Mission
To improve the governance and ethics of private, non-profit and public-sector practices in order to contribute to competitiveness, accountability and sustainability in Hungary.
Since 2003, AmCham's Governance, Integrity and Entrepeneurship has been working to increase the importance of employing good corporate governance in the business, political and NGO’s circles in Hungary. As highlighted in AmCham's Position Brief No. V: Good Corporate Governance as a Pillar of Hungarian National Competitiveness, presented in 2005, and supported by numerous studies, increased adoption of good corporate governance practices is essential for a country's national competitiveness and can increase the value of a business.
AmCham’s Governance, Integrity and Entrepeneurship Committee has continued its active role in 2010 with a number of major projects: the Fifth Workshop on Corporate Governance, the preparation and fine-tuning of the Online Resource Centre, the continuation of the AmCham Corporate Governance Volunteer Program, the Start Your Business Series as well as the new edition of the Corporate Governance Glossary and the Hungarian translation of “Corporate Governance Guidance and Principles for Unlisted Companies in Europe” written by ecoDa. A more detailed elaboration of each of these projects is presented below.
Many of the Committee’s projects are undertaken in conjunction with other organizations. This past year the Committee worked with each of the following organizations: Embassy of the United States of America, CEU Business School, Hungarian Venture Capital Association (HVCA) and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. Certain publications also included numerous other publication partners.
Join the Committee's Facebook page, 'A Jövő Vezetői' here.
Projects
1. 6th Corporate Governance Workshop
Last year’s Workshop focused on the operations of a Board of Directors for both stock exchange companies and non-listed privately held companies. Besides the more traditional presentation format a unique, moderated Board meeting simulation was also held, based on a case study, to illustrate better real-life business issues and their resolutions.
Renowned Corporate Governance and legal expert Holly Gregory, Partner, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP was be keynote presenter at the Workshop.
More on the Workshop here: http://www.amcham.hu/leading-be-example/index/page/2
2. Corporate Governance Volunteer Program
This year’s continuing Volunteer Program provides volunteer guest lecturers (who are business practitioners and experts in certain fields) to professors for their classrooms. This enhances the experience for students learning about corporate governance and business ethics in universities and colleges. The Committee has collected and is matching a list of volunteer lecturers from the membership of AmCham as well as a list of professors seeking such support.
3. Online and Offline Resource Center
In the framework of the AmCham website development the Committee is working on launching an Online Resource Center, which provides information, studies, analysis, statistics in the field of Corporate Governance, CSR policies, Best Practices and case studies and other related issues. The Committee plans to develop this website into a true interactive site with forums and other features using Web 2.0 features to benefit our constituencies. We expect that the Online Resource Center will be launched early in 2011.
4. Start Your Business Series
The AmCham-HVCA Series for Young Professionals introduces ambitious university students to real-life business know-how and insights into how to start their own company, nurture and grow it and build it into a roaring success. The Series for Young Professionals “road show” brings to the students’ universities well-known experts and key players on the Hungarian market who are ready to share their wisdom and experience and teach a new generation of potential leaders that, yes, they can build a successful, professional, well-governed and ethical company on the Hungarian market. The pilot series was launched in the fall at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME)
5. Refinement of the Glossary
The Committee published the second, refined edition of the Corporate Governance and Business Integrity English-Hungarian Glossary in June 2011. Work began to refine the first edition, released in 2007, by receiving feedback and recommendations from professors, business professionals as well as others.
To download the Glossary please click on the links below:
English version: http://www.amcham.hu/download/002/851/Glossary.pdf
Hungarian version: http://www.amcham.hu/download/002/852/Glossary_magyar.pdf
6. Commenting and Monitoring of Legislation, Regulations and Policies: Responding to Requests/Surveys
The Committee continuously and actively monitors and comments on new legislation, regulations and policies of relevant bodies (e.g. Ministry, BSE, etc.).
