Module 7: Corporate Social Responsibility

• Overview
• Getting Started
• Options for Action
• Advancing Your CSR Program
• Resources and Case Studies

Getting Started

Like any other major economic or environmental project, proper planning and the support of management and employees are critical for implementing a corporate social responsibility program.

Secure support and resources

This process involves gathering information to make a case for integrating elements of CSR into the corporate agenda to the appropriate level of management. One common strategy is to generate publicity about the project and how it will benefit management, employees, and stakeholders. Also, a publicly owned company will need to make the case for the benefits of a CSR program to the shareholders before moving on to implementation. Shareholder groups may also be the driving force behind starting a CSR program as investors seek sustainable investments.

• Engage management in the project: CSR projects tend to require a great deal of high-level involvement, making the input from top levels of management extremely important when planning a program.
• Identify issues of strategic importance: Obtain input from employees, members of the local community, and state and federal representatives about the primary issues affecting the community. Determine how these issues relate to corporate goals or the business mission.
• Assemble potential options: Identify options to address the issues selected that provide mutual benefit to your company and to the community as a whole. Focus on the options that have the most reasonable chance of success to introduce the CSR program to the company and the community.
• Emphasize the potential benefits: Demonstrate the positive returns that may be achieved with the projects you have determined to be relevant.
• Get commitment to CSR in corporate planning: CSR requires involvement in the overall corporate strategy to be effective. Commitment to move the program forward is needed in the vision and overall plan of the company.

Identify potentially productive options

A wide variety of options are available under the umbrella of corporate social responsibility, but not all options will apply to every company. For example, labor and environmental practices in the developing world may be relevant for a large manufacturer with global sourcing, while they may hold far less relevance for a small business with only local sourcing.

• Look at options available to your company: What projects are possible in your location and what projects can your company manage? Are there larger local projects you can become involved in? Is your office or facility part of a parent company with an existing CSR program that you can become involved in?
• Determine the options that are most feasible: Which options will provide the greatest benefit for the initial involvement and are also most likely to provide demonstrable success that will secure continued support for CSR projects in the future?
• Plan the initial program to provide visible progress: To encourage support from employees and management for continued CSR projects and to improve your company’s image to stakeholders, choose initial projects that deliver visible benefits to employees, management, and stakeholders within a reasonable time.
• Consider integrating CSR into existing management systems: If your company is operating an Environmental Management System (EMS) or is in the process of developing one, consider upgrading the EMS into a Social and Environmental Management System (SEMS), adding social elements in addition to the environmental aspects.

Create and assign action items

• Select options from the previous step for initial implementation: Following the guidelines from the above section, select the best options for your first project.
• Prepare a plan of action for these options: Depending on the project selected, you may go through a number of different plans for implementation. Look for information on similar projects to develop your project and modify it to fit your particular company. (See the Resources section.) Identify the main objectives and specify the methods by which you intend to achieve these objectives.
• Assign Action Items: Assign specific action items to members of the team responsible for implementing this aspect of the CSR program. Set intermittent targets and dates for the team to verify progress, and find solutions to bottlenecks and unforeseen events.

Choose measurements

Measuring results is one of the most important, yet least understood, elements of a corporate social responsibility program. Because a CSR program is a highly public process involving interaction and communication with various parts of the company and stakeholder groups, you need a uniform system to measure progress and communicate this progress.

• Decide what elements will need to be measured: Depending on your project, different elements of company performance in CSR will need to be measured and reported. Measure the current baseline situation and report improvements as the project continues. Measurements may include such items as hours of volunteer time by employees on community projects, money donated to projects, or the amount of nonrenewable resources replaced by renewable sources.
• Select a relevant method for measuring progress in your CSR pursuits: Numerous different CSR measurement standards exist for reporting, ranging from SA8000 certification (similar to ISO 14001) to the more basic Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines. Look at some of the different guidelines in the Resources section to determine which may be most suitable for your company and projects, or devise your own system for reporting and stick with it.
• Determine how and how often reports will be made: Reporting will largely be influenced by your company’s current reporting progress and the nature of the CSR projects you have chosen to undertake. If your company publishes regular financial reports, adding a section or attached sustainability report is an easy way to report progress. Other considerations include the scope of the projects you are undertaking, the time scale of your measurements or goals (which will likely determine when you report your progress), or releasing your report at the same time as other offices, if you are part of a larger corporation that publishes a combined sustainability report.

Set goals

• Fix time periods to your goals: Depending on the projects you choose, select a reasonable time period in which to measure progress and mark your objectives over this time period.
• Set progressive but achievable goals: Goals should be progressive enough to make visible success for stakeholders, management, and employees, but should not be so ambitious that they are unlikely to be met.
• Keep management and employees interested in achieving goals: Update management and employees on progress toward CSR goals and publicize the projects. Interest within the company is important in maintaining focus on your projects.