The Magazine of Corporate Responsibility

Tag Archive for ‘BP’

Is There a Culture of Secrecy Behind Corporate Responsibility?

Does a commitment to corporate responsibility provide cover for bad corporate behavior? Stories about companies behaving badly make commitments to CR look hollow at best. Neil Smith argues it is not just commitments that matter, but the corporate culture set by the person at the top of the organization and internal subcultures determined by the employees and managers which are important.

Crisis Management and Your Board – Five Lessons from BP

No board of directors should feel smug about how well their company has prepared for a crisis, writes Betsy Atkins, an independent director of several publicly-held companies. Instead, she says, a board needs to insure there’s an effective crisis management plan in place – one that can protect shareholder value and the value of the corporate brand.

BOOKS: In Search of Sustainable Excellence

“Sustainable excellence” is a term used by Aron Cramer and Zachary Karabell to describe companies that operate profitably, are committed to superior business practices, and “integrate consideration of society and the environment into their DNA.” Gael O’Brien reviews their new book.

Leadership: Vigilantism 2.0

The worldwide Web is a great repository for track records, and has a long memory. That’s why social activists are increasingly using it to punish companies that have attracted their wrath. In this brave new world, Ann Charles writes, CEOs need to prepare for the era of total transparency.

Opinion: Inglorious CEOs

As each headline about corporate malfeasance is juxtaposed against record profits and bonuses, Americans become more jaded about the ethics of today’s business leadership. Many CEOs seem to lack the emotional awareness to deal with their own image problem.

Sustainability: Business Strategy Trumps Reputation

Sustainability may be a massive and vitally important global movement, says columnist Gael O’Brien, but it often suffers from its own ambiguity. “It isn’t surprising that when you ask people what their company is doing in sustainability,” she reports, “the question back is almost always ‘how are you defining it?’”

How Much Oil From Deepwater Horizon Is Still on Sea Floor?

It’s true that oil from BP’s Deepwater Horizon fiasco is still sticking to and covering parts of the sea floor for some 80 miles or more around the site of the now-capped well. In early September, researchers from the University of Georgia found oil some two inches thick on the sea floor as far as 80 miles away from the source of the leak, with a layer of dead shrimp and other small animals under it.

Obama Highlights Anti-Corruption Measure for Mining and Energy

A new measure designed to combat corruption in resource-rich countries by requiring mining and energy companies to disclose payments to foreign governments was highlighted this week by U.S. President Barack Obama in a speech at the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit in New York. The requirement is a provision of the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill signed into law by Mr. Obama in July.

BOOKS: Speaking Up for Values in Business

When companies cross ethical lines, a common assumption is that employees don’t speak up because their moral compass has gone haywire. But it may be more complicated than that. A new book by business professor and consultant Mary C. Gentile argues that most people want to do the right thing. They just don’t know how.

The Ethics of Emotional Intelligence

Recent leadership failures in high profile companies draw attention to the reality that achieving goals – performance – is only part of the formula for success. Another critical piece is the way leaders do it which impacts others – relationships. Columnist Gael O’Brien says leaders who are low in self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills lack something called “emotional intelligence.”