ABSTRACT
In an age of cynicism, one of the key challenges for corporate responsibility is the need to demonstrate that social and environmental programmes are making a difference. Consumers and investors are less inclined to trust companies after the scandals of WorldCom, Enron (Fox 2002; Sullivan 2002) and Ahold (Economist 2003). The assurance of corporate responsibility (CR) initiatives plays a key role in building the trust necessary to sustain these programmes. According to AccountAbility:
AccountAbility has turned the field of corporate responsibility into a discipline, setting out professional qualifications, providing training and developing methodologies-‘the how’—of corporate responsibility.
