blog

  1. Can international hospitality businesses really be responsible?

    December 20, 2011 by admin

     

    It is ironic that the more ardent the statements made by large businesses about their environmental, social or community programmes, the less likely the public are to believe them (Terrachoice and Edelman provide some interesting reading to this effect).  There are a number of reasons for this – not least the fact that a number of businesses have been found guilty of straying from the truth in their enthusiasm to be seen to be green.  It is a sobering fact that the very term ‘greenwash’ was invented by Jay Westerveld in 1986, after he discovered some disingenuous reporting of hotel cost cutting disguised as environmentally responsible behaviour.

     

    It is evident that, for many hospitality businesses, practices have changed little in the intervening years.  Reading the responsible business reports for many international companies, it is all too clear that times of austerity have provided ample excuses for ignoring the imperative to address the broader issues embraced within the responsible business agenda, while citing the need to focus on energy, waste and water management.  Resource management is vital, but ignoring the other issues associated with responsible business is likely to undermine confidence among the public, policy makers, suppliers and others that international hospitality companies can live up to their promises.

     

    In the light of public mistrust of large corporations, the time has come for hospitality businesses to review what trust means for them and the role responsible business initiatives play in securing it.  Evidence from some surprising quarters (including McDonalds) would indicate that a clear vision, action plan and communication strategy is fundamental – and that has to address the issues that matter to the wide range of stakeholders as well as those that matter to shareholders.

     

    New book Responsible Hospitality – Theory and Practice out now.  Order it here – www.goodfellowpublishers.com

    Posted in: UncategorizedComments (0)

  2. Building Trust through Responsible Business

    September 22, 2011 by admin

     

    We have been watching with interest in recent months as corporate hospitality businesses have responded to recession. Of course, some have hastily redeployed their responsible business teams and reverted to playing by the old rules of business. In truth, as long as such retrenchment is undertaken stealthily, attracts little or no publicity and goes unnoticed by clients or third sector organisations, there is little evidence to indicate that it might be bad for business in the short term.

     

    In the long term, however, the picture may be rather different. Those executives that turn their backs on responsible business initiatives now may find that they are losing out on rather more than the opportunity to deliver on well publicised eco-efficiencies (and lets face it the research indicates that good quality staff training alone can reduce energy consumption by 6 per cent or more).

     

    The research that is emerging from Edelman (www.edelman.com/trust) would indicate that businesses that shun responsible principles now may be losing out on the opportunity to maximise trust in their brands. Of course, it is difficult to measure the value of trust, but those companies that have lost it can provide ample evidence of how costly it is to rebuild. As third sector organisations such as Oxfam increasingly focus on the activities of the food and hospitality sector (which some are viewing in the same light as the oil and mineral extraction sector), perhaps the time has come to move away from viewing responsible business initiatives as a “nice to have attribute” in the good times to view them as an essential component of brand value.

    Posted in: UncategorizedTags: | Comments (0)

  3. Turbulent times

    July 27, 2011 by admin

    Although not normally a gambling woman, I am prepared to bet that there are a goodly number of businesses out there that are questioning whether their responsible business programmes are an expensive luxury in these times of austerity.  Some programmes have already fallen victim to the inevitable belt tightening, but in an environment of increasing price rises, will these businesses regret their decisions in the coming months?

     

    There’s a depressing inevitability about the fact that price rises will continue in the short term, with utility and food costs being particularly affected.  As costing models are adjusted, the conventional wisdom, for example, that energy costs will account for a fixed proportion of revenue (circa 4% is the traditional figure for hotels) can no longer be held to be true.

     

    Ironically, many businesses are finding that responsible business initiatives are one of the best weapons to use to prepare for cost increases and reduce their impact.  I’m not talking about stand alone traditional environmental management, important though this is, but about broader initiatives, and here is my ammunition:

     

    • Measure and record resource consumption and set targets for reductions;

     

    • Evaluate new development projects to ensure that the use of resource efficient technology is maximised, to minimise energy and water use and facilitate recycling;

     

    • Engage employees at all levels in actions that reduce costs as well as improving responsible business practices;

     

    • Work with suppliers, on the one hand, to ensure that supplies can be maintained, but also to guard against sudden and unexpected price spikes;

     

    • Work with educators to ensure that new recruits have, at the very least, some literacy around the issues of energy efficiency, water efficiency, waste management and responsible procurement;

     

    • Engage customers in initiatives that can reward behaviour that reduces costs (it may sound radical but schemes are already being tried in hotels in some countries to reward customers who have lower energy and water consumption);

     

    • Report progress against targets – in part to ensure compliance with regulation but as importantly to demonstrate the credentials of the businesses to those customers with an interest.

     

    Rebecca Hawkins

    Posted in: UncategorizedComments (0)