Sustainable Development and CSR as Long-Term Strategic Issues for Communications

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND CSR AS LONG-TERM STRATEGIC CONCERNS FOR ORGANIZATIONS: The Role of the Communication Department

Dealing with sustainable development and social responsibility is one of the most important strategic challenges for European communicators, according to the 2020 European Communication Monitor.  This has not always been the case as fewer than 16% found these issues important just five years ago. The all-time high interest in sustainability issues by communicators was recorded just following the financial crisis in 2009.

Does this mean that communicators only find sustainability and social responsibility important when there is a crisis? If so, this is no longer a defensible attitude; organizations are reeling from the impact of the coronavirus and the glaring social issues made visible in its wake. Around the globe, people are protesting against corporations greenwashing, ignoring worker rights, not addressing equity in the workplace, advertising promoting stereotypes, and not reducing their environmental foot print. Activism is becoming more organized and reaching more impact through social media.

Because of Covid-19, firms are revisiting their purpose, decisions and the impacts they have on society.  The media is full of examples of organizations righting policies that they have either ignored or just not thought about. People are looking to both the public and private sectors for recovery and this means being more than just profit-driven.

Often, the only way people have to judge organizations is how they profile and brand themselves. This includes communicating their positions as environmentally friendly, as inclusive, or as a great place to work in a way that builds trust and is action oriented.  If the public does not know what organizations are doing, they will judge them harshly. Communicating what an organization does to its stakeholders is not only important, it is essential for an organization’s survival. 

This second lecture in our lecture series looks at the role of the communication function when it comes to sustainability and social responsibility.  Key themes include stakeholder inclusion, dialogue, building an authentic brand, and the influence of the communication function within the organization. Two communication directors, Ulrike Hauge from DNV GL and Joséphine Edwall from Essity will share their stories of how their business organizations attend to sustainability through communication.

Panelists: Ulrike Haugen, Chief Communication Officer, DNV GL; Prof Catrin Johansson (Mid Sweden University); Prof Peggy Brønn (BI Norwegian Business School); Joséphine Edwall Bjorklund, SVP, Group Function Communications at Essity.

WATCH THE LECTURE HERE