ATCA Briefings

Dear ATCA Colleagues

[Please note that the views presented by individual contributors are not necessarily representative of the views of ATCA, which is neutral. ATCA conducts collective Socratic dialogue on global opportunities and threats.]

Joint Declaration

"We all believe that for companies to succeed into the future they must play a greater role in contributing to solving the problems that society faces, including environmental degradation, poverty and the abuse of human rights. Our conclusions are summarised [below]. We commit to doing all we can within our own organisations and with others to turn these conclusions into practice. We hope that this report will prompt a further exchange of ideas about the evolving role of global business. Its ultimate success will be measured by its impact on the actions that leaders in business and beyond take over the coming years."

The joint declaration has been signed by a number of trans-national business and organisation leaders as members of the global inquiry team. The launch has taken taken place upon the completion of the two-year long world-wide inquiry. The international inquiry was conceived and facilitated by Mark Goyder et al at Tomorrow's Company. Please note that many members of the international inquiry team are also members of ATCA:

Inquiry Co-Chairs

1. John Manzoni, Group Managing Director & Chief Executive, Refining & Marketing, BP

2. Nandan Nilekani, Co-Chairman, Infosys Technologies

Inquiry Team members

3. Gary Steel, Executive Vice President and Head of Human Resources, ABB

4. Daniel Gagnier, Formerly Senior Vice President, Corporate and External Affairs, Alcan

5. Ron Nielsen, Director, Sustainability and Strategic Partnerships, Alcan

6. Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, Chairman, Anglo-American

7. GV Prasad, Vice Chairman and CEO, Dr Reddy's

8. Dr Wolfgang Schneider, Ford, VP Legal, Governmental & Environmental Affairs, Ford of Europe

9. Ian Barlow, Senior Partner, KPMG (London)

10. BG Srinivas, Senior Vice President (EMEA), Infosys Technologies

11. David Runnalls, President, International Institute for Sustainable Development

12. Ulf Karlberg, Human Rights Activist, Founding Chair - Amnesty International Business Group, Sweden

13. Fields Wicker-Muirin, Co-Founder and Partner, Leaders' Quest

14. Jeremy Oppenheim, Partner, McKinsey & Company

15. Mervyn Davies, Chairman, Standard Chartered

16. Kate James, Global Head of Government Relations and Business Strategy, Standard Chartered

17. Gerard Lemarche, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, SUEZ

18. Gérard Sussmann, Corporate Vice President for Development and Strategy, SUEZ

19. John Elkington, Founder & Chief Entrepreneur, SustainAbility

Executive Summary

The survival and success of tomorrow's global company is bound up with the health of a complex global system made up of three interdependent sub-systems - the natural environment, the social and political system and the global economy. Global companies play a role in all three and they need all three to flourish.

We believe in a strong market economy. The market economy has driven human progress and growth, lifting the living standards of many people. But the world is now undergoing a period of unprecedented change and it is becoming clear that the current frameworks in which the market operates are leading to unsustainable outcomes. There are major issues which the market and the political systems have not resolved -- particularly climate change, areas of persistent poverty and abuses of human rights.

Global companies can be a force for good and are uniquely placed to deliver the practical solutions that are urgently required to address these issues. We believe that the purpose of tomorrow's global company is "To provide ever better goods and services in a way that is profitable, ethical and respects the environment, individuals and the communities in which it operates."

This means changes for tomorrow's global company and its future leadership. To play their full part, tomorrow's global companies need to work together, accepting their share of responsibility for addressing the world's challenges. They must maintain their own economic health by retaining the support of customers and shareholders. From this position, they can build stronger and more constructive relationships with governments and civil society in a joint effort to deliver the solutions that are needed.

We have identified three specific ways in which global companies can fulfil this role through 'expanding the space' in which they operate.

Expanding The Space

1. Redefining Success

Tomorrow's global company should expand its view of success and redefine it in terms of lasting positive impacts for business, society and the environment. Having redefined success, tomorrow's global business leaders should stand firmly behind their convictions and use them as a basis for their business strategy and decision making. Internal processes, especially measurement and reporting, and external communications with all stakeholders, need to be consistent with this view of success.

2. Embedding Values

Shared values are essential to provide cohesion in a company that is global and diverse. Once values have been established and communicated, they must be rigorously followed in practice and people held accountable for observing them. Tomorrow's global companies need both values and rules, but values provide the bedrock upon which a company's behaviour should be based.

3. Creating Frameworks

There are serious failures in the frameworks of law, regulations and agreements which frustrate many efforts to deal with some of the global issues both companies and societies face. Fiscal systems often do not drive the market in sustainable directions and subsidies are frequently perverse. In many cases, major issues can be addressed through international agreements. These subsequently need to be translated into national regulation that is then rigorously and uniformly enforced. Effective self-regulation, in its many forms, is often the first step. We believe tomorrow's global company must take the time and commitment required to be pro-active and work jointly with other companies, NGOs, governments and international organisations to ensure that better frameworks are created.

[ENDS]