The
research focuses on corporate governance and corporate social responsibility in
organisations in the European banking sector.
Corporate
governance and corporate social responsibility have received a great deal of
attention in the recent past with organisations seeking to improve on their
accountability and transparency as a tool for ensuring survival in the
increasingly competitive business environment (Kotler and Lee, 2005). Corporate
governance details the approach that organisations take towards the planning
and implementation of their objectives. It details their responsibility and
accountability structures across the different levels of the organisation. On
the other hand, corporate social responsibility entails the organisation’s
approach towards the welfare of the stakeholders through the involvement in
activities primarily geared towards the improvement of the welfare of the
stakeholders (Habisch and Jonker, 2005). This study seeks to expound on the
approach taken towards corporate governance and corporate social responsibility
by organisations in the European banking sector.
The
study reveals that corporate governance has taken centre stage in the banking
sector since the onset of the global economic meltdown whose primary root cause
is viewed as indiscipline and unaccountability in the financial sector. This
unfortunate incident helped to underscore the influence of the financial
institutions over the economic well being of any business environment. In order
to restore public confidence in the sector, players in the banking sector have
sought to become more accountable and transparent in their operations and
reporting. The study makes use of
secondary data in its review of the corporate governance and CSR approaches
taken by the banking corporations. The reliability of the secondary data is
enhanced by the fact organisations tend to be keen on including their corporate
governance and CSR undertakings in their annual reports, and where this is not
done, a separate publication is officially made making it easier for secondary
research into their position more reliable. On the whole, the research
established that there is an overwhelming support for corporate social
responsibility in the banking sector with over 90% of the surveyed
organisations going beyond the regulatory minimum in their corporate governance
practices (European Union, 2006).
The
research focuses on the European banking sector with the aim to establish the
prevailing perspectives on corporate governance and corporate social
responsibility. It also compares these perspectives or attitudes with the type
and amount of activities undertaken in consistency with the proclamations of
the organisation’s executives and directors. The research expounds on the
provisions of corporate governance as a whole in order to give further meaning
in relation to the approaches taken by the European banks. Towards the
importance of CSR to organisations, the research explores the established
advantages of CSR to various industries on a global scale prior to outlining
the views gathered during the survey of the European banks. This approach helps
create understanding of the positions taken by these players. In general, this
research seeks to bring to the fore the approach to corporate governance and
CSR of the players in the European banking sector. The research questions that
must be answered in order to exhaustively cover the objectives of the research
are as follows:
·
How do the organisations perceive the
concept of corporate governance and of what strategic importance is it to the
organisation?
·
How is corporate social responsibility
perceived by the organisations in the banking sector?
·
How important is CSR considered by the
banking sector in relation to its contribution to the overall performance of
the organisation?
·
What are the prevailing stakeholder
interests in the banking sector and what expectations do these stakeholders
have on the banking corporations?
·
What steps do the banks take towards
meeting these expectations?
·
What regulatory frameworks exist
concerning corporate governance and to what extent do the organisations comply
with them?
Focus
on corporate governance has been intensifying in the banking sector following
the widespread failures that were witnessed in the sector at the onset of the
global meltdown that saw the world economy suffer the worst recession in its
history (Holme and Watts, 2000). With governments across the world gearing up
to impose heavier regulations on corporate governance on organisations
operating in their economies, the organisations in the banking sector in Europe
have been undertaking various internal reforms in order to regain the fading
public confidence (Welford, 2004). The effectiveness of any law is determined
by the willingness of the targeted persons to implement both the letter and
spirit of the law. This research therefore bears much relevance as it looks
into the prevailing attitudes towards corporate governance practices that may
be introduced through the legislation. It therefore provides regulators with an
indication of the areas to look out for when designing and implementing
corporate governance guidelines to be effected in the sector.
The
study cuts across national boundaries in Europe due to the fact that the EU is
increasingly unified in regulating business practices with most national
legislations being subordinate to the EU regulations whenever a business’
operations extend beyond the border of the country in question. Moreover,
legislations in the constituent countries tend to be realigned with the
provisions of the regulations at the regional level. With most studies focusing
on CSR by organisations that are mainly in general business categories, little
focus has been channelled towards the banking sector which has in many
occasions been seen as a laggard as far as CSR is concerned with their
corporate governance practices being seen as merely the attempt to comply with
prevailing regulations. This research is expected to provide input into the
corporate practices in the banking sector with an aim of preventing the risk of
recurrence of the events that led to the financial crisis of 2008.
The
preoccupation with corporate governance practices is based on the assumption
that for any organisation to sustain good performance, it must be governed with
clarity, accountability and transparency (Amnesty International, 2004).
Although most regulations apply to public companies, private companies tend to
modify their corporate governance practices to beat the threshold set by
regulation in a bid to inspire higher levels of confidence among stakeholders. Scholars
have proven that the adoption of good corporate governance practices not only
benefit the stakeholders, but also benefit the organisation. This is because
the establishment of lines of accountability and transparency are crucial in
ensuring the set operations are run as desired thereby resulting in higher
levels of motivation among the employees who are able to execute their duties
without hesitation (Amnesty International, 2004).
On
the other hand, Corporate Social Responsibility relates to the organisation’s
contribution towards the welfare of targeted stakeholders. These stakeholders
could either be consumers, employees, regulatory bodies and the society in
general and may involve undertaking activities in programs that are believed to
improve the welfare of the society. It is the notion of ‘giving back’ where the
organisations as corporate citizens endeavour to improve the society in which
they operate. Involvement in CSR often enhances customer loyalty which in turn
contributes to the high performance of organisations. This paper seeks to test
the prevailing attitudes in the European banking sector against these
established views relating to the benefits associated with the embracing of
good corporate governance practices and the involvement in CSR activities.
This
study mainly makes use of secondary data which is obtained from official
publications of selected companies, industry reports, government agencies and
other reliable research findings in related studies. The study takes into
account 10 banks drawn from the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, France,
Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Italy. The findings of the study are as
discussed in chapter 5 of this research.
This section highlights the
definition and theories related to corporate governance and Corporate Social
Responsibility and the reasons for their emphasis by organisations and
stakeholders. This section provides a possible reasoning of the European
banking sector in the approach to corporate social responsibility and corporate
governance.
Corporate governance and corporate
social responsibility are closely related albeit with certain fundamental
differences. Whereas corporate governance focuses on the internal practices of
the organisations and the means to achieve its organisational goals, corporate
social responsibility primarily focuses on stakeholder welfare and engages in
activities geared at enhancing their welfare (Brammer and Pavelin, 2004). Corporate
governance therefore relates to the manner in which the organisation formulates
and implements their strategy as well as the approach they take in reporting
and risk management activities. Corporate governance also elaborates on the
duties of the board of directors and their relationship with the management
teams of the organisations. It underscores the organisation’s commitment to
accountability, transparency, and approach to risk management (Brammer and
Pavelin, 2004). It also accords responsibility to various members of the board
in relation to certain crucial functions of the organisations such as the audit
committees, risk control committees, director remuneration committees and so
on. In summary, corporate governance is about how organisations are structured
and governed.
The general movement of
organisational practices in relation to corporate governance seems to be edging
towards more transparency and disclosure with some of these aspects being
subjected to legislation in a bid to protect investors from misrepresentations
that may influence them into making the wrong decisions (Crane and Matten,
2004). Investors therefore use corporate governance as an important tool for
determining the accuracy with which they can estimate their returns on
investment. Focus on the corporate governance practices in the financial sector
was renewed following the financial meltdown whose origin was largely the
failure in the financial sectors in the USA, with the failures in the UK
financial sector closely following (Fairbrass and O’Riordan, 2008). Governments
have in realisation of their role in promoting healthy business practices
embraced the idea of putting together corporate governance guidelines which
imposes certain requirements on businesses which are obligated to adhere to
them (Fairbrass and O’Riordan, 2008).
The organisational corporate
governance in the UK is governed under the UK corporate governance code 2010
(Bawaneh, 2011). This code was designed to regulate financial reporting in
order to ensure the reporting is accurate thereby shielding investors and other
stakeholders from the losses that may be occasioned by lack of the needed
information or the misrepresentation of the same (Bawaneh, 2011). Similar
legislations include the Sarbanes-Oxley Act which regulates corporate governance
in the United States (Welford, 2004). Similar attempts in Germany have seen the
development of the German Society of Investment Analysis and Asset Management,
an umbrella body that seeks to sensitise organisations on the importance of providing
accurate information for their investors’ use (Welford, 2004). These
disclosures are normally contained in the organisations’ annual statements.
These statements are produced after a thorough scrutiny by reliable external
auditors who assure stakeholders that the information largely reflects the true
position of the organisation at a particular time. The annual statements
therefore contain more than just the financial status of the organisations.
The reiteration of the commitment
to corporate governance is emphasised in most financial statements with the
approach to governance and risk management explicitly provided for under the
directors’ report segment (Claire and Robert, 2009). This identification under
normal circumstances includes the identification of the sources of risks that
the organisation anticipates and allows for the ways in which such risks can be
countered. The statements also underscore the values that the organisation
stands for and may give a brief explanation on the direction the organisation
intends to take in subsequent years (Claire and Robert, 2009). This is
especially typical of organisations in the UK. The requirements of the UK
corporate governance regulations are largely reflective of the rest of the
European Union’s regulations. Studies in the post meltdown period reveal a
general movement towards more transparency and accountability in the banking
sector in the European banking sector. Corporate governance is geared towards
ensuring that decisions are made in the best interest of the corporate
organisations. This has been the rationale behind the emphasis on the
declaration of any conflicts of interests among the directors of the company
before any decisions are made.
While legislations such as US
Sarbanes-Oxley Act explicitly provides for the specific requirements to be
adhered to, the legislations in the UK are generally broad and compliance
generally has to do with disclosure and transparency (Branston, Tomlinson and
Wilson, 2009). A glimpse into the Jordanian banking sector outlined the role of
corporate governance as follows: the establishment of guiding corporate values
that must be communicated to internal and external stakeholders in clear terms;
the establishment and enforcement of the lines of responsibility and
accountability throughout the organisation’s structure; the provision of the
assurance that the board of directors is made up of independent individuals who
are aware of their oversight roles and are qualified to execute the duties of
directors and are free from undue internal or external pressures in their
decision making; providing the assurance that the senior management are
operating within a framework that enables them realign their activities with
the overall goals of the organisation; assure stakeholders of the organisation’s
commitment to accountability and transparency through the facilitation of
internal and external audits that are free from any interference whatsoever;
and provide the assurance that the remuneration systems adopted by the
organisation are consistent with the regulatory requirements and are consistent
with the organisation’s ethical values and largely meet the stakeholder
requirements (Bawaneh, 2011).
Corporate social responsibility
refers to the organisational commitment to ethical behaviour and the
improvement of the quality of life of their stakeholders (European Banking
Federation, 2008). It recognises the welfare and the expectations of various
stakeholders and endeavours to have them duly complied with. It comes with the responsibility to realign
the organisation’s policies and practices in order to comply with the
prevailing stakeholder expectations. In most cases, the stakeholders include
employees, regulatory agencies, suppliers, special interest groups, and the
society in general (Porter, 1985). Most issues that have been identified in
relation to CSR involve the fair treatment of employees where the wages are
above the minimum wages and their working conditions are acceptable, the
contribution towards the sustainable environmental management through proper
disposal of any company wastes and involvement in conservation initiatives, and
undertaking social responsibility programs whose central goal is to improve the
welfare of the society in general (Weiss, 1998).
There has been renewed focus on
corporate social responsibility by corporate organisations in recent times.
This has been in recognition of the contribution that positive image makes
towards the good performance of organisations (Burke and Logsdon, 1996). Various
theories, models, concepts, and themes have emerged to justify the
organisations’ involvement in CSR activities. The understanding of the concept
of CSR is not universal with many authorities variously describing them to
include a range of different perspectives including involvement in the
environment, provision of healthy working conditions with reasonable wages, involvement
in social programs, and generally having the welfare of the various
stakeholders in mind while in the course of conducting business activities
(Daniels and Radebaugh, 2001). The stakeholders’ perspective in CSR involves
the factoring in of the interest of various stakeholders prior to the design of
activities geared at improving their welfare. Stakeholders can broadly be
described as groups of individuals who can affect or be affected by the
activities of a business entity. They form a critical component of the firm’s
external environment often with the ability to contribute to the success or
failure of such an organisation (Elkington, 2001).
The wide range of stakeholders
presents a challenge to the managers to come up with a pragmatic approach to
ensure that organisations meet the stakeholder expectations in the society. The
definition process involves defining which stakeholder interests they are responsible
for and to what extent their responsibility extends in relation to these
interests. One of the ways of ensuring that organisations’ CSR activities meet
stakeholder expectations is to engage such stakeholders in dialogues aimed at
establishing their priorities and the impact that such activities would be
expected to have (Burke and Logsdon, 1996). Certain dimensions in corporate
strategy that contribute to the effectiveness of CSR activities have been
identified as specificity, centrality, voluntarism, reactivity, and visibility
(Burke and Logsdon, 1996). These elements help ensure that stakeholders
appreciate the concern of the organisations towards them and therefore promote
positive sentiments by stakeholders towards them.
It is also important to appreciate
the importance of CSR and the reason for the rush to embrace CSR by
organisations. In the increasingly competitive business environments,
organisations are looking out for ways to portray themselves as social partners
with stakeholders who are in turn expected to become loyal to the organisations
(Burke and Logsdon, 1996). This in turn reflects on the bottom lines of such
organisations. Recent studies reveal
that consumers tend to be generally more supportive of organisations that are
viewed to be socially responsible as evidenced by the sincere involvement in
activities aimed at improving the welfare of the society (Burke and Logsdon,
1996). Organisations that have demonstrated a sincere concern for the societal
welfare tends to perform better than those who don’t in general terms
(Elkington, 2001). Such organisations are able to generate high levels of
customer loyalty which in many cases persists despite price differentials
between them and their competitors. It therefore makes business sense for
business executives to endorse investment in CSR activities in the interest of
the long term sustainability of the organisations.
The growing expectations of
organisations to be socially responsible are based on the view that
organisations can be viewed as corporate citizens with the responsibility
towards the society in general (Claire and Robert, 2009). In addition to the
positive reaction by the consumers, involvement in CSR enables organisations to
build their internal competencies and therefore gain a strategic advantage over
other market players. This can be done through the attraction of top talent in
the industry that later contribute to the innovation of products and business
processes that enable the organisation position itself strategically in the
market. Research has shown that employees generally prefer to work for
organisations that are socially responsible in their view. The CSR record for
any organisation is therefore one of the factors that such employees would take
into consideration before deciding to commit themselves to work for them (Burke
and Logsdon, 1996). This is also applicable to existing employees whose
motivation levels go up dramatically on realisation that they are involved in
what they would call ‘a noble course’. This leads to increased productivity
which in turn translates to improved bottom lines. Organisations that are known
to be socially responsible also tend to attract positive sentiments from
investors. These investors who in most cases rely on their personal judgments
in deciding where to invest tend to be supportive of such organisations (Holme
and Watts, 2000). Socially responsible organisations are therefore more
successful in raising capital in form of additional equity or debt due to their
ability to inspire the cooperation of investors. As is common with the human
nature, the fear of reprisals can be a powerful motivator for executives to
engage in the desired CSR activities (Holme and Watts, 2000).
The threshold demanded by the
society and the regulatory bodies is often reasonable and therefore easily
achievable by organisations without the injection of heavy investments. Such
requirements in most cases relate to proper treatment of employees who need to
be paid at least a living wage, the reasonableness of the number of working
hours demanded from the employees, and proper disposal of material wastes that
emanate from the firm’s production activities (Maguire, 2004). Where such
expectations are not complied with, there is often the risk of reprisals which
may come in form of the boycotting on an organisation’s products or even heavy
fines from the regulatory bodies. The avoidance of the negative effects
associated with non compliance may therefore be one of the most sources of
influence for organisations to undertake CSR activities and align their
corporate governance practices in line with the stakeholder expectations.
The
banks considered tended to have an overwhelming support for embracing of sound
corporate governance principles. Most industry players make it explicitly clear
regarding their corporate governance principles and their commitment to ensure
that the outlined values are adhered to at all times. Even though there has
been increased regulation on corporate governance with the EU providing
guidelines on the practices that are expected of them, almost all of the major
players in the industry have already fully complied with most providing
information that far surpasses the mandatory requirements (Senthikumar, Ananth
and Arulraj, 2004). This is mainly done to meet stakeholder expectations.
The
approach towards CSR follows a four-fold process that advances from commitment,
to strategy, then to implementation and finally to performance. On commitment,
a majority of the organisations considered tended to emphasise their commitment
to corporate social responsibility which in many cases they referred to as
their corporate duty (Wise and Ali, 2009). The concept of corporate social
responsibility was referred to using a number of terms including corporate
duty, corporate sustainability, corporate duty, business ethics and triple
bottom line among others (Wise and Ali, 2009). The EU defines CSR as among
activities that are beyond mandatory legislation whose enforcement cannot be done
under law (European Union, 2006). Only a minority tended to associate CSR
activities with mandatory regulation. However, there seemed to be a commitment
to CSR activities despite the absence of a legislation compelling organisations
to undertake the activities. This underscored the commitment that the players
in the industry tended to have towards involvement in CSR activities. The level
of commitment to CSR can also be indicated by the presence or absence of
written statements that outline their commitment to CSR (Fairbrass and
O’Riordan, 2008). The outlining of the vision and objectives of an
organisation’s approach to CSR is seen as a sign of commitment to the CSR
activities and a willingness to be audited based on the commitments outlined in
black and white. The presence of written statements among the majority of
banking institutions in Europe can therefore be viewed as a sign of strong
commitment to CSR in the banking sector (IDRT, 2011).
In
relation to the correlation between CSR and corporate strategy, various issues
were identified as constituting the organisations’ first line of offense as far
as involvement in CSR is concerned. Some of the most cited concerns by players
in the market in order of prevalence include indirect involvement in environmental
and social issues via their customers; fair and respectable approach in their
treatment of their employees; involvement in social specific issues;
involvement in environment specific issues; factoring the financial welfare of
their customers; and combating corruption, money laundering and bribery
(European Union, 2006). As can be seen from the list, a number of issues fall
within the purview of various legislations. However, it is generally accepted
that legislation is extremely limited in its enforcement of various measures
and organisations can ensure effectiveness only when they prove undying
commitment to meeting stakeholder expectations in the cited issues (European
Union, 2006). What may be observed in this ranking is the striking difference between
the bankers’ view and that of environmental lobbyists who seem to believe that
all of the world’s resources should be channelled towards promoting sustainable
environmental management. This element is accorded a distant fourth position in
the relative ranking of the sector’s perception of CSR areas of strategic
importance to their organisations. This reasoning may be due to the fact that
banks do not engage in activities that can have an adverse effect on the
environment as compared to other players such as manufacturing firms,
transportation industries or even extracting industries. Banks mostly attribute
their main contribution to environmental degradation as indirect through their
clients who are mostly involved in industries that contribute greatly to
environmental degradation. Strategies are useless by themselves unless they are
translated into actions. The ability of the organisation to fit its corporate
strategies into generic strategies determines how useful these strategies can
be in contributing to its overall performance (Holme and Watts, 2000).
Implementation
of CSR activities is done through the adoption of fitting management systems,
social and environmental reporting and accounting, adoption of codes of
conduct, conformity with regulations on social responsibility, engagement of
stakeholders in different forms to gain cooperation (Maguire, 2004). Corporate
citizenship activities that involve making donations, employee volunteering,
and setting up foundations that are established to cater for certain social
needs is also a common tool (Cocris and Nichitean, 2011). The banks tend to
make prominent use of the codes of conduct with over 90% of the banks taking
cognisance of the international codes advocated for by the United Nations
(European Union, 2006). A majority of the banks have also adopted some of the
recommendations of UNEP on environment and sustainable development. About half
of the organisations have explicitly provided for remedies for their indirect
contribution to environmental degradation through their clientele. The most
commonly management system for use in regulating CSR activities is ISO 14000
and about 70% of the major players in the European banking sector have acquired
this certification (European Union, 2006). However, only a few banks have
adopted EMAS which (environmental management system) is advocated for by the EU
(European Union, 2006). This may be attributed to the fact that banks do not
massively contribute to environmental degradation.
Banks
are increasingly embracing stakeholder engagement in their approach to CSR.
This usually involves joint designing of CSR activities and cooperation in
these multi-stakeholder initiatives (Alexander, 2004). Banks mainly get
involved in these forms of initiatives for activities where they are not as
actively involved in form of the impact of their operations. Such areas include
climate mitigation which banks only contribute to marginally and indirectly
through their clientele. Sustainability reporting underscores the banks’ commitment
to corporate governance and corporate social responsibility and has become a
very popular instrument in the European banking sector (Cocris and Nichitean,
2011). Most banks follow the reporting format advocated for by GRI (Global
Reporting Initiative) while a few use the ISAE 3000 (International Standard on
Assurance Engagements) (European Union, 2006). Voluntary activities commonly
engaged in include mitigation of climate change. Others include the promotion
of gender equality where organisations promote work balance, eliminate any
forms of gender discrimination and protecting their staff and customers from
sexual harassment.
The
main motivation for engaging in CSR for business executives is the anticipated
positive impact that such engagements can have on their bottom lines. The vast
majority view CSR undertakings as an instrument for promoting customer loyalty
which in turn leads to sustained profitability of the organisations. Only a
vast minority believe that CSR has no impact on their profitability.
Whereas
corporate governance focuses on the internal practices of the organisations and
the means to achieve its organisational goals, corporate social responsibility
primarily focuses on stakeholder welfare and engages in activities geared at
enhancing their welfare. Corporate governance therefore relates to the manner
in which the organisation formulates and implements their strategy as well as
the approach they take in reporting and risk management activities. Players in
the European banking sector generally embrace sound corporate governance
practices that are in most cases above the threshold set by the European
regulatory authorities. This is due to heightened stakeholder expectations that
the institutions seek to live up to. Corporate social responsibility in the
European banking sector is largely embraced due to its perceived contribution
to the welfare and sustainable profitability of these organisations. Most
institutions reiterate their commitment to CSR through written memoranda and
official publications which come in form of sustainable reporting. CSR
priorities as observed in the banking sector mainly border on their indirect
contribution through their clientele and their focus on providing their
employees with fair working conditions and acceptable wage levels. This
commitment is further underscored through their inclusion in the codes of
conduct and adoption of management systems that are tailored towards ensuring
that CSR activities are part and parcel of their generic strategies.
In
consistency with the five elements associated with the effectiveness of CSR in
promoting organisations’ generic strategies, CSR activities must be designed
and implemented in a form that ensures specificity, centrality, voluntarism, reactivity,
and visibility. These elements are essential in shaping public perception
towards a company and are the strongest factors in improving customer loyalty. Specificity
refers to the sharpness with which organisations focus the activities towards
specific needs. An activity must be able to meet given needs in order to appear
effective. Voluntarism refers to the lack of a legally compelling requirement
that forces an organisation to undertake certain activities. Organisations
should be keen to undertake activities well before legislation and public
pressure forces them to undertake certain activities. Where activities are seen
to originate from the organisation’s own initiative, stakeholder perceptions
are influenced more authoritatively. Reactivity refers to the ability of
organisations to react to prevailing situations that change from time to time.
These situations cause variations in the needs of the stakeholders and the organisations
need to accurately design programs that can meet these needs in a timely
manner. Visibility refers to the fact that the programs must be seen on a
public level. For an organisation to benefit from its CSR involvement, the
activities must be visible to the stakeholders. Organisations should therefore
embrace the use of publicity to focus on its activities with the aim of drawing
attention to their achievements and concern for the society in general. These
elements must of necessity be present if the organisations are to realise any
benefits from their involvement in CSR.
This
study also takes cognisance of the fact that the bulk of the studies relate to
qualitative opinions on the impact of CSR on the performance of organisations.
The study therefore recommends intensive research geared at establishing the
specific contribution of these activities towards the overall performance of
organisations.
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