In Centre-Val-de-Loire, CSR rhymes with SMEs and VSEs
For eighteen months, 11 companies in the Centre-Val-de-Loire region have benefited from the CSR path proposed by the Region and the AFNOR group. This will enable them to develop their skills and structure their CSR approach with greater peace of mind.
CSR is a long-term project. In the Centre-Val-de-Loire region, the story began in October 2019 and ends in June 2021, the time it takes for eleven regional VSEs and SMEs to move from concept to reality. So, in a bid to put the region on a more sustainable development footing, the regional council co-funded a comprehensive program led by Anne Youf, regional delegate for the AFNOR group.
AFNOR Compétences training in CSR, a diagnosis of practices carried out by three selected consultants, and time for collective discussion all helped to structure the CSR approach in the best possible way… and above all to make it clear that this is not the prerogative of the big CAC 40 groups! In this respect, the
voluntary standard ISO 26000
is an invaluable tool. It recommends building an action plan around 7 central questions:
- Governance of the structure
- Human rights
- Working conditions and relations
- Environmental responsibility
- Fair practices
- Consumer issues and consumer protection
- Communities and local development.
” We decided to embark on a CSR program partly in response to requests from our key account customers, who demand exemplarity in terms of transport and packaging,” explains Cathleen Berton, Project Manager at Talbot Création, a company based in Bourges (Cher) that designs and manufactures professional clothing, particularly for the hotel and catering industry.
” In terms of recruitment, the new generations are waiting for this kind of approach; CSR is a guarantee of attractiveness,” adds Cécile Derouck, General Manager of Atac Pièces Auto, a car parts company in the Loiret region. ” We wanted to fully understand the ISO 26000 standard, so that we could then move towards certification ,” adds Majda Benchekroun, Quality and CSR Manager at Jordenen, an object-based communications consultancy also based in the Loiret region. In the long term, in fact, each company is free to decide whether or not to move towards certification, for example with AFNOR Certification’s Engagé RSE label, to demonstrate the robustness of their approach.
- Listen to the testimony of Cathleen Berton, project manager at Talbot Création (design and manufacture of professional clothing, 12 employees, Cher).
- Listen to the testimonial from Cécile Derouck, General Manager of Atac Pièces Auto (50 employees, Loiret)
- Listen to the testimonial from Majda Benchekroun, Quality and CSR Manager at Jordenen (object-based communications consultancy, 86 employees, Loiret).
