Yakub02
Banned
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a term for the responsibility that a company should have towards society and the environment in which it operates.
CSR has been defined in various ways:
It is ‘a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis.’
‘While there is no single, commonly-accepted definition of corporate social responsibility … it generally refers to business decision-making linked to ethical values, compliance with legal requirements, and respect for people, communities and the environment’ (Business for Social Responsibility). An important element of CSR is that it goes beyond compliance with legal and regulatory obligations, and involves voluntary initiatives and investment in people and the environment, and better relations with all stakeholders, not just shareholders and other investors.
The practice of CSR increases the transparency and accountability of an organisation. Transparency is important as stakeholders want to know about an organisation’s activities. (They want to ‘see into’ an entity, to understand what it is doing and which strategic directions it is taking.)
For example, if a local community believe that a company is dumping waste in the local area, then it will be important to understand what is actually happening. Likewise, the company needs to accept that it is accountable for its actions. Stakeholders believe that they have a right to know whether a company is acting in the best interests of society and the environment and wish to understand what the company is doing to remedy any faults.
CSR has been defined in various ways:
It is ‘a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis.’
‘While there is no single, commonly-accepted definition of corporate social responsibility … it generally refers to business decision-making linked to ethical values, compliance with legal requirements, and respect for people, communities and the environment’ (Business for Social Responsibility). An important element of CSR is that it goes beyond compliance with legal and regulatory obligations, and involves voluntary initiatives and investment in people and the environment, and better relations with all stakeholders, not just shareholders and other investors.
The practice of CSR increases the transparency and accountability of an organisation. Transparency is important as stakeholders want to know about an organisation’s activities. (They want to ‘see into’ an entity, to understand what it is doing and which strategic directions it is taking.)
For example, if a local community believe that a company is dumping waste in the local area, then it will be important to understand what is actually happening. Likewise, the company needs to accept that it is accountable for its actions. Stakeholders believe that they have a right to know whether a company is acting in the best interests of society and the environment and wish to understand what the company is doing to remedy any faults.