SiGMA Group for SDG 4: Quality Education

SiGMA Group was founded in 2015 as the first Smart Office in Georgia. It brings together a full range of services for local and international SMEs and startups. During its existence, SiGMA Group has provided services to more than 100 companies and projects, covering most of the areas of the businesses operating in Georgia. The company is currently involved in various directions of several multi-million investment projects. As a result of the reorganization of SiGMA Group in 2022, six new sub-brands emerged in the company. As the main brand, SiGMA Business Laboratory offers customers all standard business and management services in the Caucasus region.

By using a Smart Office, companies can concentrate on their business and entrust the standard business functions (office manager, personal assistant, accountant, tax consultant, lawyer, working and meeting spaces, etc.) to a team of professionals.

Since the company was founded, corporate social responsibility has been an important part of SiGMA Group’s philosophy. In this process, the key priority – SDG 4 – is to ensure quality education.

Please tell us more about the activities of SiGMA Group

Our company was founded in 2015, and it was the first Smart Office in Georgia, which offered customers a full range of standard business services on a “one-stop shop” basis. To put it more simply, we are a staffed office, with working and meeting spaces and office equipment tailored to the customers’ needs. Our business model proved successful as it spared SMEs and foreign companies additional costs and management responsibilities.

Over time, the number of our customers and their needs have grown, and we have expanded the range of our services. In 2022, we carried out a complete rebranding. We created SiGMA Business Laboratory, represented by seven sub-brands: SiGMA Back Office, SiGMA Business Assistant, SiGMA HR, SiGMA IE, SiGMA Start, SiGMA Projects, and SiGMA Sports Management. Currently, our team provides services to leading companies in investment, sports, distribution, tourism, and other sectors.

How important is corporate sustainability for your work?

Based on our business model and strategy, our team is actively involved in SiGMA and the activities of many other companies at the startup level and in the later stages of development. Corporate sustainability is one of the cornerstones of any organization working in any sector. In the existing business environment, we rarely see businesses operating in only one geographic area, and social, environmental, and other responsibilities hinder their development. In addition, the requirements for corporate sustainability are increasing from the side of all stakeholders – partners, employees, government, and others.

In our company, we are constantly working on introducing and implementing corporate sustainability policies, and by promoting these issues with our clients, we significantly impact the economy and the environment more significantly.

Which sustainable development goals have you prioritized, and is corporate sustainability reflected in your business strategy?

Introducing corporate sustainability standards in our company is an integral part of our development strategy. Based on our business model – a service company – our priority is to ensure the employees’ social welfare and well-being. Nevertheless, we always study the challenges faced by new and existing clients and prioritize those goals that they will effectively and properly implement to promote corporate sustainability.

Why did you decide to join the UN Global Compact, and why is it important to bring the private sector together to create a better world?

The UN Global Compact gives us an excellent opportunity to share the experiences of larger and more experienced organizations in corporate sustainability. Although every employee at SiGMA clearly understands the importance of this direction, it is always interesting to see how the strategy components are implemented in practice by companies that are larger, more experienced, and more successful than us.

What does it mean to implement international standards in Georgian companies, and how important is the membership of the platforms similar to the “UN Global Compact”? What would you say to the business companies? Why should they join this initiative?

Despite Georgia’s social, economic, internal political, and geopolitical problems and challenges, our country is increasingly integrating into the global economy. Therefore, it is rare to see a Georgian company that can succeed without international partners. This is only possible by developing corporate sustainability and adhering to international standards.

This tendency is evident in all aspects. For example, we can take a technical direction, such as finance and accounting, where the introduction of international standards is mandatory for certain business categories.

What would you advise the startup companies? Why should they design a business strategy integrating the principles of corporate sustainability?

Like other levels and stages of business activities, introducing corporate sustainability elements at the startup stage of a company is very important for several reasons. Among them, the most important factor is that for every company, at a certain phase of development, it will be inevitable to introduce corporate sustainability standards because it is impossible to succeed without them. As a rule, strategic and corporate behavioral changes are always very painful in a medium or large company. Therefore, it is always better for startups to set big goals from the beginning and prepare the company to achieve them. This also applies to corporate sustainability – introducing social, economic, and environmental responsibility at the initial stage is much easier and more effective than doing the same at the later stages of development.

What does a responsible company mean to you, and why should the private sector take responsibility for the harm caused by its activities?

Business and the economy are integral parts of our lives, and everyone, including small companies, must share responsibility for the environment in which they operate. Unfortunately, it is difficult for many companies (especially in younger economies) to understand this. Still, a business can’t flourish only by utilizing resources, as the most important thing is contributing positively to society and the environment.