Skip to main content Skip to footer
Responsible Business

Creating new value: Our impact in the UK and beyond

The way we think about impact is changing. As the world awakens to the urgent need for responsible, sustainable growth, new ideas and new ways of thinking are absolutely vital. It’s never been more important to combine human ingenuity and the power of technology. By doing so, we can create solutions that drive lasting positive change and create value in line with our values.

We’re in a phase of compressed transformation, where speed is key and businesses are racing to reinvent themselves. But the biggest challenges ahead of us, like climate change, are also becoming more urgent all the time. So in order to create long-term value, we need to drive rapid change with sustainability at its heart.

"Together, we must find the right balance; creating new opportunities for growth, while rejecting trade-offs in sustainability."

— SIMON EAVES, Market Unit Lead, U.K. and Ireland

When we talk about building a sustainable future, we mean it in the broadest sense, encompassing equality, the economy and the environment. We’re acting on our sustainability commitments by building the most inclusive organisation in the world, closing the digital skills gap, accelerating decarbonisation, and contributing to a nature-positive future.

The challenges that the world faces be they economic, environmental or societal – will only be overcome by people and technology working in harmony. Now is the time to think differently, act boldly and reach new levels of collaboration. Together, we must find the right balance; creating new opportunities for growth, while rejecting trade-offs in sustainability. That’s what we mean by 360° value.

— Simon Eaves, Market Unit Lead, U.K. and Ireland

Delivering 360° Value

Traditionally, creating value in a business meant increasing growth, efficiency and productivity. Tomorrow’s businesses will deliver all that and more; considering carefully the value they deliver to—and the impact they have on—their people, customers, shareholders, partners, communities and the wider world.

When our work benefits all these stakeholders, we call this 360° value. Our new strategy is to deliver 360° value by embracing change.

There are many challenges ahead. But there are even more opportunities. For instance, growing your business is an opportunity to be more diverse. And being more diverse powers innovation and performance. A discussion around productivity can become a conversation about employee well-being, driving engagement and retention. Efficiency is a framework for managing resources more sustainably. And Accenture’s circular economy research tells us that eliminating waste has the potential to unlock 4.5 trillion dollars in value by 2030.

Growing a culture of responsible leadership

Our ethical culture drives our growth and sets us apart from the competition. Steadfast commitment to ethics, human rights and strong corporate governance safeguards our people, clients, brand and financial performance. It’s how we build trust and long-term relationships with clients and communities around the world. Read more.

Our people live our core values, using our governance structure and Code of Business Ethics to guide them. In today’s environment, we must go beyond compliance. We innovate with a view to delivering 360° value by using our understanding of technology and its impact on people to develop inclusive, responsible and sustainable solutions to complex business challenges.

As we mitigate the far-reaching impacts of COVID-19, and realise our global interconnectedness like never before, we are committed to taking action in support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Through an initiative called SDG Ambition, we challenge businesses to use technology and human ingenuity for good, and scale impact for the 17 sustainable development goals.

We achieve this by

Culture

Establishing an empowering culture that engages and rewards those who excel at balancing value (business imperatives) and core values (what we believe in).

Training

Equipping all our people with the skills to innovate, design and deliver while considering and evaluating the wider impact of our work.

Value drivers

Identifying additional value drivers and striving to innovate so our solutions enhance positive outcomes.

Making powerful tech ethical by design

Accenture’s Global Data Science Lead, Fernando Lucini, says there are clear steps for ensuring organisations adopt AI in a responsible way.

READ MORE

More stories

Creating new MSc Responsible Data Science Degree

Accenture and the University of Birmingham created a degree focused on responsible use and limits of AI and data-driven decision-making. Read more.

Inclusive technology

Our research shows how tech can be used to reduce food waste, traffic collisions and type-2 diabetes—unlocking massive social and economic value. Read more.

Get the essentials

Download report

30 minute read

Our Impact Slideshare

A presentation version of the 2021 report

VIEW

The statistics within this report are subject to change and will be updated on a bi-annual basis.

Short on time

10 minute read

Impact at a glance

An infographic capturing 2021 impact highlights

View
Stay in the know with our newsletter
Subscribe
Follow us: