- "Corporate social responsibility (CSR) or corporate social impact is a form of international private business self-regulation which aims to contribute to societal goals of a philanthropic, activist, or charitable nature..." - "engaging in, with, or supporting professional service volunteering through pro bono programs, community development, administering monetary grants to non-profit organizations for the public benefit, or to conduct ethically oriented business and investment practices."
Understanding how corporate social responsibility impacts the company's strategic plan and overall success.
Definition of CSR: A brief history and definition of CSR, including its purpose within organizations and society.
Stakeholder Theory: Understanding the importance of stakeholders and their influence on the success of CSR initiatives.
Sustainability: The role of sustainability in CSR, including the triple bottom line (economic, environmental, and social sustainability).
Legal and Ethical Considerations: Identifying the ethical considerations associated with CSR, as well as the legal requirements for successful implementation.
Integrated CSR: Integrating CSR principles into the overall business strategy to enhance organizational performance and add value.
Corporate Citizenship: Understanding the role of corporate citizenship in relation to CSR, including its impact on community development, employee engagement, and consumer loyalty.
Socially Responsible Investment: Analyzing the integration of CSR into investment decision-making processes, including the evaluation of environmental, social, and governance issues.
Globalization and CSR: Recognizing the impact of globalization on CSR and the ways in which companies should address social and environmental concerns.
Reporting and Communication: The importance of transparency and communication in reporting CSR activities, including the use of guidelines such as the Global Reporting Initiative.
Implementation and Evaluation: Key considerations in implementing and evaluating CSR initiatives, including employee engagement, stakeholder feedback, and impact assessment.
Environmental responsibility: This involves reducing a company's carbon footprint, conserving natural resources, and promoting sustainability.
Human rights responsibility: This involves protecting the rights of employees, suppliers, and customers. This includes things like fair labor practices, anti-discrimination policies, and ensuring that workers are paid a fair wage.
Philanthropy: This involves giving back to the community through charitable donations, volunteer work, and other forms of community service.
Economic responsibility: This involves ensuring that a company is financially sustainable and operates in a way that benefits its shareholders as well as the wider community.
Ethical responsibility: This involves operating in a way that is ethical and transparent, and adhering to ethical standards that go beyond legal requirements.
Stakeholder responsibility: This involves considering the needs and interests of all stakeholders, including customers, employees, suppliers, investors, and the wider community, and taking actions that benefit them.
Governance responsibility: This involves operating within ethical and legal frameworks, ensuring good corporate governance, transparency, and accountability in decision-making processes.
- "While once it was possible to describe CSR as an internal organizational policy or a corporate ethic strategy similar to what is now known today as Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG); that time has passed as various companies have pledged to go beyond that..." - "or have been mandated or incentivized by governments to have a better impact on the surrounding community." - "In addition national and international standards, laws, and business models have been developed to facilitate and incentivize this phenomenon."
- "professional service volunteering through pro bono programs" - "community development" - "administering monetary grants to non-profit organizations" - "conducting ethically oriented business and investment practices"
- "while it has been considered a form of corporate self-regulation for some time, over the last decade or so it has moved considerably from voluntary decisions at the level of individual organizations to mandatory schemes at regional, national, and international levels."
- "Moreover, scholars and firms are using the term 'creating shared value', an extension of corporate social responsibility, to explain ways of doing business in a socially responsible way while making profits."
- "CSR is generally understood as a strategic initiative that contributes to a brand's reputation." - "social responsibility initiatives must coherently align with and be integrated into a business model to be successful."
- "CSR can contribute to firm profits, particularly if brands voluntarily self-report both the positive and negative outcomes of their endeavors." - "these benefits accrue by increasing positive public relations and high ethical standards to reduce business and legal risk by taking responsibility for corporate actions."
- "some businesses will adopt CSR policies and practices because of the ethical beliefs of senior management" - "the CEO of outdoor-apparel company Patagonia, Inc. argues that harming the environment is ethically objectionable."
- "Proponents argue that corporations increase long-term profits by operating with a CSR perspective."
- "A 2000 study compared existing econometric studies of the relationship between social and financial performance, concluding that the contradictory results of previous studies reporting positive, negative, and neutral financial impact, were due to flawed empirical analysis and claimed when the study is properly specified, CSR has a neutral impact on financial outcomes."
- "Critics questioned the 'lofty' and sometimes 'unrealistic expectations' in CSR." - "CSR is merely window-dressing, or an attempt to pre-empt the role of governments as a watchdog over powerful multinational corporations."
- "political and sociological institutionalists became interested in CSR in the context of theories of globalization, neoliberalism, and late capitalism."