An engagement plan can help reach the desired audience. A social responsible person or team plans the organization`s goals. As with any business activity, a defined budget shows commitment and scales the relative importance of the program. Corporate social responsibility encompasses six types of corporate social initiatives[3]: Industries such as tobacco, alcohol or ammunition companies manufacture products that harm their consumers or the environment. These companies may engage in the same philanthropic activities as those in other industries. This duality makes it difficult to evaluate such companies in terms of CSR. [136] Anselmsson and Johansson (2007)[171] assessed three aspects of CSR performance: human responsibility, product stewardship and environmental responsibility. Martinuzzi et al. described the conditions and wrote that human responsibility “The company cooperates with suppliers who adhere to the principles of natural and good animal husbandry and keeping, and also maintains fair and positive working conditions and working environments for their own employees. Responsible product management means that all products receive a complete and complete list of contents, that the country of origin is indicated, that the company respects its declarations of intent and takes responsibility for its products. Environmental responsibility means that a company is perceived as environmentally friendly, ecological and harmless. [172] Jones et al. (2005) noted that environmental issues are the most frequently reported CSR programs by major retailers.
[173] The development of the field was anything but easy, and the scientists working there initially found a cold reception from both their colleagues in philosophy faculties and those in business and business schools. The former generally did not see business as a philosophically interesting undertaking, and many of them had an anti-business stance. He wondered if philosophers had anything interesting to bring to business. Initial efforts were poor, and more and more people entered the field, often misinformed or who actually adopted polemical attacks or positions in defense of the economy. Many observers have dismissed business ethics as a fad that would miss out. Many misunderstood its objectives and saw it as a justification or justification for everything companies wanted to do. It took a few years for the field to define itself, adopt standards of science and rigor and be accepted. Aguinis and Glavas conducted a comprehensive review of the CSR literature that included 700 academic sources in a wide range of fields, including organizational behavior, business strategy, marketing, and HRM. It was found that the main reason companies participated in CSR was the expected financial benefits associated with CSR, rather than the desire to assume responsibility to society. [129] Consistent with this analysis, consumers are less positive about CSR initiatives that they believe have self-serving motives.
“[102] In addition, the third theatre programme aims to transform the business model. Basically, companies create new forms of business to address social or environmental challenges that lead to long-term financial returns. One example is Unilever`s Shakti project in India. The authors describe that the company hires women in villages and provides them with microfinance loans to sell soaps, oils, detergents and other products door-to-door. This study shows that more than 65,000 women entrepreneurs are doubling their incomes while improving rural access and hygiene in Indian villages. Another example is IKEA`s People and Planet initiative, which aims to be 100% sustainable by 2020. As a result, the company wants to introduce a new model for collecting and recycling old furniture. [111] An article published in Forbes.com in September 2017 mentions the annual study by Boston-based reputation management consulting firm Reputation Institute (RI),[174] which ranks the top 10 U.S.
companies in terms of corporate social responsibility. RI monitors the reputation for social responsibility with a focus on consumer perceptions of corporate governance,[175] positive impact on community and society, and treatment of the workforce. It evaluates each criterion using the company`s proprietary RepTrak Pulse platform. [176] Forbes identified the companies as Lego, Microsoft, Google, The Walt Disney Company, BMW Group, Intel, Robert Bosch, Cisco Systems, Rolls-Royce Aerospace, and Colgate-Palmolive. [177] Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a form of international self-regulation by private companies[1] aimed at contributing to social objectives of a philanthropic, activist or charitable nature through voluntary or ethical practices. [2] [3] While it was once possible to describe CSR as an internal organizational policy or business ethics strategy,[4] that time is over as various international laws have been developed and various organizations have used their authority to push it beyond individual or even sectoral initiatives. Although it has been considered for some time as a form of corporate self-regulation[5], it has evolved considerably over the last decade, from voluntary decisions at the level of individual organisations to mandatory regimes at regional, national and international levels. For example, it has become increasingly common for bilateral investment treaties and free trade agreements to contain CSR provisions. [6]:105 The IBM Institute for Business Value surveyed 250 executives worldwide in 2008. The survey found that companies have taken a much more strategic view and that 68% of reported companies use CSR as an opportunity and part of a sustainable growth strategy. The authors emphasized that the development and implementation of a CSR strategy represents a unique opportunity to benefit the company.
However, only 31% of the companies surveyed have involved their employees in the company`s CSR objectives and initiatives. The survey authors also explained that employee engagement in CSR initiatives can be a powerful recruitment and retention tool. As a result, workers tend to fire employers who have a bad reputation. [99] CSR may be located in the human resources, business development or public relations departments of an organization[53] or be a separate entity reporting to the CEO or the Board of Directors. Following in Carnegie`s footsteps, oil mogul John D. Rockefeller also donated more than half a billion dollars to religious, educational and scientific causes. Branco and Rodrigues (2007) describe stakeholder views on CSR as the set of corporate responsibility perspectives held by all groups or components related to the company. [138] In its normative model, the company accepts these views as long as they do not harm the organization. The stakeholder perspective does not take into account the complexity of networked interactions that can occur in cross-sectoral partnerships. It refers communication to a maintenance function, similar to the exchange perspective. [139] In an article by Paulina Księżak, she argues that for companies operating in emerging markets, participation in CSR practices allows for broad reach in a variety of external markets, better reputation, and stakeholder relationships. However, in all cases (emerging markets vs.
developed economies), the implementation of CSR policies in the day-to-day activities and frameworks of a company has been shown to provide a competitive advantage over other companies, in particular by creating a positive image of the company, improving relations with stakeholders, improving employee morale and attracting new consumers who are committed to social responsibility. Despite all the advantages, it is important to note that there are several disadvantages, including possible accusations of hypocrisy, the difficulty of measuring the social impact of CSR policies, and often putting companies at a disadvantage compared to their competitors when CSR takes precedence over promoting a company`s research and development. [87] In 1976, Professor Sandra L. Holmes conducted a CSR survey to find out how decisions were made about which causes to support. Their results, from the perception of corporate social responsibility, can be summed up as follows: in this broad sense, ethics in business is simply the application of everyday moral or ethical standards to companies. Perhaps the example from the Bible that comes to mind the most is the Ten Commandments, a manual that is still used by many today. In particular, the commandments of truthfulness and honesty or the prohibition of theft and envy are directly applicable. A concept of stewardship can be found in the Bible, as can and have many other terms that can and have been applied to economics. Other traditions and religions have comparable sacred or ancient texts that have guided people`s actions in all fields, including economics, for centuries and still do. The morality of common sense and the approach to ethics in business that I describe are perfectly suited to the ordinary, everyday aspect of ethics in business.
Employees shouldn`t steal from their employers, and companies shouldn`t scam their customers. No one needs an academic ethicist to tell them that.