Sustainable Events Management of MCI Group - Essay Example

Sustainable Events Management: The MCI Group Purpose: To critically assess the sustainability policy of the MCI group in relation to the triple bottom line (TBL) theory. Methodology/Approach: The information in the MCI 2011 sustainability report, particularly the sustainability scorecard was used in this analysis to know the company performance in relation to people, profit, and planet schemes. Also, the report is gauged in terms of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), UN Global Compact (10 principles), and other government/industry standards. Findings: The 2011 sustainability policy of MCI showed that the latter is complying with the annual COPs required by the UN Global Compact, and the information released are verified and monitored under the GRI G3.1 reporting guidelines. Also, MCI delivered satisfactory results in social, economic, and environmental aspects as they conform to the ISO 20121 (event sustainability management system). Limitations/Implications: The paper considers the MCI sustainability report and additional disclosure appendix 2011; hence, the primary findings are limited to the operation of the MCI only. 1. Introduction The reality shows that more and more businesses have perceived sustainability principles and practices as important success factors in today’s business landscape; hence, they have incorporated these into their systems and activities. Sustainability among these companies are being provided in various societal and corporate initiatives, but most of them are centered on environmental or natural, economic, and social dimensions (Haugh & Talwar, 2010). These dimensions of responsibility are known as the triple bottom line (TBL) approach, which was coined by John Elkington in 1990s (Elkington, 2004). In this regard, various industries are encouraged to give importance on environmental and societal issues in their decision-making and sustainability reporting; this approach can be seen in the MCI group. The main thrust of this paper is to critically assess the sustainability policy of MCI in relation to the TBL theory. Also, recommendations will be given after the critical appraisal of the company’s sustainability plan. 2.0 The MCI Group MCI is a privately held company whose expertise is in the field of event management. It was founded in 1987 by Roger Tondeur and Ursula Wiger, which is currently headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland (MCI, n.d.a.). Furthermore, MCI is one of the leading companies in the event industry with 48 offices in 22 countries worldwide including the U.S, EU, Asia, Middle East, and many more (MCI, 2011). Also, the company expressed that their continuing growth for almost 25 years is attributed to their commitment to sustainable development and corporate social responsibility (CSR) through the application of the TBL theory. This theory has been embedded in all of MCI’s policies, practices, decisions, programs, and reporting. In fact, they are recognized as the first company in the event & meeting industry that has introduced event greening, hence, making this achievement as their strength. 3.0 Sustainability Policy Statement 3.1 MCI’s Commitments (Strategies & Actions) According to the MCI President Roger Tondeur (n.d.), the company’s commitment is focused in “creating and producing memorable events and projects in the most ethical, safe, and environmentally, and socially responsible way” (MCI, n.d.b.). This commitment is visible in their CSR that has been driven from the UN global compact because MCI believed that the principle of sustainability can be achieved through collaboration with a “visible front-end initiative” (Barkemeyer & Napolitano, 2009, p.1). The company’s commitment has garnered positive reviews and feedback from their broader stakeholders including staff, society at large, suppliers, and clients. According to Haugh and Talwar (2010, p.384), companies nowadays were accepting the statement that “more active strategies” in line with stakeholder perspectives are needed to become socially responsible citizens. Hence, MCI has pursued the stakeholder driven strategy that is focused in giving a well-balanced perspective with regard to operations (daily work), talent (wellbeing of individuals), clients (develop sustainable products & solutions), industry (responsible business practices), and community (working together to build a vibrant culture) as part of their strategic sustainability plan (MCI, 2011, p.17). UN Global Compact. Along with the stakeholder strategy is the MCI’s commitment to the UN guiding principles, which have guided them on how to become a responsible, value-oriented, and sustainable company. Under the compact, stakeholders are regularly informed on the company’s sustainability performance and actions through an annual progress report known as the Communications on Progress (COPs) (Barkemeyer & Napolitano, 2009). In the 2011 COP of MCI, the company’s performance and actions are associated to the 10 principles, which are intended to protect the rights of people (Principles 1 & 2), labour (Principles 3,4,5, & 6), environmental preservation (Principles 7,8, & 9), and keep away from all forms of corruption (Principle 10) (Williams, 2004). See figure 1 (in appendices) for MCI’s actions in 2011 (MCI, 2011, pp.7-8). 3.2 Comparison with Government and Industry Standards MCI is a member of various industries; hence, they followed several accreditations/standards such as the ISO/ IEC17024 (certification program) - Certified Eventmaster, ISO 140001 (environmental management), ISO 9001:2000 (quality management), Swiss TS ISO 9001, AMC Institute Accreditation, UN Global Compact Supporters, and Green Globe Certification 2009 (MCI, n.d.a.). In terms of event industry standard, MCI is the pioneering company or a role model to uphold UN standards and CSR policies, which have been observed by other industry players nowadays as part of their global governance mechanism. In fact, 89% of events organized by MCI in 2011 had heavily regarded the CSR concept, particularly the environmental preservation as part of their sustainable operations and practices (MCI, 2011, p.31). However, the study of Barkemeyer and Napolitano (2009) suggested that a majority of the UN global compact members (i.e. trade unions, businesses, civil societies, academia, NGOs, etc.) were at risk of being “de-listed” because of their failure to comply with the annual COPs. Moreover, the failure was attributed to the lack of monitoring mechanisms; hence, verification and control procedures were suggested to supplement the global compact. The best reporting mechanism that would complete the UN global compact is the global reporting initiative (GRI), which is also called the TBL approach (Williams, 2004, p.764). The UN global compact would guide companies to become responsible corporate citizens while the GRI would serve as a reporting framework of company’s social, environmental, and financial performances (Haugh & Talwar, 2010, p.388). Moreover, MCI is the first event company that has incorporated the GRI reporting guidelines in their COPs, particularly the GRI G3.1 framework, which is intended for event organizers (MCI, 2011). Another standard applicable to MCI is the ISO (International Organization for Standard) 20121 (event sustainability management scheme). The ISO 20121 would help MCI to identify “potentially negative social, economic and environmental impacts of events by removing or reducing them, and capitalizing on more positive impacts through improved planning and processes” (Frost, 2012). On the other hand, MCI sustainability policies have made them a sustainable event management organizer, which is reflected in their several awards and recognitions. See figure 2 ( in appendices) for some of their awards from 2001 to 2010 (MCI, n.d.a.). 3.3 Application of Relevant Theories CSR has been widely discussed in connection with the classical approach wherein businesses sole responsibility was to make profits for stockholders; however, various literatures suggested that this perception was unrealistic (Ghoshal, 2005; Haugh & Talwar, 2010). Furthermore, corporate leaders have realized that they should have a balanced view between their economic and social duties; hence, they perceived that aside from shareholder value maximization, they should also uphold “CSR standards” that involved various stakeholders (Ingenbleek & Immink, 2010, p.52). Hence, the stakeholder perspective has been introduced, which was positively attached to corporate performance or profits (Thorpe & Prakash-Mani, 2003), competitiveness/ excellence (Closs, et al., 2011), company image/ reputation and employee retention (Turban & Greening, 1997), and socially responsible company (Ingenbleek & Immink, 2010). On the other hand, CSR is related to sustainable event management because the latter is all about sustainable practices through “green credentials” (Chan & Lau, 2010, p.81). However, sustainable development was first introduced by the Brundtland Commission authored by the UN in which sustainability was defined as “meets needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (Jones, 2010). This definition is applicable to the event industry considering that the latter is using large and scarce resources from the environment that would produce waste and harmful greenhouse gasses (Jones, 2010). In fact, in the 2009 International Convention and Expo Summit (ICES) in Hong Kong, events industry managers were advised to include sustainability in their CSR in terms of the “triple-impact event” that gave importance on clients, environment, and society (Chan & Lau, 2010, p.81). Also, Jones (2010) suggested event industry players to create sustainable policies because these are very significant drivers toward the “right path” by giving importance on environmental and societal impacts. In addition, it has been suggested that profit and nonprofit organizations nowadays should develop social reporting systems to certify and control their sustainability measures (Williams, 2004, p.763). Hence, part of the CSR strategy of MCI is to initiate sustainability based on the TBL approach including “people, planet and profit” (MCI, 2011, p.5). See figure 3 (in appendices) for the triple bottom line model in the event management (Elkington, 2004). 3.3.1 The Triple Bottom Line Theory (TBL): MCI Sustainability Policies TBL is part of the MCI corporate social strategies with the purpose of ensuring that the broad group of stakeholders is given emphasis, and not just to maximize the shareholders value. Also, these principles are taken into consideration when MCI has to make important decisions for the company. Figure 4 (in appendices) shows how MCI has applied the sustainability principle or the TBL to their operations towards a sustainable event management (MCI, 2011, p.8). People. For the MCI, their people (multi-cultural team) are their greatest asset and success factor; in fact, this group is always put at the center of their operation, decision-making, and strategy for it is perceived that this group “is the best guarantee of adding value” to the business as a whole (MCI, n.d.a.). Currently, the company has a total of 1,114 employees in 22 countries worldwide, who are able to communicate with customers in 52 various languages (MCI, 2011, p.4). Furthermore, their CSR programme is heavily supported and accepted by 99% of their employees in which 74% have cited that environmental and social concerns in MCI have “changed their work habits” (MCI, 2011, p.5). In return, the company is committed in giving their people various programs that would increase their learning and performance, as well as enhance their career opportunities through advanced technologies and processes. In fact, based on the company’s 2011 sustainability report, talent development and wellbeing programmes’ results were all improving compare to the 2010 outcome. See figure 5 (in appendices) for the complete information about the progress of their talent development and wellbeing programme of MCI (MCI, 2011, p.24) Planet. In 2011, MCI has delivered a total of “3,256 events with over 857,293 participants” worldwide, which is enough to create unpleasant environmental consequences (MCI, 2011, p.4). Figure 6 (in appendices) shows the MCI environmental goals for 2015, which are embedded in every MCI offices worldwide. In their 2011 sustainability report, the company has recorded apparent progress. First, MCI has recorded 38% or 18 offices, which have an active CSR plan; hence; they only need 62 offices more within 3 years to achieve their first sustainability goal. Secondly, 55% or 26 offices are already producing sustainable report for their stakeholders; hence, they only need 45 offices more to reach the second sustainability goal. The third and the fourth goals are interconnected wherein they planned to have 100% sustainable events and sales proposals by 2015. The last goal is to make at least 80% code-compliant partners, and by 2011, the group has already achieved 67% of suppliers, who have complied with MCI supplier code of conduct. On the other hand, figure 7 (in appendices) shows the improved greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) (i.e. CO2, CH4, N2O) of MCI events in various aspects. In fact, the total Kg CO2 in 2010 is 4,236,000, which is reduced to 3,401,031 Kg CO2 in 2011. Hence, the event legacies that were put forward by MCI include the offset of carbon footprints (GHGs), efficient water & energy usage, reduction of waste through recycling, and support environmental campaigns. Profit. MCI is one of the leading companies in the event industry worldwide in terms of sales, market share, and revenue; however, they always make sure that these achievements are shared to their employees, investors, clients, suppliers, and community as a whole. For their employees, a profit-sharing program is introduced together with continuous learning and development programs. For the community, MCI is holding different fundraising events (pro-bono) and investing a portion of their profit for outreach activities and educational assistance, which are also engaging to suppliers and employees. See figure 8 (in appendices) for the complete information about the progress of their goals in serving and building communities (MCI, 2011, p.24). 4.0 Recommendations MCI is one of the event companies that is pursuing a sustainable event management because they believed that adopting sustainability in their CSR initiative could improve their competitiveness, performance (profit), image/reputation, and employee retention. Also, their commitment is illustrated in their sustainability policies such as the Code of Conduct, Code of Business Ethics, Supplier Code of Conduct, Sustainability Policy, and the annual sustainability reports. However, sustainability planning should not be restricted to their CSR champions; instead, the management should also look after the empowerment of lower level employees in decision-making. The MCI talent development program with regard to talent participation in health and wellbeing should be enhanced considering that there were only 4 offices out of 48, which have supplied talent development and wellbeing programme to their employees. Hence, using a collaborative approach, employees would be given opportunities to share their experiences and perceptions about sustainability practices. Furthermore, this empowerment could also help MCI in achieving a higher percentage of sustainable suppliers through sustainable contracts considering that in the 2010 and 2011 sustainability scorecard, MCI has recorded a 0% improvement under this aspect. Another recommendation is to prioritize suppliers that are accredited or signatories of different government and industry standards to improve their commitment to these clauses. 5.0 Conclusion The MCI group is a socially responsible event company whose policies are based on the interest of their stakeholders. In other words, MCI is pursuing a stakeholder approach towards a sustainable development. Also, the company’s commitment to their stakeholders is illustrated in conforming to various CSR initiatives including the UN global compact, GRI reporting, ISO, etc. Moreover, the MCI’s performances and actions are communicated to their stakeholders in terms of their annual sustainability reports. In fact, the MCI 2011 sustainability scorecard has proved that their commitment to sustainable development is effective considering the improvement of their objectives in terms of governance, operations, empowering clients, serving the community, and talent development and wellbeing. MCI’s excellent performance is attributed to their triple bottom line (people, planet, & profit) approach to CSR. However, the company has to focus on the empowerment of their employees and clients to make favorable results on their sustainability scorecard, and consequently achieve the goals for 2015. References Barkemeyer, R. & Napolitano, G., 2009. The UN global compact: moving towards a critical mass or a critical state? Academy of Management Annual Meeting Proceedings, pp.1-6. Chan, G.K. & Lau, C.K.H., 2009. Conference report: international convention and expo summit (ICES) 2009, Hong Kong, May 18-20, 2009. Journal of Convention & Event Tourism, 11, pp.79-81. Closs, D.H., Speier, C. & Meacham, N., 2011. Sustainability to support end-to-end value chains: the role of supply chain management. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 39 (1), pp.101-116. Elkington, J., 2004. Enter the triple bottom line. In: A. Henriques & J. Richardson, eds. 2004. The triple bottom line: does it all add up. London: Earthscan. Ch.1. Frost, R., 2012. New ISO 2012 standard for sustainable events management. [Online]. Available at: http://www.iso.org/iso/news.htm?refid=Ref1598 [Accessed 23 October 2012]. Ghoshal, S., 2005. Bad management theories are destroying good management practices. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 4 (1), pp.75-91. Haugh, H.M. & Talwar, A., 2010. How do corporations embed sustainability across the organization? Academy of Management Learning & Education, 9 (3), pp.384-396. Ingenbleek, P.T. & Immink , V.M., 2010. Managing conflicting stakeholder interests: an exploratory case analysis of the formulation of corporate social responsibility standards in the Netherlands. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 29 (1), pp.52-65. Jones, M.L., 2010. Sustainable event management: a practical guide. Oxford: Earthscan. MCI, 2011. Creating value, 2011 sustainability report. [Online] MCI-Group. 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Appendices Figure 1: UN Global Compact Communication in Progress Source: MCI, 2011, pp.7-8 Figure 2: MCI Awards Source: MCI, n.d.a. Figure 3: Triple Bottom Line Model Source: Elkington, 2004 Figure 4: Sustainability Principle and Its Applications to Events & Meetings Source: MCI, 2011, p.8 Figure 5: MCI - Talent Development & Wellbeing Programmes Source: MCI, 2011, p.24 Figure 6: Environmental Goals for 2015 Source: Source: MCI, 2011, p.19 Figure 7: MCI - Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Kg/CO2e) 2011 Source: MCI, 2011, p.20 Figure 8: MCI - Serving the Community Source: MCI, 2011, p.20 Read More