Foreword
If it was not already clear before the German federal elections on 26th September 2021 , it certainly is now : the next German government will commit itself to the target of keeping global temperature increase within 1.5 ° C . Whether the measures they take will actually be enough is the big question . But that is not all : biodiversity loss , inequality and poverty , the threat to our democracy and , last but not least , coping with the COVID-19 pandemic are global challenges that Germany cannot tackle alone . We are convinced that even a combined effort by government and civil society will not be sufficient . Companies sector can and must be part of the solution because this has always been an area in which technical and social innovations are developed , realised and scaled . That is why the business world must play a prominent role in bringing about the necessary change .
As longstanding partners , we at Wider Sense and goetzpartners are committed to helping companies do just that . We pride ourselves on helping companies to become fit for the future , getting them to operate sustainably and equipping them with the knowledge and tools to join with other stakeholders in making a positive contribution to society . Credibility , partnership and a clear strategic orientation with demonstrable impact are the key principles behind the action that is to be taken .
The expansion of the DAX index to 40 companies seemed to us to be an appropriate point in time to reassess the role played by Corporate Citizenship in the German private sector . We had already looked at this in a previous study conducted in 2017 , but since then some fundamental changes have taken place . We asked ourselves : “ What does it take for Corporate Citizenship to become more impactful ?” The results of our new study show that Corporate Citizenship must be an integral part of company activities in times of ESG ( Environmental , Social , & Governance ), Purpose-Driven Entrepreneurship and the EU Taxonomy . The study also outlines a variety of good business practices . It shows that Corporate Citizenship can be highly ambitious : Merck has set itself the goal of eradicating an entire disease , Bayer aims to provide 100 million women with contraceptives by 2030 , and SAP is equipping more than two million people a year with digital knowledge and programming skills . These are just three examples of many that show what is possible . But our study also raises questions about the further development of the field . Too many great opportunities are still being missed unnecessarily . With this study , we aim to make a contribution to changing all of that .
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all participating companies and their representatives , without whom our study in this form would not have been possible . We would also like to thank the experts from academia and civil society who agreed to be interviewed by us : Dr Holger Backhaus-Maul ( Research Fellow , University of Halle- Wittenberg ), Professor Laura Marie Edinger-Schons ( Chair of Sustainable Business , University of Mannheim ), Nicolas Malmendier ( Corporate Initiative Associate , European Venture Philanthropy Association ); Jon Mertz ( Purpose Entrepreneur ; Founder of Santa Fe Innovates ), Conradin von Nicolai ( Specialist Corporate Partnerships , UNICEF ), Maike Röttger ( Consultant for social engagement , formerly Managing Director or Plan International Germany ) and Jessica Sommer ( Director of Corporate Partnerships , Save the Children ).
Kind regards
Michael Alberg-Seberich
Managing Director Wider Sense
Armin Raffalski
Partner goetzpartners
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