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Santo Domingo, R. P. – May 08, 2020 - The Chair of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability "Alejandro E. Grullón E." from the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra and the Popular Foundation, held the Dialogue on Corporate Social Responsibility: Integrated thinking in business: from mono-capitalism to multi-capitalism as a path for business transformation.
Based on Plato's phrase "The part can never be fine unless everything is fine", Mrs. Marcela Romero, general manager of BSD Consulting ELEVATE Colombia, highlighted the importance of integrated thinking to understand the role of companies in the social, economic and environmental systems in which they carry out their activities, and the effects that these have on said systems and the company itself.
Romero explained how the social and environmental impacts that organizations generate, or the social and environmental risks they face, can be internalized within the organization's cost structure, emphasizing the consequences of these impacts for management. In this context, the multicapitalist theory arises, through which it is understood that organizations through their business model make use of multiple capitals, so that financial capital is not the only one that is relevant; If not, the intellectual, human, manufacturing, social, relational and natural capitals are of equal importance.
Romero explained that “This is the main principle of what is called integrated thought; how we understand this use of multiple capitals in the business models, the impacts on the capitals, the external risks to which we may be exposed to continue receiving those capitals and how we organize and structure the business models that optimize the use of the capitals and maximize the generation of value”.
“Integrated thinking finally leads us to change the focus of what is the final purpose of business and finance, from creating value for the shareholder, towards creating value for the common good”, according to Romero.
Considering this, he raised the following question: "How then do we make this change from thinking only about finances, and how do we understand that we can perhaps lower that target or lower that inclination of the financial growth curves to reduce the negative impacts on the environment, promote a recovery of natural capital stocks, and also direct more capital towards the reduction of conditions of inequality and poverty at a global level?
The multi-capitalist vision is the one that today will help to face precisely those risks and opportunities of the 21st century, rethinking the way we understand the generation of value in this post-covid-19 world situation, concluded Angye Rincón, director of the Chair of Responsibility Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability “Alejandro E. Grullón E.”.
This webinar was aimed at CSR and sustainability managers, managers of small and medium-sized companies, and PUCMM professors and students.