✨ I get to see so many different company cultures in my work – it’s one of the most fascinating parts of my job. After years of doing this, I’ve developed an almost instant sense of what a company’s culture is likely to be and the jigsaw puzzle pieces that have likely shaped it.
It’s not always what you’d think. I’ve seen companies with bold values and countless processes but cultures that block effective human rights due diligence. On the flip side, I’ve encountered companies with minimal processes yet incredible human rights-aligned culture.
So, what really makes for a strong culture? And how do you know if you’ve got it? 🤔 Listen to our fascinating convo with Richard Howitt during the Geneva UN Annual Forum where we unpack these dynamics and more.👂 (See here or here). Thanks to everyone who’s shared their thoughts already—your feedback is invaluable! I’d love to hear your take on this important discussion.
As we’re talking about the UN Annual Forum, a huge thank you to those who joined our collective last Friday to de-brief. 🙏 We really welcomed the space, and we loved hearing your takeaways. It felt very validating somehow that we came away with the same high level reflections, even though our individual experiences (as the UNAF has morphed into a mini COP with many events happening in parallel!) varied greatly. Here they are summarised in one place.
And the question I’ve been asked again and again by journalists this week is my reaction to FIFA’s recent publications (see here, here and here for some coverage from the New York Times and Guardian). To which my response is as follows: ⬇️
"We welcome FIFA’s publication of our study on access to remedy for workers in the context of the FIFA World Cup Qatar. We delved into three core questions: Which impacts are in scope for FIFA’s human rights responsibility? What are the expected actions on the part of FIFA? And what can a remedy-informed legacy look like in practice? We answered these questions based on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, that FIFA has committed to implementing in its Statutes and internal policies.
We would like to thank the FIFA Sub-Committee on Human Rights & Social Responsibility for its role in commissioning the study, and its constructive input throughout the process. We would like to thank all of the individuals we interviewed for this study. All were generous with their time, insights and reflections and their insights have contributed to the findings in this study.
We would like to recognise the invaluable contributions of the tens of thousands of migrant workers who journeyed to Qatar to build the infrastructure and deliver services essential to the World Cup. This study is the story of those workers who helped make the World Cup happen – and how FIFA can meet its human rights responsibility towards them. Shaping a strong, grounded and meaningful legacy for workers involved in making the World Cup a reality will create a positive ripple effect across Qatar, and well beyond, for years to come.”
Do take a look at our explainer on our Linkedin as it really does seek to make this complex topic easier to grasp. And our actual study on access to remedy for workers in the context of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 that was released by FIFA last Friday is here. In particular, I’d call your attention to the concept of the remedy eco-system (also called for in the EU CSDDD by the way), as this will be an absolutely critical concept as we advance in tackling and remediating impacts that are connected to many stakeholders - including many climate and transition-related human rights impacts.
Have a good weekend all,
Anna 💫
PS: I just found out that hashtags on Linkedin are dead. Crazy! I never got that memo. I now wonder if I was the last to know or a pioneer of the #stoppinghashtagnow movement.
