Corporate Social Responsibility Press Release
provided by 
10.10.2008 - 07:25am ET
News from:
IBM
Socially Responsible Investing: Investment Management Firm Jantz Morgan Engages IBM to Help Assess, Develop Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy
(CSRwire) ARMONK, NY -- (MARKET WIRE) - October 10, 2008 - IBM (NYSE: IBM) is
providing consulting services to help Boston-area financial investment
firm Jantz Morgan LLC integrate corporate social responsibility throughout
its business strategy and operations.
Through this engagement signed in 3Q, the objective of this initiative by
Jantz Morgan is to ensure that CSR informs all aspects of its business and
reflects the values of the company's founders. That includes issues such as
transparency and engagement with investors, how the company treats its
employees, its impact on the environment, and how it participates in the
community.
"Many of our customers are telling us they want more than just a good
return on their money -- they want to know their social values are
reflected in the investments they make," said Sean Morgan, president of
Jantz Morgan. "It is also important to them that our company is socially
responsible, that our personal values are reflected in our company -- they
want social responsibility to be personal, not just a business
decision."
Beyond the company's interest in being a responsible corporate citizen,
Jantz Morgan believes that socially responsible investments can be
rewarding as well. Testing by the firm of socially responsible investment
portfolios has shown promising performance. Jantz Morgan has been managing
SRI portfolios for institutions and plans to roll out its first SRI
portfolio to individual clients this fall.
Through this engagement, IBM is helping Jantz Morgan as it
- Incorporates CSR principles into its business strategy;
- Identifies key stakeholders and how to engage them;
- Evaluates its values and engages its employees;
- Defines the tools
and insights required to develop a strategic set of CSR initiatives;
- Reviews industry best practices;
- And develops a roadmap to reach its strategic CSR
objectives.
"Jantz Morgan is among a growing list of leadership
enterprises that understand how socially responsible business practices,
corporate reputations, and growth potential are becoming one and the
same," said Eric Riddleberger, global leader for IBM's business strategy
consulting practice. "By developing a CSR foundation for their business
strategies, companies have an opportunity not only to protect themselves,
but actually grow their businesses, by retaining customers and attracting
new ones through their integrity and their authentic contributions to
society."
Business leaders acknowledge the advantages that come from proactively
addressing corporate social responsibility issues. An IBM global CSR
survey of more than 250 c-suite executives showed that 68 percent of them
already are focusing on CSR activities to create new revenue streams and
54 percent believe CSR gives them a competitive advantage. Additionally
IBM's biennial global survey of more than 1,100 CEOs showed that the
majority of them plan to increase their investments in CSR by 25 percent
over the next three years.
In addition, independent research verifies that CSR is important to
consumers. According to UK consumer research firm Fraser Consultancy, a
quarter of all consumers say they would switch brands for a given product
or service if provided with a more ethical alternative. Alloy Media and
Marketing reports that 37 percent of people age 18 to 30 prefer to use
brands that are socially conscious, with more than three-quarters of that
group citing fair labor practices and two-thirds listing environmental
factors as chief concerns.
To assist clients in incorporating CSR into their business strategies, IBM
Global Business services has developed a set of consulting offerings,
including its CSR Assessment and Benchmarking Utility, the Carbon Tradeoff
Modeler, IBM Green Sigma(TM), and Environmental Product Lifecycle
Management.
Jantz Morgan LLC is a boutique investment management company founded on
the premise that superior quantitative models will significantly
outperform human experts over the long term. The firm's proprietary
methods combine System Dynamics and other quantitative disciplines with
sound financial principles to create improved investment opportunities.
The firm's objective is to provide its clients with total return at an
acceptable level of asset volatility in a diversified portfolio. The firm
aspires to do all this while being a socially responsible enterprise that
is respectful of its clients' values. For more information, go to: http://www.jantzmorgan.com/
For more information about IBM's global survey on CSR, go to:
www.ibm.com/gbs/csrstudy
To learn more about IBM's strategy and change offerings, visit:
http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/gbs/bus/html/bcs_strategyplanning.h
tml?re=gbs_fe_leftnav
For more information please contact:
Jay Cadmus, IBM Media Relations
914-766-2326
203-948-2351
www.ibm.com
News Categories:
Socially Responsible Investing and CSR - General
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