Member Article

Gentoo Group backs Responsible Business Week 2014

Gentoo Group will be showing its support for Responsible Business Week (RBW), the only week dedicated to responsible business, which takes place 31 March – 4 April across the UK and is run by the charity Business in the Community (BITC).

Gentoo pride themselves on delivering solutions that help make society a better place to live. Being a responsible business is part of everything they do, but they are using this week as a platform to share what they do with other businesses.

Gentoo’s Deputy Chief Executive, John Craggs will be attending the Sustainable Business Conference – Business Unusual Conference at Sheffield Business School. The aim of this conference being to challenge businesses to go far beyond ‘business as usual’ to sustainably transform their business.

They are also taking part in an ‘Exploration Station’ that will be hosted at the BITC RBW Leadership Conference in London on Tuesday 1 April. This is an opportunity for Gentoo to share best practice around their approach to education and learning with business leaders.

Together with local partners they are also holding a health and wellbeing event for customers. Customers will learn more about how they can improve their wellbeing and lead a happy and healthy lifestyle.

Gentoo is also encouraging staff to talk about why they are proud to work for a responsible business via social media platforms.

RBW activities are linked to key themes including health, wellbeing, the environment, community empowerment, volunteering, work and learning. The aim being to inspire other businesses, partners and people to connect and learn more about these agendas and Gentoo’s approach.

Businesses of all sizes are using the week to run their own activity or take part in events across the country. They are also encouraged to shout about their responsible business to different audiences – their customers, employees, supply chain, community and partner organisations, and the media. Last year more than 1,500 people across the country took part in the first Responsible Business Week.

Caroline Gitsham, Executive Director of Culture and Vision said: “At Gentoo, we pride ourselves on delivering solutions that enable society to be a better place to live. Responsible Business Week is a great opportunity for us to share our experiences and encourage others to make a difference to the way people live their life.

“As a responsible business, we are delighted to be involved – not only does this give us the opportunity to share best practice, it is a great way to raise awareness about the positive impact businesses can have. By joining forces and learning from each other – together we can tackle some of the most pressing issues in society. “

Commenting Stephen Howard, Chief Executive, Business in the Community, said: “We know that all year round, businesses of all sizes are engaged in responsible business activity that tackles societal, environmental and economic issues, and unlocks innovation and opportunity for their business in the process. But as the world emerges from recession there is a powerful new opportunity for business to do even more, and in doing so contribute to a recovery that is inclusive and sustainable. Business is a powerful movement for change and we are excited to give it the platform it needs through this week.”

To find out more about Responsible Business Week visit www.bitc.org.uk/rbweek or search for the hashtag #RBWeek.

To find out more about Gentoo and their approach, visit gentoogroup.com for more information or follow @gentoogroup on Twitter.

Responsible Business Week is convened by Business in the Community, in partnership with Veolia Environment and the Telegraph Media Group.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Laura Facey .