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Credit Suisse Group: the
company
As a leading global financial
service company, Credit Suisse
Group
1)
is present in more than
470 locations worldwide and in
every key financial centre. The
Group employs some 64000 peo-
ple, of whom 28000 work at 370
locations in Switzerland. Since
April 1997, our Swiss banking of-
fices have been operating with an
ISO 14001-certified environmen-
tal management system the first
granted to a major financial serv-
ices institute worldwide. In April
2000, the re-certification was
achieved and the system has now
been extended to cover all bank-
ing operations (product ecology)
worldwide.
The companys
environmental policy
Credit Suisses commitment to
environmental protection and the
conservation of natural resources
is an integral part of the banks
corporate philosophy. The funda-
mental principle of our environ-
mental policy states that we aim
to create the preconditions for
continuous improvement by sys-
tematically monitoring, recording
and assessing our consumption of
energy and natural resources,
emission levels, waste and envi-
ronmental risks, with particular
attention paid to electricity con-
sumption.
Green banking the value of ISO 14001
certification in the financial sector
by Otti Bisang
In brief
Good environmental practice and good financial performance go
hand in hand, says Otti Bisang of Environmental Management
Services at the Credit Suisse Group, which was reportedly the first
major financial services institute worldwide to have achieved ISO
14001 certification. In 1995, in collaboration with four other banks
and a major insurance company, the Group published its Guiding
Principles on Energy Use, based on the Energy 2000 conserva-
tion programme launched by the Swiss Government.
Now widely accepted as good management practice, the guiding
principles establish environmental objectives concerned chiefly
with energy consumption, long recognized as having the greatest
environmental impact of all the banks operations. In his article,
Mr. Bisang outlines quantitative goals to reduce electricity, heat
and paper consumption and stabilize waste production, and de-
scribes some aims of the Groups eco-controlling strategy involv-
ing environmental measurement, auditing and reporting in accord-
ance with ISO 14001.
He reveals that certification of the banks offices in Switzerland
offers substantial benefits, particularly in its relationships with
suppliers, investors and the media. ISO 14001 certification repre-
sents external confirmation that we are doing the right things in the
right way, says Mr. Bisang, commenting that it makes us more
attractive to investors and portfolio managers with green lean-
ings. The Group has found negotiating environmental issues with
its suppliers and outsourcing partners much easier as a certified
company, in some cases requiring such partners to establish their
own EMS as a condition of business. He predicts that EMS integra-
tion into normal management systems will gain in importance as
companies realize they can cut costs, manage risks and maximize
earnings potential by doing so.
Our environmental objectives
We have long recognized that
energy consumption has the
greatest environmental impact of
all the banks operations, and it is
the focus of special attention in
our Guiding Principles on En-
ergy Use, published in autumn
1995. This policy document was
the product of a collaborative
project between Credit Suisse,
four other banks and a major
The author, Otti Bisang, is Head
of Environmental Management
Services, Credit Suisse Group.
ISO 14001
certification makes us
more attractive to
investors and
portfolio managers
with green leanings
1) Credit Suisse Group,
Environmental Management
Services/CUCE, P.O. Box 100,
CH-8070 Zurich, Switzerland.
Tel. + 41 1 332 26 09.
Fax + 41 1 333 76 33.
E-mail otti.bisang@csg.ch
Web www.csg.ch/ecoreport98
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8
insurance company,
based on Energy
2000, an energy
conservation pro-
gramme launched
by the Swiss Gov-
ernment. The prin-
ciples are now
widely accepted as
good management
practice. The policy
establishes a number
of qualitative and
quantitative environ-
mental goals, includ-
ing:
Qualitative goals:
to reduce en-
ergy consump-
tion in the pro-
duction of goods
and services
to extend recy-
cling initiatives
to maximize the
sustainable use
of renewable re-
sources
to avoid the use
of substances
which have been
classified toxic
Implementing our
eco-controlling strategy
Some of the aims and objec-
tives of our eco-controlling strat-
egy (currently limited to internal
services only):
to measure the extent to which
specified environmental tar-
gets have been met
to ensure that environmental
measures are initiated and im-
plemented
to act as efficient and accessi-
ble management tools (report-
ing, benchmarking)
to identify the relevant deci-
sion-makers
to describe the necessary com-
munications functions
Environmental Executive
Board
We established a corporate En-
vironmental Executive Board re-
sponsible for monitoring and
documenting performance and
progress and giving strategic ad-
vice on environmental issues. It is
chaired by a member of the Ex-
ecutive Board responsible for en-
vironmental issues and one board
member of each of our five busi-
ness units (retail,
investment and
private banking,
asset management
and insurance).
Any measures
necessary as a
result of failure
to meet defined
targets or struc-
tural changes are
implemented di-
rectly or recom-
mended to the
relevant line man-
ager.
Internal and
external
communications:
environmental
reporting
Credit Suisse con-
ducts active and
open dialogue both
internally and ex-
ternally, and our
environmental data
is accessible. We
believe that actions
speak louder than words and thus
regard our environmental policy
as an expression of our social
responsibility rather than as an
element of our communications
strategy.
The bank plays an active role in
the formulation of standards for
environmental reporting and the
promotion of benchmarking.
Banking in action in todays digital age: part of the
information technology suite at the new Credit Suisse First
Boston (CSFB) New World Building in London, which also
provides the subject of the other photos illustrating this article.
Credit Suisse recently went through its ISO 14001 re-
certification audit. As it stands now, Credit Suisse Group
Switzerland plus its banking operations globally will be
covered by the new certificate. Other business units were to be
audited and could be also be covered by the certificate.
Quantitative goals:
Electricity
to reduce consumption by
10 % to 110 kWh/m
2
by 2004
Heat
to reduce consumption by
10 % to 80 kWh/m
2
by 2004
Paper
to reduce consumption by
15 % from 1994 by 2004
60% of total consumption to
be recycled paper by 2004
> 15% of photocopier paper
to be recycled paper by 2004
Certification was a
valuable aid to
external
communications with
the media and in
discussions with our
outsourcing partners
The benefits of ISO 14001
implementation
The Credit Suisse Group net-
work in Switzerland employs the
majority of the Groups workforce
and operates its large-scale com-
puting centres. Thus, in environ-
mental terms, its Swiss operations
present the biggest challenge as
well as providing the largest scope
for action.
We found negotiating
environmental issues
with our suppliers and
outsourcing partners
much easier as a
certified company
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9
The Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) New
World Building, which was part of the London
audit for the Credit Suisses ISO 14001
certification, has been built to meet the highest
environment and safety standards.
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10
ISO 14001 certification of
Credit Suisse Group banking
offices worldwide represents
external confirmation that we
are doing the right things in
the right way. In particular, it
means that we can demon-
strate continuous improve-
ment in our environmental
performance both in terms
of our internal operations and
the environmental impacts of
our products and services,
making us more attractive to
investors and portfolio man-
agers with green leanings.
If a bank ensures that its
own operations are carried
out in an environmentally
friendly manner and talks
openly about it, then its em-
ployees will tend to absorb
good habits and carry them
beyond the confines of the
bank, spreading ecological
awareness and acting as am-
bassadors for environmental
improvement.
Relationships with suppliers
We found negotiating environ-
mental issues with our suppliers
and outsourcing partners much
easier as a certified company. It
adds additional weight to ones
arguments and for Credit Suisse it
facilitated the inclusion of envi-
ronmental clauses in contracts
with outsourcing partners. In
some cases, we even included a
contractual requirement that our
partners establish a certified
EMS.
We believe this approach to be
of key importance for the future
as banks and insurance compa-
nies outsource more and more
services in order to concentrate
on core businesses. Also, we con-
sider it the duty of the parent com-
pany to ensure that those partners
comply with common envi-
ronmental standards. Our
experience shows that if en-
vironmental clauses are ne-
gotiated from the beginning,
it is much easier to convince
outsourcing partners about
the benefits of having an
EMS.
ISO 14001 in our risk
programme
We believe that an ISO
14001-based EMS reduces
the risk of environmental
disasters. But we rely en-
tirely on our own risk assess-
ment tools to quantify the re-
maining risk and calculate
the insurance premium or in-
terest rate.
Having a certified EMS
speeds up risk assessment
because all relevant envi-
ronmental data is already
available or quickly ob-
tained. We calculate our pre-
miums based on the data we
receive from the companies.
Experience shows that good envi-
ronmental practice (e.g. a certi-
fied EMS) and good financial per-
formance go hand in hand. If the
data proves that this is the case for
a given company, it will benefit
We believe that an
ISO 14001-based
EMS reduces the risk
of environmental
disasters
In our view ISO 14001 imple-
mentation offers substantial ben-
efits:
The scrutiny in the months
before the certification audits
provided the impetus to
achieve optimal environmen-
tal management.
Certification was a valuable aid
to external communications
with the media and in discus-
sions with our outsourcing part-
ners, and an excellent tool to
communicate what we think
about good management prac-
tice.
The reviews by impartial en-
vironmental specialists al-
ready assisted the further de-
velopment of our EMS.
Environmental goals help us
to improve our facility man-
agement and thus lead to cost
savings.
Being certified improves the
marketing of the green and
ethical funds we offer to our in-
stitutional and retail customers.
Good
environmental
practice (e.g. a
certified EMS)
and good
financial
performance go
hand in hand
It is much easier to
select stocks of ISO
14001-certified
companies for a green
and/or ethical fund
from reduced rates. However,
since environmental risk is usu-
ally only a small factor in our en-
tire risk management pro-
gramme, we do not give
preferential treatment to ISO
14001-certified firms.
Making ISO 14001 a more
meaningful tool for risk
managers
We have several suggestions in
this context. Firstly, although it is
not a requirement to make the re-
sults of the external ISO 14001
audits publicly available, it would
be extremely helpful to our risk
managers and equity analysts if
companies were required to do so.
Secondly, we need a system to
ensure that all data published by a
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11
For pro-active managers
only. This is how ISO is advertis-
ing the newly published 8
th
edi-
tion of the ISO Standards Com-
pendium: ISO 9000 Quality
Management.
Theres nothing preventing
you from waiting until the ISO
9000 Year 2000 revisions are pub-
lished before you start thinking
about bringing your quality sys-
tem up to the new standard, says
ISO, unless youre one of those
pro-active managers who be-
lieves that continual improve-
ment is not just a slogan, but sound
business practice if you want to
stay ahead of the crowd.
If so, the ISO 9000 revisions
are just the standards for you. And
you dont have to wait until they
are published as International
Standards before you get moving.
The newly published eighth edi-
tion of the ISO 9000 Compendium
includes the Draft International
Standard versions of the future
ISO 9000, ISO 9001 and ISO
9004. So you can get an idea now
of the direction the revised stand-
ards are taking and begin plan-
ning your transition.
In addition, the Compendium
includes 25 other ISO 9000 and
ISO 10000 documents making up
the ISO 9000 family. All you need
for building and bettering quality
in your organization.
ISO conclues: Of course, you
can always sit back and wait. Even
until its too late.
The ISO Standards Compen-
dium: ISO 9000 Quality Man-
agement, eighth edition, format
A4, English edition (ISBN 92-67-
10318-0) 700 pages, French edi-
tion (ISBN 92-67-20318-5) 742
pages, is available from ISO
member institutes and from ISO
Central Secretariat in Geneva. A
full list of ISO members is posted
on ISOs Web site: www.iso.ch
New edition of ISO 9000
Compendium
Q
For the latest information
on ISO work and activities,
come and visit us at:
www.iso.ch
A selection of ISO 9000 and
ISO 14000 brochures is available
free of charge on ISO Online.
company is validated by external
auditors. Since we rely on up-to-
date information in our risk as-
sessment, there should be a sys-
tem in place to ensure that data
published are (a) updated on a
regular basis and (b) undergo
some sort of quality control.
Incentives for ISO 14001
implementation in the
banking sector
It is much easier to select stocks
of ISO 14001-certified companies
for a green and/or ethical fund.
These days, we see more and
more pension schemes which de-
mand that their funds are invested
in a sustainable manner. This, of
course, requires a recognized
standard which is accepted as
proof that a company handles en-
vironmental issues in a sustain-
able way.
In summary
Integrating environmental fac-
tors into normal management sys-
tems will gain in importance as
EMS integration will
gain in importance as
companies realize
they can cut costs,
lessen risks and
maximize earnings
potential by doing so
companies realize they can cut
costs, manage risks and maximize
earnings potential by doing so. An
efficient way is to implement an
environmental management sys-
tem in accordance with ISO 14001
or EMAS accreditation guide-
lines.
Q