2005 results - corporate responsibility index
29 CEOs submit to public examination of
their corporate responsibility practice
The results of the third Australian Corporate Responsibility Index demonstrate that for participant companies, running business better has extended beyond the triple bottom line.
Click here to view a PDF of the full results table.
Congratulations go not only to this year’s best performer, Westpac, but to all twenty-nine participating companies and their CEOs who have taken the risk to engage in an open, sleeves up examination of their approach to corporate responsibility
Every year, BRW top 250 companies and Business Council of Australia members are invited to participate in the Corporate Responsibility Index (CR Index). It is not about 'feel-good' projects peripheral to core business. Rather than providing an opportunity for corporate green washing and PR spin, the Index is a rigorous self-assessment process, which it is subject to independent validation by Ernst & Young.
The commitment to voluntary public disclosure is a key feature of this index – with results and analysis reported in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age on 15 May 2006.
Top five participating companies in this year’s Australian CR Index were Westpac, Toyota Australia, ANZ, BHP Billiton and BOC Group. Other companies taking the challenge were Amcor, AMP, AGL, AstraZeneca, AWB, Boral, British American Tobacco, Cadbury Schweppes, Caltex Australia, EnergyAustralia, Ford, Foster’s Group, Hewlett-Packard Australia, GM Holden, IBM Australia, IAG, Lion Nathan, Minter Ellison, Newmont Australia, Savings & Loans (SA), Suncorp, Telstra, Rio Tinto & Unilever.
After a gritty result in their first year, this year’s performance improvement by participating companies across the board demonstrates their commitment to instill principles of corporate responsibility throughout their operational systems.
Since inception, the majority of Australian participating companies have shown double digit performance improvements overall. A key factor in this improvement has been the integration of the 'high-level values' of corporate responsibility throughout the company.
Driving the move from expressed values to integration into day-to-day business with demonstrated improvement in management and performance is the primary purpose of the CR Index. Designed as a practical gap-analysis tool, it offers a framework for those companies seeking to implement and improve corporate responsibility across their business operations.
This year’s results are a vindication of the utility of the CR Index as a tool for those embarking on the journey of CR Index, not just those who are already there.
“It’s far easier to participate when general acclaim is the most likely result than to do so knowing that the results will reveal a daunting list of further challenges. The companies that persist demonstrate gritty leadership of a kind that will hopefully inspire others to embrace this measurement as the first step to improving performance.” Executive Director of St James Ethics Centre, Dr Simon Longstaff.
> 2005
Corporate Responsibility Index results table ... (PDF)
> Executive Summary with 2005 results table and detailed information ... (PDF)
> How the leaders became leaders (article by Ernst & Young) ... (PDF)
> 2005 Corporate Responsibility Index awards ...
> Simon Longstaff's foreword to the 2005 Executive Summary ...
> 2005 results: trustee's report ...
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