With Profits on the Line, 95% of Companies Continued Investing in Corporate Responsibility. 26% Say They Can’t Measure Any Responsibility Outcomes.

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) NEW YORK, NY - April 29, 2010 - NYSE Euronext (NYX) and Corporate Responsibility Officers Association (CROA) released the results of a study they commissioned by SharedXpertise into the state of corporate responsibility. From surveys sent to companies listed on NYSE Euronext markets as well as other public and private companies globally, the more than 650 responses made this the largest sampling of corporate responsibility practices ever conducted. 

The study assesses how well companies measure and report the hard data of their corporate responsibility programs. With this study companies can compare how they structure, budget, and plan their governance, sustainability, human rights, employee relations, and philanthropic programs.   “For corporate responsibility to make a difference and continue to attract time and resources, these programs need to demonstrate results,” said Richard Crespin, Executive Director of the CROA. “Only by measuring and reporting hard data, will companies make a difference.”   Key findings of this broad sampling include:   31% of companies report corporate responsibility enhanced profitability. Apparently you can do well by doing good. Only 0.3% indicated it decreased profits. The other 68% said they can’t measure it.    26% can’t measure corporate responsibility outcomes. Although 60% of respondents can measure goals around Environment, Health, & Safety, nearly 1/3^rd can’t measure anything related to the corporate responsibility programs.   42% have a designated Corporate Responsibility Officer or similar senior executive in charge. 62% have a formal function and 52% have a dedicated budget.   67% have a product or service that relies on a corporate responsibility message. That means more products and services rely on corporate responsibility than the Good House Keeping Seal of Approval.   Less than 5% slashed budgets for corporate responsibility programs. With profits on the line during the “Great Recession” 57% held spending steady, 19% increased it, and 17% decreased it but in proportion with other budget cutting.    “The results of this survey clearly demonstrate the increasing importance and growing relevance of corporate responsibility among our listed companies and other issuers,” said Larry Leibowitz, Chief Operating Officer, NYSE Euronext. “It’s also significant that those surveyed recognize that CR impacts brand, reputation, business decisions, and the bottom line.”   SharedXpertise will conduct follow up interviews to gather more in-depth data and provide additional analysis for companies looking to improve. This year’s results present a baseline and they survey will be conducted annually to track change.   To download an Executive Summary of the report click here (http://www.croassociation.org/content/executive-summary-download).   About NYSE Euronext NYSE Euronext (NYX) is a leading global operator of financial markets and provider of innovative trading technologies.  The company's exchanges in Europe and the United States trade equities, futures, options, fixed-income and exchange-traded products.  With approximately 8,000 listed issues (excluding European Structured Products), NYSE Euronext's equities markets – the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Euronext, NYSE Amex, NYSE Alternext and NYSE Arca – represent one-third of the world's equities trading, the most liquidity of any global exchange group. NYSE Euronext also operates NYSE Liffe, one of the leading European derivatives businesses and the world's second-largest derivatives business by value of trading. The company offers comprehensive commercial technology, connectivity and market data products and services through NYSE Technologies. NYSE Euronext is in the S&P 500 index, and is the only exchange operator in the S&P 100 index and Fortune 500.  For more information, please visit: http://www.nyx.com.   About Corporate Responsibility Officers Association The Corporate Responsibility Officers Association (CROA) is the professional society for executives and other professionals working in corporate governance, sustainability, citizenship, and philanthropy. The Association’s mission is to advance the corporate responsibility profession. It accomplishes its mission through programs dedicated to professional development, individual certification, organizational accreditation, research, media, and public policy. CROA Committees steward the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List, serve as the Editorial Advisory Board of CR Magazine, set the CROA’s own research agenda, and help plan the CRO Summits. CROA members are drawn from large and mid-sized publicly traded and privately held companies, NGOs, governments, and academic institutions. For more information, please visit http://www.croassociation.org.   About SharedXpertise SharedXpertise Media (SharedXpertise) is a multi-media company working to improve responsible globalization. SharedXpertise focuses on the finance, human resources, and corporate responsibility fields. It manages the CROA (www.croassociation.org) and the HROA (www.hroa.org), publishes HRO Today, HRO Europe, FAO Today, and CR magazines, and programs the CRO Summits (www.crosummit.com) and HRO Summits (www.hrosummits.com). SharedXpertise is headquartered in Edison, NJ and has offices in Washington, DC, London, and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit http://www.sharedxpertise.com.   Media contacts: 
Meara Murphy, MS&L Worldwide, meara.murphy@mslworldwide.com, +1 617 369 8794  
Anne-Sophie Ribault, Chief Marketing Officer, SharedXpertise Media, anne-sophie.ribault@sharedxpertise.com, +1 973 698 4861.   CRO6397