Flexibility and stability both count in the future labour market.

The issues and challenges of a transforming employment market were discussed at the BCSDH’s business breakfast and Action2020 Forum with Annamarie Muntz, the President of the WEC (World Employment Confederation) which was held on 26^th April.

 Annemarie Muntz – an acknowledged expert in the field – is Director of Randstad Holding Public Affairs. Her successful speech at the business breakfast of BCSDH (the Business Council for Sustainable Development in Hungary) – which represents a community of 80 member companies that contribute 30% of Hungary’s GDP -, was followed by workshops which were designed to promote real steps towards creating sustainable employment.

“We are all looking for security in work and income. At the same time, we need flexibility in terms of when, where and how we work. This means that the inclusive and competitive labour market workers and business want for our future should be agile and adaptable. By combining a variety of decent employment contracts with modern social security and accessible employability schemes we can do that. And provide sustainable prosperity for all.”– pointed out Annemarie Muntz.

The stability and competitiveness of an economy is tightly connected to the strength and quality of the employment situation.

Hungarian employment policy has the same target as Action2020 Hungary: to raise the employment rate to 75% by 2020.

“Although last year an upturn was recorded, the current employment situation in Hungary remains an urgent problem. Increasing numbers of enterprises are faced with the increasing difficulty of creating a workforce of appropriate quality. New solutions, models and at times radical changes are needed. The role of the business sector cannot be disputed, and increasing its positive impact is our common responsibility.” – stated Attila Chikán Jr., President of BCSDH, in the introduction.

 “In 2017, the Action 2020 Forum is focusing on three hot topics for the labour market in Hungary: skills and competences, diversity, and motivating employees to work in Hungary. During the Forum we focus on identifying the most important internal and external barriers and on disseminating pre-existing ‘beyond-business-as-usual’ solutions, and inspiring new ones”– pointed out Sándor Baja, CEO of Randstad, and Leader of the BCSDH’s Action 2020 Employment Working Group.

 “As an HR service company, we are facing the fact that employers are looking not only for professional knowledge, but also skills and competences such as good problem-solving skills, flexibility, creativity, and the ability to work in a team. The role of the business sector is unquestionable” – added Sándor Baja, moderator of the first group.

“Diversity could be a tool for managing the labour shortage. Companies have to be opened up to particular groups of workers and atypical forms of employment which are now actually not or only marginally found in their business practices. This is not only their social responsibility, but also their business interest” – said Zoltán Vadkerti, CEO of WorkLife HUB, as facilitator of the group for this topic.

“The number of employees who are working abroad, or planning to do so, is increasing. It is not the emigrants who create risks to the balance of the labor market, but their composition, and whether such employees are staying abroad and are permanently eliminated from the Hungarian labor market. If we additionally take demographic changes into account, an increase in the competition among employers for employees may be expected in the near future”– said Mirtill Megyeri, a Consultant of Colibri HR Solutions in her introductory speech as a moderator.

The main aim of the Action 2020 Hungary Forum is exactly this: to initiate a collaborative approach and joint efforts of the business sector that will make a real difference. Over 50 companies have already joined the program.

Presentation of Annemarie Muntz: FINAL – The future of work in an employee driven labor market – ANNEMARIE MUNTZ

You can find more pictures of the event here.

WBCSD share with you the CEO Guide to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Adopted by 193 countries in September 2015, the SDGs set out a framework of 17 Goals to tackle the world’s most pressing social, economic and environmental challenges in the lead-up to 2030.

The guide is designed to provide you with a concise yet comprehensive introduction to the SDGs, and their relevance for the private sector – because this agenda can’t be achieved without business.

With 169 targets sitting behind the 17 Goals, it can be difficult to know where to start. Yet a recent survey shows that:

• 70% of CEOs see the SDGs as providing a clear framework to structure sustainability efforts
• 87% of CEOs believe the SDGs provide an opportunity to rethink approaches to sustainable value creation
• 49% believe that business will be the single most important actor in delivering the SDGs.

The SDGs provide us with a new lens through which to translate global needs and ambitions into business solutions.

How the CEO Guide to the SDGs can help you

The CEO Guide is a new flagship WBCSD resource that sets out the clear actions you can take to begin aligning with the SDGs, and plot a course towards unlocking the value they represent.

The guide draws on the landmark research of the Business & Sustainable Development Commission (BSDC) which has found that achieving the SDGs could be worth at least US$12 trillion a year in market value by 2030 and create 380 million jobs in the process.

Highlighting the critical role for business in realizing the SDGs, the guide also explores the business implications of the SDGs across four pillars:

• Risks of inaction
• Capturing opportunities
• Governance & transparency, and
• The need for collaboration.

Acting on the SDGs is critical

At this time of political and economic uncertainty, strong and visionary CEO leadership is essential to achieving the transformation that is needed to usher in the inclusive and sustainable economic growth that the SDGs represent.

Through this CEO Guide, we seek to amplify the key messages of the BSDC, and help you turn them into action in your company. We outline how you can engage your organization, and recommend key steps for you to take to begin aligning with this critical societal agenda.

I encourage you to explore the CEO Guide – you can download the interactive digital version and watch the video from our central SDG Business Hub.

The Business Council for Sustainable Development in Hungary celebrated its 10^th Anniversary at the General Meeting which took place at the new headquarters of E.ON Hungária. Currently, BCSDH has 79 members, representing a community of value-creating business leaders of companies that contribute 30% of Hungary’s GDP.

During the past 10 years, 200 professional events, 200 active business leaders, 100 gifted participants of the ‘Future Leaders’ Talent Program, and more than 130 experts from NGOs, scientific, academic and business sectors have been involved in the Action 2020 Hungary program. Due to these efforts more than 500 business solutions have been introduced that provide real answers to sustainability challenges, and which demonstrate BCSDH’s strong commitment to sustainability.

Zsolt Jamniczky, Member of the Board of Directors of E.ON Hungária and Executive Board Member of BCSDH pointed out in his welcome speech that the organisation has now reached the optimal size which was defined as a strategy goal a few years ago.

 ’10 years ago, 15 companies and one private person thought that Hungarian businesses should take action for sustainability. Now, in 2017, BCSDH has 79 members who engage 400 thousand employees and produce 30% of Hungary’s GDP. Through the community of value-creating business leaders of these companies, BCSDH has achieved remarkable results in the field of sustainability. Nowadays, more and more leaders are recognising that operating sustainably generates competitive advantages for businesses, and are taking real steps by contributing to Hungary’s sustainability goals.’ – said Attila Chikán Jr., summarising the organisation’s development over the past 10 years.

BCSDH has been at the forefront of laying the foundation of this transformation since 2012 when ‘The Complex Interpretation of Corporate Sustainability Recommendations for Business Leaders’ were formulated.

‘At the moment, the most important task is to facilitate the practical implementation of these basic principles. BCSDH members are taking the lead in this process: 55 pre-existing business solutions have been identified which offer real answers to sustainability challenges.’ – added Irén Márta, Managing Director of BCSDH.

Nearly 80 business leaders and delegates attended the special Assembly of Members. To commemorate the jubilee, the founding members of BCSDH (Accor-Pannonia Hotels, ING Bank, Magyar Lapterjesztő, Szentkirályi-Kékkúti Ásványvíz, MOL Group, OTP Alapkezelő, Shell and two private individuals, Sándor Lakatos and Kinga Scodnik) were honored with a certificate.

Furthermore, 10 new members (4iG, Daikin, Duna Aszfalt, Graphisoft Park, Greenpro, Iberdrola, K&H Group, MVÜK, PPD Hungária, and Szerencsejáték Zrt.) were introduced in front of the large group of participants.

Furthermore, a collaborative project between two partner organisations was introduced in relation to BCSDH’s announcement of the need to transform recommendations into practice, and combat climate change. Gábor Décsi, founder of LEO, introduced the organisation and talked about benchmarking research relating to facility maintenance. Éva Beleznay, Vice-President of HuGBC, described the association’s work in depth.

Pictures from the event can be viewed by clicking here.

The Hungarian business sector agrees that operating transparently is the fundamental duty of all companies – as revealed in BCSDH’s annual sustainability survey.

91% of Hungarian businesses believe that operating transparently contributes to long-term success, and 98% even consider transparency to be a fundamental duty of all companies – as revealed in the Business Council for Sustainable Development in Hungary’s (BCSDH) own, non-representative survey. BCSDH has more than 70 corporate members who contribute 30% of Hungary’s GDP. The organisation was interested in how companies that signed the Recommendation for Business Leader in 2013 evaluate progress in the implementation of the Recommendation’s core principles in the Hungarian business sector and in their own operations. The core values are: strategic approach, responsible management, ethical operations, respect for human values, environmental responsibility, partnership with stakeholders and transparent operations. This year, the core survey topic is transparent operations.

The survey reveals that leaders still consider the business sector as key player in promoting sustainable development. Large companies are expected to play a key role in facilitating the move towards sustainable development. Their sustainability strategies are mostly determined by regulators, consumers and customers. In order to ensure effective and successful dialogue and cooperation between companies and other stakeholders, mutual information sharing is necessary. Operating transparently can help to achieve this and to develop and strengthen trust among stakeholders.

„It has been confirmed that measuring sustainability performance and making these findings and goals transparent, discourse that stimulates creativity and innovation can be established. Therefore, the BCSDH recommends that all businesses and business decision-makers who are operating in Hungary gradually and continuously improve the transparency of their operations in order to take advantage of the benefit and potential that can be gained from non-financial reporting.” – Attila Chikán Jr., President of BCSDH summarised the most important lessons learned from the survey conducted with the participation of 68 companies.

 Even though strong commitment and belief are clearly demonstrated in the survey, these factors are overshadowed by the fact that 76% of respondents thought that the extent of a company’s transparency is the result of interaction between the company and its stakeholders. Furthermore, the greatest barrier to the creation and promotion of non-financial reports is the fact that ‘nobody asks or makes companies accountable for this kind of information’

The more detailed and downloadable version of the BCSDH survey is available on the site www.bcsdh.hu/topics/recommendation-for-business-leaders