11 November 2013
Public Relations Principles

Social responsibility refers to the ethical theory that an entity, regardless if it’s an organization or individual, has an obligation to act to benefit society at large (www.dictionary.com). Whether it’s a corporate restaurant, a clothing store with shops in every state and major city, or a sports organization, social responsibility is an integral and vital part of an organization and company’s global stratagem and approach. The NCAA, though it is a college-based organization, is also a non-profit association of more than 1000 organizations, institutions, and conferences relating to athletics. The NCAA does a prime job of executing their social responsibility goals and strategies, which is what has contributed to their success and global recognition.
Strategic and calculated social responsibility, even more so on the corporate level, is able to play a vital role in any organizations strategic management. Social responsibility enhances the relationship between the organization and the interested party, who are almost always the fans, but can also include the media and local community partners. The NCAA takes much pride in their fans, in the media, and also in their community partners, but they also take pride in those who are employed by the sports industry. The NCAA has already placed an importance on social responsibility, on a national level, by implementing a program that looks to assist current assistant basketball coaches, who ethnic minorities, in their preparation to become head coaches. This program is one of many efforts to increase the racial and ethnic diversity in the coaching arena of National Collegiate Athletic Association coaches. (www.etd.ohiolink.edu) The MIAA, a division II NCAA conference, has a student-athletic advisory board who organized a conference-wide food drive as part of their efforts to increase social responsibility on a national level. The Hershey Company, and more specifically Reese’s, sees social responsibility as something to be considered and treated as a goal and priority, which then lead to fair and ethical business dealings, as well as positively impacting society and local communities. (www.etd.ohiolink.edu)
The Hershey Company and Reese’s is a proud partner of the NCAA, and in being a proud partner, they were able to partner up with the NCAA and give back to the fans, the interested party. The Reese’s Brand has a text-to-win opportunity, which includes NCAA basketball fans across the company competing against each other, simply by sending a text message, for the chance to win a trip to the Men’s Final Four game and Reese’s peanut butter cups for life. It gets even better. The winner also receives an invite to the annual Reese’s College All Star Game, where the goers get to see the nation’s best college hoop stars play for free, while also competing via a half-court shot for one million dollars. If that isn’t sports responsibility that a sports can benefit from, then I don’t know what is. (http://www.thehersheycompany.com)
There is little question that the NCAA is invested in social responsibility. Social responsibility brings financial gains and rewards, as well as patron management, and advancing business objectives (http://www.nassm.com). Although social responsibility in the sports industry mainly on ethical and even philanthropic activities, it still enforces acts that benefit society as a whole. Social responsibility is not only a way to get an organizations name out there, but is also a way to bring multiple parties together. Companies can no longer afford to opt out of social responsibility initiatives. What corporations do to society is far more important than what corporations can do for society (www.ssireview.org/)