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The first principle of ABB’s social policy calls for ABB to contribute within the scope of its capabilities to improving economic, environmental and social conditions through open dialogue with stakeholders.
In a multinational organization like ABB, it is beneficial to conduct dialogues on two levels – the corporate level, and the national level in countries where we have significant operations.
Corporate-level dialogues are led by ABB’s Executive Committee members and focus on global issues likely to affect the whole group.
ABB’s most recent corporate-level stakeholder consultation in May 2005 covered such topics as the company’s approach to the globalized economy, stakeholders’ concerns about our businesses, climate change and emissions trading, and how the group deals with issues such as corruption and human rights.
The globalization of business has implications for the standards of ethics that companies practise throughout the world. Global companies are often confronted with dilemmas, such as the situation in Sudan (see page oposite), where complex issues are evaluated differently by commentators with very different perspectives. Our stakeholders encouraged ABB to publicly explain the thinking behind complex business decisions.
At the meeting held in Zurich, Switzerland, ABB was able to demonstrate its strong commitment to sustainability which has been maintained despite business troubles in recent years – a point much appreciated by the stakeholders. However, they said ABB needs to improve communication with line managers and employees to ensure their commitment to sustainability, showing them how it can enhance their businesses.
The agenda for country-level stakeholder dialogues is set by the participants and focuses on ABB’s activities in the country and the concerns of local communities. They are usually led by ABB’s country managers or an independent moderator.
Some examples from 2005: ABB in Italy hosted the country’s first exhibition and conference on corporate social responsibility, naming the event “Dal dire al fare” – “From saying to doing.” About 1,300 people attended the event; nearly 70 people, including local government officials and professors, spoke at the seminars.
At a stakeholder meeting in Sweden, ABB discussed how to assess the sustainability impacts of customer projects, how to define the boundaries of responsibility between client and contractor, and how to determine criteria for project risk assessments.
ABB in the Czech Republic discussed the new European Union directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment to help improve its waste management program.
ABB believes in the business value of stakeholder dialogue, which allows us to acquire and spread learning throughout our organization. This learning reduces uncertainty, misunderstanding, risk and liability, while increasing public awareness and acceptance of ABB’s activities.
Dialogue and openness in the face of criticism   
How does a multinational company react when it is accused of complicity in human rights abuses in a particular country? ABB has faced this situation over its business operations in Sudan.
ABB has run a number of checks on its business operations, and has opted for proactive and wide-ranging stakeholder dialogue to ensure it is not complicit in human right abuses and that it is acting correctly within its sphere of influence. This ongoing dialogue also covers a small group of investors, mainly in the United States, who want the company to withdraw from Sudan because of atrocities in the Darfur region.
The company’s operations in Sudan – it only has one staff member based there – focus on two projects: the main one is the transmission of power from the Merowe dam to the capital, Khartoum, Port Sudan on the Red Sea and a city on the Nile. Another, very small contract, involved the provision of flow control meters, essential for safety, to an oil field in the south.
ABB firmly believes it is acting as a force for progress in Sudan; that our business is supporting infrastructure development and the human right to power – and the benefits that this brings.
The company embarked on a process of wide-ranging stakeholder engagement on the issue. It started internally: with internal discussions and project risk reviews, and a letter written in 2004 by the former CEO to all employees about the issue of long-term involvement in sensitive countries.
ABB also decided to seek the advice of different external stakeholders. This included helpful consultations outside Sudan with an international human rights expert and the Amnesty International Business Group, and interested parties in Sudan whom ABB delegates visited on several occasions.
The advice we have received consistently in Sudan from government officials, NGOs, diplomats, international agencies and organizations, and representatives of other companies has been: stay in Sudan to help the country develop its economic and social infrastructure, and to support the coalition government’s efforts to return the country to peace and prosperity. To pull out, our stakeholders tell us, would be to undermine the positive steps taken since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed in January 2005.
ABB has had frank meetings with certain investors concerned about our involvement. We have made it clear why we are continuing business activities in the country. Discussions have also been held with two organizations which are expert in the human rights field – the UN Global Compact and the Business Leaders Initiative on Human Rights, which have been supportive of our approach.
As our series of discussions progressed, ABB launched the idea of holding a broader meeting of interested parties in Sudan to discuss issues of foreign investment and good governance. There has been considerable interest in this, and it is being pursued.
While ABB shares international concern about the situation in Darfur and continues to watch the situation in the country closely, the company firmly believes constructive engagement is in the interests of the people of Sudan.
Our dialogue has confirmed our view that we are a force for long-term social and economic development. We will continue to learn much from this dialogue that is beneficial not just in this specific case but in other areas where ABB is active.
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