within your company culture.
In terms of what's similar, particularly as the field is evolving, more is being put into codes and standards, and there are audits against those codes and standards. To effectively audit CSR is similar in technique to EHS audits. You have to understand the applicable CSR codes and standards and any industry requirements. This means you must be able to audit against the specific details. For example, in the situation of child labor, what is the age that defines a child: under 14, 16, or 18, or is it set at the government requirement? How are apprentice programs addressed? How are applicant ages verified? And so on.
For industries that don't have codes, a framework can be built from common elements of other industry's and organization's codes. This is an area where STC can help to identify common elements to build a workable CSR framework, based on our wide base of industry and organization experience.
What's the best way for EHS professionals to develop CSR management skills?
If your company is starting or already has a CSR program, get involved right away. If your company doesn't have a program, look at local organizations you can join, where you'll have the chance to interface with other CSR professionals. For example, in my area there's Sustainable Silicon Valley that many CSR professionals participate in. Another means to develop CSR management skills is to become involved with your company's philanthropic endeavors to start to broaden your company involvement beyond EHS.
Which resources are most helpful?
BSR and the UN Global Compact (UNGC) both have useful websites. BSR posts on their website summaries of their annual conference, which provides snapshots of what other companies and organizations are up to. To look at different companies' CSR reports-what and how they're reporting--go to the UNGC website. That's a consolidated way to see how companies are discussing their programs.
What was most challenging for you at the beginning of your CSR career?
Getting people's attention and devotion to CSR. Once you have a situation where the press is at your door step, everyone wants to help out. But if you don't have something strong to drive the program, it can be a real challenge. Until you have that, you have to be able to go out there and grab at people's heart strings to get them participate with you!
What has been the most rewarding?
To be able to see there's been progress and that you are able to make a difference in the world. For the environment - going beyond regulations toward sustainability. For labor - having fair management practices across the world. In ethics - you and your suppliers having a common understanding of what the fair business standards are. And for philanthropy - letting people know about good things you're doing each and every day.
Sara Broadbent leads STC's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practice and brings more than 30 years of environmental, health and safety (EHS) management experience to STC's global operations. She has operational, management, industry and consulting experience in industries ranging from electronics to hazardous waste, providing valuable insight into the design and implementation of CSR and EHS management systems. While the Executive Director for EHS at Seagate Technologies, Sara directed Seagate's Corporate Social Responsibility Program, was Vice-President of the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition, and represented the United States Network of the United Nations Global Compact. She has utilized her Lean/Six Sigma training in diverse projects such as improving design cycle times and implementing more efficient training methods. She has regional and international EHS program management and compliance experience with Fortune 500 companies. Sara was one of the first women to become a certified Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator in Los Angeles County. She is an ISO 14001 Auditor, a California Registered Environmental Assessor, a Grade II Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator and a Six Sigma Black Belt. Sara can be reached by email at sbroadbent@stcenv.com.
