Strategy, management and value: How PwC can help
In our post-Enron business world, a high level of corporate responsibility is critical. A growing body of evidence indicates that companies that score low on the corporate responsibility charts risk significant damage to management credibility. In the worst case, companies face an erosion of shareholder confidence that can, in turn, do damage to market capitalisation, credit, and liquidity. But along with negative pressures, there are also positive reasons for aiming high in the responsibility stakes.
Companies that report more responsibly on their assets can often improve their valuation in the capital markets. In fact, there is mounting evidence that companies that act in a responsible manner consistently do better than others in the long run. People often blame capitalism for encouraging bad corporate behaviour, but the global capital markets are not immoral; they are merely amoral. The same market mechanisms apply whatever product or service a company sells. If it does the right things, it makes money. If it does the wrong things, it goes out of business. So it is unfair to blame the philosophy of capitalism for the wrongs that humans do.
With this in mind PricewaterhouseCoopers sustainable business solutions practice compiled the
Corporate responsibility handbook in the hope that it will help to illuminate some of the main issues that businesses operating in a variety of regions and industries are facing, and provide a useful guide to leading practices. It is not a magic bullet; there can be no such thing. But if it serves to promote an understanding of sustainable development and better business customs—both within our own organisation and within the global business community—it will have more than fulfilled its purpose.
The handbook is divided into two main sections: Part one examines some of today's major sustainability issues by region, and covers Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Part two looks at some of the major sustainable industries, including: Advanced industrial equipment; aerospace; chemicals; electronics and software; engineering and construction; financial services; forest products; healthcare, medical products and pharmaceuticals; mining and metals; oil and gas; retail and consumer goods; telecommunications; transportation; and utilities.
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