In 2014 the Financial Reporting Council published new guidelines for annual reports to encourage organisations to include information on the effectiveness of their policies around employees, environmental impact and social, community and human rights issues.
The Valuing Talent Partnership is seeking to support organisations in delivering on these guidelines and this May (2016) they published a comprehensive comparison of what FTSE 100 companies highlighted in their Annual Reports both pre and post the updated 2014 guidelines as well as what was represented in media coverage during the same time period. The review identified four categories for valuing and reporting human capital: knowledge, skills and abilities; human resource development; employee welfare/stability; and employee equity.
There are some great case studies from the likes of Diageo, Coca Cola and BT and we can see clear examples of the growth in acceptance of the concept of ‘sustainable engagement’ where issues of employee wellbeing, career ownership and responsibility for other stakeholders in the supply chain are now being measured to enhance the more traditional Gallup/Q12 style questions.
One of the messages that caught our eye at RightTrack is the increase in commitment to inclusion, diversity and equality. Since we’ve earned a reputation for partnering with clients to create a level playing field in their organisations, we are delighted to see innovative approaches being championed by some of the FTSE 100 including Royal Mail’s Diversity Council, BT’s commitment to expand its responsibility for equality to include taking a position on human rights and wellbeing, and RBS’s continued exemplary leadership in the field of inclusion and equality with the rollout of a programme to reduce unconscious bias.
Altogether, the conclusions in the paper offer a lot of food for thought. We think the four categories will be a useful benchmark against which to test and refine current HR priorities from the second quarter. We recommend you treat yourself to a coffee break and take a read.