Wipro Report
Wipro headquartered in Bangalore is one of India’s leading firms which was founded by Mr. M. H Premji. Its business can be categorized under three main headings: IT, BPO, R&D and Consulting Services: Wipro Technologies, Wipro Infotech, Consumer and Institutional Products: Wipro Consumer Care and Lightning , Infrastructure and Ecological Engineering: Wipro Infrastructure Engineering Wipro as an organization recognizes the importance of corporate social responsibility and has taken several initiatives to benefit the stakeholders.
Wipro Model of Good Citizenship Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives Wipro Cares Unlike mere philanthropy, this initiative channelizes the efforts of the employees and their friends to provide a long term benefit to the society. It focuses on two main areas – assisting in disaster management by providing rehabilitation to the survivors of natural calamities and initiating a learning enhancement program which would improve the skill set and self esteem of the underprivileged children ; thereby ensuring that they grow up to be independent.
Under this scheme, Wipro launched five new projects in 2007-08 which was in addition to the eight ongoing projects. Some major ongoing projects are as follows: Tsunami relief initiatives which include reclamation of agricultural land, donation of boats to fishermen and construction of school buildings have been undertaken at Pushpavanam village, Tamil Nadu. Learning enhancement programmes which aim to broaden the horizon and increase awareness levels have been successfully implemented in several schools – Olcott Memorial School, Chennai, TVK School in Chennai and Government Secondary School, Bangalore.
The success of these programs aptly demonstrates the benefit of sensitizing and involving employees in contributing to society. |Wiproites in Kolkatta in association with an NGO provide health care services for families of brick kiln labour camp children. In association with Swadhar, an NGO, Wipro has helped set up community centres for marginalized families. A vocational course and a school are run by Swadhar from this centre. Makkala Jagriti is an after school safe home set up in Bangalore for around 200 children. Wipro Applying Thought in Schools Wipro firmly believes that an educated India is the key to bring about societal change. This initiative is aimed at improving the quality of education with the long term focus being to develop systems which would allow each child to reach his potential. Projects aimed at educational reform have been undertaken with organizations such as Disha, Gurgaon and Katha, Delhi. Wipro has fostered relationships with many NGO’s. Wipro is also a member of the CII National Committee of Education Reforms.
The experiment based learning projects are of two types:
- Holistic School Engagement Programs: Wipro has worked with over 1100 schools. For example, Eklavya in Bhopal, is an initiative at providing education for the economically disadvantaged children by developing material and teacher development programs.
- Capability building for organizations: This aims at introducing school reform and providing grants to build resource centres in the organization. For example, support has been given to Udaan-Janvikas, Ahmedabad to build the organization into an educational resource centre.
Mission10X
Mission10X, is a not for profit trust established in 2007 with the aim of improving the quality of engineering education in the country and producing employable graduates who are equipped with the necessary skill set. Workshops have been held which have empowered more than 1000 faculty members. These workshops focus on asset building aimed at creating a world class repository of learning assets. The mission is to eventually empower 10,000 faculty members by 2010.
Wipro has engaged in a transformation drive to fulfil its commitment to ecological sustainability. In addition, it is also trying to educate all stakeholders regarding the fragile ecosystem and the urgent need to take affirmative action. This drive was kicked off in 2008 and it involves all stakeholders – employees, suppliers, partners and communities. As per, Mr Azim Premji, Chairman, Wipro Ltd, “We firmly believe business cannot be built at the cost of ecology. It is not sustainable. Ecological Sustainability will increasingly be the defining force for society and business globally.
Wipro will work on the dimensions of carbon neutrality, water balance, waste management and bio-diversity. Eco Eye is the “eye” through which we attempt to see everything, and act for ecological sustainability. ”The themes for eco-action include identification of a portfolio for sustainability investments that will generate new lines of revenue and profits and remodel internal operations to reach neutrality/surplus in the elements of energy, water, waste.
In addition, there exists a “Beyond Wipro” initiative to partner with national and global groups to take sustainability initiatives and to motivate employees to make environment friendly changes in their personal lives. The initiative to invest in a new portfolio for sustainability is in line with Milton Friedman’s views, wherein Wipro has made a business case for social responsibility. In addition, Wipro recognizes that society is becoming more conscious and in due course of time, both customers and employees may demand the need for sustainability and the government may also mandate it.
Hence, it is clearly in their interest to take the lead and tap the hitherto unknown business opportunities. Eco Eye allows Wipro to have a “Going Green” tag, but more importantly it is structured in a way to bring value to the shareholders. This strategic positioning is important as the money spent on the Eco Eye initiatives are viewed as ‘beneficial’ to the shareholders and not a ‘burden’ on them. As per Milton Friedman, if a company spends shareholder money on corporate social responsibility, it is equivalent to a ‘tax’, hence this strategic positioning of generating returns is important for the shareholders.
The Eco Eye is a strategic corporate social responsibility initiative (in accordance with Porter and Cramer’s views) that provides mutual benefits to the society and the shareholders. Wipro has also partnered with regional, national and global groups as part of larger sustainability initiatives in energy, water, waste and biodiversity. This has been aimed at bringing about an industry change and alter the rules of engagement in the long run. Some of the key actions undertaken on ecological sustainability include: Reduce carbon footprint by encouraging telephone and video conferences to reduce employee travel emissions, encouraging car pooling. Wipro Eco Energy, a division of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering, offers consulting and implementation services across the spectrum of solar, wind, geothermal and biomass energy sources. Usage of alternative sources of energy like LED lights, ISO 14001 Certification & Greening of all Buildings based on LEED standards . Reducing water usage by recycling waste water and harvesting rain water.
Wipro Water, a division of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering offers solutions in water treatment space. In the field of waste management, Wipro has increased the usage of recycled materials and packaging in the design of products which has resulted in significant cost savings. Conducts regular energy audits. In addition Wipro is a member of the Green Grid, a consortium dedicated to improving the energy efficiency of data centres. Integrated Portfolio of ecological solutions.
He has established a not-for-profit Azim Premji foundation which aims at introducing a holistic system change in the education system. The ‘Eco Eye’ which is the largest social initiative taken by the company aims at generating new business and providing value to all shareholders. Employees: They are provided with ample opportunities to contribute to society through programs such as ‘Wipro Cares’ and ‘Wipro applying thought in school’ which result in increased motivation. They are also involved in the Eco Eye program to reduce the carbon footprint – car pooling, encouraging video conferencing, E-waste policy.
Wipro has also launched Women of Wipro (WoW) with a charter to mentor women leaders, contribute to business growth and to remove disparities in the work-force. Medical benefits and superannuation plans are in place. Career development programs are run to improve the skill set of the employees. In the IT industry, the employees have a sedentary life style. Keeping this in mind, Wipro has initiated a “Fit for Life” program which aims at improving the physical and mental health of the employees.
Customers
Wipro has set up recycling agencies and processes for recycling E-waste. Customers are provided this service through a single helpline and are actively encouraged to use environment friendly products. This has projected the company as socially responsible and added brand value. Wipro has been environmentally responsible and has launched toxin free “greenware” desktops. Government: Wipro proactively engages with the government and regulatory bodies to evolve a legal and regulatory framework which addresses the needs of societal stakeholders. Wipro provides feedback to government on vital economic issues.
For example, the Offset Policy is aimed at facilitating technology transfer and large defence contracts with MNC’s. In addition Wipro offers advice to the government on educational reforms (in line with its philosophy of introducing a paradigm shift in education) and has also partnered with the government in promoting economic growth in Tier-II and III cities. Wipro is also a signatory to CII’s mission on sustainable growth.
Community
The initiatives taken under Eco Eye have an indirect impact on the surrounding communities as the focus is on energy efficiency. Wipro InfoTech has also launched “Super Genius Bharat PC” in an attempt to bridge the digital divide in India and is targeted specifically at the rural community. Disaster management drives through ‘Wipro Cares’ have benefited victims of natural calamities particularly in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Orissa. Wipro believes in engaging with the people and is averse to ‘plain cheque book philanthropy’. Wipro in association with civic bodies has worked in areas of ecological importance. For instance, it worked with the Bangalore municipality in 2007 to transplant fully grown trees.
Academia
Wipro has education programs aimed at the ‘future generations’ as it has an impact on influencing the future work force. These programs have been launched under “Wipro Cares”, “Wipro Applying Thought in Schools” and “Mission10X”. Initiatives have been taken to train teachers. Non Profit Organizations: Relationships have been nurtured with several NGO’s in promoting community welfare particularly in educating the underprivileged children. Wipro has also received accolades for its environment friendly initiatives and was ranked No. in Green peace’s Guide to Greener Electronics.
Suppliers
Wipro has an ombudsprocess available to all their vendors so that they can raise concerns relating to any breach by the employees. Before finalizing any contract with a vendor, Wipro ensures that the vendor has fair labour practices which include payment of statutory wages to employees, ensuring no gender discrimination and no forced or child labour. Wipro has undertaken responsibility not only for its own actions but has also taken steps to ensure that its suppliers do the same.
Controversies
In June 2007, Wipro along with two other Indian firms was black-listed for four years by the World Bank from receiving direct contracts under its corporate procurement program. This is the first time that the World Bank had taken such a stern action of black-listing firms. As per the bank, this disciplinary action was necessitated because Wipro had allowed the acquaintances of the bank’s CIO to participate in the “Directed Share Program”. This program offered American Depository Shares of Wipro in the US, at IPO market price.
Wipro claimed that this was simply a ‘goodwill gesture’, since the shared offered were too few to cause any conflict of interest. This controversy caused the share prices to fall by 12%. This clearly shows that there exists no such concept of a “perfect company” and companies are willing to indulge in unethical practices for their business interests. Conclusion Wipro, through its initiatives has created new market opportunities for itself in the domain of environment friendly products. It realizes that in this day and age, consumers have become more environment conscious and hence Wipro has promoted itself with a green tag.
They have tried to convey the message that they are a resource efficient company and have built a reputation around it which makes them attractive to investors, consumers, employees and other stakeholders. They are averse to taking up isolated initiatives and have devised a comprehensive and a coherent strategy for the entire organization. Having a socially aware chairman in the form of Mr. Azim Premji has ensured that the corporate social responsibility initiatives are discussed at the highest level and are an integral part of the business strategy.
In the Indian context, Wipro has paved the way forward in the realm of corporate citizenship for other companies to emulate. However, the World Bank controversy illustrates that even companies like Wipro need to always set for themselves high ethical benchmarks. They must never deviate from them even while aiming to maximize their long term business interests. Often, many social and environmental issues are effectively handled if a company is willing to partner with its competitors. Wipro being such a major player in the Indian market can usher in an industry change by collaborating with other companies.
Wipro’s initiatives are a testimonial to the dawning realization that corporate social responsibility is the future of business. In the words of Jeffery Hollender, “It’s what companies have to do to survive and prosper in a world where more and more of their behaviour is under the microscope. ”
