Erste Bank and the SMart Kolektiv organization, the leader in corporate social responsibility (CSR) development programs in Serbia, have signed a protocol of cooperation to improve development and implementation of specific joint programs. An additional goal of the agreement is to encourage other Serbian companies to take a more active role in dealing with social problems.
Through
this agreement Erste Bank and SMart Kolektiv combine their abilities, resources
and knowledge in an effort to make improved corporate social responsibility
standard in business operations in Serbia. Though Erste Bank and SMart Kolektiv
have previously worked together, the signing of this new agreement will raise
the collaboration to a higher level. Their goal will be to standardize the Serbian
CSR movement via its acceptance by leading companies and enhanced cooperation
among them. This process will also contribute
to designing mechanisms for systematic and upgraded relations between business
and society.
The
fields of cooperation specified by the protocol include expansion of the CSR concept
and the standardization, monitoring and verification of the best possible CSR
practices throughout Serbia . SMart Kolektiv will assist Erste Bank in its CSR
activities by analyzing existing bank CSR procedures and their incorporation in
such business elements as drafting, implementation and promotion of strategic
documents and participation in all specialized meetings and partnership
processes and initiatives.
The
goal of the CSR protocol is to enable Erste Bank and SMart Kolektiv to stimulate
further the promotion of corporate social responsibility, development and
implementation of new socially useful projects and responsible, ethical
attitudes toward all participants. These
will range from corporate service beneficiaries to the broader social community
via their own employees and business partners. Erste Bank and SMart Kolektiv will
accelerate their active contribution to an improved, more developed CSR environment
and to make a positive impact on both social challenges and problems concerning
the living environment.
On
the signing of the joint protocol, Andrea Brbaklić, head of the Corporate Communication
Division of Erste Bank, said: ‘We are pleased
to have established this cooperation
with SMart Kolektiv. We recognize them as
the most serious participant in the field of broader implementation of
corporate social responsibility in Serbia.
This involves the promotion of effective partnership among all sectors, which is the
basis of this way of thinking. The CSR phenomenon is a very modern one in which
many try to present themselves to the public as experts. But there are few who
have a really deep understanding of the meaning of this concept. We are sure that our partnership with SMart
Kolektiv will improve the strategic implementation of Erste Bank’s strategy in
the CSR field and that our resources and knowledge are complementary.’
Neven Marinović, SMart Kolektiv’s
Executive Manager, added. ‘In comparison
to 2004 when we launched the ‘Initiative for Corporate Social Responsibility’, CSR
has grown significantly in importance.
However, not all companies completely understand this concept. Most typically they assume that corporate
social responsibility applies specifically to charities, donations and sponsorships.
The list of companies that have
integrated CSR into all of their activities is still not long enough. Among our missions are efforts to connect the
concept of corporate social responsibility with a company’s relationship with its
employees, with its conduct in the
marketplace, with active measures for protection of the environment and, of
course, with concern for the society and community in which the company operates.
Erste Bank is certainly one of the pioneers
in this field, and their advanced standards and values can serve as a role model
to other companies. We hope that this new level of cooperation will contribute
to maximizing the effects of Erste Bank’s engagement with Serbian society
through a focused, strategic and long-term approach. On the other hand, we are
positive that we shall learn much through this cooperation by adopting the systems,
values and high standards that Erste Bank has implemented in all its activities.’
