This is also an article in the December issue of VOICE.
Corporate Social Responsibility has come a long way in Hungary in a short period of time. Early adopters, almost inevitably, tended to be the local divisions of multinational companies seeking to implement what was already done elsewhere. By now, it has long since moved passed being ‘just good PR’ to the stage where sustainability issues are almost routinely given a section in the annual business results or their own more detailed report.
But greater familiarity doesn’t necessarily mean greater understanding, and with different companies at diff erent levels of ‘CSR maturity’, there is plenty of scope for confusion. AmCham’s CSR Advisory Board (AB-CSR) secretary István Szabó jokingly describes this as a fi eld “where everybody knows something and nothing”, and “an area where it is very diffi cult to say ‘No’”. By overlooking important details, or simply through lacking focus, well meaning volunteerism campaigns can fail to achieve all they ought to. Which is where the free consultation services off ered by AB-CSR come in.
The idea is simple. Th e board comprises a range of experts from various disciplinary backgrounds. In addition to Szabó (CSR manager for KPMG in Hungary and national key contact for Climate Change & Sustainability Services), the other members are Agnes Pellion, head of marketing and communications at Ernst & Young and Ivan Javorszky from NGO SOS Children Village Hungary.
“Companies can email us, and we will send them back a short form to be filled out, explaining their current situation and what they would like help with,” Szabó explains. “That will then be discussed internally by the board, and we will instigate a personal meeting.” Each AmCham member is entitled to one free one-hour consultation per year. “We are open for any kind of request, but I expect most will come from SMEs,” Szabó says; such companies often lack some of the resources needed to
develop a CSR action plan, and may even be uncertain as to what it is exactly. But he says the board can help any company, regardless of size or level of CSR maturity. For those starting out on the CSR journey, the request might simply be for more information, or help in formulating a sustainable policy, identifying policy ownership, who the stakeholders are and how best to approach them. It might even be a case of identifying who does what within the company. “Implementation of an action plan involves very crucial internal procedures,” says Szabó.
But even companies the size and maturity of GE, for example, might make profi table use of the AB-CSR, he says. “If you have new strategy and want stakeholder feedback or professional feedback on whether it is well formulated, has ‘smart’ targets, what the future development should be, we can help because we have the expertise.”
According to Szabó, one of the keys to developing a strategy that benefi ts everyone, including the company itself, is matching capabilities and skills with community need. “We are very good at painting kindergarten walls,” he says, “but if you look at the hours involved, we can be much more eff ective and impactful if we use our skills and knowledge for community investments.”
Explaining his own interest in the field, Szabó recalls, “My father was always telling me to switch off the lights, he was very strict in such things, and I also remember him being involved with planting trees in the neighborhood around where we lived, so my involvement comes from family habit and culture.”
More information on the AB-CSR can be found at http://www.amcham.hu/committee/csr-advisory-board
