The Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative: taking action to develop the next generation of globally responsible business leaders
The Oasis School of Human Relations is one of the founding partner organisations of the Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative, and a member of the board of the resulting Foundation since 2006. We are committed to the development of the initiative both in the UK and internationally. We are currently involved in the development of a series of human inquiries into the meaning and practice of globally responsible leadership, as well as supporting organisations globally in other aspects of the practical steps and awareness-building outlined below.
“Globally responsible leadership is the global exercise of ethical, values-based leadership in the pursuit of economic and societal progress and sustainable development. It is based on the fundamental recognition of the interconnectedness of the world.” Globally Responsible Leadership – A Call for Engagement, page 15.
The Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative (the Initiative) is the result of a year of intensive work by a group of senior representatives from companies, business schools and centres for leadership learning from five continents. The group was formed by the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) with the support of the United Nations Global Compact.
The challenges facing humankind are complex, undeniable and global. Businesses are among the most influential institutions worldwide and have a tremendous opportunity to shape a better world for existing and future generations. The obligation of the globally responsible business is to create economic and societal progress in a globally responsible and sustainable way.
The Initiative aims to promote understanding of globally responsible leadership and to develop its practice.
Taking action and raising awareness
The Initiative is developing a body of knowledge on globally responsible leadership and encouraging its practice in companies worldwide. Specific action targets include:
making global responsibility a foundational requirement within the accreditation systems for business schools.
piloting new best practice approaches to learning within leading business schools and companies so that business leaders not only know what is expected of them, but also practise it.
developing self assessment tools for individual and corporate performance, measured against clear and explicit concepts of global responsibility.
advocacy to enable globally responsible leaders to flourish and become role models of business behaviour.
“It is our aim to establish the norms and expectations of business behaviour for the 21st century and ensure that the emerging generation of business leaders live by them. It is about the need to overhaul business education worldwide to provide a foundation of global responsibility in every area of learning” says Anders Aspling, EFMD board member and chair of the Initiative
The report
EFMD has, on behalf of the founders of the Initiative, published “Globally Responsible Leadership – A Call for Engagement” (click here to download). This report represents a strong starting point. It outlines both some fundamental conceptual issues of global responsibility and, as its title suggests, is an invitation to companies, business schools and other learning organisations to become involved in the work.
Its contents include a re-definition of the purpose of business, ethics for global responsibility and practical proposals on transforming business education.
The report addresses the substantial changes required in the way business schools prepare the next generation of leaders. It identifies not only curriculum issues but also recognises that engendering global responsibility within leaders will require a much broader approach to learning which goes beyond the cognitive acquisition of knowledge.
How you can support the Initiative
The Initiative is now presenting its work to businesses, business schools, other learning institutions and business-related organisations around the world and is seeking their engagement.
For all who are interested, the Initiative will provide updates on its work and access to the body of knowledge on Global Responsibility as well as the tools it develops. It will also invite a limited number of organisations to join the founding members in the next phase of work.
“Global responsibility is the new necessity for companies. This will not create a society of goodies or softies, but one in which a more acceptable but still effective business community can exist” says Ray van Schaik, President of EFMD and former CEO of Heineken.
Background Information
The 21 companies, business schools and centres for leadership learning from around the world whose senior representatives have worked together over the past year and, as a result of that partnership, founded the Initiative are:
Aviva (UK)
Barloworld Limited (South Africa)
Bordeaux Business School (France)
Groupe Caisse d’Epargne (France)
China Europe International Business School – CEIBS (China)
ESSEC Business School (France)
Fundação Dom Cabral (Brazil)
IBM
IESE Business School (Spain)
INSEAD (France and Singapore)
Instituto de Empresa (Spain)
Lafarge (France)
London Business School (UK)
Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business and Management (USA)
Petróleo Brasileiro SA - PETROBRAS (Brazil)
Queen’s University School of Business (Canada)
Responsible Business Initiatives (Pakistan)
Telefónica (Spain)
The Oasis School of Human Relations (UK)
University of Management and Technology (Pakistan)
University of South Africa, Centre for Corporate Citizenship (South Africa)
The European Foundation for Management Development (www.efmd.org) is an international network with more than 500 member organisations from academia, business, public service and consultancy in 65 countries across the world.
