Responsible business conduct in a global economy

Companies today are facing multiple challenges that go beyond the traditional objectives of running a profitable business, serving

Demands on business have become more insistent because the very process of globalisation has heightened expectations of what companies can or should contribute to environmental and social progress.

Increasingly, companies are responding to these challenges by means of explicit business principles that set out their commitment to act as responsible members of society in the way they conduct their business.

When establishing these principles - whether formally expressed or an unwritten part of the corporate culture - companies need above all to maintain a balance between economic responsibilities to customers, employees and shareholders and their responsibilities as global citizens and members of the local communities in which they operate.