Free Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

In:

Submitted By wisconsincb
Words 1146
Pages 5
Corporate Social Responsibility is a significant concern for companies as society has started to place a significant amount of importance on what companies are doing for society as a whole. Corporate social responsibility is what a company does that goes beyond what the law requires in order to achieve long term goals aimed at improving society as a whole. If I were the Chief Executive Officer of a company I would embrace corporate social responsibility because in my opinion having an internal social impact will eventually reach out externally to the public. Largely associated with big companies, corporate social responsibility has received much more attention because of their higher profile, but it is equally important in smaller sized companies as well.

Attention given to CSR

Stakeholders in a corporation want good returns on their investments and demand high profits, growth and share prices. If these are not achieved, they put pressure on management or they simply sell their shares. The actions of shareholders establish a major limiting factor on a corporation's activities. However, actions have been taken by shareholders and the roles of socially responsible investment funds can be given as an example. This is because socially responsible investment funds have an approach to investment that involves taking social and environmental factors into account in addition to financial performance when selecting the companies with which to invest. Stakeholders also compare companies in areas of ethics such as low wages, poor working conditions, discrimination and pollution. This has gained much attention from stakeholders because they have the opportunity that the company that they are investing in is doing the right things and ensure ethics are relied upon heavily. They want to ensure that with the added attention on social responsibility both in the corporate industry and society, stakeholders now more than ever want to give to companies that are living up to the societal morals, values and ethics. If not, this could lead to lawsuits and other judicial requirements that are associated with poor corporate responsibility. In an article from Forbes magazine, it states that “the idea that a business has a societal obligation was evident dating back to the nineteenth century”. (Forbes). In the article is gives a couple of examples of this. The first is about a town near Chicago that provided workers and their families with living amenities in areas that had many parts that were slums. In this example, the motivation behind this was due to the industrial unrest and corporations in the manufacturing and factory industries at the time wanted to combat this unrest by ensuring that the took care of their workforce by any and all means possible. Another example of this was at a Coca-Cola bottling company in China. Here the company invested in water conservation in an effort to reduce the volume of water used in the plant. This in turn saved billions of liters of water in a country that is in a water crisis. This company was acting ethically by voluntarily working above and beyond the means of local laws associated with water use and uses this issue as a positive influence at its business core. This is exceptional work ethic in my opinion and stakeholders would be running to the doorstep of a company that lives and operates like this. This positive influence is equally contagious as negative influences are. Though more challenging it does have an effect that would reap many benefits economically and ethically.

Corporate budgeting

Giving a significant portion of my corporate budget to invest in Corporate Social Responsibility is something that I would. Having corporate social responsible investments in my opinion would show my corporation all the way down to the newest employee that there is a level of care of not only the local environment, but one that would have a lasting positive impact in our society. The societal impact would have a lot more benefit if I was to invest a significant amount to corporate social responsibility. Many business owners and managers see corporate social responsibility as something that is not really connected to growing the business and profits. This is very inaccurate. Corporate social responsibility can make all the difference and give you a competitive edge. Initiatives such as pro bono work, philanthropy, support for community-building initiatives and environmental awareness can add significant value to your company and if the program is well designed the benefits far outweigh the costs. Being socially responsible creates goodwill and a positive image for your brand. Trust and a good reputation are some of your company’s most valuable assets. In fact, without these, you wouldn’t even have a business. You can nurture these important assets by being socially responsible. It is however, crucial that you devise the right socially responsible program for your business. When used properly, it will open up a myriad of new relationships and opportunities. Not only will your success grow, but so will your company’s culture. It will become a culture which you, your staff and the wider community genuinely believe in. An example of such culture formation is captured in an article of the Byrraju Foundation. They are a non-profit Foundation that is bridging the gap between urban and rural communities. The Byrraju Foundation is committed to transforming the quality of life of the rural underprivileged. The Foundation pursues communities to rebuild and construct independent communities and use a universal approach. They look to transform lives by affording the local communities the opportunity to have healthcare, sanitation, safe water to consume, academics and training in life skills. They are currently operating in approximately 200 villages and impacting over 3 million lives. Their key is in their core values which are with community involvement and knowledge based applications that get the work done. The Foundation uses Lean Six Sigma as their tool box to help design these new processes that they are introducing in both old and new processes. In turn, the processes become owned and operated independently by their communities. These processes that have significant technological ties build advantageous and continuing modifications in all aspects of life in a condensed period of time with astounding results. I can personally attest to the positive feedback received once I took what I had learned in Lean Six Sigma training seminars. The Lean Six Sigma training that I received was really a professional life changing experience. It has changed my overall outlook on how to effectively manage people to get something accomplished. It not only afforded me the opportunity to grow but it enhanced the capabilities of those around me. Process improvements are inherent to having change and it is how effectively you are able to incorporate that process improvement by having a collaborative buy-in from your colleagues and workers. Once the corporate buy-in, positive results will transpire improving old processes and establishing new ones.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Activities 15 Theoretical Discussion on CSR Practices 19 Why The Reporting Necessary in relation to CSR Practices 22 Standard of Listed companies in Bangladesh with Regard to Social Audit 23 * Part Three: Objectives, Scope & Methodology of the Study Objectives 26 Scope 27 Methodology 28 * Part Four: Findings of the Study Sample Enterprises 30 Areas of Social Responsibilities Discharged 33 Reporting Practices 36 Evaluation 37 * Part Five: Conclusion Summary of the Findings 39 Future Directions 40 References 42 Part one: Introduction A Brief Description of CSR Corporate social responsibility (CSR), also known as corporate responsibility, corporate citizenship, responsible business, sustainable responsible business (SRB), or corporate social performance, is a form of corporate self-regulation integrated into a business model. Ideally, CSR policy would function as a built-in, self-regulating mechanism whereby business would monitor and ensure its support to law, ethical standards, and international norms. Consequently, business would embrace responsibility for the impact of its activities on the environment, consumers, employees, communities, stakeholders and all other members of the public sphere. Furthermore, CSR-focused businesses would proactively promote...

Words: 4961 - Pages: 20

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...ABSTRACT The new company law has been put in place by the government with best intentions and it is now the turn of the corporate sector to demonstrate that it will play according to the rules. The government on its part must trust the corporate sector to function honestly and also keep a watch. The Companies Act, 2013, enacted on 29th August, 2013 on accord of Hon’ble President’s assent, has the potential to be a historic milestone, as it aims to improve corporate governance, simplify regulations, enhance the interest of minority investors and for the first time legislate the roles of whistle blowers. The 2013 Act has introduced several provisions which would change the way Indian corporates do business and one such provision is spending on activities of Corporate Social Responsibility. The importance of Corporate Social Responsibility is increasing in Indian Corporate scenario because organisation have realize that ultimate goal is not profit making beside this trust building is viable and assertable with societal relationship. “Companies Act 2013: A Revolutionary Legislation or Not” “Businesses need to go beyond the interests of their companies to the communities they serve.” ~Ratan Tata, Former Chairman the Tata Group India had a long tradition of corporate philanthropy and industrial welfare has been put to practice since late 1800 A.D. Historically, the philanthropy of business people in India has resembled western...

Words: 2412 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF [pic] CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY [pic] ABSTRACT Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is becoming an increasingly important activity to businesses nationally and internationally. As globalization accelerates and large corporations serve as global providers, these corporations have progressively recognized the benefits of providing CSR programs in their various locations. CSR activities are now being undertaken throughout the globe. “Every company harms the environment and people!” CHAPTER I THE RESEARH PROPOSAL [pic] [pic] INTRODUCTION The problems and issues that confront society today are too large and complex to be solved by government and NGOs alone. Sustainable solutions to society’s problems can only be found through the collaboration and involvement of all who are part of it. Companies have tremendous strengths; they have extremely capable people, technology, access to money, the ability of geographical reach, etc. Many companies worldwide and now even in Pakistan are more powerful than governments and even countries, and thus corporate are important stakeholders in society. Our objective of the research is analysis of Pakistan’s major telecom companies to explore and understand the role that telecom corporate are playing and can play in finding meaningful solutions to the problems facing Pakistan today. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES: The general objective of our study is to identify...

Words: 4737 - Pages: 19

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Business Ethics Assignment Corporate Social Responsibility Table of Content_____________________________________________________ ______ What is corporate social responsibility? 3 Why Has CSR Become Important? 4 3. What Is The Business Case For CSR? 4 4. Potential benefits of implementing a CSR approach 5 5. Are Firms Benefiting From CSR Activities? 7 6. What Is The Relationship Between CSR And The Law? 8 7. Implementing Corporate Social Responsibility________________________ 8 8. CSR Implementation Framework and Corporate Governance__________ 9 9. What Is a CSR Strategy? 11 10. Why to Have a CSR Strategy?_______________________________________11 11. How to Develop A CSR Strategy?____________________________________11 11.1 Build support with senior management and employees______________ 11 11.2 Research what others are doing___________________________________ 11 11.3 Prepare a matrix of proposed CSR actions__________________________ 12 11.4 Develop options for proceeding and the business case for them______13 11.5 Decide on direction, approach and focus areas____________________ 14 12. Can You Have Social Responsibility Without Ethics?__________________ 15 13. Corporate social responsibility as business strategy__________________ 20 ...

Words: 10867 - Pages: 44

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...ASOCIO Policy Paper CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Date: June 2004 Table of Contents 1 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ........................................................... 2 1.1 What is corporate social responsibility? ........................................................ 2 1.2 Asia Pacific Perspective ................................................................................ 2 1.3 Corporate Social Responsibility: Unlocking the value................................... 3 1.4 World Economic Forum & CSR ..................................................................... 3 1.5 Case Studies ................................................................................................. 4 1.6 Should ASOCIO have a role? ....................................................................... 5 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ASOCIO Policy Paper June 2004 1 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is becoming an increasingly important activity to businesses nationally and internationally. As globalisation accelerates and large corporations serve as global providers, these corporations have progressively recognised the benefits of providing CSR programs in their various locations. CSR activities are now being undertaken throughout the globe. 1.1 What is corporate social responsibility? The term is often used interchangeably for other terms such as Corporate Citizenship and is also linked to the concept of Triple...

Words: 1624 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Corporate social responsibility statements are effective ways of ensuring multi-national companies act ethically.   Discuss For the past few years there has been lots of discussion about Corporate Social Responsibility. Most of the multinational companies issue every year a report on their practices. They try to get involved into communities, fight the poverty in the third world countries and donate millions of ponds every year to charities to as they say “build the better future”. But are their corporate social responsibility statements effective ways of ensuring that multinational entities act ethically? From my point of viewview, CSR statements do not ensure that practices of companies obey the rules of business ethics and I am going to present a few arguments for. Corporate Social Responsibility is fairly recent termterm and maybe that is why there is no consistent definition for it. Most multinational companies use different terms in their reports, for example Shell defines it as ‘sustainable development’, Ford uses the phrase ‘connecting with society’, Diageo prefers the termterm ‘corporate citizenship’. All these expressions, although they have different meanings, are related to Corporate Social Responsibility but because of the proliferation of approaches, every company can put emphasis on something different, creating therefore complexity and confusion. What is more, the socially responsible company not only complies with minimum requirements of the law, but goes...

Words: 1078 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...2009 Suparn Sharma, Jyoty Sharma, Arti Devi 205 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: THE KEY ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Suparn Sharma (PhD),Joity Sharma (PhD), Arti Devi Abstract Business organizations have waked up to the need for being committed towards Corporate Social Responsibility. But still majority have just been taking up some form of philanthropic activities for its stakeholders. Nurturing a strong corporate culture which emphasizes Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) values and competencies is required to achieve the synergistic benefits. The employees of an organization occupy a central place in developing such a culture which underlines CSR values and competencies. The present study, therefore, is an attempt to explore the engagement of human resource management professionals in undertaking Corporate Social Responsibility. It also suggests Human Resource Management to take a leading role in encouraging CSR activities at all levels. The combined impact of CSR and human resource activities, which reinforce desirable behavior, can make a major contribution in creating long term success in organizations. Sharma S., Sharma J. and Devi A. - Corporate Social Responsibility: The Key Role of Human Resource Management 206 Business Intelligence Journal January Introducción Business houses, right from the inception of human race, have been regarded as constructive partners in the communities in which they operate. Though they have been instrumental...

Words: 3967 - Pages: 16

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Introduction Business houses, right from the inception of human race, have been regarded as constructive partners in the communities in which they operate. Though they have been instrumental in creating employment, wealth, products and services, yet the pressure on business to play a role in social issues involving employees, stakeholders, society, environment, government etc. is continuously increasing. The society is questioning the existence of business houses, especially in the wake of the scandals and scams conducted by the business houses like UTI, Enron, and WorldCom. In response to it, the organizations around the globe are forced to wake up to the need for being committed towards Corporate Social Responsibility. Over the years this concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has gained unprecedent momentum in business and public debate and has become a strategic issue crossing the departmental boundaries, and affecting the way in which a company does business. It has become so important that many organizations have rebranded their core values to include social responsibility. Almost all corporate websites/ policies/reports talk about their endeavors for CSR which has become a way of ensuring that the organization is fulfilling all the obligations towards society and thus is eligible for the license to operate. It assures that the organization can grow on sustainable basis. These activities of CSR ranging from small...

Words: 3378 - Pages: 14

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Global Business and Management Research: An International Journal Corporate Social Responsibility Practices in India: A Study of Top 500 Companies Richa Gautam and Anju Singh Industrial Safety & Environment Management Group, National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE), India Abstract Purpose -The purpose of this study is to explore the various definitions and descriptions of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); elaborate upon development of CSR in India; study the theoretical concepts expounded by various researchers and study the deployment of current CSR practices in India. This paper examines how India’s top 500 companies view, and conduct their CSR, identifies key CSR practices and maps these against Global Reporting Initiative standards. Design/methodology/approach -It is a cross sectional study which is exploratory in nature. It involved secondary data collection and use of content analysis technique to assess CSR practices of companies operating in India. Findings -The main findings of the study are that CSR is now presented as a comprehensive business strategy, arising mainly from performance considerations and stakeholder pressure. Companies consider their interaction with stakeholders and impact of its business on society as significant issues. CSR policies vary with turnover and profit. The study suggests that business and CSR strategy appear to be on a convergent path, towards business and CSR integration across the company. Out of the top 500 companies...

Words: 7834 - Pages: 32

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Corporate Social Responsibility An Implementation Guide for Business Paul Hohnen, Author Jason Potts, Editor Corporate Social Responsibility An Implementation Guide for Business Paul Hohnen, Author Jason Potts, Editor ii Corporate Social Responsibility: An Implementation Guide for Business © 2007, International Institute for Sustainable Development The International Institute for Sustainable Development contributes to sustainable development by advancing policy recommendations on international trade and investment, economic policy, climate change and energy, measurement and assessment, and sustainable natural resources management. Through the Internet, we report on international negotiations and share knowledge gained through collaborative projects with global partners, resulting in more rigorous research, capacity building in developing countries and better dialogue between North and South. IISD’s vision is better living for all—sustainably; its mission is to champion innovation, enabling societies to live sustainably. IISD is registered as a charitable organization in Canada and has 501(c)(3) status in the United States. IISD receives core operating support from the Government of Canada, provided through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and Environment Canada; and from the Province of Manitoba. The Institute receives project funding from numerous governments inside and outside Canada,...

Words: 41123 - Pages: 165

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...involve recruiting, managing, developing and motivating people, but also includes functional and specific support systems for personnel engagement and managing systems to administer regulatory compliance with employment and human rights standards. Human resources is also positioned to play a vital role in helping the organization achieve its goals of becoming a socially and environmentally responsible firm, allowing the organization to reduce its negative and enhance its positive impact on society and the environment. Human resource professionals that strive for successful social responsibility are influential in achieving that objective. Human resources implement many of the key systems and processes, positioning itself to foster a corporate social responsibility ethics and achieve a high caliber social responsibility culture. Human resource management can play a big role so that the corporate social responsibility becomes a norm rather than the exception. It also ensures that the public relations sentiment is reflected and aligns with how personnel are treated within the organization. While there is a wide spectrum of expectation of human resources’ central role, many organizations expect human resources to play a big role in realizing the importance of talent management and succession planning. Human resources’ expertise and insights are needed to build efficient, agile and growing organizations. Organizations look to human resources to help the organization identify the behaviors...

Words: 288 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...associations have taken active interests in introducing corporate social responsibility policies to gain more benefits. CSR continues to play a significant role in meetings and other leisure industry programs throughout 2011. The most typical example for CSR used into meeting industry is sustainability event or green meeting, which incorporates environmental considerations to minimize its negative impact on the environment. CSR might be a competitive distinction for a company compete with other both events corporate and business meeting companies who they with “similar products and services aimed at the same customer group.” As the CSR have been introduced by meeting associations , there is a big environment impact on the whole meeting industry. Regulation in corporate itself will cover each detail of a corporation's operations in different aspects. More and more meeting and conferences will use social awareness as a advertise to win public support in global markets, helping them improve competitive position and innovation. A strong commitment to CSR affect employee attitude. Moreover, businesses and corporate get opportunities to foster the business development from CSR in meeting market. Definition Corporate social responsibility literally is corporation's corporate self-regulation and interaction with society and a duty to society in general. The goal of CSR policy is to build responsibility for the company's actions and encourage a positive...

Words: 1616 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Corporate Social Responsibility The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) over time has expanded its influence to many enterprises and concerned organizations, required those must consider how their activities affect the surrounding society such as communities (human rights, labor issues,...), environmental protection,… World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD, 1999) as cited in Wong & Ahmad (2010) gave the most common definition of CSR as: “the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large”. From Jamali’s (2008) perspective, CSR is concerned with the guarantee of corporations to contribute to the development, enhancement of society and stakeholder interests. There are also different views of CSR between the ownership concentration (Dam & Scholtens, 2013) and stakeholders’ welfare. CSR has become more and more important issue as the world is turning “flatter”, not only considering in developed countries but also in developing ones like Vietnam. However, there are some barriers to implementing an effective CSR program for an international organization operating in Vietnam (Tencati, Russo, & Quaglia, 2010). The Effects Of CSR On International Business Recent years, CSR has become an essential requirement for doing business for most of the companies in the world...

Words: 1481 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...MSc in Accounting P58330 Financial Reporting Corporate Social Responsibility and Accounting Standards Christos Spanoudakis Student ID:13086848 Date of Submission: 3rd April 2014 Introduction Nowadays, more and more large companies publish except from their financial statements also social and environmental reports. It is broadly known that companies’ activities have as a consequence an impact in society and environment. For this reason companies should be responsible not only for financial performance but also should take into consideration the responsibility for their social and environmental performance. Governments, non-governmental organizations, press and media are the parties that keep the companies responsible for the impact of their activities on the environment and society (Porter and Kramer, 2007). That happens because some of these parties have direct influence in the company’s image. For example if media transmit news that erode company’s image, this will definitely influence negatively stakeholders’ opinion and trust for the organization (Neu et. al., 1998). The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) works like a self-regulating tool, which aids the company to observe and guarantee that its operations are aligned with the law, ethical standards and international rules. Some companies, which apply CSR, achieve with their actions to benefit society beyond the primary objectives of the company and that which is mandatory by the legislation (McWilliams...

Words: 4257 - Pages: 18

Premium Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility

...Corporate Social Responsibility An Implementation Guide for Business Paul Hohnen, Author Jason Potts, Editor Corporate Social Responsibility An Implementation Guide for Business Paul Hohnen, Author Jason Potts, Editor ii Corporate Social Responsibility: An Implementation Guide for Business © 2007, International Institute for Sustainable Development The International Institute for Sustainable Development contributes to sustainable development by advancing policy recommendations on international trade and investment, economic policy, climate change and energy, measurement and assessment, and sustainable natural resources management. Through the Internet, we report on international negotiations and share knowledge gained through collaborative projects with global partners, resulting in more rigorous research, capacity building in developing countries and better dialogue between North and South. IISD’s vision is better living for all—sustainably; its mission is to champion innovation, enabling societies to live sustainably. IISD is registered as a charitable organization in Canada and has 501(c)(3) status in the United States. IISD receives core operating support from the Government of Canada, provided through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and Environment Canada; and from the Province of Manitoba. The Institute receives project funding from numerous governments inside and outside Canada,...

Words: 41123 - Pages: 165