Bank Tops Corporate Responsibility Index
21 April 2005 at 1:04 pm
Westpac has scored first place in an international benchmarking survey that measures corporate responsibility, maintaining its top ranking in the second Australian Corporate Responsibility Index.
The Australian bank also outperforming 133 companies in the UK.
The results of the Corporate Responsibility Index were published this month in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. UK results were revealed in the Sunday Times.
In the Australian index, Westpac was followed closely by BP, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Toyota Australia.
Westpac rated a near perfect score of 99.53%. BP came second at 93.21% and BHP Billiton was third with 92.71%.
The overall average score of companies on the Australian index was 81.88% well up on last year’s average of 77 %.
While it was expected that the Australian bank would achieve a high ranking in Australia, its stellar performance in the UK came as some surprise to Westpac CEO Dr David Morgan.
Dr Morgan said that for Westpac, corporate responsibility is about behaving in a responsible, ethical and trustworthy fashion.
“He said that fundamentally people want to work for an organisation that has a set of values that are aligned to their own values. In financial services our customers want to deal with a company they can trust.
Executive Director of St James Ethics Centre Dr Longstaff said that Westpac’s top scores in both Australia and the United Kingdom demonstrate that Australian companies can compete in this area of activity with the world’s best, including those that have been driven to perform by a challenging regulatory environment.
The St James Ethics Centre acts as the ‘trustee’ overseeing the integrity of the survey process and is not involved in the task of rating companies.
Close analysis of results took place during the 6th National Business Leaders Forum on Sustainable Development, in Melbourne on Tuesday 5 April 2005.
The Forum provided an opportunity for senior decision-makers from Australia’s corporate sector, state and federal governments, and non-government organisations active in the field of sustainable development to ensure global competitiveness by propelling Australian society towards sustainability. The theme of the 2005 Forum was Champions of a Sustainable Future.
The results of the benchmarking survey can also be found at www.corporate-responsibility.com.au
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