Conference Reports

JRT Interim Meeting
Social Responsibility: From the local to the global
Poreč, Croatia – March 29-April 1, 2001

General Introduction

The meeting took place in the seaside resort of Poreč.  Despite this being a relatively long journey from the capital Zagreb, the fact that tourism is one of the most important economic drivers in the country meant that the location was both appropriate and pleasant.  The meeting was organised by a number of Croatians with the support and help of Steven Greisdorf from the US and Menso Fermin from the Netherlands.

 
Conference attendees hailed from the UK, US, the Netherlands, Ukraine, and of course Croatia (list of attendees at end of report).  The speakers were from diverse commercial and cultural backgrounds (Croatia, the US, and Chile).

Local Context

Historically:

The Croatia of ten years ago was war-torn, which helped destabilise both the government and the economy.  Since then it has also suffered from corruption at all levels, including the apparent “loss” of a large amount of state funds...  Recently, a six-partite coalition government has been instituted, but in real local and national terms many of the key power-holders have not changed. Croatia still boasts a strong Roman Catholic tradition, and was considered relatively ‘liberal’ during the communist era.

Today:

The mistrust that developed between Serbs and Croats during the war has not yet abated, and the scars left in the wake of the Communist system have not healed. The IMF is forcing the government to lose a high amount of   jobs in order for Croatia to become eligible for financial aid.  The unemployment rate is reported to be around 20% at the moment.  Those working within the system suggest that the work ethic is defensive and responsive rather than open and progressive.  The headline in the national paper reporting on the conference referred to Social Responsibility as “science fiction” where Croatia is concerned. 

It is safe to claim that those aiming to influence the system face an uphill struggle against the current forces.  Government posts pay as well as, if not better than, top-level business positions.  These stalwarts of the ‘old system’ are likely to be threatened by ‘new’ methodologies.  However, the country has only 4.5 million inhabitants, thus active developers are likely to be forging models that influence more beleaguered countries suffering similar circumstances but that are less able to change rapidly due to size. 

The conference speakers and attendants did manage to accommodate the more academic aspects of Social Responsibility and cross-sector partnering without losing sight of the real dynamics of frozen governments and the trauma of trying to implement groundbreaking methods into pre-existing systems.  The ‘impact level’ discussion ranged from the intimate to the global between speakers, covering issues related to internal personal responsibility right through to the International Monetary Fund annual report and internal structure. 

Sessions

Day 1

1)     “Social responsibility in the new economy” Ms. Ela Kuresević, (Consultant, BerganGea Comm)

2)     “What are the social responsibilities of a new economy company? Do these differ in any way from old economy companies?” Mr. Javier Jurtado (General Manager, Atlas Croatia)

3)     “What is socially responsible investing and what are the expectations of shareholders?” Sandro Baričević (PR manager, Coca-Cola Company)

Day 2

4)     “Examples of ethics and social responsibility programs in the current business world” Prof. Arthur Foster (American College Dubrovnik)

5)     “Glocally and Holistically” Mr. Vjekoslav Martinko (owner, Lovranske vile Ltd)

6)     “How can individuals, working independently or as part of an organisation, work to create a sustainable community? How do the efforts of individuals work to support or thwart social responsibility? Focus on community activism” Sniježana Matejčić (journalist and local activist)

Day 3

7)     “What is the role of multi-national corporations and multi-lateral institutions (WTO/IMF/World Bank) in global social responsibility?” Steven Greisdorf (financial consultant)

Briefly:

In session 1, the importance of new methods of working was considered by Ela based on her experiences as a businesswoman of considerable note within Croatia, and as a representative of various Eastern and Western European commercial committees.  The emphasis was placed on cross-sector partnering with greater transparency.  Sustainable Social Responsibility is almost a natural outcome of cross-sector partnering, where private, public, and civil society sectors have to find mutually beneficial means of working towards national growth. This was made more apparent by the fact that apparently there are 20,000 NGOs operating in Croatia, according to Ela.  This theory was recently presented to the Croatian government as a fully developed project proposal, and was rejected on spurious grounds.  Sexism, lack of immediate personal gain, threat of being shown to be incompetent due to required transparency, general inertia are all possible reasons for it being turned down.  Much discussion revolving around the practical issues of project implementation ensued.

In session 2, Javier used a more academic approach to Social Responsibility, starting with a consideration of the basics of society, assuming that underlying all development is a drive to improve ‘quality of life’.  Within this model, social organization is observed to be the “instrument for expansion”, the key to growth being to produce and use a surplus of any given product.  The relationship between a company and shareholders, clients, community, workers, and suppliers is seen as two-way, dynamic, and imperative to sustained development.  A break in the relationship with any of these groups is seen as a blight that will hinder, and eventually halt development. Javier’s presentation carried another warning that has strong parallels with all groups/organizations, but which was perhaps aimed at the local- and national-level government: “When instruments   become institutions, effectiveness decreases”.

Session 3 was a promotion of forward thinking by a multi-national working in Croatia.  Sandro highlighted the three levels of responsibility a commercial organization has: Value Chain Impact (basic industrial relations), Basic Business Practices (principles that the business upholds), Community Involvement (how sensitive it is to the community in which it is housed). The community involvement aspect of the pyramid (the upper section) can be broken into three sub-sections.  The lower section is one in which it works to promote its image and product within the society (such as impacting the job market, being sensitive to environmental issues etc).  The second level bears little direct benefit to the company in terms of sales or reduced complaints about the company, but has quite a lot of secondary spin-off, and this level is the sponsoring of local events/schools etc.  The tip of the pyramid is the covert, most altruistic level, and this is the true ‘test’ of a company’s dedication to social responsibility – where the company puts money into areas from which it will not benefit in any fashion.  Sandro also suggested that “success is a journey, not an objective”, qualifying this statement by stating that it can be destructive to revolve success around a specific point in time.

Session 4 was a presentation by a somewhat flu-ridden Art Foster.  He started his presentation by highlighting the difference between ‘compliance’ and ‘values’. There has been a large increase in companies adopting one of the three ethical program types: 1) code and compliance, 2) Identity and value, and 3) social out-reach.  Some companies comply with social responsibility, others hold it as a value, going beyond the minimum and actually providing for the needs of the societies being served.  Ecological and environmental consciousness is a natural outcome of the values principle.  Art promotes the idea that politically empowered ‘Neighbourhood Associations’ are the most effective means of gleaning the needs and concerns of a community.  Examples were those of African-American -run community banks and elder-friendly award systems in the US that Art was involved in initiating.  The presentation concluded with a summary of a Financial Times review of whether Social Responsibility pays (higher profits).  The conclusions are unfortunately not clear on either a short- or long-term assessment.

Session 5 was a deeply personal and spiritual approach to Social Responsibility led by Vjekoslav.  Using a Christian and Jungian psychological approach to inner vs. outer world compatibility he examined the basics of humanity.  Some of the fundamental questions he asked started with the notion of “being in the world but not of it”; do we blame the world or take responsibility for things that happen in it?  What do we do about it?  Do we spend enough time meditating on the truly important issues that surround us?  Who is going to carry the torch of responsibility if not we ourselves?  Why is it us?  Vjekoslav founded his summary on the idea that Social Responsibility is the calling of God on our soul, and that applying the things learnt in this relationship in the world is the way forward.

Session 6 was a practical presentation by Sniježana, who presented the forum with a practical problem: local middle-aged women who have slipped through the employment and social support net, and need to find self-sustaining livelihoods.  This is a real issue for the Istrian region.  She considered the power of activism in local situations, and asked for suggestions to ameliorate the situation.  Without understanding the capacity building programs already available and what the governments position on this issue it was difficult for the group to tackle this problem in a meaningful and real fashion.

Session 7 was brief in terms of a formal presentation – Steven ran through some of the pros and cons of international organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.  Some actions taken by these institutions are fundamentally good, and others are less insightful into local needs and situations.  That English is the main language used in these organizations debilitates non-English speakers who might otherwise benefit from taking advantage of local program.  The weight of such organization is such that if you don’t oblige the demands they insist upon before they will lend aid, other international financial institutions (such as banks)  will follow suit and refuse to help.   Steven’s summary was to get involved; know who your representatives are, understand what is going on, and become actively involved in helping shape decisions. 

The conference was finished with a role-play in which we were assigned to a local community group, local government department, or an international investor wishing to build a golf course in Istria.  There was limited time to play out the action, but it was a good means of shifting personal perspectives at the same time as assessing levels of communication (and acting ability!).

Conclusions reached during the conference

• Effective partnerships are essential drivers in moving social responsibility forward
• Social responsibility extends beyond profits and corporate image
• Social responsibility must be practiced by individuals within our own spheres of influence
• We need to be prepared to engage in actions that have a longer term time horizon

It seems likely that the Croatian JRT group will continue to meet on a regular basis.  Individuals are interested in MRA Foundations for Freedom (F4F) courses and the potential for them in Croatia, and perhaps assisting on those outside Croatia (particularly Tomislav and Mlada).  The question of CCBI leadership was raised as an issue that requires consideration.

Overall there was a strong sense of hope for the future at the conference, with potential connections between different attendees.  We enjoyed sharing time together during the conference and at leisure afterwards.  Restaurant trips were organized for both Friday and Saturday nights to sample ‘traditional’ fare in this stunning region.  We enjoyed food for body, spirit and mind!

Attendees

Bojana Benazić (CRO), Josip Ećimović (CRO), Menso Fermin (NL), Nick Foster (UK), Drazen Glavaš (CRO), Steven Greisdorf (USA), Thea Joldersma (UK/NL), Oksana Kuchman (UKR), Marijana Longin (CRO), Nino Luk (CRO), Dubravko Miholić (CRO), Mladenka Majerić (CRO), Tomislav Majerić (CRO), Vedran Močibob (CRO), Edna Yee (USA)