Background of the Deignan Award for Responsible Entrepreneurship

Young and dedicated Alfred Deignan S.J. was sent to Hong Kong by the Society of Jesus in 1953. Culturally shaken but not broken he first learned Cantonese in Cheung Chau for two years. Between 1968 and 1992 Father Deignan served as Principal for the Wah Yan Colleges Hong Kong and Kowloon. Education as passion gave him the highest satisfaction: through education to teach students to learn to be good people, to be caring and responsible, to understand what is love and to be able to put others’ interest before their own. In order to enhance moral education and values education he set up with Andrew So and a group of friends the Hong Kong International Institute of Educational Leadership. As Fr Deignan was disappointed by the mere lip service some business people did pay to business ethics he also strongly supported the efforts of the Association of International Business Ethics founded by Andrew So, Fr. Stephan Rothlin SJ in order to promote business ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility and Responsible Entrepreneurship in Hong Kong and beyond.

The Passion of Educating Future Leaders 

 In the teaching of Alfred Deignan corporate good leadership is based on serving leadership which is “offering love and care to others, freely and earnestly. When we serve people, we do it out of love. Friends love one another for the personal qualities. Compassion and generosity unite us as a human family of brother and sisters, caring for each other. This makes us good and noble people. There is an inner joy in giving and helping”. (Wong 2019, 46)

“Self-Discipline is being aware of and practicing behaviour that is acceptable to the community. In addition, the person endeavours to resist temptation, and even foregoes personal interest for common good.” (p.45)

“Honesty is uprightness and fairness. What sense does it make if we stand in front of people saying things which are pleasing to their ears, yet deceiving to their hearts?” (p.41) “Honesty – Congruent with what one holds in his/her heart and mind, and what he/she expresses.” (p.41)

Making Leadership Real: Are CSR Or ESG Just Empty Words?  

There has been a leap forward in the attention of the business world and business schools to ethics, corporate accountability, and the new buzzword E.S.G. , i.e. environment, social, governance performance. Different media report that courses on ethics and ESG are proliferating rapidly, driven in part by the demands of MBA students, and partly by crises over climate change, massive ongoing corruption cases and corporate purpose. Companies seem now to genuinely encouraging these initiatives. Any business school which does not take significant steps now to add courses and co-curricular work on ethics will fall quickly behind. 

Quotes are taken by the book “Teaching and Advice of Father Alfred J. Deignan S.J.” by Wong Wing Chen Janet, Hong Kong, 2019

Panel Discussion 

9 companies from Macau and 20 from Hong Kong did successfully apply for the First Deignan Award for Responsible Entrepreneurship. The panel reunites Judges of the First Deignan Award from Macau so that the participants of the award and the broader public in Macau have the chance to meet those people who will pick the best small and medium sized company based on a set of criteria which has been developed by the Macau Institute for Corporate Social Responsibility in Greater China, MICSRGC.

The main questions of the podium will focus on the following issues:

• How to recognize a good leader?
• How can educational institutions and the media foster good leadership?
• Has there be any progress in CSR and ESG in Macau and in Hong Kong in the last couple of years or does it basically still just boil down to wishful thinking and empty words?
• What are the key issues of CSR in Macau? What are the main obstacles?
• Can an award contribute to the progress of “good business”?
• What makes the First Deignan Award special among other CSR awards?