How we can help

Reduced trust in the banking sector is clearly having a wider impact on confidence in business.  A fundamental is of course to ensure you are familiar, and comply, with legislation relevent to your sector and business activities.  Business in the Community provides you with support in going beyond legislative compliance to: 

• Check you have clearly set out the principles by which you operate and these are supported in the actions of your company's leadership.  You may also want to consider our recent briefing note The whys and hows of corporate values;
• Ensure strong and effective corporate governance arrangements underpinned by responsible business processes and principles.  We encourage all our members, and the wider business community, to take up our principles of good governance of corporate responsibility.

We would encourage you to support the wider business community through prompt payment.

Recent events have also highlighted the importance of ensuring that businesses have the necessary support to manage their finances sustainably.  Organisations whose work you may want to review in this area are: Accounting for Sustainability, ACCA and The Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF).  The Global Reporting Initiaitve has produced economic indicator protocols and sector specific economic protocols including the financial sector economic supplement.

There are several way that our Marketplace team can support you: 

• Explore the advantages of signing up to the Marketplace Responsibility Principles;

• Ensure responsible supply chain management, as well as sustainable product impact and innovation;

• Protect and enhance your brand reputation through responsible marketing;

• Engage responsibly and constructively with regulation to influence the rules of the marketplace. 

We are beginning to undertake research in practical approaches to rebuilding trust in your business.  As part of this we are further investigating voluntary versus mandatory approaches to enabling responsible business practice.  In this area we are working to influence public policy and in December 08 responded to the Conservative Commission on Waste and Voluntary Agreements and in March 09 will be contributing to the Liberal Democrats Consumer Policy working group consultation.

It is vital that investment  in the current and future workforce continues despite the economic downturn, whilst also looking after employee health & well-being and ensuring a diverse workforce.  The prime minister reminded attendees of the urgency of this task at the Talent Debates we convened with partners throughout 2008.  We are now working to help you:

• Unlock the talent of your current and future workforce;
• Strategically manage the health and wellbeing of staff to help increase productivity;
• Maximise the positive business benefits of developing a diverse workforce that reflects the surrounding community.

The recession presents particular pressures on workplace and with this in mind we hosted a Responsible downsizing breakfast in December 2008 and in January 2009 published a briefing note Responsibility in a recession: checklist for responsible restructuring and downsizing.  In February 2009 we published a new report The Responsible Workplace: How to survive and thrive.

The impact of recession on our local communities is already proving to be significant as the number of people unemployed increases sharply.  Our founding principle was the belief that a "healthy back street" meant a "healthy high street".  With this in mind at this time we are providing members with advice on:

• Engaging in economic renewal and enterprise;
• Downsizing and exiting communities responsibly; and
• Motivating and developing your people through employee volunteering.

BITC has recently responded to the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) consultation on the extension of time off entitlements legislation.  We raised the concerns of member companies regarding the timing of this proposal and its impact on business and the wider economy.  We argued that the consultation gave insufficient recognition to the culture shift still required to make any future legislative change stick.  BITC is encouraging CLG to push instead for increased voluntary uptake of civic governance roles, connected to corporate volunteering policies and backed by extensive information and support to both individuals and companies.

The environment team can support you drive efficiency by reducing your resource consumption and waste, including carbon emissions.  The May Day Journey website provides easy access to tools and advice in this area.

We are also undertaking prelimary research on 'green talent', business opportunities in the low carbon economy and, working with the Department for Energy & Climate Change (DECC) and the Small Business Consortium, are seeking to identify the barriers stopping more small businesses take action on climate change.