BITC calls for business to incentivise responsible behaviour

The charity Business in the Community (BITC) is calling on chief executives to reward responsible behaviour in the same way that they incentivise staff to meet financial targets and generate profit.

Speaking in London to an audience of over 400 chief executives, Stephen Howard, chief executive of BITC challenged leaders to incentivise and reward ‘doing the right thing’ at the charity’s Leadership Summit 2014.

A new survey of 215 senior business leaders conducted by the charity shows that individual employee objectives often do not align with the organisation’s corporate responsibility goals leading to behaviour which goes against those business values.

Howard suggests that responsible behaviour should form a central element of staff training and development and urges bosses to actively give staff experiences outside of the business to help nurture their values and decision-making.

“Business leaders are failing to properly reward responsible behaviour, meaning that despite good intentions, there is no incentive for new recruits to do the right thing. Changing incentive structures would send a powerful message that being a responsible business goes further than CSR reports and values statements,” he commented.

“Indeed, chief executives and investors must move beyond financial value as the only recognised metric of business success. By adopting an integrated approach, reporting on the added value of responsible practice business, and rewarding responsible behaviour, business can form a new and more powerful contract with society – and re-claim its rightful place as an engine for social change and innovation.”

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