Corporate social responsibility: corporate social responsibility (csr) within corio
As the owner and operator of shopping centres in Europe, Corio is closely involved in the daily lives of people in the local communities in which it operates. Shopping centres increasingly form part of the public and social life of the communities in which they are located. Corio seeks to use its contacts with consumers to understand what matters to them and then to take these interests into account in its activities. Establishing a responsible relationship with consumers also means taking social and environmental issues into account alongside economic issues. Corio has consequently made corporate social responsibility (CSR) an integral part of its long-term strategy and is seeking to promote transparency and a dialogue with its various stakeholders as a means to improving the standards of our activities from an economic, social and environmental perspective. And this in turn will increase the trust in and reputation of the Corio business activities.
Corio focuses on creating profitable growth in both the short and longer term, and firmly believes that CSR and sustainable business practices are vital to achieving this ambition. This applies when the economy is growing, but equally well in the current recession. Corio has in the past undertaken many CSR activities as part of its corporate culture, but since last year these activities have been an integral part of its strategy.
Corio is aware that its business activities have an effect on the economy, society and the environment. Our focus in 2008 was on integrating CSR into our operations, both in the shopping centres and the business units and also at Corio’s head office. We have made many of our activities measurable and transparent so that their results can be used as the basis for setting new targets and new policy. Corio has created transparency by:
- setting clear targets and making a distinction between policy targets, recording and monitoring targets, and perfor-mance targets;
- outlining how these targets are achieved each year. Targets are set annually so that the progress can be monitored and to steer the direction of our CSR strategy. This also means that targets that have been met will in future become part of overall CSR policy;
- involving its stakeholders in the process and the progress achieved.
Corio’s CSR vision is described in the sections Economic, Environmental and Social. Annually reviewing and examining these three principles in depth will result in a strong CSR policy that is solidly rooted in the organisation. The progress achieved in respect of the targets set for 2008 and future years are discussed in more detail at the end of this chapter.
| CSR pillar |
Target |
Focus |
| Economic |
To implement our views on CSR within the Corio organisation in a way beyond what is required by law and that adds value to the business |
The CSR structure within Corio, Corporate governance issues and endorsement of international covenants |
| Environmental |
To reduce our environmental impact |
Environmental policy, climate change, energy, water and waste |
| Social |
To maintain sustainable relationships with our stakeholders |
Stakeholders (specifically tenants, consumers, contractors/developers and suppliers), Human resource management and community involvement |
Source: Annual Report 2008, Chapter Corporate_Social_Responsibility, page 134 (PDF, 160 kB)
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