Responsible foundations

Last month saw the Lloyds Banking Group Centre for Responsible Business celebrate 12 months of asking important questions about ethical and accountable approaches to business.

Professor Ian Thomson, Director of the Centre, defines responsible business as businesses which “create value without exploiting others or nature while avoiding inequitable distributions of risks, hazards, cost and benefits.”

An exciting collaboration between the University of Birmingham and Lloyds Banking Group, the Centre is a place where businesses, policy makers, politicians, NGOs and academics can come together to discuss how to ensure their businesses are responsible. Based around the UN Sustainable Development goals, which are far reaching and include ending poverty and abolishing gender inequality, the Centre aims to help shape the ‘Responsible Business Revolution’. This involves an in-depth look how businesses can address challenges such as workplace inclusion, social mobility and environmental sustainability.

It will see £2.5 million of funding delivered over 5 years and strengthens a long-established relationship between the two organisations.

A key strength of the Centre is its ability to bring together experts from across the globe to address the ongoing challenges around responsible business. Already important research is taking place into issues like the accountability of fast fashion, the environmental suatinability of golf courses,, the take-up of shared parental leave, high risk lending and modern slavery.

The Centre will also be developing sector-leading responsible business programmes at both undergraduate and postgraduate level.

One of the latest innovative ideas to come from the Centre is the development of a serious business game, constructed around a future dystopian world where businesses have become the most powerful force.

Players will tackle complex issues including ethical dilemmas, human rights abuse, corruption and energy consumption to improve real-life problem solving. The game will play a valuable role in achieving the Centre’s aim of making all of our graduates responsible business professionals, with sustainable development at the forefront of their minds.

You can read the Centre annual report here.

The Centre's inaugural conference is on 13 September and will be focussed around how research and business can come together to achieve responsible business aims.