28 August 2020
- Interview with Mónica Malo, Director of Communications, External Relations and Sustainability at Cecabank
Cecabank, a wholesale bank with innovative proposals and committed to excellence, has been a finalist for its Tú Eliges project, awarded by the Dircom Ramón del Corral Awards 2020.
To this end, we interviewed Mónica Malo, Director of Communications, External Relations and Sustainability at Cecabank, who recounts how this project, a finalist at these awards, recognises the work and solidarity of all the company's employees, as well as being an incentive to continue to advance towards being a socially responsible company.
The Director of Communications, External Relations and Sustainability at Cecabank has explained that the wholesale nature of Cecabank's business determines its Sustainability Plan and defines its scope. The lines of activity reflected in the plan are: culture and identity; human capital; good governance; transparency and innovation in the commercial offer. Furthermore, the financial institution is committed to tackling climate change and is aware of the importance of participating in the fight to curb greenhouse gases, reducing its Carbon Footprint by 71%.
What has it meant to Cecabank to be honoured for its 'Tú eliges' project by the 2020 Dircom Ramón del Corral Awards ?
For Cecabank, being a finalist at the Dircom Ramón del Corral Awards represents a recognition of the work and solidarity of all those who are part of the company, especially those employees who propose and decide which projects receive the funds. It is a great incentive to continue to advance and improve our commitment to being a socially responsible company.
Tell us about the 'Tú Eliges' project. How did it originate?
Six years ago we decided to create the Tú Eliges programme, which is part of our Social Action Plan, integrated within Cecabank's Sustainability Policy. From the very beginning we have worked towards having a transparent and participatory Plan and Policy, in which the employees themselves proposed projects with which they had some type of connection or felt more identified, and where they had the final say in choosing the end use of the available resources.
Cecabank finances this programme with a total of 100,000 euros, which will be distributed among the 15 finalists that are selected in a voting process open to all employees. During the voting period, the entire workforce can use the website established to this end to allocate their '100 social coins' to those projects with which they feel most identified. Thus, in 2019, a total of 26 social, cultural and environmental projects were presented, in which 88.75% of Cecabank's employees participated.
Faced with the health crisis caused by COVID-19, what measures or containment and/or safety plan have been adopted by Cecabank to address the impact generated by COVID-19, especially within the financial sector?
At Cecabank we have a very solid governance structure that means that we have well-defined continuity and contingency plans that prepare us to tackle these types of situations. From the end of February we began to closely monitor the evolution of the pandemic to analyse possible impacts and adapt our protocols to this situation. This responsiveness allowed us to anticipate events, activating our contingency plan before the state alarm was declared. In mid-March, we had over 95 per cent of the workforce working remotely.
Cecabank's priority was to preserve the health of employees and their families, while continuing to provide quality service to our customers. To reconcile all this, enormous effort and dedication was required from the entire team, with planning and technological adaptation playing a key role throughout this process.
From then on there was a period of remote working, with intense activity, where the bank continued with its normal operations and was able to reach several milestones, such as the strategic agreement entered into with Bankia in the field of Securities Services.
At the end of April work began on a De-escalation Plan, which has resulted in a series of prevention, containment and culture measures that ensure a safe return for our employees, who continue with the premise of maintaining the quality of our service.
What solidarity initiatives have been undertaken by Cecabank and the financial sector to alleviate the effects of this health crisis?
From the start of the pandemic the bank's employees have shown a strong interest in pursuing some sort of solidarity initiative to mitigate the effects of the pandemic. This led us to implement a donation programme that collaborated with the initiative #CruzRojaresponde, which raised a total of €55,000.
Additionally, we remotely organised the sixth edition of the Tú Eliges project, in which employees were able to propose donations that they considered to be of interest in the current context. Once again this year, 100,000 euros have been allocated to social, cultural and environmental projects.
The financial sector, and in particular CECA's institutions, have implemented a wide range of measures to meet the needs of families and companies, especially those most affected by the pandemic.
I would like to highlight the excellent work undertaken by the branch professionals, who provided all the services demanded by customers during the confinement period. CECA's credit institutions, which total 10,804 branches, have kept approximately 90% of these offices open in these adverse conditions, to be close to customers in times of great uncertainty for all. At the same time, remote channels have been reinforced to prevent unnecessary commuting and preserve what is most important in this situation, the health of all, customers and employees.
During the pandemic, the banking sector has positioned itself alongside the most needy, providing the necessary support to mitigate the effects that the drastic halt in activity has had on families, self-employed workers and companies.
As an example, loan and credit moratoriums are being granted to people who have been affected by the halt in activity or either have suffered an ERTE, and these have recently been extended until 29 September. Until mid-June, CECA's institutions have granted 359,017 loan moratorium transactions for a total amount of €17,014 million.
Furthermore, financial institutions are channelling the guarantees of the ICO programme, initially endowed with €100,000 million, to preserve the liquidity of companies and self-employed workers. Until 15 May, CECA's banks and savings banks had granted a total of 190,491 transactions for an amount of €21,636 million.
More than 6 million payments corresponding to unemployment benefits have been advanced and a little more than 11 million pensions have been advanced.
I would also like to highlight the fundamental role played by the Social Action Programmes of CECA's foundations throughout the entire country, which offer emergency solutions to meet the most basic needs. Overall, over €135 million have been allocated during this crisis.
How has the CSR and sustainability strategy of Cecabank evolved over the last few years to the present day? What are its main lines of action?
The wholesale nature of Cecabank's business determines its Sustainability Plan and defines its scope. This plan was triggered by a materiality analysis that highlighted aspects related to governance and risks as those most relevant to the bank. The lines of activity reflected in the plan are as follows: 1) culture and identity, 2) human capital, 3) good governance; 4) transparency; and 5) innovation in the commercial offer. From here, we are evolving towards an ESG approach.
What is the role of CSR communication and responsible communication?
"How we say things reflects how we think things", thus communication plays an increasingly relevant role within our organisations. This is the tool that allows us to be aware of and inform our stakeholders of the actions and initiatives that we are undertaking as a company. Specifically, it helps to assimilate and transmit the purpose of the organisation.
How are you fostering communication and dialogue with stakeholders at Cecabank, how is it being implemented, and what are the main best practices that you would highlight?,
When faced with challenges such as the current pandemic, one of the best tools is to increase the intensity of communication and dialogue with stakeholders. Maintaining close contact with customers, employees, the Board of Directors, authorities and suppliers enables faster and more efficient adaptation to complex contexts such as the one we are currently experiencing.
For this dialogue to work well during stressful times, a consolidated habit of communication must previously exist, and this is developed on a day-to-day basis.
To illustrate one of our best practices, I would highlight how we fulfil our mission of being a specialised partner and establishing lasting relationships with our customers. To this end, we are on a path of constant improvement where, for years, we have been working with different agile methodologies that allow us to communicate and dialogue with customers and measure our entire evolution.
Finally, what are the challenges and hurdles faced by your organisation with regard to CSR and sustainability? How do you intend to overcome these?
Cecabank, as a key part of the financial sector, is well aware of the role it must play in fostering sustainable finance. To this end, it forms part of the FINRESP initiative, the Centre for Responsible and Sustainable Finance, promoted by Spain's main financial associations, CECA, AEB, INVERCO, UNACC and UNESPA.
Cecabank, like the rest of the sector, is adapting to all regulatory requirements that are being implemented both at European and national level. We also participate in different international initiatives, such as the Global Compact, through the Sustainable Development Goals.
In December 2019, during the COP25 event held in Madrid, Cecabank joined the 'Collective Commitment to Climate Action' promoted by the UNEP FI, in which we undertook the commitment to reduce the carbon footprint in our balance sheets, in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
In this regard, at Cecabank we are aware of our responsibility to climate change and the importance of participating in the fight to curb greenhouse gases. For this reason, Cecabank has reduced its Carbon Footprint by 71 per cent, and we are working on the implementation of awareness-raising, reduction and compensation measures that allow us to be Carbon Neutral.
Our Board of Directors recently approved to initiate proceedings to join the Green Recovery Alliance, an initiative promoted by Pascal Canfin, chairman of the European Parliament's Environment Committee, which pursues a major global agreement to end the pandemic and foster sustainable economic recovery.
