Social Risk Management and its Implications on the ESG Agenda: An Analysis of the Banking Sector in Brazil

Abstract

Purpose: Inquiring how the practices of the social dimension of the ISE-B3 relate to the ESG agenda and what they represent for the social issue, the study assessed the social sustainability practices regarding social and labor relations of four banks listed in the ISE-B3 portfolio. Method/design/approach: As an exploratory study, the research applied a documentary analysis to the social dimension of the ISE-B3, delimiting itself to four companies from the banking sector in Brazil, in the last four portfolios published. Considering 165 selected questions, we opted for a statistical percentage treatment that expresses the company commitment index on social sustainability inquired in the questionnaires. Results and conclusion: The data indicate that the four companies express a commitment index ranging between 74% and 89%, which is considered a significant level. However, the data also indicate that social sustainability is more focused on social risks, which represent a threat to business value, than on the social impacts on the publics affected by the company operations. Research implications: The study can contribute to a better understanding of the challenges of addressing the social dimension of sustainability in the face of the interest in making the business an economically attractive investment in an essentially economic business model. Originality/value: The study can contribute to new perspectives for developing Corporate Social Responsibility models, so that social indicators can be directed to the impacts on the target publics.