Business in the Community Ireland – the non-profit aiming to inject sustainability into firms

Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI) is at the forefront of sustainability and knows that in a dynamic and ever-changing environment, industries across every sector must put sustainability at the heart of what they do.

The non-profit organisation is a movement for sustainable change and its purpose is to inspire, challenge and facilitate businesses to bring about a sustainable, low-carbon economy and more inclusive society where everyone thrives.

Chief executive Tomás Sercovich said that businesses were always aware of sustainability, but now there is a sense of urgency of embedding sustainability and ESG (environmental, social and governance) into all areas of their business so they remain profitable and future-proofed.

“While there is agreement that sustainability is a must, the challenge of implementation arises – and that’s where we can help businesses both individually and collectively,” Sercovich said.

“Today a lot of the focus is on compliance, which comes from EU requirements, so there is an expectation for companies to be more transparent. Research shows that consumers want to align their purchasing decisions with brands that do the right thing for people, the environment and communities.

“We know that more and more businesses are making procurement decisions based on sustainability and ESG criteria – and our members are telling us that they are winning tenders because of these credentials, so it definitely makes an impact. Investors also want to look at companies with sustainability credentials because they are seen as a sign of stability, solid growth and good risk management.

“We created the Business Working Responsibly mark 12 years ago to assess the management systems which companies have in place and their alignment to what we have defined as ‘Best in Class’ in ESG and sustainability.

“Aligned with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), it helps a company to put together a very solid framework of understanding their policies, practices, the impact they have and how this is communicated, as well as looking at the process of continuous improvement.”

With more than 75 employees nationwide, the BITCI team specialises in different aspects of the ESG agenda – with experts on nature, climate, business and human rights, ESG strategy, CSRD, and also inclusion and diversity, education and supported employment.

The organisation works closely with its 120 members to help them demonstrate that their sustainability practices are solid; as Sercovich said, leadership, collaboration and transparency are crucial to making these policies work.

Authentic leadership

“The main challenge is for business to show authentic and personal leadership – as evidence and research has shown that society expects and demands it,” Sercovich said.

“However, business leaders must drive that process of change and arm themselves with the right approaches that guarantee the future of their business.

“But, business leaders need support to do this, and seven years ago we set up the Leaders Group on sustainability – a very important structure for looking at cutting-edge work within different sectors – where CEOs come together to look at those really difficult-to-tackle issues.”

When it comes to diversity and inclusion, he said the challenge is for companies to “really think differently about diversity initiatives and turn them into proper inclusion initiatives.

“We set up a programme called Elevate, so our members can annually measure and disclose, anonymously, the diversity profile of their workforce, which helps to demonstrate the true diversity of society,” he said.

“Through Elevate and our other BITCI employment programmes which support those groups which are very distanced from the labour market, we’re trying to ensure that companies think differently, understand the challenges and look at barriers which have been created, mainly unintentionally, which stop people from applying for a job, being promoted or truly develop and be themselves at work.”

This, according to Sercovich, is what radical inclusion looks like – and he said that collaboration is also very important.

“Companies are very good at setting up initiatives, practices and programmes and communicating them, but the real challenge is for it to come together,” he said. “So, we’re setting up programmes and initiatives for companies as this needs to be addressed.”

When it comes to investor expectations, the chief executive said the “fundamental lever is transparency”.

“Sometimes companies, mistakenly, feel that once they issue sustainability reports or disclose in line with reporting requirements, that is enough,” he said.

“But the key thing is engagement and having dialogue where companies can explain the journey and the transition. For example, we are seeing how some investors are engaging with a company which is currently using fossil fuels but is in transition.

“So there needs to be a conversation about continuous improvement, and it’s important to be very clear that this transition will ultimately result in new business models.

“Along with carbon emissions, we have also been working for years on the whole nature of biodiversity, which is linked to decarbonisation as there is no point in focusing company efforts just on reducing emissions without understanding the impacts of business operations – including the impact of supply chain on nature, and biodiversity.”

When it comes to supporting more than 120 of Ireland’s largest companies to become more sustainable, BITCI is a trusted voice and has long been advocating for companies to set science-based targets to drive change. No matter how small the initiative or the policy – whether it is to do with behavioural change, waste management, transport or innovation – it can all help to make a difference in creating a greener and more inclusive society.

Sercovich, who has been at the helm of the non-profit organisation for six years, said BITCI has developed different relationships with all its member businesses and knows there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but that every company is different – and this is where its 75- strong team of experts comes into its own.

But the most important factor is that it offers a supportive community space where businesses can avail of professional advice while also working together for the greater good of the environment.

“We feel that we have developed different relationships with business where we can get to know them, understand their issues and their problems and be that sounding board, that extra member of their team, or extra layer of support,” he said.

“In many cases what we're trying to do is very difficult. It’s about changing – and we’re working nationwide with our focus being on securing a low-carbon economy, nature positive, and an inclusive society where everyone thrives. The critical element of us being a non-profit ensures that we develop meaningful relationships with companies, CEOs and practitioners.

“Across our three streams of membership, businesses nationwide can avail of one-to-one guidance and advice as well as participate in our collective campaigns: the Low Carbon Pledge, Elevate Pledge and our Business Working Responsibly Mark. It is all about working together, striving for continuous improvement, to advance the sustainability and ESG agenda.”

See bitc.ie for more information