• Global needs and pressures are changing with regards ethical practice requirements
• Current audit strategy is challenged to address longer term sustainable solutions to social problems experienced on farms and cellars
• A Pro-active remedy and support is required to develop ethical business sustainability

These pressures have necessitated a revitalized strategy that exceeds the current audit process .

The 5 ETHICAL SUPPORT PROGRAMMES aim towards reshaping the wine industry’s current precarious and commercially unsustainable reality towards a positive ethical profile and healthy social system that will significantly contribute to the wine industry’s commercial viability in future. It aims to empower, engage and elicit positive actions from all stakeholders. Each programme focuses on a crucial ethical reality that needs to be understood and sustainably addressed through combined efforts between all stakeholders involved.

1.Management systems:

WHAT is it?

A management system is a set of processes and practices to consistently implement a company’s policies to meet business objectives. The goal is to make sure that you have the appropriate policies and procedures in place and that people consistently follow them. The management system helps to assess and control your risks and is the key to lasting improvement. A key feature is the idea of continual improvement – an on-going process of reviewing, correcting and improving your system.

Any organisation needs to examine the existence and effectiveness of its management systems. If there are weaknesses or holes in your documented procedures, or benchmark measurements, then you will want to take corrective action. A management system is the framework of policies, processes and procedures used by any business to ensure that it can fulfill all the tasks required to achieve its objectives. Documented and tested step-by-step methods aimed at smooth functioning through standard practices.

Often missed when looking at this from a technical perspective is the people dynamic that has a major impact on the success of management systems. How a system is implemented is as crucial to its success  as understanding the ‘what it is’ and ‘why it is valuable’.  Buy-in, support and continuous use and improvement is effected by the human element; from the very highest to the lowest. If the seniors of the business don’t lead the rest of the team and manage it constantly it may very well be a paper exercise causing much frustration as the management system is then inefficient and cumbersome – these are the systemic factors

2.Social accountability systems: (incorporating systemic)

WHAT is it?

It is the measure of a business’s state of being mindful of the emerging social concerns and priorities of internal and external stakeholders (community, employees, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, management, and owners). It is reflected in the business’s verifiable commitment to certain factors (which may or may not be tied directly to its processes) such as

(1) willing compliance with employment, health and hygiene, safety, and environment laws,

(2) respect for basic civil and human rights, and

(3) betterment of community and surrounding.

Environmental and social responsibility is becoming more and more important in today’s global economy and a major risk factor for sustainable business opportunities in the wine and fruit industries.  There are thousands of environmental and social codes and standards in the world today, which can make it complicated at farms. At WIETA this is essentially embodied in the code of 10 principles. The codes and standards define the rules and the objectives.

A social compliance program is usually based on adherence to rules of social accountability, established by certified conformance to standards.

The challenge and opportunity is in the implementation: behaviours and culture. To combine the social responsibility into management systems allows for the social accountability to be elevated to a business requirement level to ensuring sustainable success through its effectives and its efficiency of the complicated technical business requirements. Again the HOW is important as leaders need to understand the business implications but also the moral implications and responsibilities if doing or not doing it correctly and how critical their positive leadership attitude is in the success

The SOLUTION on HOW to do it?

An environmental and social (ethical) management system/programme (ESMS):

This helps companies to integrate the ethical rules and objectives into core business operations, through a set of clearly defined, repeatable policies, processes and behaviours, aligned to ethical codes, making it truly ethical, systemically and systematically.

• • Ethical Risk and Remedy Consulting Service to Cellars: Initiated by WIETA or Cellar and facilitated through the Risk and Remedy consulting process
  • Referral through the supply chain: WIETA to engage in a Risk and Remedy consultation with site/area/producer
  • Direct approach by Cellar/Produce due to a need/gap identified: This could be done pre or post audits and the Risk and Remedy Consultant service facilitates the process
  • Awareness through the WIETA Communication and Connect platforms: Through awareness the Risk and Remedy consulting process facilitates the next steps
  • External Consulting to the Supply chain/ Cellars: Consultants used by Cellars and Supply chain that apply their own consulting process and encourage their clients to engage with the relevant Ethical Support programs as part of their process contact the Risk and Remedy consultants to discuss most appropriate programs or components thereof
  • The WIETA Website: Members are guided towards engaging with the Risk and Remedy process, either internally with WIETA consultants or with their own external (WIETA accredited consultants)
  • Referral to producer/cellar: by another WIETA client re the Risk and Remedy consulting process and the impact of the Social systems on their farm

Click here to make contact with the WIETA Risk and Remedy Consultants.

Coach detail: The coaching journey proposes to create a stimulating and continuous conversation to empower the person being coached to find their own solutions and actions to their own challenges and opportunities. A coach is deliberately not part of the close community in order to stay objective and comes with knowledge of all areas that the coacheè needs to master and engage in for a sustainable ethical work environment

Coaching principles:

G – what goals do the managers wish to achieve on the farm/workplace

R – what realities are at play that could assist or block achieving the goals that will need to be addressed?

O – Options speak to what and how these realities need to be prioritised, addressed and achieved

W – which steps and actions must be taken to move close to the goals?

Mentor detail: Using local and relevant industry expertise a mentor will be identified that can guide and share their successful experiences from similar type environments and will journey with the manager/incumbent during their ethical journey towards identifying and achieving their own success, mentors are sharing and guiding the processes and procedures that work and how ethical is integrated into running the business

The mentorship proposes to create a safe and trusting space where real experiences can be shared, adjusted and used to apply within the mentee’s reality and will be identified through their Wieta membership – A certification and geographical location is taken into account.

AT CLIENT:

Cellar /Producers: This may vary depending the size and the initial consultation process identifying the role-players on site.

• Supply chain contact – to support the process (if applicable)
• Owner/Producer – to attend/lead and support the process depending current and new systems on the farm
• Manager/s identified on farm – to attend /to lead and manage the implement of the process could be same as Producer role depending size and systems on the farm
• Supervisor/s identified on farm – to attend/ manage and support the process depending systems on the farm
• Farm workers – to attend the process
• External Consultant to client – to support the process and assist with implementation from client’s perspective (if applicable)