Madrid, 12/14/2016

Corporate Responsibility in Spain

At the end of November, representatives from all corporate divisions in Spain and from Bertelsmann España and the Corporate Center in Gütersloh for the first time met at Espacio Bertelsmann in Madrid for a workshop about corporate responsibility (CR). The goal of the workshop was to promote the cross-divisional CR exchange and to discuss whether and which joint projects would be conceivable. Barbara Kutscher, Senior Director Corporate Responsibility of Bertelsmann, opened the workshop by introducing current initiatives and actions initiated by the Corporate Center over the past two years to comply with customer requirements and new legal requirements pertaining to CR.

The discussion about corporate responsibility and the demand for more transparency – triggered by megatrends such as globalization – is becoming increasingly louder within companies and externally. Initiatives such as the new CR program of Penguin Random House clarify this development. At its core it is about the social and environmental effects of the business operations of Bertelsmann companies, with a Group-wide focus on education, press freedom, fair working conditions, protection of media users and customers, diversity, health and eco-efficiency.

Ideas for future collaboration

After the introduction of the topic, the participants in Madrid presented their projects from the Spanish companies: almost all of the companies are committed in many different ways. Examples of the level of commitment are the projects Bamenda (Arvato), Muévete y Cuidam (Penguin Random House), Carrera de la Mujer  (Motorpress), Ponle Freno  and Objetivo Bienestar  (Atresmedia). In addition, the cross-divisional projects initiated by the Corporate Center were explained in detail, including Tú eres tu futuro  , Entrena tu futuro  , Formación dual  and Talentum. 

In the following discussion, initial ideas for future collaboration were considered and the next steps for strengthening CR in Spain were adopted. For example, the installation of a CR Committee was discussed, aiming to intensify the cross-divisional exchange in Spain. At the end of the workshop, all participants agreed that the continuation of joint projects under the lead of Bertelsmann España is reasonable and purposeful.

The list of participants of the workshop included: Jose Luis Rodríguez and Ana Cancho (Arvato), Marta Grau and Carlota del Amo (Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial), Óscar Sáenz (Motorpress Ibérica) and Susana Gato (Atresmedia), Pilar del Barco and Juan Llobell (Bertelsmann España), Barbara Kutscher (Corporate Center).