Responsible business conduct in a global economy
Paris, 27 June 2000 - How companies are responding to heightened public expectations about their contribution to environmental and social progress is the subject of an article by ICC Secretary General Maria Livanos Cattaui.
The article appears in a book jointly published by the OECD and Agenda Publishing of London on the occasion of the OECD Forum 2000, a public international conference in Paris held in conjunction with the OECD ministerial meeting.
Mrs Cattaui says that companies are increasingly taking up these challenges by means of explicit business principles that set out their commitment to act to act as responsibl
e members of society in the way they conduct their business.
She says that companies need above all to maintain a balance between economic responsibilities to customers, employees and shareholders and their responsibilities as global citizens and members of the local communities in which they operate.
"At issue is the place that business should occupy in society, an issue that raises a host of questions about how companies can or should - in their own sphere of influence - contribute to progress in areas such as the environment, labour conditions and human rights."
Many of these questions are related to the role of business in a global economy, and to the respective role of business and governments in the management of globalization, Mrs Cattaui said.
"Companies can do much by setting an example through good corporate practice, as well as by working at the philanthropic level. They cannot be expected to assume responsibilities that are properly the preserve of governments. Therefore, business has a clear interest in stable and effective government that respects the rule of law and sees that it is applied."
Responsible business conduct in a global economy (full text of article)
The global compact
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