ABSTRACT
If the company is in the process of establishing itself, a manager may review all of the corporate operations that have impacts on communities. A manager could ensure that these operations all reflect and fit local definitions of fairness, transparency, respect, and broad accountability. If the Corporate Engagement Project (CEP) staff who have spent these years working with managers around the world were able to recommend one specific action for any manager, anywhere, to take first, it would be the following. A manager who is seen to be asking these questions with a broad range of people (not just a few) in full view of others (so the conversations are transparent) and listening (really listening) to the responses of all these people would accomplish two immediate benefits. Building on what has been learned from experience provides a strong base for much more learning. Companies and communities have started on a road together that has many more: miles ahead.
