1

ISO 26000 Guidance on Social responsibilityUniversity of Geneva 2015(presentation reduced in size)

Staffan Söderberg, Sustainability Advisor AMAP Sustainability www.amap.se 9 years ISO 26000 (Vice Chair)3 years with WWF (NGO, director corporate partnerships)10 years with Skanska (MNE Construction, sustainability manager)M.Sc Biology/Nature Conservation, M.A. Human Ecology

2

ProgramA. ISO 26000 in context: social responsibility, sustainability,

international standards, tools

B. ISO 26000 in practice: 100 pages, 27 definitions, 7 principles, 7 core subjects, 7 steps of integration

3

A. ISO 26000 in context

44

International Standard? ISO?

5We need standards

6

International

European

National

1906 1926 1961 1985 2012

Regulation of national markets Common market Globalisation

CEN

CENELEC

ISO

IEC

1947

International standards help globalisation

77Principles for ”international standards”

* explicit principles for the “development of international standards, guides and recommendations with relation to articles 2, 5 and Annex 3 of the WTO/TBT agreement”

Transparency Openness

Consensus & impartiality

Market relevance & effectiveness

Coherence Development dimension

Vision&

Strategy

Customer

Financial

Learning Growth

InternalProcess

165 national members5 000 people

98% of world GNI97% of world population

230 active TCs3 404 technical bodies100 000 experts

Central Secretariatin Geneva138 FTE staff

Collection of 20000ISO Standards

1103 standards produced in 2013917+ in 2014 …

ISO – A Global System

759 organizations in

liaison

9

ISO’s recently established committees

EnvironmentEconomicSocietal… most deliver on all three dimensions!

2011• Project, programme &

portfolio management• Additive manufacturing• Facilities management• Outsourcing• Risk management• Bionics• Fireworks• Coal bed methane• Carbon capture and storage

2012• Railway applications• Sustainable development in

communities• Plastic and rubber machines• Light and lighting• Compliance programs• Forensic sciences• Customer contact centres• Sustainability for and by

Information Technology• Translation, interpreting and

related technology• Smart community

infrastructures• Common standards

2013• Sludge recovery, recycling, treatment and disposal• Biotechnology• Sustainable purchasing• Anti-bribery management system – Requirements• Innovation process: interaction, tools and methods• Management consultancy• Fine bubble technology• Water re-use• Occupational health and safety management system –

Requirements• Management system for quality of private security company

operations – Requirements with guidance• Clean cookstoves and clean cooking solutions• Chain of custody of forest-based products• Collaborative business relationship management – Framework• Chain of custody of forest-based products - Requirements

(Provisional)• Educational organizations management systems - Requirements

with guidance for use

2014• Brand evaluation• Online reputation• Domestic gas cooking

appliances• Security (start date: 2015)• Feed machinery

10ISO standards for managing risks and opportunities

Examples of ISO standards, existing or under development:

- sustainable construction - anti-bribery management system - health and safety management system - environmental management system - quality management system - sustainable purchasing - social responsibility- societal risk - risk management - sustainability for and by information technology - energy efficiency management system - sustainability in event management - sustainability criteria for bioenergy

Note: ISO Guide 82 (freely available) for integrating sustainability in standards, based on ISO 26000, giving guidance to those 100,000 experts currently revising/developing ISO-standards

good starting point

1111

Corporate Social Responsibility?Social responsibility?Sustainability?

12

Sustainability

is the goal of sustainable development i.e any state of the global system that develops without limiting

future generations to develop

Note: The environmental, social and economic subsystems of the global system interact and are interdependent. They are often referred to as the three dimensions of sustainability.

(the definition I use, which one do you use?)

13

Sustainable DevelopmentISO 26000 terms and definitions 2.23

development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

NOTE Sustainable development is about integrating the goals of a high quality of life, health and prosperity with social justice and maintaining the earth's capacity to support life in all its diversity. These social, economic and environmental goals are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. Sustainable development can be treated as a way of expressing the broader expectations of society as a whole.

14Many different CSR?CSR – Corporate Social ResponsibilityCR – Corporate ResponsibilityCA – Corporate AccountabilityCC – Corporate CitizenshipCS – Corporate SustainabilityCSR – some call it corporate sustainability reporting….

”CSR International” defines CSR as ”Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility” ?

Social Responsibility is one part of the Triple Bottom Line (1994):-“environmentally sustainable, socially responsible and economically viable”……and on the other hand SR is core to CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) which embraces Triple Bottom Line…

100 tools? SA 8000, AA1000, GRI, OECD MNE, ISO 26000, FSC, UN GP BHR, UN GC, UNGP BHR, etcetera…..

”voluntary beyond legal requirements”…

15We need agreed definitions, structures, methods

Five main examples of “sustainability standards”:

United Nations Global Compact: initiative for businesses that are committed to 10 principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption

ISO standards: e.g. environmental management (ISO 14000) and social responsibility (ISO 26000),

Global Reporting initiative: guidance on sustainability reporting

OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises

UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

16

European Commission CSR Communication 2011Defining CSR

The European Commission previously defined Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as

“a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis”.

In 2011 the Commission puts forward a new definition of CSR as

“the responsibility of enterprises for their impacts on society”

17

“For companies seeking a formal approach to CSR, especially large companies, authoritative guidance is provided by internationally recognised principles and guidelines, in particular the recently updated OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, the ten principles of the United Nations Global Compact, the ISO 26000 Guidance Standard on Social Responsibility, the ILO Tri-partite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy, and the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.”

European Commission CSR Communication 2011Defining CSR

18

”The Commission invites:All large European enterprises to make a commitment by 2014 to take account of at least one of the following sets of principles and guidelines when developing their approach to CSR: the UN Global Compact, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational, Enterprises, or the ISO 26000 Guidance Standard on Social Responsibility.”

European Commission CSR Communication 2011Defining CSR Action

19

”The Commission intends to:Monitor the commitments made by European enterprises with more than 1.000 employees to take account of internationally recognised CSR principles and guidelines, and take account of the ISO 26000 Guidance Standard on Social Responsibility in its own operations.”

European Commission CSR Communication 2011Defining CSR Follow up

20

UN Global Compact self-assessment?

2121Anti-corruption portal?

2222CSR in supply chain for SMEs?

23

Example Sweden: ”Sustainable business” The Government’s vision for sustainable business is: that all

business enterprises sustain a long-term view of value creation and pursue operations that support and promote sustainable business – economically, socially and environmentally.

Focus on: UN Global Compact, OECD Guidelines for MNE, UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

Focus areas: Government as owner/buyer/donor/catalyzer Tools

European Commission CSR Communication 2011 - all member states to develop National CSR plans

24

Social ResponsibilityISO 26000 Terms and Definitions, 2.18

responsibility of an organization for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, through transparent and ethical behaviour that

⎯ contributes to sustainable development, including health and the welfare of society; - takes into account the expectations of stakeholders;

⎯ is in compliance with applicable law and consistent with international norms of behaviour; and

⎯ is integrated throughout the organization and practised in its relationships

NOTE 1 Activities include products, services and processes.NOTE 2 Relationships refer to an organization's activities within its sphere of influence.

25

Time

Social Responsibility Performance

Legal

Otherrequirements

Plan-do-check-act

Sustainability

It all starts to fit!

Different from country to country!

International norms of behaviour, stakeholder expectations, our ownrequirements, standards!

Sustainable development – current expectations from society

Social Responsibility: how the organizations contributes

Today

26

We take a break

27

B. ISO 26000 in practice

2828

One way of working…

Principles/valuesPerformance/communication/report

structure, system, procedures, policies, targets

ENGINEISO 26000

29

Social ResponsibilityISO 26000 Terms and Definitions, 2.18

responsibility of an organization for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, through transparent and ethical behaviour that

⎯ contributes to sustainable development, including health and the welfare of society; - takes into account the expectations of stakeholders;

⎯ is in compliance with applicable law and consistent with international norms of behaviour; and

⎯ is integrated throughout the organization and practised in its relationships

NOTE 1 Activities include products, services and processes.NOTE 2 Relationships refer to an organization's activities within its sphere of influence.

30

Social ResponsibilityISO 26000 Terms and Definitions, 2.18

responsibility of an organization for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, through transparent and ethical behaviour that

⎯ contributes to sustainable development, including health and the welfare of society; - takes into account the expectations of stakeholders;

⎯ is in compliance with applicable law and consistent with international norms of behaviour; and

⎯ is integrated throughout the organization and practised in its relationships

NOTE 1 Activities include products, services and processes.NOTE 2 Relationships refer to an organization's activities within its sphere of influence.

4. How do we know what is the

sustainable level? 1. Who are

stakeholders and how do we know

what they expect?

2. What are the

international norms?

3. Our sphere of influence?

311. Stakeholders?

ISO 26000:2010 Terms and definitions

2.20 stakeholderindividual or group that has an interest in any decision or activity of an organization

2.21 stakeholder engagementactivity undertaken to create opportunities for dialogue between an organization and one or more of its stakeholders, with the aim of providing an informed basis for the organization's decisions

322. International norms of behaviour?

ISO 26000:2010 Terms and definitions

2.11 international norms of behaviourExpectations of socially responsible organizational behaviour derived from customary international law, generally accepted principles of international law, or intergovernmental agreements that are universally or nearly universally recognized

(hint: the bibliography of ISO 26000)

333. Sphere of influence?

ISO 26000:2010 Terms and definitions

2.19 sphere of influencerange/extent of political, contractual, economic or other relationships through which an organization has the ability to affect the decisions or activities of individuals or organisations

Note: the ability to influence does not, in itself, imply a responsibility to excercise influence

34

Some say we need to develop a sustainable economy and sustainable social well-being before we can be motivated to act

for a sustainable environmental impact

Environment

Society

Economy

4. The ”sustainable level”?

35

Is there time?Ecological Footprint Scenario 1: “Business as usual”

36

Ecological Footprint Scenario 2: 95% renewable energy and everybody eats as they do in Malaysia, i.e. more vegetarian

37

Population x consumption = planet resources

Today: 7 bn x 1 = 72050?: 9 bn x 2 = 18 (7 x 250%)

7 should be 5.4 as we are already using 130 % of planet-resources…

38

Population x consumption = planet resources

Today: 7 bn x 1 = 72050?: 9 bn x 2 = 18 (7 x 250%)

7 should be 5.4 as we are already using 130 % of planet-resources…5.4 compared to 18… = 330%

2050: Use 30 % less compared to to today, and produce 330% more ?

39We will use ISO 26000 Title: Guidance on Social Responsibility Target group: To be applied by all types of organizations, not only for

companies (”C”SR) Type of standard: International Standard providing guidance, not

intended for third-party certification Not a management system but compatible with a management

system Not a substitute for legal and other requirements 100 pages, 7 chapters, 27 definitions, 7 principles,

7 core subjects with 37 issues, 7 steps to integrate= 400+ recommendations

Developed 2005-2010 through a rather complex and robust stakeholder dialogue

Read more: iso.org/sr and iso.org/wgsr

40Always investigate how tools/standards were developed!

ISO 26000: One national SR-expert from each of the six stakeholder

categories (100 countries): Industry, Government, Consumer, Labour, Non-governmental organization

(NGO), Service/Support/Research/Others

2 experts from each of the (40) Liaison organizations E.g. Consumers International, UN Global Compact, Global Reporting

Initiative, ICC, IOE, ILO, OECD, Social Accountability Int., UNIDO, WBCSD, WHO

Memorandum of Understanding with ILO, UN Global Compact, OECD, GRI

41Stakeholder balance in the ISO 26000 Working Group

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

March 0

5

Sep 05

May 06

J an 0

7

Nov 07

Aug 08

May

09

May

10

IndustrySSROGovernmentNGOConsumerLabour

42Gender Balance in the ISO 26000 Working Group

61 5863

39 4237

67 66 6562 60

33 34 35 38 40

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

MaleFemale%

43

48

6369

28 28 30

4238

27

21

30

282822

22 28

01020304050607080

March 0

5

Sep

t 05

May 06

J an 07

Nov 07

Aug 0

8

May

09

May

10

Developingcountries

Developedcountries

Regional Balance in the ISO 26000 Working Group

Twinned leaderships!

2013: 70+ adopters and 20+ on their wayHave adoptedIn progress

Not adoptedAlgeria, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote D’Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea Bissau, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea (Republic of), Kyrgyz Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova (Republic of), Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovak Republic, South Africa, Spain, Surinam, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uruguay, USA, Vietnam, Zimbabwe

”Adopted”: as national standard, translated and sold

2013: Adopted

46Linkage to GRI G4 international guidelines for sustainability reporting

Available at : iso.org about (Standards in action, at bottom of page) Sustainable Development

How the best practice examples of sustainability indicators ofGRI can be used to show how the recommendations of ISO 26000are applied

47ISO 26000, the structure

1. Scope2. Terms and Definitions3. Understanding SR4. Principles of SR5. Recognizing SR and engaging stakeholders6. Guidance on SR core subjects 7. Guidance on integrating SR throughout an organization

Annex: Examples of voluntary initiatives and tools for SR

48

Society and Environment

Engagement

Stakeholders

Organizationstrategy, action plan,

communication

Contributeto SD

SubjectsIssuesExpectations

Review

Improving

ISO 26000 Guidance on Social Responsibility- the overarching objective for an organization is to maximize its contribution to sustainable development

p. 69

49

ISO 26000 summary, p.ix

50

Role in sustainable development, Principles

Most important stakeholders and your sphere of influence

Relevant issues, considering legislation and impacts on sustainable development, stakeholders and their impacts on you

Prioritized issues forstrategic improvements based on your criteria

Significant issues, based on impact on sustainable development, stakeholders, societal expectations, risks from failure

Stakeh

older

inpu

tAction through training, procedures, action plan

Contribution to sustainable development

51Overarching SR Principles- to be respected at all times

1. Accountability2. Transparency3. Ethical Behaviour4. Respect for stakeholder interests5. Respect for the rule of law6. Respect for international norms of behaviour7. Respect for humans rights

+ additional subject-specific principles

52Overarching SR Principles- to be respected at all times (Clause 4)1. Accountability: an organization should be accountable for its impacts on society, the economy and the environment

2. Transparency: an organization should be transparent in its decisions and activities that impact on society and the environment

3. Ethical behaviour: an organization should behave ethically

4. Respect for stakeholder interests: an organization should respect, consider and respond to the interests of its stakeholders

5. Respect for the rule of law: an organization should accept that respect for the rule of law is mandatory

6. Respect for international norms of behaviour: an organization should respect international norms of behaviour, while adhering to the principle of respect for the rule of law

7. Respect for human rights: an organization should respect human rights and recognize both their importance and their universality

53

Distributors

Value chain

Supply chain

Sector association

MediaGovernmentCitizens NGO’s

Natural, Social and Economic Environment

ConsumersSuppliers ASub-Suppliers A

Raw material providers

Waste services

Workers

EmployeesIndustryOrganization

Partners Banks /Insurance

Shareholders

Suppliers B

Customers A

Sub-Suppliers B

Customers B

Sphere of influenceExample

547 core subjects- should be addressed by all organizations

1. Organizational governance2. Human rights3. Labour practices4. The environment5. Fair operating practices6. Consumer issues7. Community involvement and development

With 37 underlying issues, not all relevant to all organizations

Which of these core subjects and issues are relevant to us?Most significant?

55

56

57

6. Guidance on SR core subjects

6.2 Organisational governance

6.3 Human rights

6.4 Labour practices

6.5 Environment

6.6 Fair operating practices

6.7 Consumer issues

6.8 Community involvement and development

ISO 26000 – Clause 6

Each of these core subjects includes: - Overview of the subject- Its link to social responsibility- Principles and considerations- Issues

Each issue includes:- Description of the issue- Related actions and expectations

58

Example Structure for one issue: Anti-corruption 6.6 Fair operating practices (core subject 5) 6.6.1 Overview of fair operating practices 6.6.1.1 Organizations and fair operating practices 6.6.1.2 Fair operating practices and social responsibility 6.6.2 Principles and considerations 6.6.3 Fair operating practices issue 1 (of core subject 5): Anti-corruption 6.6.3.1 Description of the issue Corruption is the abuse of entrusted power for private

gain…..etcetera

6.6.3.2 Related actions and expectations

To prevent corruption an organization should: (9 recommendations) ⎯ identify the risks of corruption and implement and maintain policies and practices that

counter corruption and extortion; ⎯ ensure its leadership sets an example for anti-corruption and provides commitment,

encouragement and oversight for implementation of the anti-corruption policies; ⎯ support and train….. etcetera….

59

Role in sustainable development, Principles

Most important stakeholders and your sphere of influence

Relevant issues, considering legislation and impacts on sustainable development, stakeholders and their impacts on you

Prioritized issues forstrategic improvements based on your criteria

Significant issues, based on impact on sustainable development, stakeholders, societal expectations, risks from failure

Stakeh

older

inpu

tAction through training, procedures, action plan

Contribution to sustainable development

60

Offer Sales Delivery

Strategy(market, position, competitive advantage,

business model)

Targets and KPIs

Financing and

investmentsGovernance

Vision Mission Culture, values, principles

Exec

u-tio

n

Develop your sustainability strategy!

Who we are

How we do it

What we need

Where we are going

61After having used ISO 26000, the cotton shirt company found:

Key Stakeholders: owners, employees, suppliers, customers….

Key Sustainability principles: accountability, transparency, rule of law…

Key Core subjects: Human rights, labor practices, environment…

Most relevant and significant issues: child labor, sustainable resource use, anti-

corruption, freedom of association, health and safety…

Most proritized issues for strategic action: 100% BCI, child labor free,

A new sector initiative: Corruption Free Cotton…

Key Integration: QMS, supplier audits, training…

Key Communication: sustainability report, stakeholder engagement plan…

62

Thank you!

Contact me if you have questions or ideas: staffan.soderberg@amap.se+46706912269