CRO Association Our mission is to accelerate the profession of corporate responsibility.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/139175
Responsible CEO stewardship within its local communities, through the firm's "Family for Literacy" program—which, since 2007, has provided more than two million books to children from low-income families. Among his philanthropic and civic activities, he is a member of the governing board for the Center for Audit Quality (CAQ). He serves as the co-chair of CEOs Against Cancer in greater New York. He is also a board member of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP). He serves on the executive committee of the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) and is a member of the British American Business International Advisory Board. He is a member of the Business Roundtable and the Partnership for New York City. Veihmeyer previously served as a member of Chairman Christopher Cox's SEC Advisory Committee on Smaller Public Companies; Saint Mary's College Board of Trustees; board chairman of the Cultural If you change behaviors on the part of your people that means changing their habits at work and at home as well. We have aggressive aspirational goals for reducing our carbon footprint as an organization, so we need our people's engagement to make that happen. Alliance of Washington D.C.; and the executive committee of the boards of the Federal City Council and Greater Washington Board of Trade. power in the workplace, that's simple stuff but it leads to more He recently shared his views on money and markets, as well as his lighting. We're changing the100-year-old model of exterior windows vision on corporate responsibility writ large. for partners with doors closed. And I have a strong view that those What differentiates KPMG's value proposition from its competitors within the corporate responsibility sphere? conscious decision making. All our new office space has automatic kinds of changes mean they're going to be more conscious when they get home. We're different from many of our peers and competitors, in that Plus, there's the law of unintended benefits. When you reduce we shifted from philanthropy to a broader approach to CR some waste, you improve profits. The same goes with changing our seating time ago. We see it in the context of sustainability—across various system on the productivity side, because you get more teaming and dimensions. collaboration. A lot fewer people are thinking it's acceptable to sit in We start with capital market system sustainability—and its need for their office with the door closed. integrity, trust, and professionalism—because of the unique role we Can this level of change endure, or are we just plucking what little low- play in the capital system. hanging fruit there is? Then, the environmental element is huge. First and foremost, Well, something like double-sided copying is certainly the lowest we're a big consumer of energy and have a lot of opportunities to hanging fruit. Other things won't get fixed without real culture reduce waste in what we do. That extends from the way our people change. The real benefit will come when we truly drive a paperless commute to clients and travel to our buildings and offices. You're environment. talking about 22,000 people with a lot of office space, a lot of paper, electricity, and efficiency opportunities. If you change behaviors on Beyond that, we look at our carbon footbrpint as part of a huge the part of your people that means changing their habits at work amount of air travel our people do on a much much too frequent and at home as well. We have aggressive aspirational goals for basis. But we couldn't just say don't travel. So we invested in halo reducing our carbon footprint as an organization, so we need our studios for a bunch of our offices, and it becomes a threshold people's engagement to make that happen. question. London or my assistant says, 'Why can't we get this done But you can't require change at home can you? via halo sessions?' Which brings another of those laws of good unintended consequences, because worklife balance and everything It's not a matter of requiring it. If they're doing double-sided else improves. A lot of things you think you need to do face-to-face copying, if they're made more aware of the use of lighting and end up getting done in a more efficient, focused way. MAY/JUNE 2013 | www.thecro.com [9]