Client Service Delivery – Case Studies

Olympics Sustainability Assurance Framework

The Olympic Board appointed the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012 (CSL 2012) as the body responsible for providing independent assurance over the sustainability objectives of the Games. The CSL 2012 required support in defining an assurance process, which could be applied by the CSL 2012, to provide an independent view on progress against the sustainability objectives of the Games and reporting its findings to the Olympic Board and other stakeholders.

PwC partnered with a leading sustainability think tank, Forum for the Future, to develop an independent, credible and pragmatic sustainable development (SD) assurance framework. The work involved extensive consultation with the bodies responsible for delivering the Games, central and local government and NGOs to obtain their views regarding key sustainability issues, how they were being addressed in the planning processes for the Games and their expectations in terms of independent assurance related to the sustainability objectives of the Games. We also drew on our extensive experience of assurance related to SD issues in complex environments. Our joint team synthesised the views of the diverse stakeholders to develop a simple, flexible assurance process that can be pragmatically applied to the complex range of SD issues relevant to the Games right from planning to delivery to legacy.

Developing A Response To Corporate Responsibility Issues In The Jewellery Value Chain

In 2005, PwC supported a group of 14 organisations including Signet, Cartier, ABN Amro, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton and the Diamond Trading Company, to form the Council for Responsible Jewellery Practices (CRJP). Retailers and other key industry players in the diamond and gold jewellery supply chain wished to develop a mechanism to set and implement social, ethical and environmental standards and promote consumer confidence in their product. PwC acted as the CRJP Secretariat, as well as leading development of Principles and a Code of Practices, facilitating stakeholder engagement and communications and developing governance structures and implementation processes. We involved a wide range of PwC experts including sustainability, tax, legal, HR and IT specialists.

The key benefits to our client have been:

• An effective and credible standards platform that will foster consumer confidence in the industry
• Trust building between the Council, its members and key critics
• Growth in membership from 14 to 66 in less than two years.

Managing Social, Environmental And Ethical Risk In Banking

We have been working with Bank of Scotland Corporate to enhance and further embed their social, environmental and economic (SEE) risk management policies and procedures. The work involved a review of corporate lending by sector and geography and included the development of an Environmental Policy and a Risk Appetite Statement. A series of workshops with members of their senior management team helped define the strategy and direction, particularly around the assessment and escalation of social risks, building on existing processes where appropriate. We then developed governance structures for SEE risk management, plus management tools designed to facilitate risk assessment, engagement with external specialists and consistent decision making across a broad range of ethical and environmental issues. In addition, we have assisted our client to prepare for adoption of the Equator Principles, including advice on public reporting. During the project we also engaged with external stakeholders with a specific interest in the banking sector to validate the approach that had been developed and gather their views on next steps for the Bank.

SRF Ltd – Realising Value From Sustainable Development

SRF Ltd, a leading diversified industrial group in India, appointed PwC to advise on the structuring, marketing and sale of carbon credits generated through a large industrial emissions abatement project under the framework of the UN Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

PwC teams in Delhi and London provided regulatory advice during the project validation and registration process and then created significant value for the client by structuring a phased approach to the sale of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) through a competitive auction process.

The approach not only allowed SRF to lock-in value through an additional earnings stream, but also supported their wider local sustainable development activities in the areas of education, health and natural resource management in Rajasthan province.

An Economic Vision For Plymouth

PwC in association with EDAW were commissioned by Plymouth City Council to develop an Economic Vision for Plymouth and associated delivery plan. The project involved consultation with a wide range of stakeholders in the city and region as well as consideration of past initiatives, such as City Growth, relevant to the development of the vision. PwC’s contribution to the assignment involved a detailed analysis of economic sector activity and growth opportunities, as well as overall definition of the economic competencies of the city in relation to the region and aspirational areas. We provided an overview of key issues that Plymouth faces to build a diverse business base, key sectors where employment would be expected to come from and key strategies to realise growth goals. Additionally, a detailed action plan was developed to clarify the expected roles of different actors and identify new delivery mechanisms and vehicles to support implementation. The project is expected to deliver suggestions on how different actors in Plymouth can translate policy into action, as well as the delivery vehicles needed to bring the economic vision into reality.

Strategic Management Of Human Resources

When discussions began with PwC, the mobile phone operator Orange plc had a complex HR structure in place across Europe. Their objective was to understand the HR issues facing their organisation at both group level and within each country business unit, with a view to highlighting areas that were demonstrating best practice and those that required improvement.

At this point, Orange did not have a history of measurement activity or a suite of benchmarks in place, so we provided support in identifying KPIs and introducing measures that would align with their business strategy going forward.

Our approach:

• Identify and introduce KPIs for measurement
• Benchmark the group and each country business unit against comparator samples
• Provide bespoke samples and data for each business unit
• Align PwC measurement with Orange’s strategic areas to allow for a line of sight investigation into HR issues by geography
• Present recommendations for future action.

The outcome:

• Selecting and implementing KPI's at the outset gave Orange the evidence-based reporting they needed in order to evaluate their performance in relation to their competitors and other organisations facing similar challenges
• Orange have since undertaken benchmarking activity annually, over a three year period, enabling them to track their progress and to find, monitor and improve upon poorer performing areas of their business.