UWL RAK, the only branch campus of UWL UK in the Middle East is moving towards the Corporate Citizenship goal in the next five years. Started in 2018 with a few students and two academic programs, it has grown into a much bigger campus with multiple academic programs and several hundred students within four years.
Simply speaking, Corporate Citizenship is a business entity’s responsibilities to its stakeholders (direct and indirect). In order to be sustainable in the emerging competitive world, a business entity has to deliver economic and financial values to all its stakeholders and social, cultural and environmental responsibilities to the community wherein it seeks a license to operate. It focuses on addressing issues that have a significant impact on our future such as climate, water shortage, poverty etc. This is in line with John Elkington’s Triple Bottom Line model of corporate performance.
The most successful businesses establish a strong foundation for Corporate Citizenship. They show commitment to ethical behavior by maintaining a balance between the needs of the investors and the needs of the community. Such practices integrate consumers, and the society into one system and establish brand and corporate loyalty. This requires a strong understanding of community needs and dedication to incorporate citizenship within the culture and the structure of the entity. In the words of Jamsetji Tata, the founder of Tata Group in India, “In a free enterprise, the community is not just another stakeholder in our business, but it is in fact, the very purpose of its existence”. Though the concept of corporate citizenship is an age-old one it is gaining more significance in the emerging market. This involves five stages through which a business entity passes through such as elementary, engaged, innovative, integration and transformation.
UWL RAK has completed the first two stages of the corporate citizenship ladder and now is in the third stage. We have identified the citizenship policies and are in the process of integrating them into our system. We believe that UWL RAK will be able to achieve it in the specified time frame. Our Board of directors, top management and everyone at the middle and lower levels of the organization is working hard to give our students an experience on par with UK at a lower cost, in line with achieving our citizenship goal.
