Revised standard for responsible and sustainable business raises the bar

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We have completed the second update of the Business Working Responsibly Mark since its launch in 2012 by releasing version three of the Business Working Responsibly Mark questionnaire. The Business Working Responsibly Mark certification for responsible and sustainable business is based on ISO 26000 and is audited by the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI).

16 companies have achieved the Business Working Responsibly Mark:

  • Accenture in Ireland;
  • Boots Retail (Ireland) Ltd;
  • CRH Ireland;
  • Deloitte Ireland;
  • EirGrid;
  • ESB;
  • Gas Networks Ireland;
  • Intel Ireland;
  • Marks & Spencer Ireland;
  • Microsoft Ireland;
  • Musgrave Group;
  • Northern Trust Ireland;
  • Pfizer Healthcare Ireland;
  • Ricoh Ireland Limited;
  • Transdev Ireland Ltd;
  • Ulster Bank.

The Mark offers companies third party endorsement as well as an internal management framework, an inventory and a gap analysis for their responsible and sustainable business practices. Through 26 indicators—ranging from employee communications to water management to community engagement—it assesses how a business manages responsible and sustainable relationships with employees, customers, suppliers, communities and other key stakeholders.

To attain the Mark certification, companies must achieve a pass score in the self-assessment questionnaire and complete a verification audit by the NSAI. With version three, companies will be certified for three years rather than for two.

BITCOur CEO Tina Roche commented : “Customers want to trust companies they engage with. Employees, especially new hires, want to work for value-driven employers and investors want to know that a company is sustainable. So how do you measure trust, reputation and culture? That is the problem that the Business Working Responsibly Mark solves. Version three of the questionnaire raises the standard even higher.”

Along with a wide range of upgrades and improvements, Version 3 of the self-assessment questionnaire has been revised as follows:

  1. Management leadership is given greater attention, delving into the details of how management approves a responsible and sustainable strategy addressing 26 indicators as well as how it resources those objectives and ensures they are regularly assessed.
  2. The questionnaire asks how the company positions itself as a leader among peer companies, demonstrating excellence and encouraging collective change.
  3. The Mark also asks how companies formally identify benefits that their corporate responsibility activities have had on stakeholders and on the business.
  4. There is also additional content required in relation to company activities on: climate change adaptation; business conduct vis a vis peers and government; data protection; recall or service stoppage procedures; stakeholder engagement and human rights.
  5. The number of indicators have dropped from 27 to 26 and questions from 293 to 282.

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