Is Carlos Slim Really Committed to Corporate Social Responsibility?
February 9th, 2010He’s tied with Bill Gates for the title of the richest man on the planet. Carlos Slim Helú is perhaps the most famous—or infamous—man in Mexico. Yet few Americans have heard of him, let alone have much idea about the nature of his corporate empire, or how he created it.
For a portrait of this portly, 70-year-old son of Lebanese immigrants, there are a variety of popular opinions to draw from. On the one hand he’s the brilliant businessman and telephone tycoon poised to eclipse Gates on the Forbes list of the world’s most wealthy. Others see him as an opportunistic robber baron and crass monopolist who made his fortune thanks to political favors and weak government regulation. Lately, he has re-tooled his image, highlighting his humble immigrant roots and supposedly modest lifestyle, while also posing as a philanthropist alongside celebrities, from Bill Clinton to Colombian pop singer Shakira …
Call Centers in Dominican Republic Answer Call in Haiti
February 9th, 2010
“This is a non stop job and we are working with five organizations to make sure all the people are receiving our aid,” said Emma Castro, Site Administrator for Stream.
By Karina Cuevas
A large part of the Dominican Republic call center industry has stepped up in a wide variety of ways to help alleviate the terrible suffering in Haiti.
Many of the institutions began collecting monetary donations internally through their employees, while others have obtained in-kind goods to deliver in Haiti. “Right after the earthquake, a high sense of corporate responsibility kicked in,” said Kemil Carbuccia, Sales and Marketing Manager for Nearshore Call Center Services. We always try to contribute because there is a willingness to help the people in need.”
Nearshore Call Center Services has already made three trips to the devastated nation and is planning on a fourth one within the next two weeks. Employees have delivered medicine, food and clothing to various sectors in Haiti and despite their well intentioned efforts; it does not seem like enough.
“At the beginning it was traffic and logistics [that made it difficult to get to Haiti],” said Carbuccia. Everyone wants to help, but it’s hard to organize and try to get everyone what they need.”
A client company of Nearshore is providing space for storage and thanks to contacts in Haiti; the goods are being delivered from one community to another in a somewhat efficient manner despite the lack of security engulfing the country.
Corporate Social Responsibility has a “Permanent Place” in CALA Region
December 6th, 2009The 7th Inter-American Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility concluded late Thursday.
With a call for a broader commitment to social responsibility, not only from businesses but also from governments and civil society organizations.
More than 1,000 people attended the event, including 130 panelists and over 900 participants from 35 countries. The conference has become “the benchmark meeting on this topic in the region,” Inter-American Development Bank President Luis Alberto Moreno said at the opening of the conference on Wednesday.
Organized by the IDB’s Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), the two-day conference this year was co-sponsored by the Government of Uruguay and the business association DERES, comprising Uruguayan companies active in corporate social responsibility.
“A growth strategy based on enterprises that are successful in societies that aren’t cannot be sustained over the long term,” MIF General Manager Julie T. Katzman said at the closing ceremony. “In Latin America and the Caribbean,” she …
NARS (National Asset Recovery Services), a BPO provider which employs over 3,000 people in two US sites and also 
sites in Panama and Jamaica, has accepted a “significant investment” from a private equity firm with the intent of growing the accounts receivable management activities of NARS, according to an announcement from the company.
