SoM Working and Occasional Papers

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Open Access
Corporate responsibility and the media
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2009-07) Grayson, David
This paper discusses how CR is covered in the media and the media’s own corporate responsibilities, covering both traditional and new media.
Open Access
Corporate responsibility champions network: A 'how to' guide
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2009-02)
This guide aims to show the what, why, and how of a CR champion and related networks. CR champions are emerging as a powerful tool available for embedding CR philosophy into an organisation, proving critical in the process of embedding CR.They play a strategic role, committed to causing change and to continuing the work in the long-term.A CR champion network takes time and effort to build but the use of champions, as one within a number of tactics to embed CR, has several clear advantages: by working directly with staff on initiatives champions can engage staff and become themselves more committed; champions connect divisions and regions, thus finding and propagating best CR practices and ideas; and they allow for a credible two-way interface between global and local in international companies.
Open Access
Creating Resilient Supply Chains: A Practical Guide
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2003)
The events of the last few years from the fuel crisis to foot and mouth disease to SARS, have highlighted the vulnerability of many supply chains. Quite apart from the external challenges to supply chain continuity are those possible sources of risk that are internal to the supply chain. A number of concurrent trends have contributed to the fragility that some observers believe now characterises many supply chains. These trends include the rapid growth in global sourcing and offshore manufacturing; the continued move to reduce the supplier base; industry consolidation and the centralisation of distribution facilities to name just a few. Following from the earlier report prepared for the DETR in 2002, Supply Chain Vulnerability, this report builds upon that work to identify the opportunities for the creation of more resilient supply chains. As the research progressed, it became clear that there is still a lack of understanding of where an individual organisation might sit in the wider supply network. Few companies seemed to have real visibility beyond their first tier suppliers or downstream beyond their immediate customers. This work, undertaken by the Cranfield Centre for Logistics and Supply Chain Management at Cranfield University and funded by the Department for Transport, is empirically based and draws on insights from a number of ‘critical’ industrial sectors including food retailing, oil and petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, packaging, electronics, transport services and the distribution of automotive spares. It also includes input from private and public sector organisations involved in the provision of health care and in defence. In particular it focuses on the development of a managerial agenda for the identification and management of supply chain risk, with recommendations to improve the resilience of supply chains. During the research we were concerned that the outputs, including this Executive Report, would address the needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and provide relevant and practical tools to assist them to manage their supply chain risks.
Open Access
Data crunch report: The impact of bad data on profits and customer service in the UK grocery industry
(GS1 UK and Cranfield University School of Management, 2009-10) GS1 UK; IBM; The Institute of Grocery Distribution; Cranfield School of Management, (KTP project); Value Chain Vision
The UK retail industry is behind the curve in addressing the challenge of poor product supply chain data. The size of the quality problem is a lot worse than expected, with data shown to be inconsistent in over 80% of instances. It is estimated that this will cost the industry at least £700m over the next 5 years, and a further £300m in lost revenues. Looking forward, consumers are demanding better product information and labelling for nutrition, health and lifestyle. Planned European legislation is also demanding that the industry provides further information related to packaging and the environment. In this future world manual work arounds and pragmatic fixes employed currently by retailers are no longer sustainable. The time has arrived for the UK grocery industry to address the data quality issue head on, and reap the considerable benefits.
Open Access
Developing businesses through developing individuals
(1997-04-30T00:00:00Z) Butcher, David; Harvey, Penny; Atkinson, Sally
Open Access
The Female FTSE Board Report 2009: Norway and Spain join our census to benchmark corporate boards
(2009-01-01T00:00:00Z) Sealy, Ruth; Vinnicombe, Susan; Doldor, Elena
2009 marks our eleventh annual report with a small incremental increase in the percentage of women on boards. Overall, there are 12.2% women directors on the FTSE 100 boards. There is a discouraging decline in the number of companies with female executive directors to 15 (from 16). Also disappointing is a decline in the number of boards with multiple women directors to 37 (from 39). In addition there is a decline in the overall number of companies with women on boards, and once again one in four companies have exclusively male boards.
Open Access
The Female FTSE Board Report 2010: Opening up the Appointment Process
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2010-12) Vinnicombe, Susan; Sealy, Ruth; Graham, Jacey; Doldor, Elena
2010 saw another year of barely perceptible change in the representation of women in leadership positions of UK PLC’s top 100 companies. The incremental increases include three additional women on FTSE 100 boards taking the total to 116; one additional female executive director (ED); four more companies with women on their boards; and two more companies with more than one woman on the board, returning to 2008 levels. Overall, the percentage of women on FTSE 100 boards is 12.5%, showing a three year plateau. The number of companies with no female directors has decreased to 21 and the number of companies with more than one woman on the board has returned to the 2008 figure of 39. Only 13% of new appointments went to women.
Open Access
The Female FTSE Report 2002: Women Directors moving Forward
(2002-11-01T00:00:00Z) Singh, Val; Vinnicombe, Susan
FTSE 100 COMPANIES THE GOOD NEWS: After two years of slippage, there is evidence that companies are again taking advantage of the diversity and talent that women directors can bring to their boards, by appointing new women. 61 companies now have women directors, up from 57 companies in 2001, but still not yet reaching the post-election “mini-boom” year 1999 when 64 companies had female directors. It is good to see that more companies have women executive directors, who now hold 3% of all executive board seats. In fact, women executive director numbers have increased by 50% since last year, up from 10 to 15. THE BAD NEWS: 88 of the UK’s top 100 companies still have no women executive directors. Chairmen and CEOs must take more responsibility for recruitment and development of their corporate talent pool to include women and diverse groups, to improve decision- making and bring variety and new voices into the boardroom. Indirectly, women directors act as powerful role models to younger, more junior female man
Open Access
The Female FTSE Report 2005: New look women directors add value to FTSE 100 Boards
(2005-01-01T00:00:00Z) Singh, Val; Vinnicombe, Susan
Seventy-eight FTSE 100 companies, a new record number, now have women directors, up 13% from last year. But the breakthrough is in who these new female directors are and the diverse experiences they bring to the boardroom. The new female directors are more likely to be international, have board experience and have much richer, more varied work backgrounds than the men. Six FTSE 100 companies appointed their first ever woman director (Intercontinental Hotels, Capita, ITV, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Sage). However, only eleven FTSE 100 companies now have female executive directors, down from 13 in 2005 and worryingly, below the 2002 figure. Still 22 of the FTSE 100 boards are all-male, an anachronism in 2005.
Open Access
The Female FTSE Report 2006: Identifying the New Generation of Women Directors
(2006-01-01T00:00:00Z) Singh, Val; Vinnicombe, Susan
Only 77 FTSE 100 companies now have women directors, down 1% from last year. Five FTSE 100 companies appointed their first ever woman director (Cairn Energy, Rexam, British Land, Reed Elsevier, Shire), but some boards reverted to all-male status. Thirteen FTSE 100 companies now have female executive directors, up from only 11 in 2005, but still indicating a major under-development of female talent after more than three decades of mandatory equal opportunities policies. However, in line with Higgs’ recommendations, the balance between executive and non-executive directors is changing, resulting in 20% reduction in executive seats since 2002, so competition for executive seats is keener than befor
Open Access
The Female FTSE Report 2007: A Year of Encouraging Progress
(2007-01-01T00:00:00Z) Sealy, Ruth; Singh, Val; Vinnicombe, Susan
In 2007, our ninth report, we see a continuing change in the balance of directorships in the FTSE 100 corporate boards. Both the number of executive directorships and total number of directorships are at their lowest levels for nine years. Meantime, the number of non-executive directorships is at its highest for nine years. Against this context we have seen several high water marks in women’s advancement onto these boards. There is an emerging polarisation between the cluster of 24 companies who are entirely male led and the newly growing cluster of 35 companies with multiple women directors. There are now 100 women occupying 123 directorships on FTSE 100 boards making up 11% of total directorships. Women constitute 20% of all new director appointments this year – the highest since Cranfield started monitoring the Female FTSE in 1999. Thirty women were appointed this year, of whom five had not previously held FTSE 100 directorships. More note worthy, there are now 122 women sitting on the FTSE 100 executive committees, an increase of 40% on 2006 and these women occupy a great variety of ro
Open Access
The Governance of Corporate Responsibility: A ‘How to’ Guide
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2010-03) Spitzeck, Heiko
Imagine a Financial Times reporter asking you critical questions on corporate responsibility (CR) issues of your organisation’s strategy and your governance arrangements for this strategy. How comfortable would you feel being a board member of a CR leader or a laggard? Corporate governance for CR can make a significant difference! This is especially true as CR has become part and parcel of good business and risk management and therefore, should be managed as such.This guide aims to explain how to integrate CR and sustainability issues within the governance framework of an organisation, providing some answers from CR leaders as well as outlining some potential pitfalls. Our recommendations have been compiled from a wide array of reports and academic research (listed in the reference section).
Open Access
A guide to useful CR/sustainability ‘How to embed CR’ guides
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2009-10)
The guides reviewed provide advice or insight specifically into the discipline of CR – not general advice on business skills such as budgeting or line management. After collating the guides we wanted to include, we realised categorisation was needed to aid you when searching for a particular topic. Therefore, we use 11 themes for implementing and embedding CR: each one is a critical success factor for implementing CR but is also a stand-alone grouping of related activities: 1. Building CR into business purpose and strategy 2. Tone from the top 3. Governance and board oversight 4. Management processes 5. CR strategy incorporated into each business unit 6. Everybody’s business 7. Energising the value chain 8. Sustainability knowledge management 9. Trusted stewardship: effective communication and stakeholder engagement 10. Sustainability networks 11. The specialist CR/sustainability function
Open Access
Impact of Performance Measurement and Management Systems.
(Cranfield School of Management, 2008) Martinez, Veronica; Kennerley, Mike; Harpley, Richard; Wakelen, Richard; Hart, Kathy; Webb, James
This report describes the results of a detailed research on the impact of performance measurement and management systems (PMMS). It presents the results of the first UK Survey on this specific theme. Then, it explains the effects of the implementation of a scorecard-based performance management system (PMS) within EDF Energy’s Networks Branch, the UK-based division of a multinational company. Cranfield School of Management’s Centre for Business Performance has conducted this research, with funding from the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council. It has two phases: 1) a survey study in the UK manufacturing and service sectors and 2) an in-depth case based on multiple structured interviews. The report addresses an analysis of the positive, negative, internal and external effects in the UK manufacturing and service sectors. It is extended to the analysis of EDF Energy’s experience of implementing a PMS, in the context of Cranfield researchers’ previous research findings in this field. In doing so, it describes the factors that contributed most to the PMS’s successful implementation and those aspects which, at least initially, tended to hold it back from achieving its full potential, and so draws conclusions and lessons from these research results. The report also identifies moderating factors that influence these critical effects and highlights the vital importance of performance reviews at both executive and operational levels. It provides guidance too on where EDF Energy will need to make future adjustments to the ongoing development of its PMS. The results of this research will make interesting reading for all executives involved in the PMS development process; and the report also contains valuable lessons for executives in other companies who wish to embark on a similar implementation process. We hope, therefore, that EDF Energy will be willing to share their learning experience with other executives in other industries. This report has, therefore, been structured in such a way that this can easily be enabled.
Open Access
The impact of performance targets on behaviour: A close look at sales force contexts
(2008-01-01T00:00:00Z) Franco-Santos, Monica; Bourne, Mike
Open Access
Increasing diversity on public and private sector boards - Part 2 What is being done to improve diversity on boards and how effective is this?
(2009-11-01T00:00:00Z) Sealy, Ruth; Doldor, Elena; Vinnicombe, Susan
The project was commissioned by the Government Equalities Office in order to examine the issue of diversity on boards of directors in the private and public sectors.The project addresses two main questions: Why are there so few women and other under-represented groups on public and private sector boards? and What is being done in order to increase diversity on boards? The report is published in two parts: Part I considered the available evidence on diversity on boards. It examined academic and non-academic literature in the field, in the UK and internationally, and reviewed available evidence concerning the factors accounting for the absence of diversity on boards.This second part maps out current practices aimed at increasing board diversity. It is based on interviews with several international experts in the field, giving case studies of various initiatives in four country contexts (UK, Norway, Spain and the Netherlands). In drawing together the report’s conclusion, some recommendations are formulated for further action to increase board diversity in the U
Open Access
Increasing diversity on public and private sector boards, Part 1 - How diverse are boards and why?
(2009-10-01T00:00:00Z) Sealy, Ruth; Doldor, Elena; Vinnicombe, Susan
The Government Equalities Office (GEO) commissioned Cranfield School of Management to examine the issue of diversity on boards of directors in the private and public sectors.The project sought to addresses two main questions: Why are there so few women and other under-represented groups on public and private sector boards? and What is being done in order to increase diversity on boards? The report is published in two parts: Part I considers the available evidence on diversity on boards. It examines academic and non-academic literature in the field, in the UK and internationally, and reviews available evidence concerning the factors accounting for the absence of diversity on boards. Part II maps out current practices aimed at increasing board diversity based.The review of evidence reviewed revealed a persistent under-representation of groups such as women, ethnic minorities and disabled people on both public and private sector boards. However, most evidence in the UK and internationally focused on gender rather than other underrepresented groups.
Open Access
Investors in People, Managerial Capabilities and Performance
(2010-01-31T00:00:00Z) Bourne, Mike; Franco-Santos, Monica
Executive Summary: Investors in People (IiP) UK commissioned the Centre for Business Performance at Cranfield School of Management to investigate the impact of Investors in People on managerial capabilities, managerial performance and business results. In this study, we took three different approaches. Firstly, we conducted in depth case studies in seven different organisations. Through a series of interviews with HR professionals and line managers, we investigated the impact Investors in People had on management capabilities and managerial performance, probing their understanding of how good management delivered business performance. Secondly, we conducted a survey across some 400 small, medium sized and larger companies based in the UK. Senior, middle and junior managers provided data on their understanding of the role of Investors in People, the company’s managerial capabilities, the performance of managers, and the company’s financial and nonfinancial performance results. Thirdly, we accessed published data from returns to Company’s House (as provided through the FAME database) to test the linkage between perceptions of managerial performance and firm profitability. The companies we visited for our case studies highlighted the differences in managerial capabilities and performance between Investors in People recognised companies, and nonrecognised companies. They also illustrated the differences in organisational commitment to people and their development and provided practical examples of tools being successfully used to build management capabilities. In our study, we found empirical evidence showing that Investors in People: Enhances managerial capabilities - that is to say the knowledge, experience and skills of managers. Supports the development of an organisational learning culture. Improves the effectiveness of management development practices. Facilitates the creation of a high-performing environment. Increases the performance of managers. Furthermore, working with Investors in People triggers a chain of events (see figure 1). Investors in People recognised companies have better managerial capabilities that engender higher managerial performance, which leads to better perceived non-financial and financial performance, resulting in higher profitability - as shown in their published accounts – than nonrecognised companies. Managers play a key role in delivering business performance. This research shows how Investors in People underpins effective management through its impact on the development of management capabilities and management performance. Also, we conclude that the more companies embrace Investors in People, the better their performance will be.
Open Access
Investors in People, Managerial Capabilities and Performance
(2010-03-01T00:00:00Z) Bourne, Mike; Franco-Santos, Monica
Investors in People (IiP) UK commissioned the Centre for Business Performance at Cranfield School of Management to investigate the impact of Investors in People on managerial capabilities, managerial performance and business results. In this study, we took three different approaches. Firstly, we conducted in depth case studies in seven different organisations. Through a series of interviews with HR professionals and line managers, we investigated the impact Investors in People had on management capabilities and managerial performance, probing their understanding of how good management delivered business performance. Secondly, we conducted a survey across some 400 small, medium sized and larger companies based in the UK. Senior, middle and junior managers provided data on their understanding of the role of Investors in People, the company’s managerial capabilities, the performance of managers, and the company’s financial and non- financial performance results. Thirdly, we accessed published data from returns to Company’s House (as provided through the FAME database) to test the linkage between perceptions of managerial performance and firm profitability. The companies we visited for our case studies highlighted the differences in managerial capabilities and performance between Investors in People recognised companies, and non- recognised companies. They also illustrated the differences in organisational commitment to people and their development and provided practical examples of tools being successfully used to build management capabil
Open Access
Measuring business value and sustainability performance
(Cranfield University School of Management, 2009-05) Ferguson, David
The integration of corporate sustainability within operations remains an important and fundamental challenge for business. This paper first consolidates and then builds upon the EABIS-supported activities of Cranfield School of Management with business practitioners. It focuses on the performance and evaluation criteria relating to determining corporate responsibility (CR) value. The paper begins by categorising components of CR in terms of decision-making levels and business case requirements. It then describes a methodology for establishing CR issues with the prioritisation of stakeholders before linking this relationship onto business benefits and shareholder value drivers. Using illustrated models and worked examples, sections within the paper provide further practical advice and guidance for developing and populating elements within the framework. Additional sections then complement the application of the CR Value-chain framework, with a chapter on performance measurement that explores the key performance measure characteristics required to underpin the performance element of the framework. The final chapter describes decision-making support tools, such as financial appraisals and risk evaluations, which also underpin the shareholder value approach and should be integrated within this corporate sustainability value management framework. A key purpose of this approach is to support the integration of sustainability performance management processes and systems within business practice. It explores methods for making more explicit the issues surrounding CR and financial value. It also provides useful approaches for helping businesses select, measure and evaluate performance for internal CR strategies, policies and processes. Some analytical methods are considered for identifying the costs and benefits from sustainability-related issues, projects and new ventures, including discussions with regard to harmonising existing business functions. This paper serves to provide an early prototype for future approaches towards integrated sustainability performance management systems.