Socially responsible investment firms ask for GRI standard reports.

In the wake of years of corporate scandals, an unprecedented coalition of U.S. analysts at 17 socially responsible investment firms representing more than $147 billion (U.S.) in assets is urging publicly traded companies around the world to meet a higher standard of reporting on corporate governance,

In a joint statement, the analysts have recommended that companies start reporting annually on their key social and environmental policies, practices and performance. The statement notes that companies are facing a growing number of questions and requests for reports about these issues from investors, customers, environmental and labour groups, and the public. However, the manner in which companies provide such information currently varies widely. For the first time, this coalition is sending a clear signal that companies should base their reporting on the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) Sustainability Reporting Guidelines.

The GRI is an independent institution that has developed standardized sustainability reporting guidelines with the active participation of representatives from business, accounting, investment, environmental, human rights, research and labour organizations from around the world. GRI indicators include measures of economic performance (such as total payroll and community donations); environmental performance (such as greenhouse gas emissions and water use); labour practices (such as worker health and safety and diversity); human rights (such as policies around child labour and indigenous rights); society (such as community impacts, bribery, and political contributions); and product responsibility (such as customer health and safety, advertising, consumer privacy).

A number of major U.S. companies are basing their reporting on the GRI guidelines, including Citigroup, Ford, General Motors, Hewlett-Packard, and Starbucks. Some Canadian-based firms are doing the same, although other models have also been adopted (see the March 2004 issue of CMA Management for more information, in the feature "Satisfied stakeholders").

Global Reporting Initiative Chief Executive Ernst Ligteringen said: "The analyst community has spoken--there is a need for fuller disclosure of business risks and opportunities facing companies today. This will only work for all the players involved--investors, companies, and other stakeholders--if based on a generally accepted framework that establishes common expectations for publicly reported information. GRI's Sustainability Reporting Guidelines are already used by nearly 600 companies worldwide, and I feel that this strong statement of support from the analyst community will spark more interest in GRI-based reporting from U.S. companies."

The joint analyst statement is a project of two working groups of the Social Investment Forum: the International Working Group (IWG) and the Social Investment Research Analysts Network (SIRAN). The Social Investment Forum is a national (U.S.) non-profit membership organization that promotes socially responsible investing.

For the full text of the analyst statement visit www.socialinvest.org.