Corporate Governance Of Sustainability

For the past two decades corporate governance reform in Europe has been guided by the ‘shareholder value’ model of the firm. That model has been discredited as one of the major causes of the financial and economic crisis. In a new book published by the ETUI an alternative approach to corporate governance is presented by members of the GOODCORP network of researchers and trade unionists. This new approach, entitled the Sustainable Company, draws on both traditional ‘stakeholder’ models of the firm and newer concerns with sustainability. The main elements of the Sustainable Company and the institutions needed to support it are presented. Key themes in the book are the need for worker ‘voice’ in corporate governance and for a binding legislative framework to promote sustainability. Individual chapters deal with the issues of worker involvement, employee shareholding, sustainability-oriented remuneration, international framework agreements, NGO-trade union relationships, reforming financial regulation and carbon taxes and emissions-trading schemes.

In recent years, as corporations and governments have increasingly been confronted with managing the expectations of a society newly alerted to the social and environmental risks of economic development, recognition is dawning that achieving a sustainable world is dependent upon the democratic management and equitable distribution of these risks for now, and for the future. This book, the first to explore the themes of corporate governance and sustainability, argues that a better system of governance on a number of levels holds the key. Contributed to and edited by a distinguished international team, this book recognizes the complex and contested nature of both sustainability and governance, and that these key concepts have been redefined considerably over time. As sustainability poses new and major challenges for the theory and practice of corporate governance, this book, ideal for postgraduate students of business and management, identifies and addresses these challenges.

This book discusses the implementation of sustainability in corporate governance mechanisms since 2013 and assesses how much the role of the Board of Directors has changed as a result. The study explores the impact of legislation upon corporate governance in two European contexts, the UK and Italy, which have been affected differently by changes in national regulations since 2013. This investigation relies first on the analysis of interviews administered to the boards of directors of Italian firms, to highlight how far sustainability objectives were considered a real priority for their firms and how their role evolved in terms of specific duties and practices. Second, thanks to a rich dataset from 2013 to 2017, the investigation considers the corporate governance reports of top Italian and British listed firms, to identify how the integration of sustainability within corporate governance has been evolving since 2013, and how it has been disclosed. This insider perspective provides the reader with a set of tools useful for analysing firms’ engagement towards sustainability, and for assessing whether listed firms practice what they preach.

There has been a clear shift in perceptions regarding the relationship between corporate governance and sustainability. Directors now need to acknowledge that sustainability is part of their responsibility in guiding and overseeing corporate activities. As a practical matter, engaging with this wider responsibility is no easy task—an urgent set of challenges superbly met by this incomparable guide. This is the first book to describe how to organize board and senior management activities in order to fulfil the company's goals with respect to operating in a socially responsible manner and acting as a sustainable business. In its step-by-step approach to integrating sustainability principles into corporate governance, this book dramatically shows how policy in such business areas as the following can be redrawn to fit effectively into a sustainability framework: ? audit; ? compensation; ? finance; ? health and safety; ? compliance; ? risk management; ? technology; and ? disclosure and reporting. Numerous valuable suggestions highlight allocation of responsibilities to board committees, preparing and implementing internal governance instruments, and organizing, evaluating, and improving an effective sustainability governance system. Useful tools and resources include annotated forms and checklists, summaries of relevant international and national guidelines, and samples and case studies from companies around the world. The special case of small businesses is covered in a separate chapter. Given the redefinition and expansion of directors' fiduciary duties beyond shareholders to other stakeholders such as employees, customers, and local communities, this book will be welcomed by board members, their professional advisors, policymakers, researchers, and academics involved with issues and initiatives relating to sustainability, employee welfare, social concerns, and environmental stewardship.

This book explores the concepts of sustainability and governance in relation to the governance of corporations – hence the ubiquity of the term corporate governance – and other bodies. It examines how these concepts are regularly used by politicians and by the media. The two concepts are however largely treated as being separate and discrete, and given equal coverage. The argument in this book is that the two concepts are inter-related and that good governance is a prerequisite for sustainability. The focus of the book therefore is different from most, as it seeks to integrate these two important issues. The approach used in this book is based on the tradition of the Social Responsibility Research Network – a worldwide body of scholars that, over its 20-year history, has sought to broaden the discourse and to treat all research as inter-related and business-relevant. The book examines diverse aspects of the changes to corporate and institutional behaviour that have recently manifested by focusing on these two aspects of sustainable development. Thus, the authors explore engagement and partnership between organisations, in order to consider the extent to which the focus has changed so much that we need to think about new approaches to our understanding of sustainability and differing effects in practice. The international mix of authors makes this an original contribution, sharing some of the best ideas from around the world.

This book considers the corporate governance of sustainability from a co-evolutionary perspective, exploring the linkages between pro-active approaches at the corporate level, market-based incentives and environmental networks. The contributors contend that governance for sustainable development has not yet been fully formulated, and requires further analysis in the context of policies, the role of the state and the inclusion of corporate and private actors. They question whether the governance of sustainable development goes beyond traditional, state-centred policy-making by aiming for proactive changes of private actors' behaviours at different levels. The discussion also encompasses relevant theory on corporate governance, competition, market failures and regulatory tools. An assessment methodology suitable for empirical network analysis at the meso-level is introduced, and its application is demonstrated using eight case studies. Raimund Bleischwitz and his team of contributing authors draw important conclusions for policy analysis and sustainability assessments and the actors involved. The book will therefore prove an invaluable resource for academics, scholars and policymakers focussing on applied sustainability research, policy analysis and evaluation.

The Challenge of Sustainability: Corporate Governance in a Complicated World reviews the evolution of five types of corporate governance and their different sustainability objectives. It discusses the challenges for boards in achieving sustainability from an environmental, economic, employment, and social perspective and introduces the concept of a political tragedy of the commons if boards do what is in the best interests of their profitability only, without considering their responsibilities and unintended consequences for their stakeholders. It explains how volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity complicate making sustainable decisions. This book explores ways of helping prevent such negative outcomes. John Zinkin asserts the director’s need to reconcile volatility with vision, uncertainty with understanding, complexity with courage and commitment, and ambiguity with adaptability. To prevent a potential political tragedy of the commons, the book suggests new decision-making processes; treating employees differently; and makes the case for reforming capitalism. It is aimed at managers, board members and all those who influence them, including shareholder activists, corporate legal personnel, politicians, activists and general readers interested in applying some of these suggestions in their roles as stakeholders, managers and directors.

Sustainability and Corporate Governance is the first extensive and targeted guide for directors and their legal advisors on creating a governance framework for corporations that integrates all the recognized principles of sustainability now being discussed in boardrooms all over the world. The book provides a step-by-step approach on integrating sustainability principles into the activities of the board of directors including detailed guidance on legal, regulatory and business aspects of organizing and operating board committees and designing the sustainability management unit. Essential topics covered include: • Elements of an effective framework for implementation of sustainability governance, including required policies, procedures and committee charters • Organization of the governing board to effectively address sustainability issues and implement sustainability strategies • Best practices and processes to engage company stakeholders Corporate board members and attorneys will appreciate the book’s practical forms and checklists, complete coverage of all facets of sustainability governance, summaries of relevant international and national guidelines and instruments, and a curated list of samples and case studies from companies all around the world.