SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND CSR
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Social Responsibility and CSR
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to a mechanical business model aimed at ensuring that organizations are socially accountable to itself, the stakeholders, and the public in all its operations. The model helps organizations to achieve commercial success in ways that honour ethical value while showing respect to people, communities, and the natural environment. In an attempt to determine the mechanisms of corporate social responsibility under the moderate role of transformational leadership, Goswami et al. (2018) examined the direct and indirect connection between individual perceptions of CSR and employee’s organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB). The study was done by analyzing multiphasic data from the different workplace, and the results obtained indicated that organizational identification mediated the relationship between CSR and OCBs. As such, the authors suggested that organizations should be more concerned with increasing the perception of CSR, which was determined to be directly related to the financial performance of the organization. In their recommendation, the authors recommended an embeddedness approach aimed at promoting the perception of CSR initiatives ingrained as part of the core mission, strategy, and routine function of an organization to influence and inform how employees behave potentially.
In another study, Garai, (2017), embarked on determining the impact of CSR on the financial performance of the organization. The results obtained from this study indicated that apart from positively impacting social values and reputation of an entity, CSR also helps in improving the profitability and financial performance of a business. The results by Garai’s study were also supported by another study by Galant and Cadez (2017). In their study, Galant and Cadez aimed to determine the relationship between CSR and corporate financial performance (CFP) through an extensive empirical enquiry. The main objective here was to shed light into how environmental and social performance of a firm (bad or good) is associated with changes in its financial performance. The study identified that CSR helps in improving the reputation of an entity, which in returns helps in attracting customers and more investors, and therefore improving the profit margins. In other words, improved environmental and social performance is good for business.
Although it is evident, from the studies above, that CSR has positive impacts on the performance of an entity, this cannot be translated to corporate community development (CCD). The paper “reversing the lens” by McLennan and Banks (2019) explores how the community perceives CSR. According to the authors, the community sees CSR in terms of the broader immediate effects of the corporate presence, and the relationship it fosters with the community, as opposed to tangible outcomes. The authors urge corporations to focus on realizing core business practices which can impact profoundly on long-term community development. Besides, organizations are required to effectively contribute to the development of the community by “embracing chaos” and developing the types of relationship that prioritize community goals instead of emphasizing on business interest. There is also need to focus on transforming corporate ethos from one in which all activities are contained and tightly controlled, to one in which the corporation is working towards community development in an integrated manner with the NGOs, communities, government, and the private sector.
Another study by Chaudhri, (2016), examined the communication imperative for CSR by holding in-depth interviews with CSR managers in significant local and global corporations in India, intending to further scholarly efforts of situation communication as primary to the enactment of socially responsible behaviour. To start with, the study first explicated the three main approaches in advanced CSR, which include instrumental, relational, and constitutive. The three approaches are highlighted as a basis for understanding how CSR managers articulate the subject of communication in CSR. Participants in this study pointed out that communication played an essential and multi-dimensional role of enforcing social and environmental responsibilities. The participants emphasized the need for subtlety and balanced communication as a means or an enabler for “getting the word out.” The study also reflects on the intersections and departures between scholarship and practice of CSR communication. In essence, communication in CSR helps in creating awareness, sharing information, and garnering support for different CSR based activities.
In a case study of Niger Delta, Allen and Eze (2019) delved into determining how to achieve sustainable development goals under a corporate social responsibility pathway. The authors discuss how CSR models of Chevron and Shell (companies involved in oil exploration in the Niger Delta) have helped in achieving SDGs. However, the models have not been able to deal with hunger, poverty, and poor access to healthcare at the grassroots. The CSR projects undertaken by the companies are the only palliative in maintaining social licenses to remain in business. Despite this, the authors acknowledged the decisive role CSR could play in the distribution of services to the community in Niger Delta. The companies can use the CSR pathway to improve the wellbeing of the community through collaborations with government and other established businesses in the region.
References
Allen, F. and Eze, P., 2019. Achieving Sustainable Development Goals in the Niger Delta: A Corporate Social Responsibility Pathway. European Journal of Sustainable Development Research, 3(4).
Chaudhri, V., 2016. Corporate social responsibility and the communication imperative: Perspectives from CSR managers. International Journal of Business Communication, 53(4), pp.419-442.
Galant, A. and Cadez, S., 2017. Corporate social responsibility and financial performance relationship: a review of measurement approaches. Economic research-Ekonomska istraživanja, 30(1), pp.676-693.
Garai, S., 2017. Impact of corporate social responsibility on firm’s financial performance with a special reference of RIL. International Journal of Applied Research, 3(1), pp.38-41.
Goswami, A., O’Brien, K.E., Dawson, K.M. and Hardiman, M.E., 2018. Mechanisms of Corporate Social Responsibility: The Moderating Role of Transformational Leadership. Ethics & Behavior, 28(8), pp.644-661.
McLennan, S. and Banks, G., 2019. Reversing the lens: Why corporate social responsibility is not community development. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 26(1), pp.117-126.