12.14.2004 ET

(CSRwire) SAN FRANCISCO - Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) announced today the appointment of Eric Olson and Geir Westgaard to fill two newly-created Vice President posts.

The role of Vice President, Advisory Services will be assumed by Eric Olson. Olson comes to the position with eleven years of work in the consulting field, most recently as Vice President, Advisory Services, with The Natural Step in San Francisco, where he led that organization's work to deliver advice and counsel to a broad range of companies on sustainability matters. Olson previously served as a Vice President at the Boston Consulting Group, and was a Partner and Founding Member of the Mitchell Madison Group, a consultancy with offices in New York and San Francisco. Olson will oversee BSR's growing advisory services practice delivering consultation on the design of successful CSR strategies, and the integration of those strategies into core business practices at BSR's member companies and other clients.

Geir Westgaard has been named to fill the new position of Vice President, CSR Strategy. Westgaard served most recently as Vice President, CSR at Statoil, the Norwegian oil and gas company. He also brings to this position several years' experience in the public policy arena, including service in the Norwegian foreign service and as an adviser to fomer prime minister Gro Harlem Brundtland. In his new role, Westgaard will shape the direction and delivery of the BSR Annual Conference, the organization's work supported by foundations and public funders, and its ongoing research and communications, representing BSR in a number of important fora.

Of the simultaneous announcements, BSR CEO Aron Cramer said, "Adding two people of this caliber to our senior management team continues to elevate the services we offer to all our member companies. Eric Olson brings a level of expertise and knowledge that will augment our ability to deliver professional, top-tier consulting services to our clients. And companies will undoubtedly find an experienced, thoughtful partner in Geir Westgaard, who possesses a breadth and depth of knowledge that will bring a wealth of perspective to this young but rapidly evolving field."

BSR also announced that the direction of its China/Hong Kong operations will be assumed by Wei Dong Zhou. Wei Dong Zhou will be based in Guangzhou, China, from where he will oversee BSR's work in China, including the provision of advice and counsel to BSR's member companies operating in China, as well as to their supply chain partners. He will work with other BSR staff to oversee the BSR China Training Initiative whose work focuses on training factory management on a range of health, safety and human resource practices consistent with expectations in the international marketplace.

Zhou comes to BSR from The Pentland Group, where he was Group Business Standards Manager for China and Southeast Asia, and was responsible for the company's work to establish fair working conditions in its contract facilities. He also has served as a labor inspector in China, and has experience in heavy manufacturing and high-tech production. He is the creator of the Participatory Development Appraisal (PDA) network, an innovative mechanism for ensuring fair working conditions. "With Wei Dong Zhou heading our China operations," noted Cramer, "we feel that BSR is positioned to bring our unique brand of CSR expertise to companies operating in this essential country, with its unique challenges and opportunities. We are fortunate to add someone with his blend of experiences, through which he has acquired a keen understanding of business, civil society, and government perspectives on CSR in China."

About BSR
Founded in 1992, Business for Social Responsibility provides advisory and information services to its member companies, the broader global business community and other key CSR stakeholders. For more information, visit www.bsr.org.

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