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LauraK
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CSR: Who is responsible?
February 27, 2008 - 02:01 PM
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TakingITGlobal's Live Chat on Corporate Social Responsibility raised many interesting issues related to CSR - one was the role of the corporation itself within Corporate Social Responsibility. An interesting question brought up was: whose duty is it to ensure or maintain corporate social responsibility? It is primarily the corporation's duty? Or individuals (employees, customers, citizens, etc.)? Society as a whole (government, local community organizations, etc.)?
There seemed to be a general agreement amongst the speakers and participants of the Live Chat that corporations alone cannot be held solely responsible for advancing corporate social responsibility - that this is something that all members of society - individuals, corporations, government, etc - must do.
What do you think?
What assumptions do we need to test or challenge in thinking about our and others’ roles in advancing corporate social responsibility?
What opportunities for leadership in social responsibility do you see in your community?
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Remmy
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 28, 2008 - 06:41 AM
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The youth has along way to go in ensuring integrity stand and maintain maximum leadership posts.
As a youth our responsibility to focus on the future because what we do today will definately reflect on the future of the society we live in...
Remmy
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Patricia Sudi
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 28, 2008 - 06:59 AM
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I believe we are all responsible in our various capacity in advancing corporate social responsibility.As employees we need to enure that our employers uphold the values of socialresponsibility in the community. As a citizenry we have the mandate to hold our leaders accountable for failure to perform their duty towards sustainable social development.
In a nutshell we all have a role to play whether youth,employees,the cilvil society or the local and business community.
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Remmy
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 28, 2008 - 08:25 AM
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Thanks Brov,
i think we still need a lot to do concerning social responsibility because many people including youth, govt, public and private company are overlooking and nobody to regulate it especially here in Nigeria.
i think there should be room for Enlightenments pro gramme on social responsibility
Remmy
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Tosin O.
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 28, 2008 - 10:13 AM
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Interesting topic, so bad i couldn't join in the chat, my network system here was rather poor on that day.. But I'm glad to participate in here
@Patsibo
You're right on this and I quote " I believe we all are responsible in our various capacity in advancing corporate social responsibility".
It's pretty true, but you know that it is one thing to 'KNOW' and another thing to 'DO'. And for us to achieve a common goal we all must be willing to rise up to this task. It's a fact that most Corporations, Governments, and Individuals know what to do, but don't just want to rise up to the task! especially the Corporate organisations. . . who atimes need to be reminded of their social responsibilities. And, this reminds me of a recent Community Development project we had, getting assistances from individuals , Citizens, Customers etc was a lot easier than getting assistance from the Corporations.
It is just unimaginable the amount of money some corporations in Nigeria spend on advertising their businesses, promoting mere 'Entertainments' than focusing on the essential needs of the people (e.g the MDGs). Most of these organisations prefer to sponsor programmes that would inversely bring profits in return!
I think alot can be done by our Government in making these Corporations realise that Social Responsibility is what they 'OWE' the communities and they should endeavour to pay up. As individuals too, we cannot do it all alone, we need assistances from Governments, Corporations etc. I think we all need ourselves to rise up to this profitable task.
Anyway, these are my views.
This post was edited on: 2008-02-29 at 06:05 AM by: Olowotee
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Makita
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
March 7, 2008 - 03:04 PM
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We all are. What can we as conscious citizens do to correct the ills of man-made economi system and institutions. First step is to diagnose where the dysfunctions are embedded in our economic system? Then we will see corporations and governments are not the root of the problem.
Our own limited view of the nature and ownership of man-made currency - the very medium thru which all exchange and circulation happens - must be corrected and a participatory new system established soon on fair, sound and sustainable basis.
peace
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amani007
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
May 22, 2008 - 04:57 AM
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CSR is a responsibility of thedirectors of a company,the auditors and the civil servants(employees).The other stakeholders such as the commmunity stand to benefit or support the CSR mission at will..all in favour say aye!
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devan singaram
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
November 6, 2008 - 07:20 AM
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I think, many corporations goal are to maximize profit at lowest cost, so this builds their capital and value to share holders.
In my experience, many CSR initiatives are handled by the public relations and marketing divisions.
The first step, is for corporations to take CSR a lot more seriously, rather than look at it as a public relations exercise.
One, they have to look at their supply chain and it's effects on the environment and employees at the bottom of the ladder.
Two, get certification such as fair trade or sustainable palm oil, etc.
Three, engage with NGOs in the communities where they operate, and involve key members from their own team, like decision makers, innovators and experts, with the aim to make sure their CSR projects can compete in awards.
cheers.
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Empowering marginalized communities thru trade!!
Vote for change everytime you buy fair!!
www.elevyn.com/beta
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Makita
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible? Who is financing?
November 6, 2008 - 11:25 AM
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Who is financing the corporations, the government, war machinary and the people?
Study that carefully. The centralised monetary-banking-finance system with power to create FIATt/legal money/credit as usury (compound interest) bearing debt based on fractional reserve system. This system based on greed and delusion is deceptive, exploitative and mathematically unsustainable...
Without right knowledge and understanding we cannot change the system to meet millenium goals Search for Deep Conscious Capitalism and get educated.
Join in Peaceful Evolution of ideas.
cheers
Money is a new form of slavery, and distinguishable from the old simply by the fact that it is impersonal -- that there is no human relation between master and slave." - Leo Tolstoy
"All of the perplexities, confusion, and distress in America arises, not from the defects of the Constitution or Confederation, not from want of honor or virtue, so much as from downright ignorance of the nature of coin, credit, and circulation." -- John Adams, Founding Father
This post was edited on: 2008-11-06 at 11:32 AM by: Mita
This post was edited on: 2008-11-06 at 11:34 AM by: Mita
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Jimmy Ung
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
January 14, 2009 - 01:48 AM
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Part I
Whose duty is it to ensure or maintain corporate social responsibility?
I believe that the duty is shared amongst all stakeholders in variable proportions depending on the size and industry of the subject.
One of the most important challenges with Corporate Social Responsibility is in defining its practice properly and effectively. In this regard, here are a few approaches possible:
1- Government / Public led initiatives, where standards of proper corporate behaviors are defined by law makers and government agencies. Workplace safety standards, health and environmental protection regulations are some of the more well spread practices, but these can be reinforced either through the forms of compliance sets (punitive) or incentives.
2- Industry / Private led initiatives, where standards for good practices are shared and developed by and for the subjects of CSR themselves. More and more companies today offer Corporate Responsibility or Sustainability Reports on their public websites and though some may have legitimate doubts about the motives of such initiatives, they remain nonetheless a consistent effort towards CSR. There are also many global initiatives like the WBCSD or AccountAbility 1000 by which associations of companies are constituted to develop common frameworks for CSR practices.
3- Civil society also has a monitoring and public education role to play, whether through consumer protection organizations or public awareness campaigns. We can all think back at case such as Gap and Nike which had tremendous public opinion pressures relative to child labor practices, that led them to modify their corporate behavior without any significant governmental intervention.
4- Ultimately, I believe that individual actions and initiatives, progressively coordinating their way towards more structured one, are the key to achieving the first three examples cited above.
What assumptions do we need to test or challenge in thinking about our and others’ roles in advancing corporate social responsibility?
The assumption that corporate-led CSR initiatives necessarily carry a “profit-maximization” bias that render these initiatives poorly effective in achieving significant ecological and social objectives.
The assumption that CSR practices are driven by PR and Marketing professionals, independently of internal corporate culture and values.
The assumption that CSR is too complex a subject to be worth any significant public attention.
The assumption that CSR researchers make good CSR consultants or ambassadors.
This post was edited on: 2009-01-14 at 01:55 AM by: Peacecrafter
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Jimmy Ung
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
January 14, 2009 - 01:50 AM
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Part II
What opportunities for leadership in social responsibility do you see in your community?
State owned companies and cooperatives often offer a good vantage point for more innovative and bolder practices.
Business schools and Board of Trades ought to reinforce a business culture that value CSR as both a form of comparative advantage and measure of achievement.
Consumers ought to be empowered through access to more information about the Social Responsibility Value of the products and services they consume so that they may exercise more influence over the subjects of CSR.
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Stu
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 16, 2009 - 10:26 AM
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Ultimately everyone is responsible for keeping tabs on CSR, I think that is unanimous here. Some however will contribute very little in their lifetime and others will dedicate their lives to it. We can be grateful for those people.
It is extremely difficult to launch a CSR campaign that will generate a lot of profit. Profit made from CSR initiatives is a different kind of money. Often any potential profit from campaigns is predestined to be reinvested. For example back in to research for disease some campaign may be running. There is also a huge fear of being labeled as "Greenwashers" by the savy digital consumers of today.
Companies understand that they are good at certain things and thats why they exist, but that being said we must realize that naturally companies will focus on CSR areas that are close to their business.
In terms of CSR being extremely complex for the public....I dont know. Pedigree was willing to bank millions on their Superbowl campaign, which tells me they think the public will get it. Dog food isn't overly interesting so giving people a purpose to buy the brand based on the perception (and hopefully the follow up) of good CSR work benefiting animals.
As a consumer the most powerful thing we can do is be informed about brands and companies that are practicing CSR and make an effort to buy those products.
Cheers
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All The Best,
Stu
This post was edited on: 2009-02-16 at 01:19 PM by: Dangles
This post was edited on: 2009-02-16 at 01:20 PM by: Dangles
This post was edited on: 2009-02-16 at 01:20 PM by: Dangles
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Makita
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 16, 2009 - 11:52 AM
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Hi Stu
My sister lives in Almere, near Amsterdam and love visiting Holland. Wonder, what's
'greenwasher'?
The rest of us (Citizens for Social Responsibility) outside of the corporate box need to monitor the CSR movement, how much of it is genuine and holistic and how much is just another frorm of smart advertisement or PR to benefit the profit and image of corporation but not the health of people, planet and communities.
These links may be helpful
Ethical Corporation & CSR Monitor
10 worst Corporation of 2008
Public Eye Award 2009 For Worst CSR Corporations
Citizens for social Responsibility need to publicly identify them in every country and city. And of cousrse we need to include the worst Banks and financial Institutions which have evaded public scrutiny for long.
Vote for my Peace currency & Sustainable economics here. Cheers
This post was edited on: 2009-02-16 at 11:54 AM by: Mita
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Stu
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
February 16, 2009 - 01:43 PM
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Hi Makita,
Greenwashing is when someone or an organization pretends to be greener than actually are.
I am familiar with Almere, I made it there once. I also checked the links and I agree that it is important to have outside the box monitoring. It applies the right kind of motivation.
Earlier in the thread the importance of having a separate CSR department was mentioned and I think that's an important step in the right direction. Especially in terms of conducting CSR work away from Marketing and PR.
Cheers
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All The Best,
Stu
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Raisa Bhuiyan
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Re: CSR: Who is responsible?
June 27, 2009 - 07:02 PM
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@Jimmy
"4- Ultimately, I believe that individual actions and initiatives, progressively coordinating their way towards more structured one, are the key to achieving the first three examples cited above"
This is a definite truth. Personally i think that it is indeed the individual actions taken by corporate/government executives that accumulate to the unjust realities of countries occupied by Multi-national corporations.
I'd also have to agree with patsibo who also indicates that we are all accountable for holding corporation responsible for their actions. We can hold these corporations accountable simpy by not purchasing their products or convincing others to not purchase their products.
I admit, this tactic does have potential to backfire as the reaction of the corporation can go both ways. But it is hopefully a start.
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