Looking for ER support
What is this all about:
As you shurely read or will read in the wonderful MC newsletter the Connect2007 Team is looking for some people to support the ER team to contact companys.
What do we expect from you:
Invest 2 hours per week during January and February in calling up potential partners by phone, do the follow-up and report to ER responsibles Joe and Sara is the major part. Also there has some company research to be done, but just a little. Most of the time you can work with an existing company list.
What you can gain from it:
You are able to improve your selling skills and so you can gain an ER experience and for shure you can work in a national project of @CH within a team with drive, the Connect2007 Team.
What to do:
until 3.January 2007: write to Joe (
johannes.vanderveer@aiesec.ch) and Sarah (
sarah.renfer@aiesec.ch) stating who you are, what your motivation is and what your current level of understanding of Connect 2007 is.
We are looking forward to your mail.
Your Connect2007 Team
Confirmed speakers
I'm sure you'd like to know who the great people are that will be present at Connect 2007 to share their knowledge with you and challenge you in the different workshops.
Here's a list of who we have so far:
- Walter Fust, Director Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
- Markus Neuhaus, CEO PwC Switzerland
- Bettina Ferdman Guerrier, CEO and Founder of Philias (Network of companies participating in the Global Compact)
- Ernst Brugger, Brugger & Partner AG / Sustainability Forum Zürich
- Regina Reinhardt, Intercultural Coach
- Guido Palazzo, Professor HEC Lausanne
- Representatives of Amnesty International, WWF International, Brot für Alle, SECO
Case Study aspects defined!
We've been working on defining the different aspects of Corporate Responsibility that we want to look at during the first day of Connect 2007.
These are different workshops that will be led by experts, discussing challenges that a fictitious company is facing.
These aspects are still subject to change, as we're still working on the final Case Study that the participants will be working on, but we wanted to give you some more details anyways :-)
Is there anything missing? Do you think we forgot an aspect that has to be there for sure? Please let us know what you think about it in the comments!
Case StudyThe first day is centered on the solving of a Case Study, a real world example of a company or organization that has to deal with different aspects of CSR. In thematic teams under the supervision of an expert, delegates first get a theoretical introduction and then work on solving the case in relation to their chosen aspect. Those aspects could include: environmental protection, financial aspects, labour security, human rights, etc.
The teams will present their findings to the audience where a moderator will facilitate session as well as the following panel discussion. The aim of the first speech will be to provide a holistic view on the challenges faced by companies in regards to CSR and how a specific company reacts to them. A panel made of 3-4 experts will then play the role of “challengers” to stimulate further thoughts.
TopicsA Swiss company discovers the advantages of the Asian business location and expands to China in order to lower production costs and to be able to get important market shares.
During this process the company is involved in several difficulties relating to Corporate Social Responsibility.
CorruptionThe reputation of the company is threatened by a corruption scandal.
The fight against corruption is a fundamental part of the responsible business agenda. The private sector shares responsibility for the challenges of eliminating corruption and has to demonstrate a new willingness in the business community to play its part in the fight against corruption.
Environmental issuesMainland China's increasingly polluted environment is largely a result of the country's rapid development and consequently a large increase in primary. The company has to consider their responsibility towards the environment.
Key environmental issues:
- Emissions to air (greenhouse gases and ozone depleting substances)
- Emissions to land (waste)
- Resource usage (use of water, mineral resources and materials purchased)
- Energy (source, transportation, consumption; gas, electricity, coal, renewable energies)
Community InvolementThe company wants to do a community project to involve and support the community where their production is based.
Community involvement of companies becomes more and more a crucial part of their engagement towards their stakeholders. it is also beneficial to the company because it increases their local reputation and it contributes to a higher living standard of its workers.
Community involvement can include amongst other things:
· Health and social issues dealing with the family
· Educational programs
· Community development programes
Human Rights / Core Labour Standards / Health & SafetySeveral of the firms in the companies supply chain are invovled in different Labour & Human Rights issues.
Over the last decade, changes in the structure of world trade and investment have increased the exposure of the business community to human rights issues. Foreign direct investment by companies in manufacturing operations in China has grown exponentially. As a result, companies increasingly are publicly being held accountable for labor rights & other human rights abuses in factories that make their products.
OutsourcingBy expanding into China the company has taken the decision to outsource. But what is their responsibility towards their workers in Switzerland? And what difficulties are they facing in China?
The decision to outsource is often made in the interest of lowering firm costs, redirecting or conserving energy directed at the competencies of a particular business, or to make more efficient use of worldwide labor, capital, technology and resources.
Reputation ManagementOne of the most valuable assets that any company has is its reputation. CSR is a business imperative. It should ultimately be mutually beneficial to both the giver and receiver. But how can a company implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes that closely match the business objectives?
Intercultural aspectsThe expansion into another culture is not always easy. The company representatives have to deal with a lot of communication and intergration problems in China.
How to adapt a global CSR strategy on a local level? How to improve the communication and the understanding between the conmpany and its local stakeholders?
