by Barbara Zäch, Co-CEO, Center for Corporate Reporting (CCR)
The purpose of a company is more pivotal than ever before. It is the intent and aspiration of why a specific company exists and how it intends to create value for its shareholders and other stakeholders.
At the CCR Roundtable on May 20, 2022, about 30 participants listened to the topic-specific presentations of Dr. Kai Rolker, Clariant, Dominik Marbet, Baloise Group, as well as Taryn Ridley and Erich Steinegger, both Barry Callebaut.
In the deep-dive discussion, it became clear that the greatest challenge is the daily implementation of a corporate purpose in all business processes. Basically, purpose emerges from the fusion of the essence of vision and mission with the corporate values. The challenge is to bring it to life and to implement it into corporate behavior.
The examples shown made it clear that a purpose, which is lived effectively, pays off in the long-term value of a company. Furthermore, the value of a purpose that is lived consistently is particularly reflected in the perception of stakeholders with a long-term orientation.
Another key challenge is to make the objectives of purpose-related activities measurable and to provide factual evidence that these objectives are being met consistently. In practice, this means that a claim which was originally compelling needs to be refined and its essence has to be regularly and proactively specified to the evolving expectations of stakeholders
The roundtable culminated in a networking lunch with personal conversations among participants.
CCR members can access the slides and key take-aways in the member section on our website. Individual support in the process of dealing with purpose and other matters around reporting be it as sparring partner for a second opinion or for an in-depth analysis of a related project is also part of CCR’s offering for its community. Contact us via the CCR Helpdesk.
