【Event】To Become a Respectable Company

 

“For Chinese companies, in order to go global, they have to increase their strength, but more importantly, they should perform their CSR well. They should become both profitable and respectable.” Lihong SONG, Deputy Director General of Comprehensive Department, Ministry of Commerce, said at the Exploration-“One Belt and One Road”: Benefits, Destiny and Responsibility Community of Chinese Companies Going Abroad forum co-sponsored by China WTO Tribune and Emerging Market Multinationals Network for Sustainability (EMM Network) on June 5^th.
As for the current situation of Chinese companies going global, Lihui SUN, Director of Communication Department, China Chamber of Commerce of Metals Minerals & Chemicals Importers & Exporters (CCCMC), said that Chinese companies, due to their short time period of going global, lack of understanding of foreign policies, laws, regulations and culture, as well as their rare participation in formulating international rules, to some extent, they were lack of social responsibility. As a result, it has been an uphill battle for Chinese companies in the process of going global.
According to Laibao NIU, General Accountant of China National Technical Import Corporation, Chinese companies going global are facing quite a few difficulties: Chinese companies going global needs a large number of talented people who have not only CSR awareness but also understanding of local society; law abiding issue of companies in overseas countries requires the guidance and help from government and industrial organizations; companies going global faces unavoidable challenges in terms of intellectual property right protection; companies should attach importance to culture shock.
To Become a Good CSR Pioneer
As for the challenges and difficulties of Chinese companies going global in the background of the “One Belt and One Road” initiative, participants agree that companies must fulfill their CSR in a high standard, and implement the philosophy of responsibility in companies’ internal and external communications, policies and actions so that companies could go global in a better and more sustainable way.
Xubiao ZHANG, officer of ILO Beijing Office, has provided the coping strategy for companies’ overseas operation combined with his previous cooperation experience with transnational companies. First, companies should attach importance to CSR in terms of strategic planning. Second, more resources should be mobilized to support CSR practices. Third, companies should raise their awareness of performing responsibility to make innovations in social responsibility management to become responsible for the world. Fourth, companies should respect the local culture. Fifth, companies could conduct cooperation in sustainable development with international organizations to improve their work in CSR.
“For a long time, we have deeply realized from overseas operation that only when the companies make joint efforts with the host country and local communities, bring tangible and sustainable economic and social benefits to them, and create shared value, can they make rapid, stable and sustainable progress in the “One Belt and One Road” initiative while high standard and good fulfillment of CSR are particularly important in the process.” Zhifeng JIN, Deputy Director of General Office, China Minerals Corporation, shared his experience and brought up detailed suggestions at the same time: good management to promote CSR practice to achieve standardization, systematization and normalization; good practice to help companies perform responsibilities well in overseas investment; good spread of companies’ responsibility fulfillment stories to enable companies to go global.
Philipp Kruschel, Executive Director of EMM Network for Sustainability, described in his speech that EMM Network focuses on the following 3 areas: green business model innovation, Guidelines and Standards on CSR, as well as stakeholder participation and management. In addition, it has carried out a series of training programs and capacity building activities. It is hoped that EMM Network could help companies to transform environmental and social sustainability into a successful business solution.