PwC Malaysia’s Building Trust Awards 2017

Announcing the 20 finalists

KUALA LUMPUR, 5 May 2017 – PwC Malaysia’s Building Trust Awards returns on 6 September 2017 to recognise Malaysian companies that are making efforts to build trust. This is the second time PwC is organising these Awards. 

Conceived in 2015 with the inaugural Awards, the Building Trust Awards assesses how companies perform in their corporate reporting as well as how they are perceived in the eyes of their stakeholders (for instance, their customers and investors). The Awards are the first in Malaysia to employ a distinctive way of measuring trust, beyond the financials of the companies assessed.

The 20 finalists are:

The winning companies will be unveiled at the Awards Ceremony on 6 September 2017 in Kuala Lumpur. 

Sridharan (Sri) Nair, PwC Malaysia Managing Partner said:
“The Building Trust Awards 2017 reinforces our belief that in this climate of diminished trust[1], there is a real opportunity for Malaysian businesses to take the lead in rebuilding some of that trust. After all, businesses drive economic growth, create employment, and reach a far-ranging, global network of customers and stakeholders - they are well placed to inspire trust.

The Awards are also a way for PwC to stay true to our purpose which is ‘To build trust in society and solve important problems’. We feel this is one avenue for us to heighten the conversation on trust, and to encourage companies to make trust building a priority in business.  Finally, we believe that although trust is often viewed as an intangible concept, it is indeed measurable, and can be a real asset to business to enhance financial performance, build stakeholder confidence and enhance resilience in these volatile times.”

The Building Trust Awards are not based on nominations or submissions by the companies. A unique feature of the Awards, is that companies are selected both by what they say about themselves (via their reporting) and the public perception of their effort. See visual for more details.

Sri continued:
“The public perception portion of our methodology validates what the companies say about their own efforts via their reporting. It holds a mirror up to reveal how they are viewed externally by wider society, which ensures the continued existence of business.

Our Awards are grounded in our belief that trust building is an ongoing journey, one that will continually test the resilience of companies as they work to earn and retain the trust of their stakeholders amidst an evolving business landscape.

For this reason, winning these Awards does not imply that these companies are the most trustworthy or that they are better trusted than other companies in Malaysia. Instead these are the companies that we believe are making the most attempts to build trust with their key stakeholders.”

 The general public are encouraged to take part in the public poll, which allows them to have a say in determining the companies that have made the most efforts in building trust. The poll can be accessed here: http://bit.ly/btapoll2017

The results of the poll and the other parts of the assessment will be shared with an independent judging panel who make the decision on the final winners. The judges are:

• Sir David Tweedie (Chairman, Board of Trustees, International Valuation Standards Council; Past Chairman, International Accounting Standards Board);
• Yang Berbahagia Tan Sri Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz (Former Governor, Central Bank of Malaysia; current Co-Chair Board of Governors, Asia School of Business)
• Yang Berbahagia Tan Sri Dr. Jemilah Mahmood (Under Secretary General, Partnerships, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies);
• Mr. Faris H. Hadad-Zervos (Country Manager, Malaysia, The World Bank)

Sir David Tweedie, one of the Judges for the Awards, said:
“I am pleased to support PwC’s Building Trust Awards once again as a Judge. The Awards present an exciting opportunity for PwC to shape the conversation on trust in Corporate Malaysia. It will be interesting to see the private sector rise to the challenge in setting the standard for trust in business through their behaviours and their values, as well as the actions of business leaders.

I am looking forward to a fruitful discourse with my fellow judges in discussing and deliberating the winning companies at the Judges Meeting. The Awards methodology is a holistic way of looking at how companies are making strides to build trust, from the companies’ point of view via their corporate reporting, and what the outside world perceives of them on digital platforms, supplemented by a poll of the public’s views of the finalists. 

I am very encouraged by PwC’s efforts to build on their existing body of research, by having conversations with various stakeholders – business leaders, young professionals, students and the wider public – as part of their larger Building Trust programme. This demonstrates that the trust agenda has grown beyond just the Awards, shaping how the wider society views trust as an important asset to business that can be both managed and protected in these extraordinary times.”

ENDS