Corporate social responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is becoming an increasingly important activity to businesses nationally and internationally. As globalisation accelerates and large corporations serve as global providers, these corporations have progressively recognised the benefits of providing CSR programs in their various locations. CSR activities are now being undertaken throughout the globe

What is corporate social responsibility ?

The term is often used interchangeably for other terms such as Corporate Citizenship and is also linked to the concept of Triple Bottom Line Reporting (TBL), which is used as a framework for measuring an organisation’s performance against economic, social and environmental parameters.
The rationale for CSR has been articulated in a number of ways. In essence it is about building sustainable businesses, which need healthy economies, markets and communities. The key drivers for CSR are1:

• Enlightened self-interest creating a synergy of ethics, a cohesive society and a sustainable global economy where markets, labour and communities are able to function well together.

• Social investment contributing to physical infrastructure and social capital is increasingly seen as a necessary part of doing business.

• Transparency and trust business has low ratings of trust in public perception. There is increasing expectation that companies will be more open, more accountable and be prepared to report publicly on their performance in social and environmental arenas

• Increased public expectations of business globally companies are expected to do more than merely provide jobs and contribute to the economy through taxes and employment.