Queen's University Management School

From left to right: Professor Richard Harrison, Director Queen’s University Management School Mr Gavin Cargill, Co-Founder Value the Person International Mrs Jill Garrett, Director of Leadership Development Caret Consultants (UK) Dr Nicholas Hitimana, Founder and Managing Direcotor of Ikirezi Natural Products

From left to right Michael Nesbitt, Commission Designate for Victims and Survivors Professor Richard Harrison, Queen’s University Management School

A Mitchell Conference Satellite Workshop

Queen’s University Belfast, Friday 23 May 2008

This satellite workshop examined the role of leadership in transforming businesses and societies through inspiring people to use their talents and strengths.  Through reflection both on experiences in other societies and on the best practice in inspiring leadership, the workshop helped delegates set the agenda for effective leadership for economic development and social transformation in Northern Ireland.

The workshop was hosted by Professor Richard Harrison, Director of Queen’s University Management School.  Professor Harrison highlights the importance of the role of business in reconstruction and provides a synopsis of the seminar:

“In situations of rapid change, such as the political and economic situation of a post-conflict Northern Ireland, there is a need for thinking and action that transcends the taken for granted approach of ‘business as usual’.  If economic development – the identification and exploitation of opportunities for the benefit of an economy and its citizens – is to occur and make an effective contribution to reconciliation, leadership across all sectors of the economy is a key requirement.  Given the changes in Northern Ireland’s economy and society there is a need to move forward with a leadership development strategy for the region that will provide the basis for the sustainable long-term development of the regional economy.

Given the scale and scope of the challenges across all sectors of the economy – private sector, public sector, and third sector – this requires transformation.  The resumption of a more normal dynamic to politics and of greater social and economic stability in Northern Ireland provides the opportunity to contribute to the development of a dynamic outward-looking economy.  This will involve:

• Leadership in terms of the transformation of Northern Ireland economy and society

• Leadership in terms of the creation of dynamic outward-looking organisations (in the public, private and third sectors) that will be the locus for that transformation

• Leadership in terms of the dynamism and effectiveness of both the current and next generation of leaders and leadership terms

This seminar brought together two international speakers with detailed experience of leadership development.  Dr Nicholas Hitimana reflected on his experience of business development in post-genocide Rwanda and explored the role of leadership in building reconciliation in a divided society.  Jill Garrett drew on many years of leadership development experience in companies in the UK and internationally to identify the key issues for developing effective, inspirational leadership in all sections of society.”

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The Presentation Ceremony was held on Wednesday, 12^th March 2008 in the Whitla Hall where students were presented with their certificates. The Licentiateship of the City & Guilds of London Institute (LCGI) is a work-based qualification which may be used to complement a degree by accrediting relevant experience and competence gained during work placement.

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New study: Sustainable Value of the car manufacturing sector worldwide

Researchers of Queen's University Management School in cooperation with researchers of the Institute for Future Studies and Technology Assessment (IZT) in Berlin have assessed the operational sustainability performance of 16 car manufacturers worldwide.

The study is the first in the world to assess the sustainability performance of automobile manufacturers using the Sustainable Value approach which enables sustainability performance to be expressed in a single monetary figure. It was carried out by Professor Frank Figge and Ralf Barkemeyer of the School of Management at Queen's University Belfast, and Dr Tobias Hahn of the Institute for Futures Studies and Technology Assessment in Berlin. Entitled ‘Sustainable Value in Automobile Manufacturing’, the study aims to compare the efficiency with which vehicle manufacturers use their economic, environmental and social resources.  It analyses the sustainability performance of 16 of the world’s leading automobile manufacturers using financial, environmental and social data reported and published by the companies themselves.

The survey identifies those carmakers that use their resources in the most efficient way in automobile production. It examines a set of nine environmental, economic, and social resources which included capital use and water use, as well as waste generated and emissions of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides, and volatile organic compounds.

The Sustainable Value approach was developed by researchers of the two organisations. The approach has already been used among others in two comparative large scale studies funded by the European Commission and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. BMW Group expressed an interest into how the efficiency gains documented would translate into an evaluation of its sustainability performance compared to its peers and provided substantial financial support for the present survey.

The study can be accessed online here.

For further information please contact:

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Queen's University Management School in cooperation with the University of Leeds and ERP Environment is organising the 2008 Corporate Responsibility Research Conference (www.crrconference.org) “Challenging the Mainstream”.

The conference will take place from 7-9 September 2008 at Queen’s University Belfast.

Research in corporate responsibility and sustainability today looks back on a tradition spanning several decades. Especially in recent years the interest in corporate responsibility and sustainability has accelerated at an unprecedented pace. In some sectors or regions corporate responsibility has now reached the mainstream.

Some researchers see this as an opportunity - others are concerned. Many argue that mainstreaming corporate responsibility and sustainability is a precondition for research to be effective. That sustainability can only be delivered if the tools and techniques, the concepts and models, the theories and doctrines are rolled out across the largest possible spread of companies, organizations and regions. However, it might be argued that mainstreaming endangers the effectiveness of corporate sustainability with a focus on incremental change finding more widespread acceptance by the market. Yet some would argue that more radical change is required from an ecological and social point of view.

The conference welcomes research from all fields of corporate responsibility and sustainability. The conference challenges all participants to consider how their findings can become effective despite or through the mainstream. On the one hand there can be great value in research that adopts mainstream views and techniques, ensuring transferability across many sectors, regions and stakeholder groups. On the other hand research that challenges mainstream orthodoxies and breaks new ground ensures that corporate responsibility and sustainability is more than mere green window dressing.

The conference will host among others a separate PhD workshop and will award two best paper awards. For the first time the CRR Conference is also able to offer a limited number of promising research bursaries.

                                                                 
For further information please contact the organizing team at Queen’s University Management School: Ralf Barkemeyer, Frank Figge and Diane Holt or visit the conference website www.crrconference.org.

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