Jordan Ahli Bank issues its 4th Corporate Responsibility Report

Jordan Ahli Bank recently issued the second edition of its Corporate Responsibility Report (CSR), reflecting its achievements in the operational year of 2012.

Although Jordan Ahli Bank has actively issued annual reports for its CR programs and activities in previous years (2011, 2010, 2009), this report is the first to be issued by the bank based on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sustainability reporting guidelines, and specifically the G3.1 guidelines, covering its business operations within the boundaries of its Jordan branches for the year 2012.

"We give high importance to such a standardized reporting approach as it will help us benchmark our progress in the years to come while also enabling our stakeholders to review and compare our CR performance in the years that passed", said H.E. Dr. Rajai Muasher, Chairman of Jordan Ahli Bank Board of Directors “Thisreview process involvedengagement with our key stakeholders with aims to better understand their interests, concerns, and future expectations. On this occasion, we realize the importance of playing a responsible role towards our people and our society, but that doesn’t stop there, as it is part of our responsibility to demonstrate such efforts and to accurately report them as a progressive act aimed at inspiring further impact and value”.

The report offers an in-depth look at the bank’s internal and external developments pertaining to all areas of its operations whether economic, environmental, or social. It also sheds light on its strategy for long term corporate sustainability by listing such developments and consequentlytranscending its financial role to become a leading financial institution that is socially responsible, economically empowering, and environmentally friendly.

The content of the report reflects a new forward looking CR strategy for "a bank that aims at enabling a better economy" through revamped CR direction and focus areas that align with its vision and business strategies for the years to come.

H.E. Dr. Rajai Muasher further explained that the report manifests the bank’s belief in the importance of aligning its commitments to the economy with those it makes to the community at large. From another angle, it also represents the bank’s distinct style of corporate governance, a style built on the attributes of responsibility, transparency, and professionalism, as such values from the cornerstone of the bank’s distinct corporate identity.

In 2012, Jordan Ahli Bank, in cooperation with a leading sustainability advisory firm, Schema, went through a thorough assessment of its CR activities in the past years, as well as a review of its stakeholders' needs and interests. The result was the recognition that the bank's CR activities could be shaped and directed differently to achieve more substantial impact on sustainable development, as well as the bank’s business, while meeting stakeholders' interest and expectations. As such, this report was structured with the new strategy and direction in mind, so as to provide benchmarks for efficient CR assessment by the end of the year 2013 after launching and implementation of the new strategy.

The report was compiled based on three focus areas: Walking the Talk; Responsible Banking; and Local Socio-Economic Development. The first focus area mainly taps into the bank’s financial and non-financial practices, its relationship with its clients, operational efficiency, human resource development through incentives and the team’s involvement in CR initiatives , the bank’s involvement in the local community , and last but not least its green practices .

Consequently, it showed that the bank had also achieved and maintained the highest levels of customer satisfaction on account of its diversified service offerings and its credit facilities, with the latter registering a 15.2% growth.In the field of HR development, the bank had reported a significant contribution to the local employment force, employing a total of 1,311 full time employees, 59% males and 41% females. Furthermore, it provided 394 training workshops, with a 5,212 training opportunities, and 2,900 team members participated in 17 of its CR initiatives 2012, in comparison to 1,900 in 11 CR initiatives in 2011.

 The bank was also able to report further success on the operational front, with a 15% decrease in operational costs when compared to figures from the previous year, and more specifically a 16% drop in its water bill when compared to corresponding figures from the year 2011, and a 12% decrease in administrative costs from 2011, due to better management of waste through recycling alongside a reduction in logistics expenses and operational automation.

On the CSR level the bank recorded an investment of JD 410,923 for the year 2012, alongsidea sum of JD 92,835 allocated for the support of local initiatives that adopt social and economical causes benefiting the community.

It is worth noting that the bank recruited for the first time this year, a Corporate Responsibility Reporting Manager. Within this newly assigned post the bank oversees the proper allocation of resources, strategic planning, and sound implementation for its Corporate Responsibility related initiatives with future plans for its Corporate Responsibility reports to serve as a force of encouragement for further development and growth.