Nissan in top 50 socially responsible companies

With Corporate Social Responsibility given increasing awareness, importance and credibility in modern business, Nissan customers can be pleased that the Japanese automotive manufacturer has rated in the top 50 of the world's most socially responsible companies in 2006.

One of five Japanese companies on the list, Nissan ranked 49th overall.  Only one other automotive manufacturer made the list.  The award gives recognition to Nissan's practical considerations of the social, environmental and economic impacts of its business activities.

The results came from a survey by Global Reporters.  The criteria for the awards combined information from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the think-tank consultancy SustainAbility Ltd. and Standard & Poor's (S&P). The survey looks at Corporate Social Responsibility reporting by worldwide companies according to global standards, and results have been published every two years for over a decade.

Criteria for the award acknowledge environmental protection and community cohesion and are endeavouring to ensure that businesses see social responsibility as an integral part of successful business.

In acknowledging the award, Nissan said that the award underscores Nissan’s strong commitment to corporate social responsibility.  In 1998, Nissan published its first annual Environmental Report, and then a more comprehensive Sustainability Report was released in 2004, which covered all of Nissan's CSR practices including environmental activities and strategies.  Nissan’s “Sustainability Report 2006” explains the company’s latest CSR policy and Nissan's 9 key areas of focus - integrity, quality, brand, employees, safety, economic contribution, environment, value chain, and philanthropy.

The 'Top 50' CSR Award method involves the surveying of approximately 100 global companies short listed from the nominated criteria and then evaluated by a team of CSR experts to finalise the Top 50.  Key issues in the judging criteria included the clarity of the companies’ sustainability strategy as well as an evaluation on the level of commitment and transparency of the companies' reported CSR activities.

Nissan has a stated aim of not only creating value by providing products and services but also to contribute to the development of society through a vision of enriching people’s lives, via Nissan's business activities.

Nissan has asserted that, as a company, it holds the belief that it is important always to align the corporate direction to achieve sustained profitable growth with the company's efforts to contribute to the sustainable development of society.

Further, Nissan has explained that management based on Corporate Social Responsibility is a good way of pursuing these two directions, enabling the company to build relationships of trust with stakeholders, internal and external.  Nissan established a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy in 2005 and identified nine key areas of its CSR focus and appointed a CSR Steering Committee.

You can get a free copy of Nissan's Sustainability report by visiting: 

http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/COMPANY/CSR/LIBRARY/SR/index.html 

(Just highlight the link above, copy it, and then paste it into the address bar of your internet browser).