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Customer experience Updated: 19 Dec 2017

BBVA makes a positive balance of the measurement of the CSR programs’ social and financial value

The measurement of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives and programs is acquiring an increasing relevance in companies. For the last four years, BBVA has been using the rsc2 methodology, proposed by McKinsey and developed in Spain with the Seres Foundation, to measure the social and financial impact of its actions in this field. The results of applying this methodology is revealing very valuable information to better manage these actions and contribute to them really being sustainable.

BBVA needed to use a reliable methodology to measure its social and financial impact to make informed decisions about the continuity of the projects and resources that needed to be provided. In this sense, it opted for the rsc2 methodology because it’s a way of measuring the impact that encourages dialogue between all the units in a company. “The transversality required by this kind of exercise means that, each from their own perspective, time is taken to assess how and in what way the results of these projects have an impact on activity”, explains Emilio Martín-More, director of Reporting and Responsible Business at BBVA in an article about this matter for the Seres Foundation blog.

The methodology began to be applied before the “social balance”. Better to put “In line with this doubt, BBVA has made an effort to try and explain what its influence is on society using indicators that are understandable for everyone and translating, as far as possible, euros to people. Proof of this is its “Social Impact Report”, which shows a series of impact data (loans, renegotiations, credit granted, houses financed, etc.) that is published on the website.

Positive impact in and outside the company

The rsc2 methodology was first used with one of the bank’s projects that has one of the greatest social repercussions: the “Yo Soy Empleo” (I am Employment) program, through which BBVA has invested 26 million euros in financial aid for hiring unemployed people. Contact with the group’s different departments to apply this methodology favored a greater integration and understanding of CSR within the organization. Following this experience, the preliminary results showed that through responsible actions, a shared value is generated for all parties.

Other projects that have applied the rsc2 methodology have been; the scholarship and prevention of school dropouts program of BBVA Bancomer, “Por los que se quedan”, “ (For those left behind) TCR Communication” (Transparent, Clear and Responsible) and the BBVA Financial Education program. In all cases, the aim is to identify the most representative impact indicators that these programs have for BBVA. To do so, it searches for the representative metrics of the three dimensions provided by the tool (growth, return on capital and risk management) and the different levers that can be put into action to create value.

The use of rsc2 has confirmed that the initiatives designed to have a positive impact on people and additionally report value for the BBVA business . From a greater perception and recommendation of clients to a greater efficiency in commercial dialogue, development of new products, improved reputation and relationship with the regulator and increased motivation among employees, including others.