The New Straits Times Press, 2010/03/09

Marc Lourdes

KUALA LUMPUR: Companies should include employees’ involvement in corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives when assessing their performances and determining annual salary increments or bonuses.  Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said this would motivate and encourage the employees to actively participate in CSR activities.

He told businesses that helping society could also be a profitable proposition. “It is in your own best interests to bring the poorest and least privileged into mainstream economic activities.” Najib said this when presenting the Prime Minister’s CSR Awards 2009 here yesterday.

The winners were recognised for their CSR initiatives in Education (Petronas), Environment (Intel Technologies), Culture and Heritage (Petronas), Community and Social Welfare (CIMB Group), Small Company CSR (The Truly Loving Company), Empowerment of Women (Rampai Niaga Sdn Bhd) and Media Coverage (Special Award – TV3).
Petronas was also given the Overall Winner award.

Najib said fundamental changes taking place globally were making responsible corporate behaviour “an absolute must” for every company.

He said society and its expectations were changing. “Consumers are developing higher expectations of the companies they engage with.

“They are much more aware of and concerned about the behaviour of corporations whose products and services they purchase,” he said, adding that people were already beginning to express a preference for products and services from socially-responsible companies.

There was also a growing consensus, he said, that the corporate sector could make a huge difference in solving social and environmental problems.
Najib added that investors, too, were playing an increasingly important role in encouraging corporate social responsibility.
Malaysia, he said, had a long way to go in putting CSR strategies at the heart of its efforts to create a more sustainable and socially inclusive future.

“There are more than 600,000 businesses registered in Malaysia. But fewer than 200 participated in this awards programme.
“It is clear we need to move CSR up the business agenda and embed it into the DNA of every comp a ny, ” Najib said, adding that while it was a huge challenge, it was also an opportunity to get things right from the start.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Senator Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, who also attended, described CSR as the basis for national cohesion and cooperation across ethnic, social and economic divides.
She said the CSR awards required chief executives to think about putting all stakeholders, instead of just shareholders, on top of their corporate agenda.
“Why? Because long-term corporate success and sustainability lie in aligning society’s interests with a competitive business edge.”

The Star,Tuesday March 9, 2010

By ZULKIFLI ABD RAHMAN and LESTER KONG

newsdesk@thestar.com.my

Less than 200 firms take part in 2009 PM’s Award

KUALA LUMPUR: Fewer than 200 companies out of the 600,000 businesses in the country have taken part in the 2009 Prime Minister’s CSR Awards, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.

“We have a long way to go in putting CSR (corporate social responsibility) strategies at the heart of our efforts for a more sustainable and socially inclusive future.

“It’s clear that we need to move CSR up the business agenda and embed it into the DNA of every company,” the Prime Minister said at the awards presentation ceremony yesterday.

He said this presented an enormous challenge and a huge opportunity to get things right from the start, adding that Malaysian corporations have the resources, vision and entrepreneurial skills to lift the nation to new heights of prosperity.

Because of this, they can ensure that sustainable benefits of prosperity filter through to every segment of society, he added.

Najib said CSR contributions could be encouraged by including CSR activities into the individual staff’s key performance indicators and computed to determine annual increments and bonuses.

Najib also said it was important for the corporate sector to give back to society by participating in deserving projects and causes that cry out for help.

The awards recognised eight categories of CSR activities, including the Empowerment of Women, which was introduced for the 2009 awards, while a special category was created for media reporting.

Two women were among those who received awards for their companies.

Truly Loving Company (TLC) chief executive officer Julia Chong and The Body Shop operator Rampai-Niaga Sdn Bhd managing director Datin Mina Cheah-Foong received the awards for Small Company CSR and Empowerment of Women respectively.

Cheah-Foong said Rampai-Niaga won for its “Stop Violence Against Women” campaign, which began in 2000.

“We have worked for many years to raise the self-esteem of women and make it safe for them to come forward with their abilities and value and to voice their thoughts and opinions,” she said after receiving the award.

Chong, whose three-year-old company sells 42 kinds of household and personal care products, said 100% of the dividends were given to charity.

“I worked for a corporate giant for 30 years and the dividends always went to stakeholders overseas.

“With TLC, we know that all profits are for the less fortunate,” Chong said.

Petronas walked away as the overall winner and was honoured for “giving back” in the Education and Culture and Heritage categories.

Other winners were Intel Technology Sdn Bhd (Environment), CIMB Group (Community and Social Welfare), Telekom Malaysia (Best CSR/Workplace Practice) and Media Prima Bhd (Media Reporting) while Star Publications (M) Bhd received an honourable mention in the same category.