Corporate Social Responsibility: Who Engages in It - Research Paper Example

Corporate Social Responsibility: Who engages in it and what they expect to achieve Mary Ann Krupa of St. Francis Corporate Social Responsibility: Who engages in it and what they expect to achieve There is a need for different corporate institutions to assess as well as take responsibility of the company effects on the environment as well as on the impact on social welfare. The term corporate social responsibility therefore, generally applies to a company’s efforts to go beyond what is required by regulators as well as environmental protection groups. Further, the term also involves the company or organization incurring short term costs which often do not provide an immediate financial benefit to the company but instead it is intended to provide social as well as environmental change. It is imperative to understand that companies have a lot of power in the community as well as the national economy (Anderson, 2008). They often control assets and in many cases they have billions in cash at their disposal of socially conscious investment programs. This paper is going to describe who engages in corporate social responsibility and what they often expect to achieve through the program. Companies are often the ones that involve themselves in corporate social responsibility. In fact, in the 21st century, more companies are being called upon by their share holders as well as other important stakeholders, not only to boost the bottom line but to address some of the country’s most challenging problems. This includes those that are concerned with economic developments as well as environment. It is imperative to understand that although opinions in many cases might differ on the how the responsibility should be allocated across the private and public sectors, the corporate stakeholders and other persons in the society (Coelho, 2003). For this reason, in recent years, companies have been increasingly working with stakeholders in order to understand the concerns as well as views of certain people when it comes to environmental, corporate, and social governance as well as economic issues and issues that are needed to be incorporated in order to address the views and the concerns that exist the company strategic decision making processes. Many companies often care about how effective their branding is and how they are perceived by their customers as well as the general public. It is of importance to note that with everything else in the market being equal, companies that often take an active role in the promotion of their corporate social responsibility programs are in many cases often viewed more favorably than those that do not possess highly visible programs. Therefore, companies often understand that having a vision and goals that go beyond the products and profits in many cases provides a warmer image to the business and the consumers in this case will be more eager to engage with the company. There are two types of corporate social responsibility that companies often need to consider. The first type of corporate social responsibility involves the funding and providing resources that are worthwhile to social causes such as donating money or employee time in order to do charities. This is often what people tend to associated CSR with and it is by far the most common type of corporate social responsibility. The second type of CSR often involves the putting together of a proper plan in order to produce products or a times provide services which are the best interests when it comes to the society. This often includes things like safe materials when it comes to manufacture and design, corporate environmental initiatives as well as other factors such as economic development and job creation. This type of corporate social responsibility is often not famous amongst many people in the society. It is of importance to understand that the most successful of companies are those that put corporate social responsibility on a good path and integrates the two types of CSR and shows a true commitment to a cause (Tang, 2012). A company that is said to excel in corporate social responsibility is the one that often uses sustainable materials in the manufacture of their products, donate a piece of their profits towards financial resources as well as environmental causes and lastly to give the employees a chance to volunteer. Corporate social responsibility is a potent tool that is often used in the shaping of consumer perception as well as the building of a company’s public image. Corporations that in many cases actively promote their social responsibility activities take steps that they deem necessary in order to publicize their efforts through the media (Aguilera, 2007). It is imperative to understand that getting the word out about the corporate donations, employee trainee volunteer programs or other initiatives can be seen as a powerful branding tool that helps in the building publicity for the organization. Research from various quarters have shown that corporations that often put an emphasis on corporate social responsibility have a relatively easier experience when it comes to dealing with government regulators and politicians. In contrast, it can be seen that business that often present what can be described as a reckless disregard for social responsibility often tend to find themselves fending off different inquires as well as probes (Anderson, 2008). Therefore, the more positive the public perception about a corporation is, the less likely that different activist groups will launch different public campaigns as well as demand the government inquiries into the company. Further, a corporation’s public image is in many cases as the mercy of social responsibility programs in fact according to a study that was done by Cone Communication out of 9 out if consumers should always refrain from doing business with a corporation if there existed no real and definite corporate social responsibility plan (Aguilera, 2007). For example, when it comes to a company that is involved in the practice of donating funds or goods to local non-profit organization and schools, it often increases the likelihood that a consumer will use the product. Further, if a corporation often takes great care in order to ensure that the materials and the product are environmentally safe and that the process is sustainable the public often appreciates this and in many cases sales often increase rapidly. The greatest benefit that comes with promoting social responsibility in the workplace is often the positive environment that the manager builds for the employees. The employees often perform better when they feel that they are working with a company that has a true and honest conscience and in many cases the employees feel more enthusiastic as well as completely engaged in their jobs (Aguilera, 2007). This often builds what can be described as a sense of community as well as teamwork that tends to bring everyone together and lead them to happier as well as more productive employees. In conclusion, corporate social responsibility is often done by corporate and different organizations. They often do it in order to enhance their competitive ability as well as help the society that they often make their money from. As shown, companies that often take an active role when it comes to the promotion of their corporate social responsibility programs are often generally viewed with favor by the public as compared to those that do not have any high visible programs. The corporations and organizations often use corporate social responsibility as their token of appreciated towards the society by investing it back into the society. It often creates employment in the market where it serves and increases sales in many cases through the use of social media visibility. There is a need for corporations that want to protect their brand and grow it more give it the best. References Aguilera, R., Rupp, D., Williams, C., & Ganapathi, J. (2007). Putting the s back in corporate social responsibility: A multilevel theory of social change in organizations. Academy of Management Review 2007, Vol. 32, No. 3, 836–863. Anderson, L. (2008). Making an impact. Financial Times 28 Jan. 2008: 20. Academic OneFile. Web. 13 Apr. 2014. Coelho, P.R.P., McClure, J., & Spry, J. (2003). The social responsibility of corporate management: A classical critique. Mid-American Journal of Business Spring 2003, v18, i1, p15(10). Tang, Z., Hull, C.E., & Rothenberg, S. (2012). How corporate social responsibility engagement strategy moderates the csr-financial performance relationship. Journal of Management Studies, 49:7. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-6486.2012.01068. Read More