Sustainability manager appointment ensures a greener and more community focused CUA
Newly appointed CUA (Credit Union Australia) Manager – Sustainability Michael Roberts’ main goals will be to ensure environment and community are fully integrated into the credit union’s business model.
With his previous experience in positions including Deputy Ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD); Chairman of the OECD Export Credit Group; Australia’s Representative to the Paris Club, dealing with international debt management; and a strong background in the public sector, Mr Roberts said he was adapting quickly to his new position at CUA.
“My finance and public sector experience has helped me build on my strengths of policy advice, communication skills, change management, analytical research, attention to detail and organisational planning, which all play a part in my new role at CUA,” he said.
“Corporate sustainability is a deliberate inclusion of public interest issues into the corporate decision making so that business decisions are not based solely on profit but also on people and planet.
“That’s why corporate sustainability works so well within CUA – our credit union’s core values include having a community and member focus in all decision making.
“In fact CUA has put a lot of investment into the community side of things such as localised philanthropic donations, support of the RSPCA and our partnership with Relationships Australia.
“My job will be to introduce corporate sustainability in a structured sense and ensure it becomes part of the very framework of CUA – in other words something very organic.”
Mr Roberts said he had always had a strong interest in sustainability.
“My background is mainly in government and policy work, although I have been working horticulture for the past four years, and I have always had a passion for sustainability, which is why I chose to take on my new role at CUA.”
Mr Roberts said a challenge he felt most organisations faced, particularly during the current economic climate, was maintaining their corporate sustainability focus.
“All financial institutions are grappling with the economic crisis and while some people will argue it’s a time to focus only on your core business, my opinion is that going forward it’s important to make corporate sustainability a normal part of ‘doing business’.
“That means according your organisation’s vision with the people and stakeholders you support so that even when hard times hit, you are still making the right decisions that will benefit the company, community and planet.”
