A lot has happened both in Pakistan and in the world in the one year since the Best Practices Day was held last year. Unfortunately most of it has been negative. World Poverty, environmental degradation and civil strife have all increased.
In this volatile scenario, the corporate sector's role in countering anti progress and prosperity forces has become vital and certainly more demanding. A strong commitment to Best Practices by a company today is no longer a matter of choice. It is the need of the hour and a morally mandatory obligation.
There was a time when the very concept of Best Practices was an alien notion to all save a few corporations such as EBM who have been pursuing Best Practices as an inherent part of their corporate philosophy and a natural way of doing business since its very inception. A number of developments have changed this. Perhaps the two biggest contributing factors have been the rapid advent of globalisation and the huge improvements in communications and information technology. Globalization today has advanced Best Practices across borders and into the realm of other local companies as well and the technology revolution has made implementation more efficient.
However the spread of Best Practices across the broader corporate spectrum is still not keeping pace with the demand for Best Practices in terms of resultant societal benefits. The mantle of responsibility thus falls on the leading companies of the country to lead by example and not only put in place Best Practices themselves, but also to 'export' it to all others whom they do business with.
For EBM the responsibility to society starts right here in our factory. Our mission is to inculcate a high degree of social consciousness not only in our own employees, but also in all others we do business with - vendors, suppliers, distributors, retailers and so on. In relation to the Centre of Excellence, this is its human side. The Centre represents the very soul of EBM. It is our way of demonstrating that we care deeply for our employees, our consumers, the society at large, the environment and for the country. There was a time when companies pursued the single goal of profits. But today the company that ignores the community or environment has no future. EBM is a company that truly pursues the Triple Bottom Line of Planet, People and Profits and through which all our best practices emerge.
In our endeavour to be the catalyst of change, EBM is one industry leader that is doing just this. Our participation as the lead sponsor of this conference is also indicative of our desire that knowledge of Best Practices should be disseminated and shared as widely as possible, so that in the end our country progresses and Pakistan's contribution to global prosperity is fully recognised.