Strategic CSR - Earth Day

Ahead of Earth Day on Tuesday, some thoughts on recent developments around ESG.

When I criticize various sustainability policies or proposals, the response I often get is along the lines of 'well, at least we are trying.' To which I reply along the lines of 'well, good intentions do not substitute for good outcomes.' My general thought is that, kidding ourselves we are making progress is no help to anyone – if anything, it lulls everyone into a false sense of security through the illusion of progress, and that is a problem because it ensures even less progress than if we were sufficiently self-aware to know we were not really moving the needle.

The evolution of the resistance to ESG in the U.S., as reported in the article in the url below, demonstrates the danger of relying on good intentions. ESG, from the beginning, was clearly based on false assumptions and inconsistent logic, topped off with the desire to start making money as soon as possible. This could have continued for a while, except that the fragile intellectual foundation (characterized by incomplete definitions and inconsistent measurement) allowed ideological opponents to pick it apart. If ESG had rested on a sounder foundation, the ridiculous ideological attacks against it would have fallen flat. But, because ESG is inherently flawed, it was easy for those opposed to cherry-pick the flaws that best matched their arguments, to make their pushback sound more legitimate, even in the face of economic gain:

"Climate investors have warned the political right is winning a war against ESG investing. A recent poll shows American support for renewable energy and electric vehicles is fading. And yet, President Joe Biden's signature climate law is in many ways benefiting conservative red states the most."

I have said this many times, but I'll repeat for good measure – in my opinion, as a society, we are not serious about tackling climate change. In fact, I would go as far as to say that we have not even begun a conversation about planning how we might be serious at some distant point – as noted by Tad DeLay, quoted in the article in the second url below:

"Just by driving to get groceries you emit carbon dioxide … a fifth of [which] … will still be in the air in 500,000 years, killing species that haven't yet evolved."

You would think we would take all of this a little bit more seriously. All you have to do is realize that during the COVID lockdown, when none of us were going anywhere and the global economy had virtually shuttered, global carbon emissions dropped a mere 6% (see Strategic CSR – COVID-19). 6%! And we think we can get to net zero by 2050. It would be laughable if the implications of our self-delusion were not so serious.

Tackling climate change and creating the conditions for a more sustainable economic system will always require plenty of unconditional cheerleaders, not to mention brilliant minds who will innovate and provide encouragement along the way. It will also require those who can think critically about what we are doing, and work to prevent us from lulling into the false sense of security that is just as big a barrier to progress as sticking our collective heads in the sand.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

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Climate Investors Warn the Right Is Winning the Way on ESG

By Alastair Marsh

February 28, 2024

Bloomberg

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-28/climate-investors-warn-the-right-is-winning-the-war-on-esg

'What if there just is no solution?' How we are all in denial about the climate crisis

By Maya Goodfellow

June 20, 2024

The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jun/20/what-if-there-just-is-no-solution-how-we-are-all-in-denial-about-the-climate-crisis

 

Strategic CSR - Zoom (II)

A quick follow-up on my recent newsletter highlighting that fully remote workers are more likely to miss out on promotions and mentoring (see Strategic CSR – Zoom). The article in the url below suggests they are also more likely to be fired:

"Workers logging on from home five days a week were 35% more likely to be laid off in 2023 than their peers who put in office time, according to an analysis of two million white-collar workers conducted by employment data provider Live Data Technologies. The analysis showed 10% of fully remote workers were laid off last year, compared with 7% of those working in an office full time or on a hybrid basis."

The argument is that, because managers have less close relationships with remote workers, it is psychologically easier to fire them:

"Much of the disparity, he says, is that it's simply harder to build attachments to people you don't see face to face."

And, it seems, leaders are becoming more explicit with their employees about the risk they run by not coming into the office, at least some of the time:

"Wayfair, the online home-goods retailer, recently told employees that remote workers would be more likely to be affected in company layoffs. Executives also told staff they believe most workers should be in an office most days."

All the commentary I have seen suggests that, while employees prefer to be remote (and have the agency to choose how often they come into the office), the longer term trends suggest the current set-up will not last, simply because of the consequences of remaining remote:

"Other managerial perceptions could be at play, too, he adds. A Gartner survey in 2021 found that 68% of executives and managers believed in-office workers were higher performers than remote employees."

I have seen reports that CEOs believe most employees will be back at work, five days a week, in about 5 years' time:

"'If you have a person working in finance who's not coming to the office, why wouldn't you hire that same person in India or in the Philippines?' said Christian Ulbrich, chief executive of real-estate company Jones Lang LaSalle, noting that in many cases overseas workers can do the same job for less money."

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

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Remote Workers Feel Brunt of Layoffs

By Te-Ping Chen

January 30, 2024

The Wall Street Journal

Late Edition – Final

A9

https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/layoffs-remote-work-data-980ed59d

 

Strategic CSR - Zoom

As we know, firms are struggling with bringing their employees back to work in the office, full-time. It is obvious why employees might not want to come back (I always heard that it is not 'working in the office' that is the problem, but the 'commute to the office' they do not like), but what are the consequences?

For the organization, I have to believe at some level there is a reduction in productivity. I know there were reports, early in the lockdown, about how the productivity of teams actually increased when they went remote, but my sense is that this is research based on teams that formed their culture in-person, prior to the pandemic, and then moved online (thus reducing the inefficiency of commutes). Now that organizations are starting to form teams from scratch remotely, I have to think that is a more challenging task.

For the individuals, though, I also always thought that being away from the office would likely exclude them from much of the serendipity that characterizes human interaction and career success. The article in the url below confirms this thought by finding that people who work remotely full-time (5 days a week) are less likely to receive promotions and mentoring than those that come into the office, for at least for part of the week:

"For a while, remote workers seemed to have it all: elastic waistbands, no commute, better concentration and the ability to pop in laundry loads between calls. New data, though, shows fully remote workers are falling behind in one of the most-prized and important aspects of a career: getting promoted."

Specifically:

"Over the past year, remote workers were promoted 31% less frequently than people who worked in an office, either full-time or on a hybrid basis, according to an analysis of two million white-collar workers by employment-data provider Live Data Technologies. Remote workers also get less mentorship, a gap that's especially pronounced for women, research shows. Of employees working full time in an office or on a hybrid basis, 5.6% received promotions at their organization in 2023, according to Live Data Technologies, versus 3.9% of those who worked remotely."

And, although the article doesn't cover this directly, it is also likely true that the more someone is in person, the more of these 'benefits' they will likely experience. In terms of fully remote work, however, I was surprised by how prevalent that option appears to be:

"While many workplaces have adopted hybrid policies or reverted to a fully in-person approach, nearly 20% of all employees with college degrees or higher still work on a fully remote basis, according to December data from the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics."

What is ironic is that the same survey reports that remote workers feel more engaged and less burned-out than their in-person colleagues. But, this is either not translating into productivity (perceived or otherwise) or is something executives feel less concerned about, since they are increasingly become more assertive (and honest) in the reality of the workplace as they see it:

"Nearly 90% of chief executives who were surveyed said that when it comes to favorable assignments, raises or promotions, they are more likely to reward employees who make an effort to come to the office."

Perhaps unsurprisingly, there is a generational element to this discussion, as one of the accompanying charts in the article suggests: 

How to manage this issue is clearly going to be something that companies will wrestle with, for a while. Given this, the amount of apparent consensus there is on longer term projections is surprising:

"In the online survey of 1,325 CEOs of large companies in 11 countries, conducted last year by professional-services firm KPMG, almost two-thirds of respondents said they expect most employees will be working in offices full-time in another three years."

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Remote Workers Are Losing Out on Promotions

By Te-Ping Chen

January 13, 2024

The Wall Street Journal

Late Edition – Final

B1, B5

https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/remote-workers-are-losing-out-on-promotions-8219ec63

 

Strategic CSR - 2022 (+ 2023)

I recently Zoomed into a class where my textbook was being taught to answer questions from the students (which I am asked to do, occasionally). At some point in the conversation, I was asked whether I am hopeful for the future, given that things are beginning to change. There is so much conversation around sustainability and CSR-related topics (although the acronym of the day is now more likely ESG), the questioner suggested, that there should be reason for hope.

There are many ways to process that question and begin to formulate a response but, for me, a straightforward answer that cuts to the heart of whether we are serious about doing something on climate change (and that effort can be a proxy for so many social and societal initiatives) is global carbon emissions. As I noted in a prior newsletter, during COVID, when the world that we knew had effectively come to a halt, total emissions only dropped 6% (see Strategic CSR – COVID-19), while there is increasing evidence that companies are promising a lot and delivering much less (see Strategic CSR – Accountability). And we claim to be serious about net-zero targets in 2050.

Along similar lines, the article in the url below focuses on the sustainability reporting metrics of financial institutions (and introduces the useful term, "financed emissions"). In a related story, it includes a chart of annual total carbon emissions, worldwide, since 1899:

Feel free to draw your own conclusions on whether this graph presents a picture of hope: 

As a result, it is not surprising that 2023 is being predicted by scientists to be the hottest year for global temperatures, on record.

Have a good weekend

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

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The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Oil and Gas Companies Face an Era of Credit Downgrades, Fitch Warns

By Gautam Naik

October 31, 2023

Bloomberg

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-31/credit-downgrades-loom-large-as-fitch-zeroes-in-on-oil-issuers

 

Strategic CSR - WFH

I think there are a number of disadvantages (individually) to working from home (WFH). These range from a lack of social interaction (and excessive screen time) to a reduced chance of being promoted. I am betting there are disadvantages to the organization, too. The article in the url below covers an issue that bridges both – a disadvantage to the individual (less meaning/purpose) and a disadvantage to the organization (fewer engaged employees):

"People who work from home are feeling more disconnected from the larger mission of their employers. In a new Gallup survey, the share of remote workers who said they felt a connection to the purpose of their organizations fell to 28% from 32% in 2022—the lowest level since before the pandemic. The findings are from a survey this spring and summer of nearly 9,000 U.S. workers whose jobs can be done remotely."

Interestingly, hybrid workers register the highest in terms of connection to the company's purpose. I suppose the key question then is, what does "hybrid" look like – what is the ratio of days spent WFH, compared to those spent in the office, which generates the highest level of motivation?

"By contrast, a third of full-time office workers reported a similar sense of connection, nearly the same as last year. Hybrid workers clocked in highest, with 35% saying their companies' mission made them feel their jobs were important."

I think the discussion around the effectiveness of teams that WFH was clouded by research early in the COVID pandemic that showed no loss of performance (and, actually, an increase in performance due to efficiencies like reclaimed commuting time). The trouble with that research, from my perspective, is that it was done on teams that had been formed in-person, prior to the pandemic. It makes sense that such teams should perform better remotely because they are combining all the benefits of remote work (e.g., saving commute time) with the benefits of relationships that were formed in person. When you remove that core foundation of deep relationships (i.e., employees who are socialized into the organization via Zoom), it is hard to imagine how such teams could be as effective:

"For now, many workers say remote work affords them the ability to focus on their essential duties and avoid some of the extracurriculars of office life. This leaves it to companies to try to foster that sense of connection."

Of course, because the deep relationships are missing. These social ties are what connect employees and gives them a reason to go above and beyond in support of their colleagues:

"In short, more remote workers appear to be approaching their jobs with 'a gig-worker mentality,' fulfilling the basic responsibilities of the role rather than anticipating the broader needs of their team or company, said Jim Harter, chief workplace scientist at Gallup, which has tracked worker engagement since 2000. Most professional roles, he points out, tacitly include expectations that go beyond the actual work, such as mentoring others or spurring innovation. 'That's much more likely to happen if they feel they're part of something significant,' he said."

Expect the challenge of how to 'return to work' to continue, given the popularity (and perceived value) of WFH:

"Nearly 30% of U.S. workers in remote-capable jobs work exclusively at home, according to Gallup, a share that hasn't wavered much in the past year."

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

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Workers Feel Disconnect

By Lindsay Ellis

August 25, 2023

The Wall Street Journal

Late Edition – Final

B3

https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/the-growing-disconnect-between-remote-workers-and-their-companies-f7519676

Strategic CSR - Covid

The article in the url below, from a couple of years ago, discusses the ongoing labor shortage in the U.S. (a challenge faced by multiple economies around the world):

"More than a year and a half into the pandemic, the U.S. is still missing around 4.3 million workers. That's how much bigger the labor force would be if the participation rate—the share of the population 16 or older either working or looking for work—returned to its February 2020 level of 63.3%. In September, it stood at 61.6%."

Clearly, the pandemic had a lot to do with this, with a large percentage of these "missing" workers retiring early, but the situation has not eased much since the lockdown was relaxed. For many, during the pandemic, working was no longer worth the tradeoff:

"The participation rate experienced its biggest drop since at least World War II in the early months of the pandemic. It partly rebounded last summer and since then has hovered near the lowest level since the 1970s, despite sturdy economic growth and the strongest wage gains in years."

While the market is currently adapting to the new reality (increasing pay and other conditions for employees, which is adding pressure in the current inflationary environment), the real story is whether this situation will ever recover:

"Some economists are concerned that worsening worker shortages reflect longer-term shifts, such as the pandemic-driven acceleration of retirements, that won't reverse. Many expect the labor shortage to last at least several more years, and some say it's permanent. Of 52 economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal, 22 predicted that participation would never return to its pre-pandemic level."

If not, as many economists suspect, then it forces employers to focus more intently on being a good employer. If they do not value their employees as their most important stakeholder, they will increasingly lose out in the competition for the best employees in the market. And, this is not just an issue of higher compensation, but providing opportunities for more meaningful work. Whether the overall effect continues to be inflationary, depends on whether productivity rates respond in line with better conditions.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

4.3 Million Workers Are Missing. Where Did They Go?

By Josh Mitchell, Lauren Weber, Sarah Chaney Cambon

October 14, 2021

The Wall Street Journal

https://www.wsj.com/articles/labor-shortage-missing-workers-jobs-pay-raises-economy-11634224519

 

Strategic CSR - DAOs

The idea featured in the article in the url below is interesting:

"There's a new shop coming to San Francisco's Hayes Valley, but it's not your traditional brick-and-mortar establishment. The DeStore 'STORE_0' will be collectively owned and operated by members of a so-called decentralized autonomous organization [DAO]. That is, anyone will be able to buy a blockchain-based crypto token that represents ownership in the store, and vote on what it buys and sells. The greater the value of the token, the greater the owner's voting power."

 

Specifically:

 

"Co-founder and CEO Itsuki Daito sees the store as a way to not only revive retail post-pandemic, but also to create a community space, where owners — half of whom will be locals and the other half from around the world — would have to agree on how to spend profits. While there may be a downside of having too many people in charge, one investor [reacts] that's just more 'wisdom of the crowd.' Will there be buy-in?"

This issue of 'buy-in' of course always applies to new ideas (and particularly new technologies). What I find fascinating, instead, is the underlying community-based structure to decision making and, in this particular case, engaged commitment to a for-profit organization:

"Daito's pitch goes like this: when the DeStore app is launched this fall, anyone will be able to buy a blockchain-based token that represents ownership in the store, and join the community's server on Discord, a chat app similar to Slack that includes many elements of more traditional social media platforms. The greater the value of the tokens participants own, the greater their share of voting power. As the store gets up and running, token holders will be able to vote on what brands to stock and sell at the location, what furniture to buy, and even who will work there. What happens to any revenue the store may generate will also be up to a vote."

Buy-in from the local part of that community, is clearly essential:

"A big test of this idea will be whether people actually want to spend their free time running a store in Hayes Valley, or have the expertise to do so successfully. Ideally, Daito says, 200 people will be part of the DAO. … Part-owners can choose to staff the store themselves, or hire outside employees, or even conscript Daito himself to operate the register."

The idea was partly motivated by those who predict the downfall of retail in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic:

"Within the wreckage, Daito sees opportunity. 'During the pandemic, online shopping is getting bigger, of course. But offline shopping is getting bigger as well, if they provide offline-only value,' he said. 'Like a community experience; like a touch-and-feel experience.'"

What also makes the experiment interesting, though, is how the investors will chose to utilize any profits generated:

"Still, there's no clear return on investment from the store itself, given the fact that owners will have to agree on whether to divide up profits amongst the DAO or put the money back into new products. It's a gamble partners in a traditional LLC — or part-owners in a small business — make all the time, according to Parrott. In a DAO, there are just a lot more cooks in the kitchen. Or, as he puts it, more 'wisdom of the crowd' to go around."

Either way, what is clear is that the potential for blockchain technology is only just becoming apparent and will present opportunities to reshape the business world.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

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The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

This Entrepreneur is Betting the Future of Retail Runs on the Blockchain and Discord

By Sarah Holder

August 9, 2022

Bloomberg CityLab

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-09/this-retail-entrepreneur-is-betting-on-the-blockchain-daos-and-discord

 

Strategic CSR - COVID-19

The article in the url below discusses the effects of the COVID lockdown on carbon emissions and documents, somewhat depressingly (although perhaps not surprisingly), how quickly they have rebounded. What I find fascinating about the pandemic, however, when essentially the whole developed world shut down, is how little impact there was on total emissions (see red circle, below):

For reference as to how relentless is the year-on-year increase in carbon emissions (despite all efforts to raise awareness of the dangers), see Strategic CSR – Climate inaction. During COVID, yes, total emissions dropped from 33.5 billion tons down to about 31.5 billion tons, but the world still produced 31.5 billion tons (more than almost all years since 1950) when a large percentage of the developed world was locked in their houses. When we all felt like there was nowhere we could go, total carbon emissions dropped by only about 6 percent. And, to be clear, we need to get it to zero. I think it is when you frame the problem in such stark terms that you realize we are simply not talking or thinking about the challenge from a realistic perspective. The analogy of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic comes to mind.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

© Sage Publications, 2023

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Covid-19 Slashed Carbon Emissions. Now They're Climbing Again

By David Hodari

April 20, 2021

The Wall Street Journal

https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-slashed-carbon-emissions-now-theyre-climbing-again-11618894980

 

Strategic CSR - BP

The article in the url below presents BP's 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in a new light:

"The Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico a dozen years ago was a human and environmental tragedy. It killed 11 people, dumped millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf, and cost BP Plc more than $65 billion in cleanup costs and damage payments. But had all that oil instead been sold and used, it would have been even deadlier and more devastating to the environment."

The author is actually quoting a tweet on this topic that went viral soon after it was posted:

 

Apparently, the argument is not only compelling, but relatively straightforward:

"The spill caused an estimated 200 million gallons of oil to flow into the Gulf of Mexico. Burning as many gallons of oil and diesel in combustion engines would have emitted over 1.4 million tons of CO₂, not even counting, for example, emissions from refining and transporting the oil. Translated into average lives lost due to the resulting climate change implies about 325 deaths over the course of the century, linked to higher temperatures alone. That doesn't include deaths from the fine particulate matter generated by burning that fuel, which could amount to another 350 premature deaths in a year."

Although it seems unnecessary and unrelated to the point he was trying to make, the original author was forced to add a qualification later as the tweet spread:

"Twitter being Twitter, the responses necessitated a follow-up from David: 'My point isn't that we should spill crude oil.' We shouldn't. There are plenty of other environmental costs not captured by the 11 deaths and $65 billion. The devastating impact on wildlife can only be partially reflected in any monetary damage number. Some of the oil spilled burned uncontrollably, again releasing CO₂. Oil that's not burned but eventually evaporates also causes plenty of environmental harm."

Needless to say:

"Alas, there is a big difference between a statistical calculation based on global damage estimates and being able to put faces and names to deaths, as to those on the Deepwater Horizon oil platform. Eleven deaths are a tragedy, while 325 statistically estimated ones are just that, a statistic."

Nevertheless, the ability to calculate a direct connection between environmental harm and human lives lost is becoming more developed and accurate:

"Thanks to rapid advances in the new field of attribution science, climate-related deaths and other damages can now be linked more directly to tons of CO₂ emitted. Indeed, an increasing number of lawsuits are closing in on establishing a proximate cause via climate damages, but no oil company so far has been forced to pay damages linked to the burning of its products sold to customers."

The author then discusses the contextual nature of our assessment of harm/damage, and the difference between direct and indirect attribution of blame:

"[Cary Coglianese, a professor of law and political science at the University of Pennsylvania] likens the difference between climate change and the BP oil spill to that between the Covid-19 pandemic and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001: 'September 11th killed around 3,000 people,' he says. 'We had about that many Covid deaths in the U.S. yesterday alone.' More than 900,000 Americans died from Covid over the past two years, well over 5.5 million worldwide, and those are just the directly attributed deaths. 'We seem to be getting numb to this daily catastrophe,' adds Coglianese."

But, the ultimate point of the article (and the original tweet that stimulated it) is a more immediate understanding of the level of harm that is being committed by what we currently term 'normal behavior:'

"We must not, of course, get numb to either thousands of Covid deaths a day, or to the hundreds of deaths conservatively linked to a BP-spill-size amount of oil that is burned as intended. The links from selling, to burning fossil fuels, to the damages immediately attributable to the resulting emissions, are all too clear. It's high time our laws and courts catch up with that reality."

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Daily Climate Damage Should Feel More Like A Disaster

By Gernot Wagner

February 11, 2022

Bloomberg

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-11/daily-climate-damage-should-feel-more-like-a-disaster

 

Strategic CSR - Welcome back!

Welcome back to the Strategic CSR Newsletter! The first newsletter of the Spring semester is below. As always, your comments and ideas are welcome.

The article in the url below should bring a smile to your face:

"A German court has ruled that a man who slipped while walking a few metres from his bed to his home office can claim on workplace accident insurance as he was technically commuting."

Not that breaking your back is something to smile about—more that it feels like the kind of story that makes sense given the last couple of years. Injury and pain aside, the story gets quite funny in its detailed analysis:

"The court noted that the employee usually started working in his home office 'immediately without having breakfast beforehand,' but did not explain why that was relevant to the case. However, later it said that statutory accident insurance was only afforded to the 'first' journey to work, suggesting that a trip on the way to get breakfast after already being in the home office could be rejected."

There was no mention of whether the man can claim his pajamas as a tax-deductible work clothes expense.

Hope you all had a good break and have a good semester.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Fall on walk from bed to desk is workplace accident, German court rules

By Oliver Holmes

December 9, 2021

The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/09/fall-on-walk-from-bed-to-desk-is-workplace-accident-german-court-rules

 

Strategic CSR - Religion

For those of you who feel that what we all need is more social media in our lives (and less privacy), the article in the url below is for you:

"Months before the megachurch Hillsong opened its new outpost in Atlanta, its pastor sought advice on how to build a church in a pandemic. From Facebook. The social media giant had a proposition, Sam Collier, the pastor, recalled in an interview: to use the church as a case study to explore how churches can 'go further farther on Facebook.'"

This appears to be a concerted effort by Facebook:

"For months Facebook developers met weekly with Hillsong and explored what the church would look like on Facebook and what apps they might create for financial giving, video capability or livestreaming. When it came time for Hillsong's grand opening in June, the church issued a news release saying it was 'partnering with Facebook' and began streaming its services exclusively on the platform. Beyond that, Mr. Collier could not share many specifics — he had signed a nondisclosure agreement."

The goal, of course, is world domination:

"Now, after the coronavirus pandemic pushed religious groups to explore new ways to operate, Facebook sees even greater strategic opportunity to draw highly engaged users onto its platform. The company aims to become the virtual home for religious community, and wants churches, mosques, synagogues and others to embed their religious life into its platform, from hosting worship services and socializing more casually to soliciting money. It is developing new products, including audio and prayer sharing, aimed at faith groups. … Facebook is shaping the future of religious experience itself, as it has done for political and social life."

And, as Sheryl Sandberg noted, the combination is a "natural":

"'Faith organizations and social media are a natural fit because fundamentally both are about connection,' Ms. Sandberg said. 'Our hope is that one day people will host religious services in virtual reality spaces as well, or use augmented reality as an educational tool to teach their children the story of their faith,' she said."

Of course, there are naysayers with some trifling concerns:

"The collaborations raise not only practical questions, but also philosophical and moral ones. Religion has long been a fundamental way humans have formed community, and now social media companies are stepping into that role. Facebook has nearly three billion active monthly users, making it larger than Christianity worldwide, which has about 2.3 billion adherents, or Islam, which has 1.8 billion. There are privacy worries too, as people share some of their most intimate life details with their spiritual communities."

And, if you haven't already begun to imagine how this could really go wrong, you can consider the compromises (sorry, 'opportunities') the social media platform is posing to the churches it is partnering with:

"Leaders of the Church of God in Christ, a largely African American Pentecostal denomination of roughly six million members worldwide, recently received early access to several of Facebook's monetization features, offering them new revenue streams, said the denomination's social media manager, Angela Clinton-Joseph. They decided to try two Facebook tools: subscriptions where users pay, for example, $9.99 per month and receive exclusive content, like messages from the bishop; and another tool for worshipers watching services online to send donations in real time. Leaders decided against a third feature: advertisements during video streams."

Heaven help us.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Facebook Wants to Host Your Virtual Pew

By Elizabeth Dias

July 26, 2021

The New York Times

Late Edition – Final

A12

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/25/us/facebook-church.html

Strategic CSR - Unilever

The article in the url below caught my eye, first because of the four day work week (at full pay), and then because it is Unilever making the announcement:

"Consumer goods giant Unilever will trial a four-day working week in New Zealand to enhance worker wellbeing and boost productivity."

Some detail:

"All 81 workers will be eligible to work for four days on full pay, New Zealand Managing Director Nick Bangs said in a statement Tuesday. Most of the staff are based at Unilever's Auckland headquarters and distribution center after the company closed manufacturing operations in 2015."

The motivation for the trial is the shift in working practices that have been accelerated by the pandemic. Unilever sees the 'old' way of working as gone, so plans to use the opportunity to try something new. What is interesting is that most of these kind of stories that I have seen recently tend to involve IT/Silicon Valley-type companies. Much less common to see manufacturing/consumer product companies being similarly adventurous:

"The trial, which starts this month and will run for a year, is limited to New Zealand at this stage. Unilever will work with Sydney's University of Technology Business School to measure results, and will explore the possibility of what it could mean on a broader scale. The company employs 150,000 people worldwide."

As the NZ director makes clear, this is solely a business decision:

"'Maintaining competitive edge, increasing productivity and improving wellbeing sit at the heart of the four-day week,' [he] said. 'This is about removing the barriers that limit value creation and slow us down.'"

There are a few companies that are implementing something close to the Strategic CSR framework (e.g., Salesforce and Nike), but Unilever is the company that seems to get it the most. At least, they did under Paul Polman (who retired in December 2018). I presume they are continuing his managerial ethos, although I haven't heard much from them of late, which is another reason why I was pleased to see this announcement. The research on employee productivity has been pretty conclusive for a while now (see Strategic CSR – Microsoft and Strategic CSR – Productivity), but it is good to see a company as large as Unilever taking the risk. Being a manager is incredibly difficult, but the research shows that a focus on intrinsic (rather than extrinsic) motivation is the key to getting the most out of your employees, while providing them with meaning and purpose in what they do. Unilever has been in this space for a while now. It is not rocket science, but that doesn't mean it is widely practiced.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/ 

Unilever to Trial Four-day Working Week in New Zealand

By Tracy Withers

November 30, 2020

Bloomberg Businessweek

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/unilever-to-trial-four-day-working-week-in-new-zealand/ar-BB1bvgVD

Strategic CSR - Welcome back!

Welcome back to the Strategic CSR Newsletter! The first newsletter of the Spring semester is below. As always, your comments and ideas are welcome.

With all the barriers that have cropped up to impede the efficient distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, the article in the url below discusses one that would not immediately have occurred to me—whether the "shots are halal":

"A vaccine laced with the smallest amount of pork DNA could dissuade some followers of Islam from inoculation in Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population."

In Indonesia, which has the world's fourth largest population (in addition to the largest Muslim population), the lack of transparency on the vaccine's ingredients is a significant barrier to widespread inoculation:

"With the highest number of coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia, [Indonesia] is eager to drum up support for its goal of inoculating 181.5 million adults within 15 months. But looming questions about the safety of the Sinovac vaccine and whether it is halal, or allowed under Islam, are complicating the government's efforts."

For those who will not receive a vaccination that has not been approved by religious clerics, assurances from pharmaceutical companies are insufficient:

"The vaccine must also undergo a separate approval process by the Ulema Council, an influential group of Muslim clerics that decides which products are halal in Indonesia. … The Ulema Council is expected to issue a decree, or fatwa, authorizing the use of the [approved] vaccine in the coming weeks, but the nature of its findings could affect how widely it is accepted in Indonesia, especially among the country's many conservative Muslims."

This, in spite of assurances from other Islamic countries:

"Islamic authorities in other countries where Muslims make up a sizable share of the population, including Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates, have already ruled that coronavirus vaccines are permissible, even if they contain pork gelatin, which is used to stabilize many inoculations."

And, such moral concerns are not restricted to Islam:

"Last month, the Vatican released a statement declaring coronavirus vaccines 'morally acceptable' for Catholics who might be opposed to a vaccine developed with stem cells from fetuses aborted decades ago."

The concerns are real and, if the findings of the Ulema Council are not sufficiently convincing, the implications could be serious:

"During a measles outbreak in 2018, the government, backed by the World Health Organization, undertook an ambitious vaccination program, but the only vaccine available in sufficient quantities contained pig products. After analyzing the measles vaccine, the Ulema Council declared it haram, or forbidden under Islam, but said its use was allowed because the outbreak was an emergency. In some parts of the country, however, local Muslim leaders opposed using a haram vaccine. The program fell well short of its 95 percent target and ended with nearly 10 million children unvaccinated."

Hope you all have a good semester.

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Muslims in Indonesia Ask if Shots are Halal

By Richard C. Paddock

January 6, 2021

The New York Times

Late Edition – Final

A8

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/05/world/asia/indonesia-sinovac-vaccine-halal.html

 

Strategic CSR - Food stamps

The article in the url below details yet another example of how Amazon is able to adapt to and take advantage of our growing desire to shop online:

"Ian Babcock used to take the bus from his home in northern Michigan to get groceries, a trip that was inconvenient before the pandemic made it dangerous. For the last several months, he's been using his food-stamp benefits to get groceries delivered by Amazon."

Demonstrating great flexibility, it seems that the government agency in charge of administering food stamps in the U.S. (the Department of Agriculture) was responsible for allowing them to be used for online shopping, an option that is now available "for shoppers in 46 states and the District of Columbia." It has clearly been beneficial for many in navigating the pandemic and associated lockdowns this year:

"Babcock is among one million-plus U.S. households now using government benefits each month to buy groceries online. Their numbers spiked 50-fold this year after the spread of Covid-19 prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture to make it easier for food-stamp recipients to shop on the web."

Perhaps predictably, the greatest beneficiaries of this move (beyond the customers themselves) is those companies large enough to deal with the bureaucracy of the U.S. government:

"While the USDA declined to provide an industry breakdown of such purchases, the main beneficiaries are Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. -- the only retailers in most states to take part in the agency's online shopping pilot."

And why would Amazon and Walmart bother with this? Of course because it increases their market share, but also because there is a lot of money to be made in serving the needs of those who have been hit the hardest by the pandemic and subsequent recession:

"For Seattle-based Amazon, the USDA program is an opportunity to get a chunk of the $55 billion that food-stamp recipients spent last year, purchasing that surged 20% in the first four months of 2020. It also lets the company court a cohort that has traditionally patronized Walmart or other discount grocers. Amazon is nearing saturation with higher-income U.S. households and has few other sources of new, potentially loyal customers in its most important market."

The spread of the U.S. government's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program, and the obvious value it is creating for those in need, is apparent in the graph that accompanies the article:

 

As with Walmart, and any other large retailer that dominates its market, Amazon is succeeding because it is delivering what people want and, in cases such as this, cannot get elsewhere:

"When Michigan joined the program in May, Babcock, who suffers chronic health problems and has a suppressed immune system, started using his benefits to buy groceries on Amazon. The 55-year-old former financial planner, computer programmer and self-described veteran of Detroit's hardcore punk scene, also has a discounted Prime membership available to holders of Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards. Referring to Amazon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos, he said 'the guy is making money hand over fist, but he's providing a service I can't get elsewhere.'"

What started out as a pilot program by the USDA looks set to become even more popular as the virus rages on. It is difficult to imagine people shedding the convenience once life returns to something resembling normal:

"Ruth Ilano, a comic artist in Massachusetts with multiple sclerosis, was making a quick trip to the store in May when she collapsed. She hasn't gone inside a supermarket since and is using SNAP benefits to help pay for groceries online. 'Online delivery was previously a nice touch,' she said. 'But now it's absolutely essential to my life.'"

Have a good weekend

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Amazon Lures Food-stamp Shoppers as Online Buying Surges 50-fold

By Matt Day

November 11, 2020

Bloomberg Businessweek

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-11/amazon-lures-food-stamp-shoppers-as-online-buying-surges-50-fold

Strategic CSR - COVID-19 (II)

As Governor of the Bank of England, from 2013-2020, Mark Carney did much to focus attention on the growing financial implications of climate change for businesses (and, by extension, governments). The article in the url below shows how he continues to use his platform (post-BofE) to advance related issues—in this case, discussing the potential economic implications of COVID-19. In particular, he touches on a debate I have long struggled with—determining where 'value' ends and 'values' begin:

 

"Value will change in the post-covid world. On one level, that's obvious: valuations in global financial markets have imploded, with many suffering their sharpest declines in decades. More fundamentally, the traditional drivers of value have been shaken, new ones will gain prominence, and there's a possibility that the gulf between what markets value and what people value will close."

 

Carney was invited to write this column by The Economist and uses the opportunity to advance an idea originally put forward by the philosopher, Michael Sandel:

 

"This points to a final, deeper issue. … in recent decades, subtly but relentlessly, we have been moving from a market economy to a market society. Increasingly, to be valued, an asset or activity has to be in a market. For example, Amazon is one of the world's most valuable companies, yet the Amazon region appears on no ledger until it is stripped of its foliage, and converted to farmland. The price of everything is becoming the value of everything."

 

Carney sees the shared commitment and sacrifice that characterized the overwhelming public response to COVID-19 as an indication that this imbalance may be shifting:

 

"This crisis could help reverse that relationship, so that public values help shape private value. When pushed, societies have prioritised health first and foremost, and then looked to deal with the economic consequences. In this crisis, we know we need to act as an interdependent community not independent individuals, so the values of economic dynamism and efficiency have been joined by those of solidarity, fairness, responsibility and compassion."

 

At a more fundamental level:

 

"All this amounts to a test of stakeholder capitalism. When it's over, companies will be judged by … how they treated their employees, suppliers and customers, by who shared and who hoarded. After the covid crisis, it's reasonable to expect people to demand improvements in the quality and coverage of social support and medical care, greater attention to be paid to managing tail risks, and more heed to be given to the advice of scientific experts."

 

Hmmm. I hope so, but we'll see. The key, of course, is the extent to which we will remember and will reward those "who shared" and punish those "who hoarded." The ultimate test, as Carney argues, is and will continue to be climate change:

 

"The great test of whether this new hierarchy of values will prevail is climate change. After all, climate change is an issue that (i) involves the entire world, from which no one will be able to self-isolate; (ii) is predicted by science to be the central risk tomorrow; and (iii) we can only address if we act in advance and in solidarity."

 

Take care

David

 

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (5e)

© Sage Publications, 2020

 

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler5e 

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Putting values above valuations

By Mark Carney

April 18, 2020

The Economist

Late Edition – Final

52

https://www.economist.com/by-invitation/2020/04/16/mark-carney-on-how-the-economy-must-yield-to-human-values