For bonafide hr, doing good business means giving back
Meet bonafide hr. For this boutique human resource company and GFC pro bono partner, giving back to the community is a key part of business culture.
Since 2018, bonafide hr has supported GFC in helping children and youth reach their full potential and advance their rights. This month, we sat down with Shaheen Kadri, bonafide hr’s co-founder, to hear his thoughts on corporate social responsibility and his company’s partnership with GFC.
WHAT IS CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR)?
I like the definition behind what is CSR that has been defined by the University of Edinburgh:
“CSR aims to ensure that companies conduct their business in a way that is ethical. This means taking account of their social, economic, and environmental impact, and consideration of human rights.”
HOW DOES BONAFIDE HR CARRY OUT CSR?
We build cultures that allow our clients to build their companies. As part of this, we engage with our clients in educating them on the entire employee journey. This includes values and culture, which then also allows us to talk about “giving back to the community.”
But we do this in a way so that employers start to see how CSR can be good for businesses, how you may be able to involve your employees in CSR programs and initiatives that will drive employee engagement, how you can use a moment of celebration as an opportunity to give back and participate actively in CSR initiatives. This is the power of business.
WHY IS CSR A GOOD IDEA? WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THAT OTHER COMPANIES DO CSR, AND WHY?
CSR allows you to influence. It allows you to commit – as an organization – your
responsibilities to the wider community at large. It’s good for business, and it’s about using the power of business to spread a message that at times may not otherwise reach people. I would highly recommend that CSR be part of your business right from the start. It will serve as a beacon of hope and help you to shape your business.
HOW DOES CSR IMPACT YOUR COMPANY AND COMPANY CULTURE?
We have thought long and hard about how we see ourselves evolving as a company. One of our core values is around community, and so therefore CSR fits perfectly within that core value. Our values are important to us and serve as a guiding principle of who we are, and they are central to our broader culture and our aspirations for the future. We have pledged that these values will remain constant as we evolve and grow. The CSR element is central to this, and the journey we have taken with GFC defines our story from the beginning.
WHY ARE BONAFIDE HR AND GFC A GOOD CSR MATCH?
Children from all around the world deserve a future. When bonafide hr launched back in March 2018, we knew we wanted CSR to be part of who we are. One common theme came across when discussing which charity would be a good match for us: it had to be a children’s charity and a charity with a good story.
“Whenever I think about Global Fund for Children, I can’t help but smile. The more we grow as a company with GFC, the more we will be inspired to look back over our shoulder and reach out to take the hand of another child to be part of our journey. That is the power of business.”
INCLUSION IS ONE OF THE KEY VALUES AT BONAFIDE HR, AS WELL AS AT GFC. CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT HOW ORGANIZATIONS/COMPANIES CAN DEVELOP AN INCLUSIVE CULTURE?
Inclusion can enhance your business strategy. In the creative industry, which is extremely diverse, it can help to drive creativity and innovation.
My view is that B2C [business-to-consumer] companies do a far better job around inclusion than B2B [business-to-business] companies. That is because, with a B2C company, you have something tangible – the touch, the feel, created by people for a consumer. That is not to say the B2B companies do not. I think they need to think differently.
When I talk to B2B companies, I ask them to think about their end customer and discover it’s a consumer. Are they really a B2B company? Or are they a B2B2C company? Then they start thinking differently about inclusion. This is about education and exploration.