Throughout this year, the new Social Impact Thematic Chamber of CEBDS is promoting a series of four workshops aimed at providing input for the development of a publication on the subject, to be released in 2015.
The first workshop on the Social Impact of Business took place on April 16th in São Paulo. The meeting began with a presentation by Plan Políticas Públicas, a consultancy assisting in this process, focusing on a brief history of the evolution of the social impact theme and introducing the project's main concern: how to perceive, define, evaluate, and internalize the social impacts of businesses.
The companies were then heard and shared their experiences and concerns on the topic, such as what is most tangible in the area of social impact, concerns common to all companies – specifically, their value chains –, impact measurement under the logic of risks and opportunities, among others. However, the focus of the meeting was on industries related to consumer goods, with the presence of Adidas, Brasil Kirin, BRF, Bunge, Coca-Cola, Grupo André Maggi, Grupo Boticário and Nestlé.
The second meeting, which took place on May 7th in Rio de Janeiro, brought together companies from the basic and extractive sectors to understand their specific needs and share their tools and best practices. Participants raised issues related to the lack of methodologies for social analysis, as well as the difficulty of communicating with strategic stakeholders in the regions where their plants are located, among other issues. Representatives from companies such as Alcoa, Furnas, Grupo Águas do Brasil, Klabin, Petrobras, Vale, and Votorantim participated in this workshop.
The next meeting will take place on June 23rd in São Paulo, and will bring together companies from service sectors and other industries.
