Go online - save lives

When you use online tools to manage your daily tasks, you may be saving someone's life. Sound a bit far-fetched? A bit surreal? A little like bluewash? Read on.

This week, I had the pleasure of facilitating a webinar on the subject of how everyday business and household activities can contribute to a low-carbon economy. The study that prompted the webinar was conducted by the Global eSustainability Initiative (GeSI), performed by John "Skip" Laitner of the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) and sponsored by some major telco's, including Verizon. The webinar was organized by CSRwire.com and presented the findings of this study, the bottom line being that, if we fully utilize the potential of broadband to engage in a certain set of online activities (teleworking, downloading music and books, taking educational courses, reading news, receiving online bank statements and billing and using email), in just 6 countries (U.S., France, Germany, UK, Italy, Spain), we can save 2% of carbon emissions in these countries, enough to take 55 million cars off the road.  55 million cars. That's some collective impact.

In this post, I wanted to reflect a little on the ways in which our online behavior is changing. For many, the main motivation of going broadband may not be to save the planet, but this study shows that doing more online in order to save our own time, money and endless pressure to get things done, also conserves the planet's resources.

I would consider myself an early adopter of online technology - way back in the mid 1990's, before anyone had conceived of Facebook and Twitter and many of today's online tools, I used to play bridge online at Yahoo with people from all over the world. That was just for fun. Today, I use online tools for a million other tasks, business, personal and pleasure: conference calling via VOIP; downloading books to Kindle; managing my personal and business bank accounts; reading Sustainability Reports; delivering lectures to MBA students and companies; downloading software; connecting with friends via Facebook; blogging; tweeting; learning through webinars and courses and generally staying up to date with what's going in on in the world. I work from home more and more, instead of driving to the office, and my latest recruit to Beyond Business is a teleworker.  Broadband has certainly changed my life and enabled me to build my consulting practice as a global business, serving international clients, in a way which would never have been possible in the "old" pre-broadband world. I have a broadband lifestyle because it works for me. My motivation was not green. I suspect most of us have drifted into broadbandland for the same reasons. However, for those of us who also like to be green, this new study shows that we are making a powerful contribution to a low-carbon economy. And it's not just about our own actions. There is a broader, more global effect.

By utilizing broadband, we are funding the future growth of broadband technology. The increase in uptake of broadband enables the ongoing development of technology which will provide greater opportunity, greater choice and greater positive green effects in the future. How is this saving lives? Consider this (from Verizon's online Sustainability Report):

"Each year more than 200,000 people in the U.S. die of chronic diseases that are both treatable and preventable. Among the causes of these deaths is lack of ready access to medical care, because of such barriers as distance, geography, or simply the availability of doctors and nurses. Verizon is currently deploying and developing wireless services that will overcome these roadblocks, using the Verizon 4G LTE network, smartphones, tablets and advanced video technology to enable virtual visits between patients and health care providers."

This telehealth technology is transforming access to healthcare data and services, reliability of data and the speed at which life-saving information can be transmitted to the right healthcare professionals. As we do more on line, we are helping to make these solutions possible, going beyond green and addressing real social needs. This is just one example of the new potential of broadband technology. No wonder, then, that Verizon, in the Company's recent published online  Corporate Responsibility Report, Verizon first and foremost emphasizes the "Shared Success" of  building a "truer connection between business and real social needs".

Another social cause that Verizon has put its broadband weight behind is the issue of domestic violence. One in four women is affected by domestic violence, and Verizon's Hopeline which collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories in any condition from any service provider to donate to victims and survivors of domestic violence - so far, Verizon has collected more than 8.9 million mobile phones. This is in addition to raising awareness and supporting education to end domestic violence, including the "Telling Amy's Story" documentary, about a young woman killed by her abusive husband, funded by the Verizon Foundation. Take a look at the vid - none of us are unaffected by tragedies such as these. 

But the power of ICT to save lives and advance social causes is not the only aspect of corporate responsibility that we should expect from telco's. Behind all of this social and environmental impact, there is a large, complex business, employing, in Verizon's case, nearly 200,000 employees, which must control and manage its own direct operations in a responsible, accountable and transparent way.

Verizon's online report shows a commitment to environmental sustainability, and a clear set of performance progress updates and new goals in the format that Verizon has adopted in its reporting for the past few years: "What we said we'd do, what we did, what we'll do next". For example, Verizon's carbon-intensity goal reduction by 2020 is 50% versus a 2009 baseline, and this includes exceeding 2011 target with a 17.45% reduction from 2010. Other goals including increasing alternative-fueled vehicles as part of the Verizon fleet to 15% by 2015, achieving 250 Smart Buildings by 2015 and expanding the Verizon Green Team membership to 10,000 employees by end 2012 (6,000 members in 2011).  Verizon's key performance indicators and metrics in all areas of Corporate Responsibility performance demonstrate clear targets and achievements in all areas.

Clearly, telco's also have other serious responsibility issues to address, such as conflict minerals, digital safety, pricing and much more. They are not perfect, and positive impacts don't cancel out negative impacts. The negative impacts must still be addressed. However, facilitating this webinar on energy savings through greater use of broadband, and researching Verizon's programs and transparent sustainability performance, as well as chatting to Verizon's Director of Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility, Chris Lloyd, prompted me to think about my own lifestyle, and the broader impact of online activities.

It seems that, the more we do online, the more we contribute to a more equitable, safer, healthier, connected, transparent society, in an energy efficient way. We even have the potential to save lives. The chances are that if you are reading this post (online), then I am preaching to the converted, so thanks for bearing with me in my online ramblings.

I think it's time for me to go and place my online order for today's ice cream. I just hope they don't deliver it via broadband. 

elaine cohen, CSR consultant, winning (CRRA'12) Sustainability Reporter, HR Professional, Ice Cream Addict. Author of CSR for HR: A necessary partnership for advancing responsible business practices  Contact me via www.twitter.com/elainecohen   on Twitter or via my business website www.b-yond.biz  (Beyond Business Ltd, an inspired CSR consulting and Sustainability Reporting firm)

Sustainable thank you

Thank you. Two little words that go a long way.  Writing Sustainability Reports take quite some effort and I was wondering how Companies go about publicly thanking those who have contributed to improved performance and to the production of the sustainability report itself. A little common courtesy and appreciation makes a big difference and adds a human face to reports. Even to the most boring of reports (mentioning no names :))

Who should you thank in a CSR Report?

*  Employees who have done their stuff

*  Stakeholders for reading the report and for (hopefully) providing feedback

*  Consultants, advisors, designers, assurers, copywriters etc who have worked with the company and/or on the report (yes, we are people too!)

*  External organisations who have supported the Company's sustainability initiatives

*  The CSR Reporting Manager ?

Who are the best thankers?

Thank (you) appears 6 times in the EasyJet Annual Report and Accounts (integrated CSR report) for 2009. Twice for retiring Board Members, once for the CEO, once for everyone who helped produce the report (by name) and a nice thank you to Easy Jet pilots (page 16) : We have outstanding people, including our front line cabin crew and pilots who are highly trained and professional. They all make a crucial contribution to our success and help to create an easyJet personality which is an important competitive advantage. I would like to thank them all for helping to deliver such a resilient performance in very difficult economic circumstances. 

Thank (you) appears twice in the Verizon 2009/2010 Sustainability Report - actually it's the same thank you to all employees from the Chairman and CEO which appears once in his opening remarks and once again, highlighted, at the end of the report. That's good enough for me. Twice.

Thank (you) appears once in the GoLite 2009 first sustainability report, and this is addressed to readers who are apparently as passionate about sustainability as the GoLite company is . 

Thank (you) appears once in the Zeon Corporation Report 2009 of Japan. Again addressed to report readers as it does in the Union Pacific Report for 2009.

Thank (you) appears once in the Bacardi Report for 2009, thanking readers in anticipation of their feedback.

Thank (you) does not appear at all in the Barilla 2008 CSR report (published August 2010) though there are 9 instances of the phrase thanks to .. thanks to the collaboration of, thanks to the team of ... but thanks to is not thank you. So I don't count it. Tough, aren't I ? 

Thank (you) does not appear at all in the Cooperative Group Sustainability Report for 2009, nor in the National Bank of Abu Dhabi's first report for 2009, nor in Vodafone's Report for the year to March 2010, nor in Dong Energy's report for 2009, nor in AEP's 2009 Corporate Accountability Report, nor in P&G's 2009 report.  Intel's 2009 Report doesn't thank anyone directly either, though it does refer to employee programs in which employees are thanked for every day performance. 

   

Actually, this surprises me. After I have worked on a report with a client, I feel soooo grateful to all those who have helped put it together, that it seems obvious that thanks are in order. Putting thanks in print is a positive thing to do - everyone like their efforts to be appreciated even if it is not individually by name. Thanking them in some other way (nice letter, box of chocs, bunch of flowers, life-time supply of ChunkyMonkey) are good too, but do not replace the impact of public recognition. Let's remember that it's people who run companies and people who write reports. Well done to EasyJet and Verizon for being the winners in my brief random analysis.

Thank you for reading this post.

Thank you for reading this post.

Thank you for reading this post.

THANK YOU for reading this post.

Ok, you can overdo it a little as well. :)   

elaine cohen, CSR consultant, Sustainabilty Reporter, HR Professional, Ice Cream Addict. Contact me via www.twitter.com/elainecohen  on Twitter or via my business website www.b-yond.biz/en  (BeyondBusiness, an inspired CSR consulting and Sustainability Reporting firm)

Feedback makes CSR sustainable

This is the first of three posts about feedback to companies on their CSR performance and CSR reporting. Anyone who tracks my conversations around cyberspace will know that I talk a lot ( a LOT) about this. In fact, I think the GRI should include an indicator which specifically requests the number of individual pieces of feedback that companies get on their reports (currently clause 4.17 of the GRI framework refers only to the "key topics and concerns that have been raised through stakeholder engagement". For some companies, this might mean 3 stakeholders. For some companies, 3 is generous) . 

Feedback is  what makes CSR sustainable. The CSR Feedback Series will cover: (1) (this one) Report Reviews  (2) The way companies report about feedback (3) CSR Reporting and Employee Feedback. Stay tuned. Here's part 1:

I was delighted to notice in the Verizon CSR Report for 2009 the inclusion of a mention of my feedback in the form of an Expert Review of their 08 report published on CorporateRegister.com. Verizon noted the three external independent assessors who had reviewed their report: BSR, AccountAbility and Beyond Business, my consulting company. See a photo shot of the section in their report below:

This was particularly gratifying, not only to appear in such revered company as BSR and AA, but also because Verizon clearly reviewed my feedback and took it seriously. This, after all, is the way we influence companies to do better.

During the past 16 months or so, I have completed over 40 Report Reviews both for CorporateRegister.com and for Ethical Corporation (which I started with the May 2010 magazine issue with my review of the Bacardi report). 

The most recent reviews were H&M 2009 report, which I called "Good substance, bad style"  (I reviewed their report also in 2008) and IMC2  2009 report, which I called "Charm with outcomes" , reflecting a certain increasing maturity of their reporting. ( I reviewed both prior reports).

Report reviews are my way of providing considered feedback to companies about their reporting. A good throrough read of a report, even a shorter one, and a careful assessment takes some hours to compile. All in all, I calculate that my investment in formal reviews accounts for about 2  working weeks per year. In addition,  I write this blog, of course, which offers a lot of feedback on many reports, without the detail of a full review. I also write directly to many companies, some of whom respond, and I fill in feedback forms where provided by companies. There is nothing that makes me happier than companies who ackowledge and use this feedback. (All this is voluntary, unpaid investment in providing feedback. I am not including  here the paid service I provide to companies for pre and post publication  reviews of their reporting). 

Many Companies take the initiative write to me or engage me in informal discussion about my report reviews. Mostly, they are grateful to receive feedback. Sometimes I may have been a little more critical than they deserve, though, more often than not, modestly, they tell me that I have identified the gaps or difficulties they themselves were aware of. This is nice, because it shows that reporting issues do show up in reports, no matter how companies try to gloss over certain issues (for, perhaps, understandable reasons). More importantly, companies who engage in feedback about their report show that they are proactive about engaging stakeholder views and are open to hear things that may help them improve their presentation of their sustainability performance, transparency and accessibility of their reporting. This, for me, is the ultimate objective, as I repeat: Feedback is what makes CSR sustainable. (I kinda like that sentence.)

That's it for Part 1. Part 2 just as soon as I can get to it. In the meantime, I will be reviewing the current Verizon report mentioned above. Though the fact that they mentioned my last review in their report will not buy them any traction, I will be just as mean and nasty as I usually am hahahahahahahhahahahaha

elaine cohen is co-founder and co-CEO of Beyond Business, a leading social and environmental consulting and reporting firm. Visit our website at www.b-yond.biz/en or tweet me at www.twitter.com/elaiecohen