FRC calls for concerted effort to improve the integrity of business

COMPANIES face a wake-up call to review their cultures before they can win back broad support from society, business leaders will be told at a conference today.

Sir Win Bischoff, chairman of the FRC will tell delegates at the regulator’s conference, ‘Culture to Capital: aligning corporate behaviour with long term performance’, that companies must establish a culture that fosters trust and encourages good behaviour at all levels in a company’s organisation.

“Rebuilding genuine confidence in business and long-term prosperity demands companies to have a culture that lowers the risk of failure and achieves a wide range of positive outcomes, including serving the needs of wider society”, he will say.

“The prime minister has been outspoken about her government’s plan for business reform. In the light of Brexit, restoring trust and building confidence is even more imperative for our prosperity and wellbeing. We need a concerted effort to improve the integrity of business and its connectivity to society. There simply has to be increased focus on company culture. When there is a healthy culture, the systems, procedures, and the overall functioning and mutual support of an organisation exist in harmony. This will lead to enhanced integrity, confidence, long-term success and ultimately trust.”

In July, the FRC published a report, Corporate Culture and the Role of Boards, that highlighted how stakeholders and society in general have a vested interest in healthy corporate values, attitudes and behaviours that lead to sustainable growth and long term economic success.

This week, MPs launched an inquiry on corporate governance, focusing on executive pay, directors’ duties, and the composition of boardrooms, including worker representation and gender balance in executive positions.