Posted on: 06 October, 2009
The first edition of the AA1000SES, published in 2005, made it possible to embed engagemen into core business strategy and practice. After the initial publication of the standard, AccountAbility conducted an extensive pilot with over 30 companies which resulted in a series of findings and recommendations for improvement.
The aim of the revision is to move the AA1000SES beyond Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and to make it strategically relevant for aspects of business. Thinking and practice have advanced rapidly in this area and AccountAbility is now revising its standard to establish a new international benchmark. The new AA1000SES needs to provide a mechanism for engagement that can be robust at the global level but flexible enough for local application; that looks beyond process to outcomes. There is also a need to better link the numerous sustainability initiatives and their understanding of quality stakeholder engagement.
The 2nd edition AA1000SES will be consistent with the AccountAbility Principles Standard - AA1000APS (2008) which requires quality stakeholder engagement. It will also complement standards such as the SA8000, GRI and ISO, and support developments in other areas such as uality management, transparency, reporting and governance.
