Two Bentley professors have been honored as “Pioneers” by the United Nations Global Compact for their work to develop responsible leaders.
Anthony Buono and Patricia Flynn were recognized by the U.N. Global Compact’s Principles for Responsible Management Education, known as “PRME,” an effort between the United Nations and business schools to combine business and management education with economic and environmental sustainability, inclusivity, gender equality, and responsible corporate citizenship.
Buono, Professor of Management and Sociology, was named a Pioneer in the “Inspirations and New Opportunities” category. Flynn, Trustee Professor of Economics and Management, was honored for her work in “Thought Leadership -Translating PRME Into Action.”
Bentley joined the U.N. Global Compact and signed on to the Principles for Responsible Management Education in 2007, at their inception. Advancing the PRME is a priority for The Bentley Alliance for Ethics and Social Responsibility, which Buono founded and directed from 2003-2013. (You can read more about Professor Flynn’s Principles for Responsible Management Education efforts here.) Bentley issues reports on its implementation of the Principles for Responsible Management Education through its U.N. Global Compact Academic Network.
Each year, Bentley also hosts an annual Global Business Ethics Symposium, a forum for academics, civil society practitioners and corporate executives to exchange ideas and challenges on ethical issues.
Combining Business and Values
The Principles for Responsible Management Education were developed by an international task force of 60 deans, university presidents and representatives of business schools and academic institutions. As then-U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, “The Principles for Responsible Management Education have the capacity to take the case for universal values and business into classrooms on every continent.”
Bentley’s commitment to the Principles for Responsible Management Education includes curriculum development, faculty research and teaching, and its own operations as an institution. As President Gloria Cordes Larson said in Bentley’s latest PRME report, “Bentley is committed to innovative pedagogy and research focused on responsible management practice, embedding this focus throughout the curriculum and our research agenda, and instilling these ideals through our campus community.”
Buono and Flynn were honored at a July gathering of United Nations officials, academic deans, business executives, faculty, students and other stakeholders that marked the 10th anniversary of the Principles for Responsible Management Education. The event thanked 19 people “who have been key drivers of PRME’s growth and engagement during its 10 year history.”