企业社会责任(3/3)

The first thing is to be attentive to the needs of all stakeholders.

This means that companies must recognise their responsibilities not only to their shareholders,

but also be committed to respecting their employees, their suppliers, their customers,

and the local community and environment in which they operate.

The second point is about audits and reporting.

Companies already submit their financial accounts for audit.

They must also submit to social audits and environmental impact audits.

These must be reported to the outside world so that everyone can see the results of their performance in the three key areas,

thus tying companies to their promises.

However, this means that companies have to be honest and open about their actions and so expose themselves to public criticism.

It's easy to advertise your successes to your customer.

It's not so easy to publicise the level of pollution from your factory or,

if you are a private company, to disclose your financial results.