Embracing the challenges and opportunities presented by ESG

SHC Founder and Managing Director Suzanne Howe

It will be Suzanne Howe Communications’ 30th anniversary next year and we will have so much to celebrate.

Looking back, we’ve achieved a great deal and worked with amazing clients, many of whom have become friends. Our relationship with the media has also gone from strength to strength and our carefully selected team of experts is constantly expanding to best meet the needs of our ever-widening customer base.

I have always run the business in a way which means we only use experienced consultants who are experts, with deep sector knowledge. This creates flexibility and means that clients can benefit from dealing directly with experienced people.

Many of our clients are putting an increasing emphasis on sustainability, and more importantly, they are embracing the ethos of Environmental, Social, and Governance – or ESG – evaluating their sustainability and ethical practices across these three key areas.

As ESG considerations are becoming increasingly important for investors and stakeholders who want to understand a company’s long-term impact and risk profile, we have been reviewing where we stand and assessing what more we need to do.

We became a Limited Company two years ago, and – as their values align with ours – we are now well on our way to becoming a B Corp certified business.

B Corp

Created in 2006 with the mission to inspire and enable people to use business as a force for good, B Lab is a non-profit network transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities and the planet.  

B Lab UK is a charity that launched in 2015, with the purpose of redefining success in business through building a community of engaged businesses, raising awareness of the B Corp Movement and influencing change in the UK economy – shifting from a system that profits few to one that benefits all.

The process of becoming a Limited Company has given us the opportunity to review our structure, transparency, ethical conduct, and accountability to stakeholders, while the B Corp application process has been hugely helpful in measuring our impact on the environmental, and on society – from labour practices, through diversity and inclusion, to community relations and human rights.

Charities and social enterprises

Over the years, we have developed and maintained some great partnerships with social enterprises and charities. I am particularly proud of our ongoing support for Mid Kent Mind, where each year we walk to raise funds. Just as our clients are spread across the country, so is the SHC team, so instead of meeting to walk and unnecessarily raising our carbon footprint, we now each walk locally.

Mental health awareness and ‘mate crime’

We’re posting this blog during Mental Health Awareness week – and this year’s theme is “community” – so it seems appropriate to look a little closer at the work of our chosen charity.

Mind recognises that while 1 in 4 people have mental health problems, most do not get the help they need. Mind’s mission across England and Wales is to make mental health an everyday priority, by standing up to the injustices – in healthcare, in work, in law – which make life harder for those who have mental health problems.

Our work with Mind has been rewarding and interesting, and we were recently made aware of the growing threat posed by ‘mate crime’ – something that can happen when someone with a mental health problem and/or disability such as autism puts their trust in the wrong person. 

It may be that this person is already known to them and respected in the community. Quite naively they can soon be taken in and become very dependent on that person, believing what they are told to do and how to behave. In terms of financial grooming, the perpetrator can encourage the victim to spend large sums of money, convincing them they are doing the right thing and no doubt taking some sort of cut or fee for their advice. They may ask to borrow money, but then not pay it back to the person with mental health problems. Mate crime all revolves around control and not only financial abuse, but also physical, emotional and sexual abuse.

It is clear that we need to raise more awareness of mate crime in the community as it is hard to recognise. Victims may not always realise they are being abused and they become reluctant to report their “friend”.

No Going Back

We continue to support Mind and we are now also proud to be working with No Going Back (NGB) Clean, a standalone investment by the charity No Going Back, operating as a social enterprise supporting prison leavers and those with disadvantaged backgrounds.

NGB Clean specialises in cleaning and facilities management and supports recycling programmes. It measures and delivers social value and demonstrates environmental impact in line with the charity.

I had the privilege of recently visiting and speaking with inmates at Wandsworth Prison in London. with members of NGB Clean and the NGB charity. It was a hugely rewarding day and I am looking forward to working with the charity and NGB Clean to offer my help and experience in the cleaning sector.

An inter-dependent and circular relationship

SHC differentiates itself by offering both PR and marketing consultancy services with a focus on delivering excellent content and advice for clients, and this business model enables SHC to be agile and adaptable.

I am proud that as PR professionals at SHC, we are in an inter-dependent and circular relationship with both the companies we represent and the media. Our clients need to share their news to raise their profile, reinforce their reputation, or increase sales, while the media needs news, content, opinion, and information to feed its readership.

We have a saying here at SHC, that: “we respect our clients and the media equally”. Neither one is more important than the other. They are both as important.

Talking of the media, for many years, SHC has supported the Copyright Licensing Association (CLA) and the National Licencing Association (NLA). We are aware of the great work they do in the world of journalism and publishing. We see our licences as a way of giving back and they therefore form part of our Sustainable and ESG commitment as a business. 

Over the past four decades, CLA has earned a reputation for excellence and innovation in rights and licensing, generating over £1.5bn in collective licensing revenues that have been distributed to over 200,000 authors, publishers, and visual artists. The work that CLA does is essential to the creative ecosystem.

Seen as part of an ESG strategy, 78 per cent of top firms have a CLA licence and these licences facilitate the efficient reuse of content by 12.7 million students and over 9.5 million employees in over 40,000 businesses, schools, and universities across the UK. With over 40 international agreements, CLA provides lawful and simple access to over 8 million print and online publications.

Meanwhile, NLA is a not-for-profit body and 80% of its revenues go straight back into the industry, directly supporting jobs in journalism and contributing to the free, vibrant UK media that benefits everyone.

Mission statement

Finally, we have recently defined our mission statement – to be the leading PR and social media agency in the cleaning and hygiene, foodservice packaging, and food sectors.

We are committed to exceeding customer expectations by delivering innovative, strategic solutions that foster long-term partnerships with like-minded companies who share our values of expertise, integrity, and excellence. Through a leadership approach that inspires trust, professionalism, and continuous development, we aim to empower our team to consistently achieve superior results. Additionally, we are proud to build on our support for Mind and our annual fundraising event, furthering our commitment to social responsibility and community impact.

If you would like more information on the work that we are doing or you would like to discuss how we can help you with your PR and marketing strategy, please call us on 0208 468 0923 or email info@suzannehowe.com