Earlier today I was wondering what it is about ICAEW that I find so irksome. This press release entitled Market must define what it means by integrity is a perfect example:
Building consensus amongst market participants on the meaning of integrity and how to promote it will help reduce the likelihood of business scandals, reputational damage and loss of confidence in markets. This is the focus of a new report published for consultation today by the ICAEW
I find this gobsmackingly incredulous, coming as it does from an Institute that doesn’t have an ethics exam as part of the core qualification. It is exactly the kind of thinking that leads to what Richard Murphy describes as ‘a race to the bottom’ in tax planning and tax policy. But then perhaps I should not be surprised.
Last week, Amit Chatterjee told me a story about a company with a CSR policy that ended up planting trees in the wrong place as part of its CSR response activity. You might think at least they tried. I think, why did they bother. Amit seemed surprised when, in talking about CSR, I said that I find most companies talk BS. I singled out Sage as a shining example of what I mean. If you read their CSR policy, it’s a commitment to nothing:
We currently do not set specific CSR targets for our OpCos, but it is a matter that the Board continues to monitor. At present the Board does not consider it appropriate to link the management of social, environmental and ethical issues to remuneration incentives, given the difficulties in objectively measuring risk management and performance in this area.
Amit is much closer to these things than I so I challenge him to bring out these kinds of story. More important, I want to hear about those companies that do act with integrity and actively pursue policies that have meaning. If integrity is to mean anything, then consensus is not the way forward. It will end up as a sham. I know plenty of people who talk a good game. Very few actually deliver. Integrity is about meaning what you say, saying what you mean and then delivering. In the meantime, ICAEW continues to look lame and irrelevant to the issues that matter to people.
