Josep Maria Canyelles: "Social responsibility is acquiring an increasingly strategic character"

BarcelonaRespon.cat is an organization that aims to involve the most socially responsible companies and business organizations in building a space for dialogue and collaboration among all stakeholders in the sector. Josep Maria Canyelles, the director, analyzes its evolution and the new challenges it faces in an increasingly uncertain and changing world.

What is Respon.cat?

— It's a business association that was founded a few years ago to be the leading business organization in Catalonia focused on social responsibility. This meant there was a need for a meeting place for all those organizations—large and small businesses, and others—that share this vocation and strategic vision: a business model that aims to generate a positive impact on its environment, beyond mere economic activity and revenue. Therefore, there is a commitment to society. It was necessary to create an ecosystem where we could recognize each other, learn, and project these ideas to normalize or generalize them. The goal is for these companies to be the norm, not the exception.

How has it evolved in these eleven years?

— On the one hand, there have been several trends, such as the circular economy, the healthy workplace, purpose, and addressing social challenges from a strategic perspective that connects the company with the community. In the future, there will surely be new trends linked to technology and artificial intelligence. What has happened is that aspects that until recently were outside the realm of business logic have been incorporated. As social responsibility progresses, certain issues that should be part of business management will become standard practice.

Are companies starting to see a competitive advantage?

— We're talking about squaring the circle, which is combining the positive values a company may have with what's part of sound business logic. As a company, you improve and become more sustainable in every sense, including financially. It's a management style that can no longer be separated from the company. Otherwise, we'd be talking about traditional business ethics, the kind that existed fifty or a hundred years ago. A company's social purpose doesn't mean doing things that aren't your responsibility, that belong to governments or NGOs, but rather doing what you do differently.

Over all this time, how have consumers matured?

— They have evolved very rapidly because fifteen or twenty years ago there were companies implementing very interesting corporate social responsibility policies linked to their products, but they were hiding them because they thought the market wouldn't understand. In other words, there were companies that might have been producing fair trade coffee, but they didn't explain it because the market might penalize them, assuming it would be a more expensive product. Currently, this is no longer the case because the market can understand and recognize it. However, it's true that when economic crises affect the middle class, purchasing criteria change. Sometimes the choice is based solely on economic factors. There might be a perception that an organic product is more expensive. This isn't always the case, and when we're talking about healthy food, it ends up being a more attractive option for both personal health and, naturally, the planet.

Have companies learned to do things better and also to communicate them more effectively?

— Yes, companies have learned that communicating their social responsibility is ultimately important, but they must differentiate between being transparent and building a value proposition. When it comes to marketing, some companies can leverage it while others cannot. This depends on each company, and that's a good thing. Some companies make a strong commitment to social responsibility but, conversely, don't prominently feature it in their marketing strategy.

The world is becoming increasingly uncertain and changeable. How does this context affect us?

— This is an issue we must analyze in depth. We believe this is a moment that calls for courageous companies. Leadership is essential because some progress that was thought to be achieved is being lost. Regardless of existing regulations, companies must continue to voluntarily make progress on these issues. What makes no sense is political interference, as we are seeing in the United States, that negatively impacts businesses. We are at a point where a short-sighted view, seeking confrontation and polarization, seems to prevail. This can affect economic activity and the cohesion of societies. We need to return to a long-term perspective. The climate crisis will catch us unprepared, and we must consider how to manage the challenge of the loss of social cohesion and the energy transition. Companies must be able to build a sense of corporate purpose that is positive, constructive, and focused on generating impact. Therefore, we must examine how we can contribute so that business practices have a positive impact on the environment.

What would be the next challenges for Respon.cat?

— We must continue to grow because this means more committed companies will have systematic management practices, but we also want to address the challenges we consider most strategic. Social responsibility is becoming increasingly strategic. This is a great opportunity to promote the systematization of these elements. There are other challenges related to corporate leadership and ethical technology, but the most important are corporate purpose, the company's relationship with the community, and the ethical management of businesses and organizations.

What's at stake?

— It is important to have purpose-driven companies, since Catalonia is a purpose-driven country. This includes not only large corporations, but also small and micro-enterprises, social organizations, and public administrations. We must foster a shared culture of purpose and make a significant contribution by generating a positive and cross-cutting impact of social responsibility. We must evaluate how we are managing our social responsibility and how we can strengthen it through partnerships to help create a socially responsible region. We value finding spaces for dialogue and collaboration among diverse stakeholders because it is together that we must manage complexity. A social purpose is one way to address and manage this complexity. Managing an organization is not easy. You have to make money, but you must also respect the people within the company and operate ethically. All organizations that follow this path strive for excellence.