Can CSR really save the planet?
Mar 6, 2024 20:41:36 GMT -8
Post by account_disabled on Mar 6, 2024 20:41:36 GMT -8
As of now, it is still unclear whether Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs will ever make the world better. However, one thing is quite clear: these programs benefit the companies that have implemented them, and in some very unexpected ways.
CSR has become the weapon of the well-known "three Rs":
Relations with other investors
Human Resources.
Public relations.
What is CSR?
Over the past two decades, companies have Chile Mobile Number List embraced the idea that they need to do more than just make money for their shareholders. Efforts to do good have slowly evolved from limited, passive, corporate philanthropy programs (for example, donating to nonprofit organizations like the United Way) to broader, more active SRC programs.
Such programs address important social issues such as Goldman Sachs' 10,000 Women program , which in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (World Bank), has provided $1.45 billion in loans to women-owned businesses in developing countries.
Now, these programs have evolved even further. Currently, many companies incorporate elements of social impact into their core business activities. An example of this is Starbucks , an industry that uses only “ethically sourced coffee.” Programs like this often focus on “sustainability.”
Last August, 181 CEOs of America's largest corporations signed a statement from the nonprofit Business Roundtable, committing to leading their companies not only to benefit their shareholders, but also their customers. , employees, suppliers and communities.
The idea behind all of these efforts is the tired slogan: "Doing well by doing good ," which implies that being a positive force in the community will improve the company's reputation, which in theory will result in more sales. , lower costs and, in the long term, more money for shareholders.
Is it possible to measure something like this? Stephen Hahn-Griffiths, director of reputation at the Reputation Institute in Boston, says yes.
He mentions in one breath a series of statistics such as: “40% of a company's reputation is related to corporate responsibility,” and says that research carried out by his organization shows that reputation is a key indicator of market capitalization. of securities, or the total value of a company's shares.
In other words, he adds, “CSR has a multiplier effect in relation to the value of a company”, however, CSR can pose risks and this requires some courage.
According to analysts, the decision made by the CVS pharmacy chain in 2014 to stop selling tobacco products cost it $2 billion a year in sales and caused the value of its shares to fall precipitously (that year, investors took a $1.43 billion hit, according to UNC Greensboro's Martin Anderson.)
In 2010, Campbell Soup announced that it would lower salt concentrations in many of its soups, a decision it canceled the following year when sales fell 32%.
Meanwhile, in 2018, Dick's Sporting Goods stopped selling assault rifles. In a panel discussion at this year's Aspen Ideas Festival, CEO Ed Stack said that decision caused them to lose customers and employees. He notes that many of the customers who applauded the decision at the time seem to have forgotten it, but those who opposed it have not. “Love ends, but hate lasts forever,” he says.
Dividends vs risks
Many companies believe that the rewards of doing good outweigh the risks, both in relationships with consumers and in day-to-day operations.
Companies don't do it just to say they have it. My clients incorporate it into the way they do business, in the ingredients they use, in the places they source their supplies, in the way they design their products.
Brad McLane, recruiter for senior positions at RSR Partners.
Megan Kashner, Kellogg School clinical professor of the Public-Private Management Interface, agrees. She claims that we have moved from “greenwashing CSR-imitating programs” to an era of “genuine CSR.”
Greenwashing is the practice of making misleading claims to make a company appear more environmentally or socially conscious than it really is, for example when energy company BP began promoting itself as environmentally conscious through a public relations campaign. public spending of $200 million, only to find itself faced with a series of environmental disasters, some of which, according to a government report, were caused by corporate cost-cutting aimed at increasing the company's profitability.
“This is built into the way we operate as a company. For example, we need to maintain our license to work in regions where there is water scarcity, so we focus on becoming responsible water stewards. Not only is it the best thing we can do, it is also important for our company,” says Simon Lowden, PepsiCo's chief sustainability officer.