The UnIrresponsible project emphasizes the role of ethics and sustainability in the financial sector.  Artur Nowak-Gocławski talks about the great opportunities the sector has in making the world a better place. In order for this to happen, financiers need to solve several serious dilemmas. One of those dilemmas was the slogan of the second edition of UnIrresponsible: ‘Choosing leaders – indices or values’. The conference attracted some 150 participants – banks’ and insurance companies’ managers, financial intermediaries and people interested in financial ethics and sustainability. They had a lively discussion about Polish people’s trust in financial institutions, characteristics of a contemporary leader, and whether business should depend more on indices or values.

“Neither banks nor security agencies, nor even financial intermediaries are trusted by Polish people – even though formally they are institutions of public trust,” say financial experts in our March issue of UnIrresponsible. The financial crisis of the first decade of the 21st century and the anxiety of  borrowers caused by the jump in value of Swiss franc have seriously damaged banks’ reputation. A survey by the Maison Research House, “Duty or business? Role of financial institutions in economy”, has revealed that Poles do not trust financial institutions such as banks, insurance institutions or financial agents – most of the respondents think they focus on their own benefits. As a result, there arouse a discussion regarding ethics in the financial sector, and one of the greatest challenges of banking has become, according to experts, defining anew its role as a socially useful institution, operating in a transparent way and aiming to recover the lost public confidence. According to Natalia Ćwik-Obrębowska of Go Responsible Consulting, this is the best moment for banks to begin their adventure with CSR…

Gain excludes values?
The influence of CSR shows it is possible to build profitable companies without forgetting about values such as responsibility, reliability, integrity. Natalia Ćwik-Obrębowska provides examples from the Polish market. She quotes research by Dr. Paulina Roszkowska, Warsaw School of Economics, saying that regular social or integrated reporting can impact the way a company is seen by members of the capital market, increasing its competitiveness and consequently allowing it to make a “return on investment” in the CSR process. The results of research carried out in 48 companies revealed the level of CSR disclosures positively influenced their competitive position,” Dr. Roszkowska writes in the report “Common responsibility. Role of CSR”.

Based on his observation of western markets, Rafał Antczak also claims that public confidence is a crucial competitive advantage: “Following certain principles and values pays off in the long run, as it minimizes reputational risk, which increases along with the growth of the company. Polish customers appreciate ethical conduct and sustainability, both when it comes to the environment and the employees,” notices Member of Board Deloitte Business Consulting and the Revision Committee of the Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland.

Do not forget, however, a company gains most still in the reporting process. As Go Responsible Consulting expert points out in “UnIrresponsible”, it is primarily the organization which expands its knowledge about itself – by becoming aware of its influence on the environment, by noticing previously unexamined risks and gaps, by refining its strategy and attitude to the previously unverified problems. The substantial result of such work is usually several hundred pages of printed sustainability report, which are hardly ever considered attractive even by CSR experts. Elaine Cohen, CSR strategy expert, placing our ING Bank Śląski report among the ten best CSR reports, said that: “You don’t expect banks to be particularly creative or charming in CSR reporting.

Besides, such publications primarily address stakeholders, and we know they are a varied group of people, each of them interested in a different part of the report. This is why diversified communication, even though more time-consuming, can be more effective than one message to everybody. We can see interesting and simple solutions coming from western countries, where it’s become popular to make report summaries. Several key achievements or changes are chosen from a publication, and presented to customers in the form of a visually attractive infographic.