Like many companies with sizable clients, this company is finding that its customers want to know about the sustainability performance of the business and it is factoring this issue into its decisions. Writing a report is a cost-efficient way of providing customers with the information they need.
This report is also intended to help focus senior management on the direction the company is heading in and where future opportunities and potential threats are likely to come from. This all might sound a little like ‘the tail wagging the dog’, but, in reality, writing a report is often one of the most potent catalysts for change in an organisation.
To get started, you need to consider who your most important target audiences are and what information they need in order to understand your business and its CSR strategy. Then it’s a question of pulling the data together, quality checking it and then writing the report.
Presentation problems
Once the report is written, there is the issue of how the report will be published. Should you produce a ‘traditional’ hard copy or put it on the website for people to download? Are you shooting yourself in the foot as a print or publishing company by not producing a printed report?
The key to a successful report is to make it relevant to the target audience. Are you writing this so your sales force has a better understanding of your company’s activities, so the information can be relayed to customers or do you intend to send it directly to your customers as marketing collateral? Is it investors you want to impress, or are you trying to win new business through tender? Perhaps it is all of the above.
For all companies, but even more so for the print sector, the medium should be chosen for fitness of purpose. I believe a hard copy report has many advantages. A physical report is something tangible that you can give to clients, employees and investors. It is a powerful communications tool and I would argue that it is much more effective than simply producing a downloadable report. Having said that, some of the leading reporters are exploring new opportunities using online media. Although in my view, the online opportunities are not something the first-time reporter should consider.
I’ve worked with the forestry products company Stora Enso for seven years now on its sustainability report. In an effort to put a more human face to its work in sustainability, the company has recently launched a new website. It really is a great example of how a website can complement, but not replace, a printed report. It includes interviews with NGOs, interactive games, commentary from a range of stakeholders and is even integrated with Facebook. If you have not already seen it, I encourage you to take a look.
In the print sector, Polestar is a good example of how new information technology can be used to support customers on sustainability issues through its online carbon calculator. This tool works effectively on the web, is easy to use and does exactly what it should do: provide the user with the information they wish to see.
If you wanted to be really bold, you should let any visitor post comments on your site. You can enter into open dialogue about the issues that get raised and use these exchanges to steer your company’s activities.
My team has worked with The Guardian, which adopted this interactive approach in 2009, and it now publishes online articles detailing its progress, new ideas and any other interesting topics.
For sure, taking such steps will be easier for a large publishing company with a lot of resources, but the fundamental idea of transparency is an interesting one and it can be applied by a business of any size.
Mark Line is the executive chairman of Two Tomorrows, www.twotomorrows.com
