Thomas Cook Group : Allocating responsibilities

Profiling conventions convey authority.

The Site

Thomas Cook Group, a leading international leisure travel operator, shows commitment through its people.

Thomas Cook Group highlights its management of corporate responsibility within the business on a CSR (corporate social responsibility) microsite reached from a ‘Full CSR Report’ link on the group site. One of the dedicated site’s three main sections is Sustainability team, which consists of an overview, Managing CSR, and profiles of six managers all indexed in the left-hand navigation. Each profile includes an outline of the individual’s role and professional experience, a quote on their perspective on the issues involved and some personal background. Two of the six are also photographed.

Managing CSR includes an organogram showing the team’s reporting structure. Both it and the section’s introduction page have right-hand links to related topics such as ‘How CSR fits into our corporate governance’ and various ‘policies and performance’ in the reporting section.

The Takeaway

Despite the widespread coverage of corporate responsibility issues on company and organisation websites, the citing of any named individuals in relation to the implementation and management of practices and strategy is a rarity. But beyond that, in the way it goes about introducing its sustainability team Thomas Cook reinforces the message they all hope to send out, which is that this is a serious element of how the business is run.

It’s not just the identifying of managers that makes the point but, more significantly, the manner of presentation, which mirrors that normally accorded to – and associated with –only the directors and executive committee. Allied to the use of related links to aspects of strategy and performance, it fulfils a far weightier task than do the occasional introductions of investor or media relations team contacts.

First published on 06 October, 2009