managing csr case study

• Business Essentials
• Leadership & Management
• Credential of Leadership, Impact, and Management in Business (CLIMB)
• Entrepreneurship & Innovation
• Digital Transformation
• Finance & Accounting
• Business in Society
• For Organizations
• Support Portal
• Media Coverage
• Founding Donors
• Leadership Team

• Harvard Business School →
• HBS Online →
• Business Insights →

Business Insights

Harvard Business School Online's Business Insights Blog provides the career insights you need to achieve your goals and gain confidence in your business skills.

• Career Development
• Communication
• Decision-Making
• Earning Your MBA
• Negotiation
• News & Events
• Productivity
• Staff Spotlight
• Student Profiles
• Work-Life Balance
• AI Essentials for Business
• Alternative Investments
• Business Analytics
• Business Strategy
• Business and Climate Change
• Design Thinking and Innovation
• Digital Marketing Strategy
• Disruptive Strategy
• Economics for Managers
• Entrepreneurship Essentials
• Financial Accounting
• Global Business
• Launching Tech Ventures
• Leadership Principles
• Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability
• Leading Change and Organizational Renewal
• Leading with Finance
• Management Essentials
• Negotiation Mastery
• Organizational Leadership
• Power and Influence for Positive Impact
• Strategy Execution
• Sustainable Business Strategy
• Sustainable Investing
• Winning with Digital Platforms

6 Examples of Corporate Social Responsibility That Were Successful

• 06 Jun 2019

Business is about more than just making a profit. Climate change, economic inequality, and other global challenges that impact communities worldwide have compelled companies to be purpose-driven and contribute to the greater good .

In a recent study by Deloitte , 93 percent of business leaders said they believe companies aren't just employers, but stewards of society. In addition, 95 percent reported they plan to take a stronger stance on large-scale issues in the coming years and devote significant resources to socially responsible initiatives. With more CEOs turning their focus to the long term, it’s important to consider what you can do in your career to make an impact .

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Corporate Social Responsibility?

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a business model in which for-profit companies seek ways to create social and environmental benefits while pursuing organizational goals, such as revenue growth and maximizing shareholder value.

Today’s organizations are implementing extensive corporate social responsibility programs, with many companies dedicating C-level executive roles and entire departments to social and environmental initiatives. These executives are commonly referred to as chief officers of corporate social responsibility or chief sustainability officers (CSO).

There are many types of corporate social responsibility , and CSR might look different for each organization, but the end goal is always the same: Do well by doing good . Companies that embrace corporate social responsibility aim to maintain profitability while supporting a larger purpose.

Rather than simply focusing on generating profit, or the bottom line, socially responsible companies are concerned with the triple bottom line , which considers the impact that business decisions have on profit, people, and the planet.

It’s no coincidence that some of today’s most profitable organizations are also socially responsible. Here are six successful examples of corporate social responsibility you can use to drive social change at your organization.

Check out our video on corporate social responsibility below, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more explainer content!

6 Corporate Social Responsibility Examples

1. lego’s commitment to sustainability.

As one of the most reputable companies in the world, Lego aims to not only help children develop through creative play but also foster a healthy planet.

Lego is the first, and only, toy company to be named a World Wildlife Fund Climate Savers Partner , marking its pledge to reduce its carbon impact. And its commitment to sustainability extends beyond its partnerships.

By 2030, the toymaker plans to use environmentally friendly materials to produce all of its core products and packaging—and it’s already taken key steps to achieve that goal.

Over 2013 and 2014, Lego shrunk its box sizes by 14 percent , saving approximately 7,000 tons of cardboard. Then, in 2018, the company introduced 150 botanical pieces made from sustainably sourced sugarcane —a break from the petroleum-based plastic typically used to produce the company’s signature building blocks. The company has also recently committed to removing all single-use plastic packaging from its materials by 2025, among other initiatives .

Along with these changes, the toymaker has committed to investing $164 million into its Sustainable Materials Center , where researchers are experimenting with bio-based materials that can be implemented into the production process.

Through these initiatives, Lego is well on its way to tackling pressing environmental challenges and furthering its mission to help build a more sustainable future.

Related : What Does "Sustainability" Mean in Business?

2. Salesforce’s 1-1-1 Philanthropic Model

Beyond being a leader in the technology space, cloud-based software giant Salesforce is a trailblazer in corporate philanthropy.

Since its outset, the company has championed its 1-1-1 philanthropic model , which involves giving one percent of product, one percent of equity, and one percent of employees’ time to communities and the nonprofit sector.

To date, Salesforce employees have logged more than 5 million volunteer hours . Not only that, the company has awarded upwards of $406 million in grants and donated to more than 40,000 nonprofit organizations and educational institutions.

In addition, through its work with San Francisco Unified and Oakland Unified School Districts, Salesforce has helped reduce algebra repeat rates and contributed to a high percentage of students receiving A’s or B’s in computer science classes.

As the company’s revenue grows, Salesforce stands as a prime example of the idea that profit-making and social impact initiatives don’t have to be at odds with one another.

3. Ben & Jerry’s Social Mission

At Ben & Jerry’s, positively impacting society is just as important as producing premium ice cream.

In 2012, the company became a certified B Corporation —a business that balances purpose and profit by meeting the highest standards of social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability.

As part of its overarching commitment to leading with progressive values, the ice cream maker established the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation in 1985, an organization dedicated to supporting grassroots movements that drive social change.

Each year, the foundation awards approximately $2.5 million in grants to organizations in Vermont and across the United States. Grant recipients have included the United Workers Association, a human rights group striving to end poverty, and the Clean Air Coalition, an environmental health and justice organization based in New York.

The foundation’s work earned it a National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy Award in 2014, and it continues to sponsor efforts to find solutions to systemic problems at both local and national levels.

Related : How to Create Social Change: 4 Business Strategies

4. Levi Strauss’s Social Impact

In addition to being one of the most successful fashion brands in history, Levi’s is also one of the first to push for a more ethical and sustainable supply chain.

In 1991, the brand created its Terms of Engagement , which established its global code of conduct regarding its supply chain and set standards for workers’ rights, a safe work environment, and an environmentally friendly production process.

To maintain its commitment in a changing world, Levi’s regularly updates its Terms of Engagement. In 2011, on the 20th anniversary of its code of conduct, Levi’s announced its Worker Well-being initiative to implement further programs focused on the health and well-being of supply chain workers.

Since 2011, the Worker Well-being initiative has been expanded to 12 countries, benefitting more than 100,000 workers. In 2016, the brand scaled up the initiative, vowing to expand the program to more than 300,000 workers and produce more than 80 percent of its product in Worker Well-being factories by 2025.

For its continued efforts to maintain the well-being of its people and the environment, Levi’s was named one of Engage for Good’s 2020 Golden Halo Award winners , the highest honor reserved for socially responsible companies.

5. Starbucks’s Commitment to Ethical Sourcing

Starbucks launched its first corporate social responsibility report in 2002 with the goal of becoming as well-known for its CSR initiatives as for its products. One of the ways the brand has fulfilled this goal is through ethical sourcing.

In 2015, Starbucks verified that 99 percent of its coffee supply chain is ethically sourced , and it seeks to boost that figure to 100 percent through continued efforts and partnerships with local coffee farmers and organizations.

The brand bases its approach on Coffee and Farmer Equity (CAFE) Practices , one of the coffee industry’s first set of ethical sourcing standards created in collaboration with Conservation International . CAFE assesses coffee farms against specific economic, social, and environmental standards, ensuring Starbucks can source its product while maintaining a positive social impact.

For its work, Starbucks was named one of the world’s most ethical companies in 2021 by Ethisphere.

6. New Belgium Brewing’s Sustainable Practices

New Belgium Brewing has always been a proponent of green initiatives . As early as 1999, it was one of the first breweries to use wind power to source 100 percent of its electricity, significantly reducing its operational carbon footprint.

In Harvard Business School Online’s Business and Climate Change course, Katie Wallace, New Belgium Brewing's chief environmental, social, and governance (ESG) officer, elaborates on the company’s sustainable practices.

"We have biogas here that we capture from our process water treatment plant," Wallace says in the course. "We make electricity with it. When we installed our solar panels on the Colorado packaging hall, it was the largest privately owned solar array at that time in Colorado. And today, we have many other sources of renewable electricity and have invested quite a bit in efficiencies."

New Belgium Brewing also turns outward in its sustainability practices by actively engaging with suppliers, customers, and competitors to promote broader environmental change. These efforts range from encouraging the use of renewable resources in supply chains to participating in policy-making discussions that foster industry-wide sustainability. For example, it co-founded the Glass Recycling Coalition to improve recycling nationwide after recognizing sustainability concerns in the bottling industry.

New Belgium's commitment to corporate social responsibility is an ongoing process, though. The brewery continues to set ambitious targets for reducing waste, conserving water, and supporting renewable energy projects to build a more sustainable future.

The Value of Being Socially Responsible

As these firms demonstrate , a deep and abiding commitment to corporate social responsibility can pay dividends. By learning from these initiatives and taking a values-driven approach to business, you can help your organization thrive and grow, even as it confronts global challenges.

Corporate social responsibility is critical for businesses today. It enables organizations to contribute to society while also achieving operational goals. By prioritizing social responsibility, you can build trust with your stakeholders and leave a positive impact.

Do you want to understand how to combine purpose and profit and more effectively tackle global challenges? Explore our online business in society courses , including Sustainable Business Strategy and Business and Climate Change , to learn more about how business can be a catalyst for system-level change.

This post was updated on May 30, 2024. It was originally published on June 6, 2019.

About the Author

MBA Knowledge Base

Business • Management • Technology

Home » Management Case Studies » Case Study: Corporate Social Responsibility of Starbucks

Case Study: Corporate Social Responsibility of Starbucks

Starbucks is the world’s largest and most popular coffee company. Since the beginning, this premier cafe aimed to deliver the world’s finest fresh-roasted coffee. Today the company dominates the industry and has created a brand that is tantamount with loyalty, integrity and proven longevity. Starbucks is not just a name, but a culture .

It is obvious that Starbucks and their CEO Howard Shultz are aware of the importance of corporate social responsibility . Every company has problems they can work on and improve in and so does Starbucks. As of recent, Starbucks has done a great job showing their employees how important they are to the company. Along with committing to every employee, they have gone to great lengths to improve the environment for everyone. Ethical and unethical behavior is always a hot topic for the media, and Starbucks has to be careful with the decisions they make and how they affect their public persona.

The corporate social responsibility of the Starbucks Corporation address the following issues: Starbucks commitment to the environment, Starbucks commitment to the employees, Starbucks commitment to consumers, discussions of ethical and unethical business behavior, and Starbucks commitment and response to shareholders.

Commitment to the Environment

The first way Starbucks has shown corporate social responsibility is through their commitment to the environment. In order to improve the environment, with a little push from the NGO, Starbucks first main goal was to provide more Fair Trade Coffee. What this means is that Starbucks will aim to only buy 100 percent responsibly grown and traded coffee. Not only does responsibly grown coffee help the environment, it benefits the farmers as well. Responsibly grown coffee means preserving energy and water at the farms. In turn, this costs more for the company overall, but the environmental improvements are worth it. Starbucks and the environment benefits from this decision because it helps continue to portray a clean image.

Another way to improve the environment directly through their stores is by “going green”. Their first attempt to produce a green store was in Manhattan. Starbucks made that decision to renovate a 15 year old store. This renovation included replacing old equipment with more energy efficient ones. To educate the community, they placed plaques throughout the store explaining their new green elements and how they work. This new Manhattan store now conserves energy, water, materials, and uses recycled/recyclable products. Twelve stores total plan to be renovated and Starbucks has promised to make each new store LEED, meaning a Leader in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED improves performance regarding energy savings, water efficiency, and emission reduction. Many people don’t look into environmentally friendly appliances because the upfront cost is always more. According to Starbucks, going green over time outweighs the upfront cost by a long shot. Hopefully, these new design elements will help the environment and get Starbucks ahead of their market.

Commitment to Consumers

The second way Starbucks has shown corporate social responsibility is through their commitment to consumers. The best way to get the customers what they want is to understand their demographic groups. By doing research on Starbucks consumer demographics, they realized that people with disabilities are very important. The company is trying to turn stores into a more adequate environment for customers with disabilities. A few changes include: lowering counter height to improve easy of ordering for people in wheelchairs, adding at least one handicap accessible entrance, adding disability etiquette to employee handbooks, training employees to educate them on disabilities, and by joining the National Business Disability Council. By joining the National Business Disability Council, Starbucks gains access to resumes of people with disabilities.

Another way Starbucks has shown commitment to the consumers is by cutting costs and retaining loyal customers. For frequent, loyal customers, Starbucks decided to provide a loyalty card. Once a customer has obtained this card, they are given incentives and promotions for continuing to frequent their stores. Promotions include discounted drinks and free flavor shots to repeat visitors. Also, with the economy being at an all time low, Starbucks realized that cheaper prices were a necessity. By simplifying their business practices, they were able to provide lower prices for their customers. For example, they use only one recipe for banana bread, rather than eleven!

It doesn’t end there either! Starbucks recognized that health is part of social responsibility. To promote healthier living, they introduced “skinny” versions of most drinks, while keeping the delicious flavor. For example, the skinny vanilla latte has 90 calories compared to the original with 190 calories. Since Starbucks doesn’t just sell beverages now, they introduced low calorie snacks. Along with the snacks and beverages, nutrition facts were available for each item.

Also one big way to cut costs was outsourcing payroll and Human Resources administration . By creating a global platform for their administration system, Starbucks is able to provide more employees with benefits. Plus, they are able to spend more money on pleasing customers, rather than on a benefits system.

Commitment and Response to Shareholders

One way Starbucks has demonstrated their commitment and response to shareholder needs is by giving them large portions. By large portions, Starbucks is implying that they plan pay dividends equal to 35% or higher of net income to. For the shareholders, paying high dividends means certainty about the company’s financial well-being. Along with that, they plan to purchase 15 million more shares of stock, and hopefully this will attract investors who focus on stocks with good results.

Starbucks made their commitment to shareholders obvious by speaking directly to the media about it. In 2004, Starbucks won a great tax break, but unfortunately the media saw them as “money grubbing”. Their CEO, Howard Shultz, made the decision to get into politics and speak to Washington about expanding health care and the importance of this to the company. Not only does he want his shareholders to see his commitment, but he wants all of America to be able to reap this benefits.

In order to compete with McDonalds and keeping payout to their shareholders high, Starbucks needed a serious turnaround . They did decide to halt growth in North America but not in Japan. Shultz found that drinking coffee is becoming extremely popular for the Japanese. To show shareholders there is a silver lining, he announced they plan to open “thousands of stores” in Japan and Vietnamese markets.

Commitment to Employees

The first and biggest way Starbucks shows their commitment to employees is by just taking care of their workers. For example, they know how important health care, stock options, and compensation are to people in this economy. The Starbucks policy states that as long as you work 20 hours a week you get benefits and stock options. These benefits include health insurance and contributions to employee’s 401k plan. Starbucks doesn’t exclude part time workers, because they feel they are just as valuable as full time workers. Since Starbucks doesn’t have typical business hours like an office job, the part time workers help working the odd shifts.

Another way Starbucks shows their commitment to employees is by treating them like individuals, not just number 500 out of 26,000 employees. Howard Shultz, CEO, always tries to keep humanity and compassion in mind. When he first started at Starbucks, he remembered how much he liked it that people cared about him, so he decided to continue this consideration for employees. Shultz feels that a first impression is very important. On an employee’s first day, he lets each new employee know how happy he is to have them as part of their business, whether it is in person or through a video. His theory is that making a good first impression on a new hire is similar to teaching a child good values. Through their growth, he feels each employee will keep in mind that the company does care about them. Shultz wants people to know what he and the company stand for, and what they are trying to accomplish.

Ethical/Unethical Business Behavior

The last way Starbucks demonstrates corporate social responsibility is through ethical behavior and the occasional unethical behavior. The first ethically positive thing Starbucks involves them self in is the NGO and Fair Trade coffee. Even though purchasing mostly Fair Trade coffee seriously affected their profits, Starbucks knew it was the right thing to do. They also knew that if they did it the right way, everyone would benefit, from farmers, to the environment, to their public image.

In the fall of 2010, Starbucks chose to team up with Jumpstart, a program that gives children a head start on their education. By donating to literacy organizations and volunteering with Jumpstart, Starbucks has made an impact on the children in America, in a very positive way.

Of course there are negatives that come along with the positives. Starbucks isn’t the “perfect” company like it may seem. In 2008, Starbucks made the decision to close 616 stores because they were not performing very well. In order for Starbucks to close this many stores in one year, they had to battle many landlords due to the chain breaking lease agreements. Starbucks tried pushing for rent cuts but some stores did have to break their agreements. On top of breaching lease agreements, Starbucks was not able to grow as much as planned, resulting their future landlords were hurting as well. To fix these problems, tenants typically will offer a buyout or find a replacement tenant, but landlords are in no way forced to go with any of these options. These efforts became extremely time consuming and costly, causing Starbucks to give up on many lease agreements.

As for Starbucks ethical behavior is a different story when forced into the media light. In 2008, a big media uproar arose due to them wanting to re-release their old logo for their 35th anniversary. The old coffee cup logo was basically a topless mermaid, which in Starbucks’ opinion is just a mythological creature, not a sex symbol. Media critics fought that someone needed to protect the creature’s modesty. Starbucks found this outrageous. In order to end the drama and please the critics, they chose to make the image more modest by lengthening her hair to cover her body and soften her facial expression. Rather than ignoring the media concerns, Starbucks met in the middle to celebrate their 35th anniversary.

Related posts:

• Case Study: Corporate Social Responsibility at The Body Shop
• Case Study: British Petroleum and Corporate Social Responsibility
• Case Study: Starbucks Social Media Marketing Strategy
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• The Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility in Business
• Carroll’s Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility
• Corporate Social Responsibility as a Source of Competitive Advantage
• Stakeholders Perspective on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• Stakeholder Expectations and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• Aligning Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Case Studies

Hyatt hotels: developing an integrated csr strategy, june 3, 2011, the challenge.

One of the biggest industries globally, travel and tourism contributes up to 10 percent of the world’s economy and about one in every 12 jobs. Yet most companies in this sector are still in the early stages of assessing and addressing their sustainability impacts. To better communicate the newly public company’s commitment to responsible practices, and to prepare for the increased transparency required of public companies, Hyatt leaders partnered with BSR to articulate a vision for an integrated sustainability strategy.

Our Strategy

Our goal was to help Hyatt build a strategy that connects corporate responsibility objectives to business goals in ways that:

• Deliver value and innovation to Hyatt’s operating companies.
• Identify and mitigate sustainability risks.
• Build trust externally and engage colleagues internally.

At Hyatt, which owns, manages, and franchises hotels, engaging internal stakeholders such as general managers, owners, associates, and executives was an essential first step in understanding the unique global and local sustainability challenges each property faces.

First, BSR interviewed several executives to establish senior management’s current and future conception of CSR. We then conducted workshops in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States to identify current activities, prioritize CSR issues, and understand regional nuances. Several key themes emerged:

• Addressing poverty and inequality in local communities through education and economic self-sufficiency
• Recruiting, developing, and retaining staff
• Managing the environmental footprints of its hotels, expanding its commitment to sustainable sourcing, protecting the biodiversity of the areas surrounding its hotels, and using sustainable design and construction

This work allowed Hyatt to develop and implement “Hyatt Thrive,” a strong, practical CSR vision representing Hyatt’s goal of creating “thriving communities, places where we are proud to work, our neighbors want to live, and our guests want to visit.” The platform, which establishes a global CSR framework with a common vision and strategic focus that can easily be implemented locally, is centered on four pillars: educational and personal advancement, health and wellness, environmental sustainability, and economic development and investment. Hyatt Thrive’s primary objective is to help the company communicate its philanthropic, environmental, and community engagement initiatives, and to position Hyatt to focus on and articulate the value it brings as a global company to the many communities it serves.

The CSR strategy has spurred additional sustainability initiatives, including a new human rights policy statement that references specific industry issues such as human trafficking. Hyatt Thrive also led to an improved approach to aligning Hyatt’s giving and volunteerism with the four pillars of the Thrive framework.

• Travel and Tourism

Let’s talk about how BSR can help you to transform your business and achieve your sustainability goals .

You Might Also Like

Responsible Business in Space

Back to Case Studies

• Contributors

The Business Case for Corporate Social Responsibility

Matteo Tonello is Director of Corporate Governance for The Conference Board, Inc. This post is based on a Conference Board Director Note by Archie B. Carroll and Kareem M. Shabana , and relates to a paper by these authors, titled “The Business Case for Corporate Social Responsibility: A Review of Concepts, Research and Practice,” published in the International Journal of Management Reviews .

In the last decade, in particular, empirical research has brought evidence of the measurable payoff of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives to companies as well as their stakeholders. Companies have a variety of reasons for being attentive to CSR. This report documents some of the potential bottomline benefits: reducing cost and risk, gaining competitive advantage, developing and maintaining legitimacy and reputational capital, and achieving win-win outcomes through synergistic value creation.

The term “corporate social responsibility” is still widely used even though related concepts, such as sustainability, corporate citizenship, business ethics, stakeholder management, corporate responsibility, and corporate social performance, are vying to replace it. In different ways, these expressions refer to the ensemble of policies, practices, investments, and concrete results deployed and achieved by a business corporation in the pursuit of its stakeholders’ interests.

This report discusses the business case for CSR—that is, what justifies the allocation of resources by the business community to advance a certain socially responsible cause. The business case is concerned with the following question: what tangible benefits do business organizations reap from engaging in CSR initiatives? This report reviews the most notable research on the topic and provides practical examples of CSR initiatives that are also good for the business and its bottom line.

The Search for a Business Case: A Shift in Perspective

Business management scholars have been searching for a business case for CSR since the origins of the concept in the 1960s. [1]

An impetus for the research questions for this report was philosophical. It had to do with the long-standing divide between those who, like the late economist Milton Friedman, believed that the corporation should pursue only its shareholders’ economic interests and those who conceive the business organization as a nexus of relations involving a variety of stakeholders (employees, suppliers, customers, and the community where the company operates) without which durable shareholder value creation is impossible. If it could be demonstrated that businesses actually benefited financially from a CSR program designed to cultivate such a range of stakeholder relations, the thinking of the latter school went, then Friedman’s arguments would somewhat be neutralized.

Another impetus to research on the business case of CSR was more pragmatic. Even though CSR came about because of concerns about businesses’ detrimental impacts on society, the theme of making money by improving society has also always been in the minds of early thinkers and practitioners: with the passage of time and the increase in resources being dedicated to CSR pursuits, it was only natural that questions would begin to be raised about whether CSR was making economic sense.

Obviously, corporate boards, CEOs, CFOs, and upper echelon business executives care. They are the guardians of companies’ financial well-being and, ultimately, must bear responsibility for the impact of CSR on the bottom line. At multiple levels, executives need to justify that CSR is consistent with the firm’s strategies and that it is financially sustainable. [a]

However, other groups care as well. Shareholders are acutely concerned with financial performance and sensitive to possible threats to management’s priorities. Social activists care because it is in their long-term best interests if companies can sustain the types of social initiatives that they are advocating. Governmental bodies care because they desire to see whether companies can deliver social and environmental benefits more cost effectively than they can through regulatory approaches. [b] Consumers care as well, as they want to pass on a better world to their children, and many want their purchasing to reflect their values.

[a] K. O’Sullivan, “Virtue rewarded: companies are suddenly discovering the profit potential of social responsibility.” CFO , October 2006, pp. 47–52.

[b] Simon Zadek. Doing Good and Doing Well: Making the Business Case for Corporate Citizenship . New York: The Conference Board Research Report, 2000, 1282-00-RR.

The socially responsible investment movement Establishing a positive relationship between corporate social performance (CSP) and corporate financial performance (CFP) has been a long-standing pursuit of researchers. This endeavor has been described as a “30-year quest for an empirical relationship between a corporation’s social initiatives and its financial performance.” [2] One comprehensive review and assessment of studies exploring the CSP-CFP relationship concludes that there is a positive relationship between CSP and CFP. [3]

In response to this empirical evidence, in the last decade the investment community, in particular, has witnessed the growth of a cadre of socially responsible investment funds (SRI), whose dedicated investment strategy is focused on businesses with a solid track record of CSR-oriented initiatives. Today, the debate on the business case for CSR is clearly influenced by these new market trends: to raise capital, these players promote the belief of a strong correlation between social and financial performance. [4]

As the SRI movement becomes more influential, CSR theories are shifting away from an orientation on ethics (or altruistic rationale) and embracing a performance-driven orientation. In addition, analysis of the value generated by CSR has moved from the macro to the organizational level, where the effects of CSR on firm financial performance are directly experienced. [5]

The CSR of the 1960s and 1970s was motivated by social considerations, not economic ones. “While there was substantial peer pressure among corporations to become more philanthropic, no one claimed that such firms were likely to be more profitable than their less generous competitors.” In contrast, the essence of the new world of CSR is “doing good to do well.” [6]

CSR is evolving into a core business function, central to the firm’s overall strategy and vital to its success. [7] Specifically, CSR addresses the question: “can companies perform better financially by addressing both their core business operations as well as their responsibilities to the broader society?” [8]

One Business Case Just Won’t Do

There is no single CSR business case—no single rationalization for how CSR improves the bottom line. Over the years, researchers have developed many arguments. In general, these arguments can be grouped based on approach, topics addressed, and underlying assumptions about how value is created and defined. According to this categorization, CSR is a viable business choice as it is a tool to:

• implement cost and risk reductions;
• gain competitive advantage;
• develop corporate reputation and legitimacy; and
• seek win-win outcomes through synergistic value creation. [9]

Other widely accepted approaches substantiating the business case include focusing on the empirical research linking CSR with corporate social performance (CSP) and identifying values brought to different stakeholder groups that directly or indirectly benefit the company’s bottom lines.

Broad versus narrow views Some researchers have examined the integration of CSR considerations in the day-to-day business agenda of organizations. The “mainstreaming” of CSR follows from one of three rationales:

• the social values-led model, in which organizations adopt CSR initiatives regarding specific issues for non-economic reasons;
• the business-case model, in which CSR initiatives are primarily assessed in an economic manner and pursued only when there is a clear link to firm financial performance [10] ; and
• the syncretic stewardship model, which combines the social values-led and the business-case models.

The business case model and the syncretic models may be seen as two perspectives of the business case for CSR: one narrow and one broad. The business case model represents the narrow view: CSR is only recognized when there is a clear link to firm financial performance. The syncretic model is broad because it recognizes both direct and indirect relationships between CSR and firm financial performance. The advantage of the broad view is that it enables the firm to identify and exploit opportunities beyond the financial, opportunities that the narrow view would not be able to recognize or justify.

Another advantage of the broad view of the business case, which is illustrated by the syncretic model, is its recognition of the interdependence between business and society. [11]

The failure to recognize such interdependence in favor of pitting business against society leads to reducing the productivity of CSR initiatives. “The prevailing approaches to CSR are so fragmented and so disconnected from business and strategy as to obscure many of the greatest opportunities for companies to benefit society.” [12] The adoption of CSR practices, their integration with firm strategy, and their mainstreaming in the day-to-day business agenda should not be done in a generic manner. Rather, they should be pursued “in the way most appropriate to each firm’s strategy.” [13]

In support of the business case for CSR, the next sections of the report discuss examples of the effect of CSR on firm performance. The discussion is organized according to the framework referenced earlier, which identifies four categories of benefits that firms may attain from engaging in CSR activities. [14]

Reducing Costs and Risks

Cost and risk reduction justifications contend that engaging in certain CSR activities will reduce the firm’s inefficient capital expenditures and exposure to risks. “[T]he primary view is that the demands of stakeholders present potential threats to the viability of the organization, and that corporate economic interests are served by mitigating the threats through a threshold level of social or environmental performance.” [15]

Equal employment opportunity policies and practices CSR activities in the form of equal employment opportunity (EEO) policies and practices enhance long-term shareholder value by reducing costs and risks. The argument is that explicit EEO statements are necessary to illustrate an inclusive policy that reduces employee turnover through improving morale. [16] This argument is consistent with those who observe that “[l]ack of diversity may cause higher turnover and absenteeism from disgruntled employees.” [17]

Energy-saving and other environmentally sound production practices Cost and risk reduction may also be achieved through CSR activities directed at the natural environment. Empirical research shows that being environmentally proactive results in cost and risk reduction. Specifically, data shows hat “being proactive on environmental issues can lower the costs of complying with present and future environmental regulations … [and] … enhance firm efficiencies and drive down operating costs.” [18]

Community relations management Finally, CSR activities directed at managing community relations may also result in cost and risk reductions. [19] For example, building positive community relationships may contribute to the firm’s attaining tax advantages offered by city and county governments to further local investments. In addition, positive community relationships decrease the number of regulations imposed on the firm because the firm is perceived as a sanctioned member of society.

Cost and risk reduction arguments for CSR have been gaining wide acceptance among managers and executives. In a survey of business executives by PricewaterhouseCoopers, 73 percent of the respondents indicated that “cost savings” was one of the top three reasons companies are becoming more socially responsible. [20]

Gaining Competitive Advantage

As used in this section of the report, the term “competitive advantage” is best understood in the context of a differentiation strategy; in other words, the focus is on how firms may use CSR practices to set themselves apart from their competitors. The previous section, which focused on cost and risk reduction, illustrated how CSR practices may be thought of in terms of building a competitive advantage through a cost management strategy. “Competitive advantages” was cited as one of the top two justifications for CSR in a survey of business executives reported in a Fortune survey. [21] In this context, stakeholder demands are seen as opportunities rather than constraints. Firms strategically manage their resources to meet these demands and exploit the opportunities associated with them for the benefit of the firm. [22] This approach to CSR requires firms to integrate their social responsibility initiatives with their broader business strategies.

Reducing costs and risks • Equal employment opportunity policies and practices • Energy-saving and other environmentally sound production practices • Community relations management

Gaining competitive advantage • EEO policies • Customer relations program • Corporate philanthropy

Developing reputation and legitimacy • Corporate philanthropy • Corporate disclosure and transparency practices

Seeking win-win outcomes through synergistic value creation • Charitable giving to education • Stakeholder engagement

EEO policies Companies that build their competitive advantage through unique CSR strategies may have a superior advantage, as the uniqueness of their CSR strategies may serve as a basis for setting the firm apart from its competitors. [23] For example, an explicit statement of EEO policies would have additional benefits to the cost and risk reduction discussed earlier in this report. Such policies would provide the firm with a competitive advantage because “[c]ompanies without inclusive policies may be at a competitive disadvantage in recruiting and retaining employees from the widest talent pool.” [24]

Customer and investor relations programs CSR initiatives can contribute to strengthening a firm’s competitive advantage, its brand loyalty, and its consumer patronage. CSR initiatives also have a positive impact on attracting investment. Many institutional investors “avoid companies or industries that violate their organizational mission, values, or principles… [They also] seek companies with good records on employee relations, environmental stewardship, community involvement, and corporate governance.” [25]

Corporate philanthropy Companies may align their philanthropic activities with their capabilities and core competencies. “In so doing, they avoid distractions from the core business, enhance the efficiency of their charitable activities and assure unique value creation for the beneficiaries.” [26] For example, McKinsey & Co. offers free consulting services to nonprofit organizations in social, cultural, and educational fields. Beneficiaries include public art galleries, colleges, and charitable institutions. [27] Home Depot Inc. provided rebuilding knowhow to the communities victimized by Hurricane Katrina. Strategic philanthropy helps companies gain a competitive advantage and in turn boosts its bottom line. [28]

CSR initiatives enhance a firm’s competitive advantage to the extent that they influence the decisions of the firm’s stakeholders in its favor. Stakeholders may prefer a firm over its competitors specifically due to the firm’s engagement in such CSR initiatives.

Developing Reputation and Legitimacy

Companies may also justify their CSR initiatives on the basis of creating, defending, and sustaining their legitimacy and strong reputations. A business is perceived as legitimate when its activities are congruent with the goals and values of the society in which the business operates. In other words, a business is perceived as legitimate when it fulfills its social responsibilities. [29]

As firms demonstrate their ability to fit in with the communities and cultures in which they operate, they are able to build mutually beneficial relationships with stakeholders. Firms “focus on value creation by leveraging gains in reputation and legitimacy made through aligning stakeholder interests.” [30] Strong reputation and legitimacy sanction the firm to operate in society. CSR activities enhance the ability of a firm to be seen as legitimate in the eyes of consumers, investors, and employees. Time and again, consumers, employees, and investors have shown a distinct preference for companies that take their social responsibilities seriously. A Center for Corporate Citizenship study found that 66 percent of executives thought their social responsibility strategies resulted in improving corporate reputation and saw this as a business benefit. [31]

Corporate philanthropy Corporate philanthropy may be a tool of legitimization. Firms that have negative social performance in the areas of environmental issues and product safety use charitable contributions as a means for building their legitimacy. [32]

Corporate disclosure and transparency practices Corporations have also enhanced their legitimacy and reputation through the disclosure of information regarding their performance on different social and environmental issues, sometimes referred to as sustainability reporting. Corporate social reporting refers to stand-alone reports that provide information regarding a company’s economic, environmental, and social performance. The practice of corporate social reporting has been encouraged by the launch of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) in 1997-1998 and the introduction of the United Nations Global Compact in 1999. Through social reporting, firms can document that their operations are consistent with social norms and expectations, and, therefore, are perceived as legitimate.

Seeking Win-Win Outcomes through Synergistic Value Creation

Synergistic value creation arguments focus on exploiting opportunities that reconcile differing stakeholder demands. Firms do this by “connecting stakeholder interests, and creating pluralistic definitions of value for multiple stakeholders simultaneously.” [33] In other words, with a cause big enough, they can unite many potential interest groups.

Charitable giving to education When companies get the “where” and the “how” right, philanthropic activities and competitive advantage become mutually reinforcing and create a virtuous circle. Corporate philanthropy may be used to influence the competitive context of an organization, which allows the organization to improve its competitiveness and at the same time fulfill the needs of some of its stakeholders. For example, in the long run, charitable giving to education improves the quality of human resources available to the firm. Similarly, charitable contributions to community causes eventually result in the creation and preservation of a higher quality of life, which may sustain “sophisticated and demanding local customers.” [34]

The notion of creating win-win outcomes through CSR activities has been raised before. Management expert Peter Drucker argues that “the proper ‘social responsibility’ of business is to … turn a social problem into economic opportunity and economic benefit, into productive capacity, into human competence, into well-paid jobs, and into wealth.” [35] It has been argued that, “it will not be too long before we can begin to assert that the business of business is the creation of sustainable value— economic, social and ecological.” [36]

An example: the win-win perspective adopted by the life sciences firm Novo Group allowed it to pursue its business “[which] is deeply involved in genetic modification and yet maintains highly interactive and constructive relationships with stakeholders and publishes a highly rated environmental and social report each year.” [37]

Stakeholder engagement The win-win perspective on CSR practices aims to satisfy stakeholders’ demands while allowing the firm to pursue financial success. By engaging its stakeholders and satisfying their demands, the firm finds opportunities for profit with the consent and support of its stakeholder environment.

The business case for corporate social responsibility can be made. While it is valuable for a company to engage in CSR for altruistic and ethical justifications, the highly competitive business world in which we live requires that, in allocating resources to socially responsible initiatives, firms continue to consider their own business needs.

In the last decade, in particular, empirical research has brought evidence of the measurable payoff of CSR initiatives on firms as well as their stakeholders. Firms have a variety of reasons for being CSR-attentive. But beyond the many bottom-line benefits outlined here, businesses that adopt CSR practices also benefit our society at large.

[1] See Edward Freeman, Strategic Management: a Stakeholder Approach , 1984, which traces the roots of CSR to the 1960s and 1970s, when many multinationals were formed. (go back)

[2] J. D. Margolis and Walsh, J.P. “Misery loves companies: social initiatives by business.” Administrative Science Quarterly , 48, 2003, pp. 268–305. (go back)

[3] J. F. Mahon and Griffin, J .J. “Painting a portrait: a reply.” Business and Society , 38, 1999, 126–133. (go back)

[4] See, for an overview, Stephen Gates, Jon Lukomnik, and David Pitt- Watson, The New Capitalists: How Citizen Investors Are Reshaping The Business Agenda , Harvard Business School Press, 2006. (go back)

[5] M.P. Lee, “A review of the theories of corporate social responsibility: its evolutionary path and the road ahead”. International Journal of Management Reviews , 10, 2008, 53–73. (go back)

[6] D.J. Vogel, “Is there a market for virtue? The business case for corporate social responsibility.” California Management Review , 47, 2005, pp. 19–45. (go back)

[7] Ibid. (go back)

[8] Elizabeth Kurucz; Colbert, Barry; and Wheeler, David “The Business Case for Corporate Social Responsibility.” Chapter 4 in Crane, A.; McWilliams, A.; Matten, D.; Moon, J. and Siegel, D. The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Social Responsibility. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008, 83-112 (go back)

[9] Kurucz, Colbert, and Wheeler , 85-92. (go back)

[10] Berger,I.E., Cunningham, P. and Drumwright, M.E. “Mainstreaming corporate and social responsibility: developing markets for virtue,” California Management Review , 49, 2007, 132-157. (go back)

[11] Ibid. (go back)

[12] M.E. Porter and Kramer, M.R. “Strategy & society: the link between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility.” Harvard Business Review , 84, 2006,pp. 78–92. (go back)

[13] Ibid. (go back)

[14] Kurucz, Colbert, and Wheeler, 85-92. (go back)

[15] Ibid., 88. (go back)

[16] T. Smith, “Institutional and social investors find common ground. Journal of Investing , 14, 2005, 57–65. (go back)

[17] S. L. Berman, Wicks, A.C., Kotha, S. and Jones, T.M. “Does stakeholder orientation matter? The relationship between stakeholder management models and firm financial performance.” Academy of Management Journal , 42, 1999, 490. (go back)

[18] Ibid. (go back)

[19] Ibid. (go back)

[20] Top 10 Reasons, PricewaterhouseCoopers 2002 Sustainability Survey Report, reported in “Corporate America’s Social Conscience,” Fortune , May 26, 2003, 58. (go back)

[21] Top 10 Reasons . (go back)

[22] Kurucz, Colbert, and Wheeler (go back)

[23] N. Smith, 2003, 67. (go back)

[24] T. Smith, 2005, 60. (go back)

[25] Ibid., 64. (go back)

[26] Heike Bruch and Walter, Frank (2005). “The Keys to Rethinking Corporate Philanthropy.” MIT Sloan Management Review , 47(1): 48-56 (go back)

[27] Ibid., 50. (go back)

[28] Bruce Seifert, Morris, Sara A.; and Bartkus, Barbara R. (2003). “Comparing Big Givers and Small Givers: Financial Correlates of Corporate Philanthropy.” Journal of Business Ethics , 45(3): 195-211. (go back)

[29] Archie B. Carroll and Ann K. Buchholtz, Business and Society: Ethics, Sustainability and Stakeholder Management , 8th Edition, Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2012, 305. (go back)

[30] Kurucz, Colbert, and Wheeler, 90. (go back)

[31] “Managing Corporate Citizenship as a Business Strategy,” Boston: Center for Corporate Citizenship, 2010. (go back)

[32] Jennifer C. Chen, Dennis M.; & Roberts, Robin. “Corporate Charitable Contributions: A Corporate Social Performance or Legitimacy Strategy?” Journal of Business Ethics , 2008, 131-144. (go back)

[33] Kurucz, Colbert, and Wheeler , 91. (go back)

[34] Porter and Kramer, 60-65. (go back)

[35] Peter F. Drucker, “The New Meaning of Corporate Social Responsibility.” California Management Review , 1984, 26: 53-63 (go back)

[36] C. Wheeler, B. Colbert, and R. E. Freeman. “Focusing on Value: Reconciling Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability and a Stakeholder Approach in a Network World.” Journal of General Management , (28)3, 2003, 1-28. (go back)

[37] Ibid. (go back)

Nice blog. CSR has become something very important to all the corporate houses today. However, with the rising growth of CSR activities. It is very important to have an effective software that helps to keep a track of the entire exercise.

Interesting article! Perhaps nice to give Mr. Stephen ‘Gates’ his real name back? After all “The New Capitalists: How Citizen Investors Are Reshaping The Business Agenda” was written by Stephen DAVIS. I think he would like the recognition ;)

5 Trackbacks

[…] original here: The Business Case for Corporate Social Responsibility — The … This entry was posted in Internet and tagged corporate, corporate-governance, corporate-social, […]

[…] For the entire article, read it here. […]

[…] http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/corpgov/2011/06/26/the-business-case-for-corporate-social-responsibilit … […]

[…] (CSR) and the behavior change awareness/advertising campaigns associated with them. Here is a terrific article in the Harvard Law School Forum that outlines the business benefits gained from CSR initiatives. […]

[…] guru Peter Drucker agreed that business has to make enough profit to secure its future, but insisted that its proper […]

Supported By:

Subscribe or Follow

Program on corporate governance advisory board.

• William Ackman
• Peter Atkins
• Kerry E. Berchem
• Richard Brand
• Daniel Burch
• Arthur B. Crozier
• Renata J. Ferrari
• John Finley
• Carolyn Frantz
• Andrew Freedman
• Byron Georgiou
• Joseph Hall
• Jason M. Halper
• David Millstone
• Theodore Mirvis
• Maria Moats
• Erika Moore
• Morton Pierce
• Philip Richter
• Elina Tetelbaum
• Marc Trevino
• Steven J. Williams
• Daniel Wolf

HLS Faculty & Senior Fellows

• Lucian Bebchuk
• Robert Clark
• John Coates
• Stephen M. Davis
• Allen Ferrell
• Jesse Fried
• Oliver Hart
• Howell Jackson
• Kobi Kastiel
• Reinier Kraakman
• Mark Ramseyer
• Robert Sitkoff
• Holger Spamann
• Leo E. Strine, Jr.
• Guhan Subramanian
• Roberto Tallarita

Corporate Social Responsibility

The teaching cases in this section explore corporate social responsibility from numerous perspectives, including corporations directly engaged in philanthropy, nonprofits hoping to build partnerships with corporate entities, and agencies/organizations aiming to change policies or norms. The cases inspire dialogue and debate on a broad range of topics including the inherent challenges of corporate philanthropy, the effect of economic policy on local workers, the politics of partnering with government, the role of globalization, and strategic concerns faced by nonprofit activists.

Confronting the Unequal Toll of Highway Expansion: Oni Blair, LINK Houston, & the Texas I-45 Debate (A)

Publication Date: April 6, 2023

 In this political strategy case, Oni K. Blair, newly appointed executive director of a Houston nonprofit advocating for more equitable transportation resources, faces a challenge: how to persuade a Texas state agency to substantially...

Confronting the Unequal Toll of Highway Expansion: Oni Blair, LINK Houston, & the Texas I-45 Debate (B)

Embracing the Uphill Struggle: Marc Morial’s Quest for Corporate Diversity

Publication Date: October 25, 2021

As incoming President and CEO of the National Urban League in 2003, Marc Morial believed that promoting racial equity in corporate America was a natural part of the organization’s remit. In the latter third of the 20th century, the NUL had...

Alexandre Mars and Epic

Publication Date: June 11, 2019

The case examines the strategy, impact, and sustainability of a boutique philanthropy with a big goal: change the way people donate to charities. Epic Foundation was founded to support a portfolio of children’s charities. Now, its...

Danone North America: The World’s Largest B Corporation

Publication Date: April 26, 2019

This case study examines the B Corp certification process of Paris-based food products company Danone’s North American business. With $6 billion in sales, in 2018 Danone NA became the largest Certified B Corp in the world by a factor of...

Preventing Another Madoff: Reengineering the SEC’s Investigation Process

Publication Date: July 22, 2015

Bernard Madoff perpetrated a $60 billion fraud that lasted for more than a decade. The fallout ruined the lives of many of his investors and significantly damaged the reputation of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). How did the...

Google.org: For-Profit Philanthropy

Publication Date: April 16, 2012

The Google.org: For-Profit Philanthropy case introduces a distinct social enterprise structure, a combination of a philanthropic division of a for-profit corporation and a nonprofit foundation. The case provides an up-to-date, in-depth...

Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator: A Model for Reducing Unemployment in South Africa

Publication Date: April 20, 2023

 In the fourth quarter of 2021, South Africa's unemployment rate rose to 35%, the highest since 2008. Though some of the job losses could be attributed to the Covid-19 pandemic, the country had already been experiencing high unemployment...

The Ethos Institute: Promises and Risks of Working with the Government (Sequel) (B)

Publication Date: May 05, 2009

As Brazil's energetic but fractious democracy emerged in the 1990s, the Ethos Institute launched a movement for corporate social responsibility (CSR) that, it hoped, would both cajole the private sector to manage its own operations...

The Ethos Institute: Promises and Risks of Working with the Government (B)

The Ethos Institute: Challenging Business to Become the Vanguard of Social Progress in Brazil (A) (Sequel)

The Ethos Institute: Challenging Business to Become the Vanguard of Social Progress in Brazil (A)

Open Access is an initiative that aims to make scientific research freely available to all. To date our community has made over 100 million downloads. It’s based on principles of collaboration, unobstructed discovery, and, most importantly, scientific progression. As PhD students, we found it difficult to access the research we needed, so we decided to create a new Open Access publisher that levels the playing field for scientists across the world. How? By making research easy to access, and puts the academic needs of the researchers before the business interests of publishers.

We are a community of more than 103,000 authors and editors from 3,291 institutions spanning 160 countries, including Nobel Prize winners and some of the world’s most-cited researchers. Publishing on IntechOpen allows authors to earn citations and find new collaborators, meaning more people see your work not only from your own field of study, but from other related fields too.

Brief introduction to this section that descibes Open Access especially from an IntechOpen perspective

Want to get in touch? Contact our London head office or media team here

Our team is growing all the time, so we’re always on the lookout for smart people who want to help us reshape the world of scientific publishing.

Home > Books > Corporate Social Responsibility in the 21st Century

Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Report: A Case Study in the Basque Country

Submitted: 29 April 2022 Reviewed: 23 May 2022 Published: 17 August 2022

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.105511

Cite this chapter

There are two ways to cite this chapter:

From the Edited Volume

Corporate Social Responsibility in the 21st Century

Edited by Muddassar Sarfraz

To purchase hard copies of this book, please contact the representative in India: CBS Publishers & Distributors Pvt. Ltd. www.cbspd.com | [email protected]

Chapter metrics overview

331 Chapter Downloads

Impact of this chapter

Total Chapter Downloads on intechopen.com

Total Chapter Views on intechopen.com

Overall attention for this chapters

This chapter illustrates the case of the Spanish company Telefónica SA, a world leader in the telecommunication industry. The main research question is to understand if social responsibility can play a main role in an uncertain scenario. Or better, understand how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can be organized, managed, and measured to be considered a sustainable choice detached from any greenwashing policy. In terms of the socioeconomic environment with the combination of external social and economic conditions that influence the operation and preformation of an organization, the company should be a system not only capable of generating profits but at the same time contributing to society and environmental protection, integrating social responsibility as a strategic investment in the framework of their competitive strategy, in their management tools and their operations. The analysis of this case study aims to offer a model of CSR analysis and measurement tools such as the social report for managers who will have to face the important challenges of sustainable growth in compliance with the 2030 Agenda and SDGs paradigm (Sustainable Development Goals).

• corporate social responsibility
• sustainability reporting
• social report
• business ethics
• environmental
• and corporate governance

Author Information

Vincenzo basile *.

• Doctor Europaeus in Business Science, Federico II University of Naples, Italy
• Economics and Business Management, Federico II University of Naples, Italy
• Master in Marketing and Service Management, Federico II University of Naples, Italy

*Address all correspondence to: [email protected]

“Responsabilidad means no perder nunca la capacidad de respuesta”.

José Ortega y Gasset

1. Introduction

If the concept of responsibility could be summed up in a single sentence, surely this quote from the Spanish philosopher would fully reflect its meaning. Responsibility, in fact, “never loses the ability to respond,” both to the challenges of current problems and the new generations. The debate on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR or corporate social responsibility CSR, according to the equivalent meaning of the English language) has taken on a particular consistency and liveliness in recent years [ 1 ]. The CSR dissemination policies adopted by the European Commission have stimulated the comparison between the different perspectives of the definition and analysis of the concept present on the international scene, offering a multitude of concepts of great interest [ 2 ]. The concept of CSR essentially means that they decide on their initiative to help improve society and make the environment cleaner [ 3 ]. As the European Union tries to identify common values by adopting a Charter of Fundamental Rights, it is natural to expect that a growing number of companies will increasingly recognize their responsibility and consider it one of the components of their own identity [ 4 ]. This responsibility is expressed toward employees and, more generally, all parties involved in the company’s business who can, in different ways and forms, affect its success [ 5 ]. The choice of Telefónica SA is due to the position of primary importance that it has managed to acquire in the last decade on the international political and economic stage, thanks to its continuous and proactive interest in issues such as social responsibility, the environmental issue, and sustainability [ 6 ]. It is a concrete case of a socially-oriented company in the context of the Spanish one that thanks to the push toward investment and liberalization policies in the last decade have managed to achieve economic growth rates of over 3.5% per year, despite having to address the crisis that in recent years has affected the entire world economy. When CSR constitutes a process of managing its relationships with a whole series of interested parties that can affect its free functioning, the commercial arguments are clear [ 7 ]. Consequently, CSR, as well as quality management, must be seen as an investment and not as a cost [ 8 ]. Firm roach that integrates financial, commercial, and social aspects, thus developing a long-term strategy that minimizes the risks associated with uncertainties [ 9 ]. Sarfraz et al. [ 10 ] stated that CSR has a moderating role in project financing decisions and environmental risk management, stakeholder, and credit risk assessment. Companies should realize their social responsibility not only nationally, but globally, including the entire production chain. The future challenge to be met is to determine how CSR can help achieve these objectives, namely, to build a dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy based on cohesion.

2. Corporate social responsibility at a glance

2.1 theoretical contribution.

The first official input in this regard comes from the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) and the ILO (International Labor Organization), international organizations that, since the second half of the seventies, define the first guidelines for companies’ multinationals. In 1992, the Rio De Janeiro Earth Summit was held to discuss the planet’s environmental problems and their links with the problems of social development. Here, various documents are approved for the commitment to environmental protection and sustainable development, including Agenda 21, or an action program for the international community (UN, States, Governments, NGOs, and the private sector) and the sustainable development of the planet. From 1994 to 1999, various resolutions of the European Parliament followed one another on specific issues relating to CSR: transparency of company relocations and restructuring and the introduction of social clauses in international agreements, social labels for categories of products, human rights, fair trade and supportive, etc. In 1998, the EU itself defined the first guidelines for large companies operating in its Member States, for more socially responsible management. The first major codification of guidelines for large companies operating in UN member states dates to 1999, with the birth of the Global Compact, an international initiative in support of nine universal principles relating to human rights, work, and the environment [ 11 ]. In 2000, the OECD drew up guidelines aimed at multinationals that contain the main cornerstones of CSR, and that involve the social partners and national governments. Through the guidelines, 30 governments require multinationals to operate in harmony with social and environmental [ 12 ] policies and expectations. In March 2000, the extraordinary European Council of Lisbon was held, dedicated to the economic and social issues of the European Union, capable of achieving sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion. With the publication of the Green Book 1 “Promoting a European framework for corporate social responsibility,” in July 2001, following the European Council of Gothenburg in June of the same year and the Communication of the European Commission relating to “Corporate social responsibility: a contribution of companies to sustainable development” of July 2002, the challenge is officially launched in determining how CSR can help achieve the Lisbon objective, opening a wide debate at international level on the very concept of CSR [ 13 ], defining the procedures for establishing a partnership aimed at encouraging the development of a European structure to promote this concept and the Community strategy for promoting it, illustrating proposals for actions aimed at the European institutions, the Member States, the social partners, business and consumer association actors, as well as to individual companies and other interested parties. Concerning the ethical notion of company economy, it is possible to identify different theoretical approaches, among which it is necessary first to mention the ethical theory and the utilitarian one [ 14 , 15 , 16 ]. According to the ethical orientation, the company should subordinate its behavior to ethical rules, even at the expense of profit [ 17 ]. The utilitarian perspective, on the other hand, argues that profit maximization contributes to better achieving collective well-being. The ethical doctrine puts in order the needs of competitiveness and profitability concerning the much nobler aims of a social nature [ 18 ]. On a diametrically opposite level, there is the utilitarian theory that refers to the iron laws of the market economy. According to this approach, it is the social ends that must be subordinated this time to economic ends. The pursuit of profit is always and in any case a duty and deserving of approval, regardless of the social repercussions it determines. It is true that the company essentially plays an economic role, consisting in producing wealth, that is, goods and services having a value greater than that of the factors used in the production process; however, for this value to be positive, the company must serve the needs of customers by enhancing and developing the resources at its disposal; otherwise, the value may also be negative, thus giving rise to the destruction of wealth. Thirdly, it would be possible to identify a logic of reconciliation based on a compromise between economic and social issues. Thirdly, it would be possible to identify a logic of reconciliation based on a compromise between economic and social issues. However, even this approach does not seem suitable for correctly identifying the corporate finalism, because it ends up not fully satisfying either type of request. Given that the knowledge first stated is now part of the cultural baggage of management, it is the last to be able to constitute a real competitive advantage for the modern company. In conclusion, it seems that the road to take is that of “an idea of ​​business development to be pursued continuously over long periods, because only in the long term does it become possible to synergistically combine needs that appear to be conflicting in the short term” ([ 19 ], pp. 792, 795; [ 20 ], p. 95).

2.2 What is meant by social responsibility today?

The term responsibility indicates the “congruence to an assumed commitment or behaviour, as it matters and implies the acceptance of every consequence, especially from the point of view of the moral and legal sanction” [ 21 ]. The responsibility, therefore, appears, even before being a category of law, as an ethical and moral category firmly linked to the human person. It must always be borne in mind that the violation of a written norm involves easily identifiable responsibilities, while the same cannot be said in the case of social responsibility where there are no probative norms. However, a plurality of meanings is attributed to the term social responsibility, since its definition changes depending on the historical moment and the environmental context in which the company operates; therefore, over time different configurations of sociality [ 22 ] have followed one another [ 23 ]. However, it should be emphasized that the problem of CSR does not consist in repairing the damage caused to the company in some way, in repairing those damages that benefit one’s interests or even in implementing philanthropic actions [ 24 ], and so on; rather, in posing the problem of the interrelationships existing between their purposes, their structures and their organization and the purposes, structures, and organization of the other subjects of the social system considered as a whole. It is also necessary to distinguish the content of social responsibility from the tools that guarantee the morality of behavior, such as external legal regulation, self-regulation, or the creation of an ethical corporate culture [ 25 ]. These tools constitute the reference ethical system and based on the latter; the content of social responsibility is judged. Matacena [ 26 ] speaks of the life cycle of the social problem and expresses the gradual recognition of the social implications and therefore social responsibility. However, it is important to underline that the problem of CSR does not consist in repairing the damages caused to society in some way, in repairing those damages that benefit one’s interests or even in implementing philanthropic actions, and so on, rather, in posing the problem of the interrelationships existing between one’s aims, structures, and organization and the aims, structures, and organization of the other subjects of the social system considered as a whole [ 27 ]. It is also necessary to distinguish the content of social responsibility tools that guarantee morality from behavior, such as external legal regulation, self-regulation, or the creation of an ethical corporate culture. These instruments constitute the ethical system of reference based on the last one that judges the content of social responsibility. Social responsibilities can be seen under a double aspect, subjective and objective. The area of external responsibility centers on responsibilities toward external groups. In any case, given that the activity of the company is unique and unitary, its responsibility must also be this is how the concept of global corporate responsibility is introduced: The company obtains the consent and legitimacy of its work from its interlocutors based on both economic and social results. Matacena [ 28 ] rightly observes that “if companies do not take on social responsibilities consistent with the intensity and extent of the existing interchange relationships with the environment, the companies themselves could be forced into spaces that are so narrow as to be non-vital. It follows that as the company’s economic power grows, the level of the social objectives it pursues must increase.” Given the undertaking of social responsibility by the company, this must inform third parties not only of the achievement of the economic objective, thus safeguarding its image as an effective economic transformer, but also of the pursuit of its social equilibrium, so “to use the ‘information as an instrument for the protection and maintenance of a correct social and societal climate, that is, of a state of controlled conflict that does not compromise its legitimacy and therefore its survival ” ([ 29 ], p. 76). Accurate mapping and definition of the so-called stakeholders already represent a significant contribution to the management of any organization. The stakeholder (evident the analogy with “stockholder” and “shareholder,” which documents the terms the action terminate) comes from a dated 1963 of the Stanford Research Institute (USA) and defines those groups without whose support an organization ceases to exist [ 30 ]. Etymologically, the word stakeholder is composed of “stake,” which means “interest in a company,” and “ holder, ” which means “ owner, holder ”; consequently, stakeholders indicate the bearers of the company, that is, those subjects, or groups, who depend on a single individual interest, be it cooperative or competitive, in the business of the company, and which must not necessarily be economic [ 31 ]. In essence, the stakeholders are direct and indirect to the overall business of the company, who are affected by the effects of its behavior in satisfying their needs and achieving its objectives [ 32 ]. Each organization, according to its nature, therefore, has a plurality of stakeholders, which can be divided into a) primary stakeholders, that is, those without whose continuous participation in the management the company cannot survive customers, capital holders, employees, investors, and suppliers; b) secondary stakeholders, that is, those who influence the company or are known by its but are not involved in transactions with the organization and do not jeopardize its survival [ 33 ]. It is possible to represent the relations between the company and the stakeholders in Figure 1 .

Company stakeholder’s representation. Source: Own elaboration.

The company, assuming a social responsibility, must therefore proceed as a preliminary step to the detailed identification of its stakeholders, to be able to reconcile their different legitimate interests, to resolve or at least mitigate the conflictual character that distinguishes the different requests put forward by the interlocutors. To this end, in the face of conflicting interests, it is appropriate to adopt a relational logic and negotiation and contractual method, which, by assigning “relative weights” to the requests made by the various stakeholders, allows them to be balanced in the conduct of the business [ 34 ].

2.3 Research design and methodology

This chapter investigates the following research question: “How does the CSR adopted by a leading international company in the telephonic industry?” The research methodology was qualitative and based on the Telefónica Sa case study [ 35 , 36 , 37 ] and key informants’ in-depth interviews with the top management [ 38 , 39 , 40 ]. The case study represents a strategy for doing research, which involves an empirical investigation of a particular contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context [ 41 ]. Furthermore, was considered a secondary source [ 42 ] for data collection. Common sources of secondary data for social science include reports, censuses, information collected by government departments, organizational records, and company data. Secondary data analysis can save time that would otherwise be spent collecting data and, particularly in the case of quantitative data, can provide larger and higher-quality databases that would be unfeasible for any individual researcher to collect on their own [ 43 ]. In addition, analysts of social and economic change consider secondary data essential, since it is impossible to conduct a new survey that can adequately capture past changes and/or developments [ 44 ]. Three semi-structured interviews were conducted in February and April 2010 and lasted for an average of 90 min. However, the authors conducted semi-structured interviews to avoid limiting the interviewees and the possible serendipity of any additional evidence that might be used to revise or strengthen our research. In particular, the authors interviewed: (a) Director at Telefónica; (b) Head of Internal Communications; (c) Head of Marketing (d) Director of Corporate Strategy; and (e) Global Human Resources Manager. The in-depth interviews [ 45 ] concerned questions on the corporate sustainability and organization of Telefónica SA activities related to stakeholders. The objective was to shed more light on the role of the company in enhancing sustainable development, and the enablers and barriers to the adoption of social reports [ 46 , 47 ].

The interview protocol framework is comprised of four stages: (a) ensuring interview questions align with research questions; (b) constructing an inquiry-based conversation; (c) receiving feedback on interview protocols; and (d) piloting the interview protocol . The author preserved the conversational and inquiry goals of the research act by including open-ended questions and discussions diverged from the interview guide, and the experts were encouraged to interact. The author collected data through interview notes, and tape recordings were utilized to allow for more consistent transcription [ 48 ]. The author adopted the two-pass process for data verification, notated the interview comparisons with audio files, and received written approval of the transcripts from the participants. Finally, after the validation and testing of the Telefónica sustainable model by the stakeholders and the questionnaire, the model was applied to another case study regarding different country setting where Telefónica operates (e.g., Latino America).

3. The case study Telefónica

3.1 telefónica group profile.

This chapter explains the strategy that Telefónica designed and implemented concerning CSR and the tools it uses. It was chosen for this work, from among Spanish companies, because of the impact of its CSR actions and the strength and coherence of its approaches. Telefónica is not just a “plant” of strategies, policies, and CSR actions but also actively participates in the development of tools to support these issues [ 49 ]. With the analysis of a company that applies CSR, the vision is complete, and we can draw a systemic picture of the ongoing process. Telefónica focuses its social responsibility as a relationship strategy with its stakeholders, and the value of the company [ 50 ] largely depends on how to make these contacts. The corporate strategy analysis highlights that the clear goal it wishes to achieve is to increase the trust of its stakeholders and the social responsibility of the companies with which it operates, which is essentially explained by the relationship it has with these external interlocutors. Telefónica S.A. is the largest Spanish telecommunications company and operates mainly in Spain and Latin America. It is one of the largest fixed and mobile telecommunications companies and is ranked third in the world after China Mobile and Vodafone. It was created in 1924, and until the liberalization of the market in 1997, Telefónica was the only telephone operator present in Spain and held a dominant position, with over 75%, in 2004. The Spanish government privatized the telephone market in 1997 and currently, Telefónica is a public company, without a controlling shareholder. Among the largest shareholdings are those of Banco Bilbao 2 and Caixa , whose shares of 5.17 and 5.013%, respectively, do not, however, allow control of the company [ 51 ]. The year before Movistar was born, the mobile telephony division of the company, the group operates mainly in Spain, the Czech Republic (with Český Telecom), the United Kingdom, Germany, the Isle of Man (acquiring O 2 ), Argentina (with Telefónica de Argentina), Brazil, Chile (with Telefónica Móviles), Peru (with Telefónica Móviles), Colombia (with the Movistar brand), Puerto Rico (with Telefónica Empresas and Telefónica Larga Distancia), China (with a 5% stake in China Netcom)- and Morocco (with Méditel), while in Portugal and Italy, it is a shareholder of the former monopolists Portugal Telecom and Telecom Italia. The internationalization strategy of the Telefónica group provides 40% of revenues from abroad and it operates in many countries that are developing. Today, it has fixed ADSL telephone lines and mobile telephone customers in 16 countries; it has a significant presence in Latin America and does business with nearly 50 different countries. The countries in which it operates are 1) Europe: Spain and Germany; 2) America: Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Panama, and Venezuela; 3) Africa: Morocco. Establishing a precise and unambiguous strategy for managing relations between the interested parties of the Telefónica group is a difficult undertaking, and in fact, many actors participate in this process, as the following table shows ( Table 1 ).

Number and type of interlocutors of the Telefónica group.

Source: Telefónica S.A. company Web site updated to 2020.

The methodology used to conduct this study was an empirical analysis of Telefónica and the direct observation and study of the documentation on CSR plans and verification of the annual corporate responsibility reports [ 52 ]. The development of the guides on AENOR’s 3 CSR standards starts from Telefónica , differentiated into three levels of work where it is possible to study its strategy on social responsibility and the leadership position held by the group in the telecommunications industry.

3.2 Organization of CSR in Telefónica

Telefónica has a centralized unit within its organizational structure whose function is to coordinate the CSR strategy. Social responsibility is an integral part of its global strategy for this company. It is relevant that the organizational structure created to design and manage the CSR is integrated within the general management of reputation and brand. This form of organization is also highlighted by the functions of the general manager of corporate communication ( Figure 2 ). Furthermore, the profile of the heads of the general management and the communication professionals is relevant in light of the emphasis currently placed on the “brand,” so the choice of these people is made very carefully. In this structure, at the first level of Telefónica , there are the presidents of the companies of the group and the managing directors, and the president has significant importance in the four “staff” functions. The Directorate-General for Corporate Communication (with its CSR functions) is one of the components of this staff, and from this position, it supports the whole group, including the branches of Telefónica Peru, Telefónica Moviles, and Telefónica Latin America (Graph 7).

Organization chart of the Telefónica group. * Also responsible for the Secretariat of the Executive and Steering Committee. ** Logistics, systems and T-Gestiona. Source: Telefónica S.A.

In the representation of the organizational structure of the Telefónica group, there are several business divisions and, in addition to those included for personnel, there is the Directorate General on “development, planning and regulation” and one on “finance and resource sharing.” Furthermore, these two directorates-general members are members of the management committee and the presidents of the most important companies. In this matrix structure, the strategies, management systems, and management tools used are common and derived from the top business centers. The work assigned to the general management of reputation, brand, and CSR is to reproduce an idea of leadership, the champion of a specific objective. An important coordinating role is therefore required, due to the multinational nature of the company and the diversity of the Telefónica Group. The management principles include a focus on CSR, as well as on quality, which must permeate all the processes and activities of the company because its implementation must be transversal, and to be effective the commitment of each unit should be encouraged. In groups of companies such as Telefónica , the approach to CSR must be promoted at the central level, even when responsibility is assumed by each of the peripheral units; therefore, the only efficient solution is to have a good organization capable of managing CSR in the companies of the group. However, it must be clarified that in a company of Telefónica ’s size and history and given the territorial vastness in which it operates and the different nations in which it is present, there may be various CSR policies and actions within it. In this sense, the first reference to consider is the activity carried out by the Fundación Telefónica . As indicated in the graph, there is a directorate-general (DG) of institutional relations and the social action by the group largely corresponds to the work of its foundation. Another important organizational unit whose function has been included in the broader field of social responsibility is that of environmental responsibility. In the case of Telefónica , environmental developments have been promoted by Telefónica I + D 4 , which is one of the group’s support subsidiaries and acts as a catalyst for innovation activities.

4. Discussion

4.1 the csr strategy in telefónica.

As already indicated, the CSR strategy in Telefónica is an integral part of the reputation strategy. For Telefónica ’s Director of Corporate Responsibility, the importance of reputation is underlined by the collapse of the stock market in the 90s (twentieth century). The previous system was centered on the creation of value by keeping only two parties in check, namely the investors and the media, which proved insufficient. The different approach to CSR suggests that we must address the entire environment in which the company operates, taking care of its relationships with the community, its customers, employees, and society in general [ 53 ]. Telefónica launched its Proyecto de Reputación Corporativa (PRC) in November 2001, which outlined an operational plan that was then achieved over time and is described and discussed in the following paragraphs of which Andreu 5 himself became the bearer.

4.2 Proyecto de Reputación Corporativa (PRC)

The PRC has two objectives: 1) to identify the risks that could affect the reputation of the company in its daily relationship with its stakeholders; 2) to identify the common management lines that should be implemented in all business lines and in all countries to strengthen the reputation of the Telefónica Group and minimize the potential impact of risks deriving from non-pursuit of the latter. A transversal process was launched to achieve this goal with the group’s contribution from all the areas and management. A centralized approach was not considered effective since the reputation of the company is established through the daily activity of all the units. This first objective of identifying the dangers was achieved at the end of 2003, thus obtaining the basic information required to proceed with the PRC [ 54 ]. Figure 3 shows the risk identification process in its five phases, as well as the agents involved in each process and the results achieved.

Identification of corporate reputation risks in Telefónica. Source: Own elaboration.

All the general departments participate in the identification phase of the management objectives, with a total of 15 areas of analysis, which have identified their main operational targets. In the next phase, identifying the interest groups, the Telefónica Group is considered as a whole, identifying the relationships with the 40 types of agents, and the latter are categorized into eight interest groups: Customers, Investors and Shareholders, Staff, Partners, Regulators, Providers, Agency, Media. From what we read above, the partners and the media have been included in the list, which indicates the importance that the author of the project has granted them. Each area identifies the main relationships and the main comparison interfaces in the subgroups. The classification of interest groups in Telefónica has undergone some corrections, from the first version made in 2003, to the most recent and simplified version of 2005, which is used in the ordinary management. The risk identification phase of corporate responsibility was completed with the construction of a matrix, in which the forces in order are the interest group (the eight indicated) that could be affected by different types of risks, including Financial, Communicative, and Management, Technological, Social and Legal . The risks considered relate to the possibility of causing repercussions to the central corporate structure beyond their effects on isolated units. Although risks can be localized so as not to affect other units, such as the brand, one of the ongoing consequences of the global information environment is that, with an ever-increasing percentage of risks, they affect the entire corporate structure. More than 750 risks are identified, of which over 50% are included in the operational management, corresponding to the daily activities that take place in relationship with the stakeholders. In the risk analysis, 150 were selected, considered critical, with treatment priorities, and the two selection characteristics were damage caused and probability of occurrence. To manage the risks appropriately, they have been grouped according to the intangible element that is affected; eight groups of intangible items were considered as indicated in Table 2 .

Classification of corporate reputation risks at Telefónica.

Source: Telefónica S.A .

The higher risk of intangible elements affects the strategy and organization of Telefónica with 30% of the total, but much importance is also assumed by CSR in controlling these risk factors with a 20% incidence. In the phase of “contrasting the risks identified by the sectors of competence of the company,” the relationship between consequences and their criticality was tested with the opinion of the Telefónica units that have experience in dealing with these certain risk factors. Thus, to counter the critical issues in the relationship with investors, the analysis was carried out by the Investor Relations Department with particular attention given to the shareholders of Telefónica , while the risks associated with the company regarding quality and the environmental issue, as well as the technological risks, were analyzed by Telefónica I + D. In the last phase, “contrasting the risks identified by the interest groups,” different results are presented about the quality of the work carried out and the variables involved. Through this contrast, we get a) the external perception, which is always of great interest; b) information on the situation concerning other companies in the telephony sector, from which it is possible to obtain a “benchmark” concerning the best; and c) identification of the minimum management municipalities that minimize the reputational risks. To achieve this goal, we are working in three directions: 1. the creation of a self-management model: an integrated model of corporate reputation, Modelo Integrado de Reputación Corporativa (MIRC); 2. the definition of an institutional framework for Telefónica ; and 3. a workshop on corporate responsibility.

4.3 Modelo Integrado de Reputación Corporativa (MIRC)

The MIRC was designed to have a tool capable of organizing work related to reputational risks. The purpose of this tool is to ensure balance in “bringing value for all stakeholders in the long term... it is a guide to building a risk-proof reputation” ([ 55 ] 6 ). Telefónica recognizes a dual objective in the model: external, which benefits interest groups, and internal, which benefits society because it acts as a shield for possible risks. The MIRC is structured in three levels. The first level is the one that Telefónica represents and includes the four elements that represent the foundations of a company: 1) ethics (the only basis on which an organization based on trust can be built) [ 56 ]; 2) values ​​(as the ultimate reference of the conduct of a company); 3) the vision and mission (as the ultimate goal of the company); and 4) the strategy and organization (such as the way of working and procuring resources to achieve the mission). The second level is what Telefónica does, through the three main elements of corporate responsibility: 1) social responsibility (social action, the social impact of activities, safeguarding the environment); 2) corporate identity; and 3) corporate governance: transparency, control, and monitoring mechanisms on the implementation of Telefónica ’s strategies (Grant, 2006). The third level is what Telefónica maintains: “Communication with all our stakeholders, coherent and transparent, is the greatest capacity of the Group to generate more value than is possible through the economic aspects” (Trujillo, 2003). In the above description, it is noted that the source of value lies in the communication with all the companies of the group and with the whole community. Similarly, it is observed that the ability to generate value requires communication to adopt the certain characteristics of quality and effectiveness such as consistency and transparency. This is a major challenge for Telefónica ’s communications function, and therefore, for this reason, a great responsibility. For Telefónica , the management of corporate responsibility (or RC, Responsabilidad Corporativa ) presupposes that there is consistency in the three levels indicated and that there are no differences between the three postulates “what I am, what I do and what I say I do,” which represent the mantra of the group’s basic strategic vision [ 57 ].

4.4 Definition of an institutional framework for the group

Telefónica seeks to define a strengthened institutional framework to facilitate the development of CSR and mitigate the risks. With this objective, various projects have been implemented throughout the company: a) development of corporate values; b) code of business conduct—institutional presence; and c) the Foro de Reputación Corporativa (FRC). Through these large-scale projects, Telefónica implements strategic management, and plans, and integrated them through various actions. This management is reflected in the “discussion forums” organized over the years on CSR, and this has been one of the reasons for choosing Telefónica for this job as a harbinger and implementer of active and innovative strategies on corporate responsibility. The central value identified by Telefónica for development was the “trust,” which each interest group has received and that is reflected in the choices expressed in Table 3 .

The basic tools for building trust.

Source: Own processing of information on the Informe Anual de Responsabilidad Corporativa, 2006 by Telefónica S.A.

The communication campaign carried out by Telefónica in 2004 had the importance of “trust” as its basic value. This means that the company, as has been found in the various media (newspapers, radio, TV, etc.), has given priority to this aspect for the implementation of the MIRC. The relationship between communication and corporate responsibility will be highlighted as an application value in all types of tools used by the group, including periodic reports (annual and semi-annual reporting). The reputation strategy must be established on a real basis of excellence in a service, which requires the considerable effort by the whole organization. CSR plays an important role in empowerment, and in enhancing this effort. Telefónica , being a telecommunications service provider, had to manage intangible (non-cumulative) aspects concerning those of the products according to their characteristics [ 58 ]. In services, reliability is a determining factor; in fact, more contracts are formalized with operators that from experience can give a better service, full of quality, and transparency. Quality can include the customer’s degree of indifference to a repair, the certainty of a billing error, or the fact that the line is operational without interruption. Therefore, customer satisfaction will be the result of compliance with their expectations and the quality of service offered by the company [ 59 ]. The Corporate Code of Conduct, like other tools of its kind, is a framework for the integrity of professional relationships. It is inspired by the values ​​of the Telefónica Group, which translates into principles, which in turn governs the behavior of the staff and indicates the conduct toward their main interest groups and is based on the concepts of right and duty. Therefore, it is not “compulsory” conduct, but rather, it is embodied in behavior to be followed (Trujillo, 2004). Telefónica has an institutional presence in numerous permanent job forums, holding important positions in them. Table 4 shows some of the main forums in which the company participates, and the role played in each one.

Type of participation of Telefónica S.A.

Source: Own processing of data from Telefónica S.A.

The organizations listed above form the networks that promote CSR, with the different alliance relationships; in these partnerships, each organization is integrated and in close collaboration with the others and makes an important contribution to resolving the idiosyncrasies that may occur over time. The objective of the network is to develop CSR and training tools, such as the AENOR-CTN50 7 Technical Committee, which can monitor the added results and disseminate them through corporate communication. Looking at the sectoral forums, one observes, first, the diversity among them and their complementarity. Each forum can be defined by six characteristics (areas of implementation), and for each of these, there are two types (national and international). Furthermore, it indicates the characteristics (first column) and the possible types (second and fourth column). It also summarizes the number of holes in each feature (third and fifth column); the nine national forums are thus identified, while the remaining four are international ( Table 5 ).

Characteristics of permanent job openings with the institutional presence of Telefónica S.A.

Source: Own elaboration starting from Telefónica S.A. data.

Network availability and quality

The “democratization” of communication

Development of the information society

Development of new technology

Reduction of the economic gap, which is the basis of availability

Telefónica ’s expansion strategy makes extensive use of elements that, as indicated, narrow this digital divide. The concept of social responsibility “leads to the awareness that we are a powerful force for social, economic and technological development” [ 62 ]. In these statements, the general management on social responsibility and corporate reputation of Telefónica highlights the importance of the workers themselves, aware of the social impact of their daily activities. In almost every forum that Telefónica joined, the association was already active, that is, promoted by others; only in the case of the FRC (Foro de Reputación Corporativa) did it have a promoting and founding role. This is indicative of the synergy that has been achieved in partnerships between organizations that have a common goal; the creative effort was born from some subjects, while the resulting advantage is shared by all the organizations that ally. Furthermore, the benefits of the network are greater in terms of its breadth and influence, and to this extent, its strength is often found. The relative weight of Telefónica ’s size is the activity carried out by its representatives who are holders of a strategic position and who make a significant contribution to the policies implemented by the company, communicated through the forum. For Telefónica , the creation of the FRC responds to a common vision between 11 companies of the group, which makes it possible to obtain synergies through mutual collaboration. The common vision is therefore the following: “The value of intangible assets in the company is very important and corporate responsibility is a critical component of this aspect.” The strategy to fulfill this vision consists of “unearthing intangible assets that generate a better reputation that can increase the perceived value of the company” [ 63 ]. Considering these statements, the actions proposed in 2010 by Telefónica to develop a strategy for creating a greater reputation are as follows: a) identifying the best management methodologies for RC ( Responsabilidad Corporativa ), CSR ( Corporate Social Responsibility ), and ethics, which are integral for the FRC (benchmarking); b) promoting and disseminating the knowledge and management of RC; and c) promoting the creation of a stock index (national or European) for “responsible” companies. The actions are outlined to show how large companies have implemented the sharing of experiences and knowledge of the best management methodologies in the FRC plan, obtaining advantages from this strategic option. And in fact, the information that derives from it would seem more qualified and coherent than that obtained through external “benchmarking,” as used today by many companies. The second action of the FRC indicated by Telefónica relates to the promotion and dissemination of knowledge as well as the management of RC. It is therefore a general action for the promotion of RC on management concepts and systems. This type of generic promotion has an impact on all intangible assets, the value of which depends on widespread acceptance [ 64 ]. The third action proposed in the FRC concerns the creation of an equity index, in which the criterion of differentiation is CSR. In analyzing the impact that this index can have, it should be noted that this tool, like all those of this type, implies the following: I) the assessment of the reputation achieved by each company; II) the classification of company valuations and the reporting of the levels that need to be included in the stock index; and III) the increase in demand in the stock market and the valuation of the shares of companies that have a good score on the liability index. Once the desired results are achieved, an increase in the value of the company should be achieved through its intangible assets, which is the point of view held and shared by the companies that have implemented the FRC. It is noted that Telefónica , as a company committed to full immersion in this field, needs concrete results that allow it to make subsequent efforts by quantifying the results achieved. One of the most revealing findings from the analysis carried out in the previous table is that all the forums in which Telefónica participates develop some type of tool for the promotion of CSR. Among these, the Pacto Mundial , the GRI, the AENOR, and the Reputation Institute were created precisely for this purpose, or in them, the promotion of the CRS is at the center of the activity carried out. These, once involved in the analysis of the CSR, propose the measurement tools or guidelines to facilitate the implementation of strategic conduct [ 65 ]. A special case, different from the others, is the “forum of experts on corporate social responsibility” of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs 12 , which, although not aimed at developing tools, carries out an information-gathering activity that could be an advantageous opportunity to achieve, shortly, the enactment of a law on corporate social responsibility in Spain. The promotion of a stock index, such as the one described above, did not seem outlined in the previous proposals as key points of application were more general : “Valuing intangible assets. Definition of development indicators and measurement systems for corporate reputation or related to quantifying the impact of corporate reputation policies: ethics, social responsibility, identity, brand, and corporate governance. Influence and interaction after between are the main intangible variables of corporate reputation” [ 55 ]. These measurement objectives are aimed at verifying the effectiveness of the actions undertaken and selecting the variables with the greatest impact; they are therefore the objectives of improving the methodology before 2004 the Telefónica Group was included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DISI), after having achieved a score of 75 points for its leadership with sustainability criteria. Moreover, at the European level, the minimum is 72 points and global with the minimum of 70 points and starting from 2004 with the inclusion in the FTSE4Good 13 index, which uses, for the selection of companies, ethical, social, and environmental criteria applied through quantitative indicators. The latter consideration is so strong that there is a negative relationship between boardroom gender diversity and a firm’s financial performance. According to Ajaz et al. [ 66 ], females in boardrooms either cause negative effects or have no impact on the firm’s financial performance. Similarly, there is no significant relationship between the presence of women in boardrooms and a firm’s reputation.

4.5 Corporate Reputation (CR) workshop

The implementation of the plans described by Telefónica ’s CR requires sharing and implementation by all management areas in the various countries where the group operates. Therefore, the general manager has set up a series of workshops 14 to facilitate the learning of methodologies to promote responsibility in the different areas. This is done through the analysis of “best practices,” through the strategic analysis of future growth scenarios in terms of sustainability and development, but also thanks to other more creative techniques such as brainstorming where problems are analyzed to give shared answers that are accepted by the whole organization.

5. Practical implication

5.1 the management of csr in telefónica.

In the CSR management systems in Telefónica, two issues are of particular interest for this survey, as they relate to the measurement of progress in the level of CSR obtained and because the relationship with the interest groups depends on the evaluation of the company: a) the interest that progressive accreditation has for society and the types of policies and actions envisaged for the gradual progress toward its objectives; and b) management systems about its stakeholders, with particular reference to suppliers and the introduction of CSR criteria.

5.2 The challenge of progressive accreditation

This section provides a general reflection on the impact that progressive accreditation has on Telefónica . The implementation of a gradual and progressive accreditation is highly appreciated by companies and organizations that have become spokespersons for the adoption of a management system based on CSR. It arises as a cumulative process, which makes it possible to maintain a medium-term objective, following an action plan to advance in the implementation of the subsequent phases. In many forums that have been created to promote strategies and actions, CSR highlights the need for elements of verification to ensure the truth of what organizations communicate and advertise. As CSR policies tend to produce greater value in a company’s intangible assets (such as brand and reputation), there is a need for effective enforcement and verification mechanisms that are accepted by the organizations represented. The gradual introduction of social responsibility management systems is seen to increase the very feasibility of CSR; the approach with progressive advancement is also valid for relations between interested parties. Although it is a challenge to accept that everything can be divided into distinct parts and that there is a way to advance through a series of distinct stages, it is plausible that each one involves difficulties and costs, such as in justifying the achievement of even partial goals. Those responsible for the implementation of CSR in companies are also interested in “partial recognition” as a clarifying tool, both for themselves and for senior management, that can facilitate their work and increase the probability of giving continuity to the strategic plan pursued. However, important issues to be outlined include the minimum coverage of each stage, the speed of implementation and the type of recognition possible, as well as the conditions for its use. In general, progressive-type solutions are suitable for collaboration strategies, with many interested parties, where each one offers a different contribution, and one crucial factor is the need to go slowly in gaining trust among the participants, while also considering the cost-benefit that everyone gains with the alliance. Furthermore, when the field of action is new or its scope unknown, caution is advised in the implementation of the progressive system. The basic alternatives for progressive implementations are I) partial scope, where the standard is subsequently applied to various parts of the organization [ 67 ]; and II) subsequent assumption of principles or requirements and assessment of the degree of conformity. These two basic progression options can be combined in mixed solutions. The two schemes were applied, respectively, for the ISO quality and environmental standardization systems (with subsequent partial certifications) and the excellent management systems (with initial self-assessment and external assessments, as in the case of EFQM 15 ). The partial field of application can be achieved according to various criteria: 1) structural differentiation of organizational units (departments, business units, subsidiaries of a group, work centers); 2) for the processes of the activities; and 3) for the interest groups involved. An easy way to measure progress is to list the tools and developments that are required for the implementation of the comprehensive, previously known, and accepted management system—for example, the policy approved by the board of directors, the creation of a body in the organizational structure that will be responsible for the process. Some evaluations include not only the results but also giving some evaluation of the performance predictions. This strengthens the systematic organizational commitment to progressive advancement, but it can be at risk of overestimation. This approach was applied in the “implementation and continuous improvement questionnaire” aimed at organizations that have formalized their adhesion to the Pacto Mundial in Spain. Some authors 16 also propose another dimension or point of evaluation of CSR strategies and policies: philosophies or attitudes adopted, generated between proactive and reactive. However, it has been observed that if it is claimed that this categorization measures the variables involved in degrees or levels, this can have difficulties and objective aspects that are difficult to evaluate and quantify. Following the “model for the gradual implementation of CSR” designed and implemented by Telefónica , we note that it has had a significant impact on the company’s operational strategy and has also served to promote both inside and outside the company’s social policy. It is not intended to convey a summary of the actions taken by the company at each stage, but only to highlight some facts that are considered representative and relevant for the analysis. The comments provided are general in scope and do not refer directly to the Telefónica company, but to all the research, and are a good example for observing design variables and problems to be overcome. The MIP model is like other systems designed for management and is a circular, feedback model, such as the PDCA 17 cycle, although it is adapted to the specific interests of the CSR system ( Table 6 ).

Phases of the Modelo de Implantación Progresiva (MIP) in Telefónica.

Source: Own processing based on Telefónica data.

Phase 1. To make this commitment public, the Informe Anual de Responsabilidad Corporativa 2003 begins with a letter from the president regarding the requirements of the GRI. In his message to the reader, he indicates that the vision of the company is aimed at being a “trusted operator” and that the only way to access this trust is to fulfill one’s commitments and maintain a position of proximity in understanding the needs and the expectations of customers, shareholders, employees, suppliers, or simply citizens. The CSR approach, to be effective, should be promoted as a value and a strategy that starts from the top management, through a plan to be implemented in all company activities. This push from top management must include the provision of necessary resources, how much they will have to compete with other objectives, and the correct priority among objectives for the allocation of resources. Therefore, the level within the organizational structure of the company and those responsible for each process are the important factors in resolving conflicts, but at the end, it will be the top management who will have to decide between the strategies if there are valid operational solutions. The formal organizational structure created for the management of CSR is often a sublevel of general management or corporate management in large companies, as indicated in the case of Telefónica . As for the informal structure, its proximity to the presidency and its mandate as the executor of a particular strategy, in practice, increase the level of enforceability. However, the level indicated refers only to the few companies that have bet heavily on CSR, as in many large and small businesses, the functions are shared. CSR managers are often told that their most challenging work begins with the work of internal conviction and in the rest of the structure in responsibility, personal commitment, and effort in resources. This difficulty is like that of the closest management systems such as the quality of the environment. The design of an incentive system for managers and employees is necessary so that they have a utility function consistent with the objectives of the company. However, the incentives can cause unexpected side effects, which can heavily affect the internal balance of the company or firm on the market. For example, stock options have been used to try to reduce the agency problem, which links executive remuneration to the value achieved through shares; however, they were also the cause of an increase in accounting fraud in the main listed companies in the late 1990s. These practices resulted in the loss of reputation of the company in which they were carried out and a significant loss of confidence in the market system 18 . It is this loss of confidence that is one of the main reasons why large companies are developing CSR strategies. Phase 2. Given the size and complexity of the company, the activities that the different business units carry out in the field of CSR are brought together, forming a sort of catalog. This collection made it possible to carry out, first, an analysis of the situation, the identification of evident absences, and the assignment of priorities to the initiatives. It also facilitated the identification of best practices, so that they could be exported to other units. The first consequence of this methodology is the internal benchmarking procedure, which is useful in large companies with different operating units and various geographical areas. Among the companies that were consulted in this research, it becomes clear that the initial diagnosis phase presents great difficulties, deriving mainly from the uncertainty of the very concept of CSR, from the presence of various definitions of CSR, relating to the inclusion or exclusion of principles, as well as the degree of participation of the interested parties. The managers of the company have different functions and are often of opposite opinions, and therefore, they are forced to choose one among them to create a common culture and conduct internal awareness campaigns. However, significant progress has been made to clarify the concepts and actions that need to be taken to implement a CSR system. The creation of economic value from the CSR strategy is based on certain requirements or expectations of its stakeholders to allow it to obtain a competitive advantage (Porter, 1985). These include a trust that the customer does not change supplier, proximity capable of decreasing the image of distance that a multinational can have; the issue of human rights compatible with the growing pressure of society against violations of privacy and abuse of a person; the image of efficiency and devotion of the company to reduce the advantage of competitors in the reference competitive sector; and the relationship with public institutions of the state. Phase 3. Based on this survey, the strategy was defined in Telefónica , assessed through the resources for implementation and the necessary organizational structure. It corresponds to the organizational structure to plan the methodology to be applied. If we compare the MIP model with the general management scheme, we see that planning and organization activities are included in the implementation phase. They have been concentrated; this does not mean the realization of a smaller number of phases, but an attenuation of the importance given to the other phases. Phase 4. The information systems that existed before 2002 in Telefónica provided only part of the information required by the new area of CSR, so it was necessary to create a specific information network. An “integrated management system” was launched in the field of CSR and it was necessary to work diligently to systematize the information, which was dispersed and uneven. To select the indicators, the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative were used together with the ratios and data pertinent to the specific activity; Telefónica itself participated in the development and organization of the GRI as well as in the creation of the reference guides for the telecommunication sector. To ensure the quality of the information, a determining factor has been identified: the accountability that provides information [ 70 ]. Furthermore, a double control was used, guaranteed, and made possible by the organizational structure of the company: the participation of the heads of each operational line or corporate center and the involvement of the company departments. CSR must be developed through a transversal management system that penetrates the various activities, integrated with other management systems. Therefore, the variables and results relating to CSR are combined in the management control systems of branches and business units [ 71 ]. For standardization, an internal regulation has been developed for carrying out CSR reports and the internal control department has participated in its elaboration. The control phase, which in general models, is usually identified as unique, and in Telefónica ’s CSR MIP, on the other hand, unfolds in three phases: measurement, communication, and verification. This approach is indicative of the importance that communication plays in the management of CSR since its development is correlated with interest groups. Based on the decision to consider verification as a separate phase, the argument supported by the various companies in the forums could be indicative: There is still little maturity in the field of CSR and it is necessary to proceed slowly and safely, identifying the groups of interest. It should be noted that the difficulty of obtaining homogeneous information on CSR in large companies motivates the choice to finalize the first stages of the implementation of the strategy in the creation of the information system. The same experience described for the telephone operator was compared among BBVA and other large companies. However, in PYMES 19 this part of the process would be much easier. The responsibility of the information generators is indicated in the sustainability report [ 72 ]. Indeed, one of the steps that have been considered most effective since the financial scandals of the 2000s is the clarification of personal responsibility in the information provided, which is institutionally promoted. The result measurement phase is closely linked to the principles of transparency and anti-corruption that accompanies CSR. Likewise, it is also essential in any management system for results and continuous improvement. The strategy and entrepreneurial activity can simultaneously influence relations with the various stakeholders. For example, if anticompetitive practices are used, reference is made to the interest group of competitors, the relationship with the public administration and customers, even if it is only a reflex moment. In many cases, it is not easy to determine where the commercial practice ends and those that are not accepted begin. Phase 5. The “Annual Report on Corporate Responsibility of Telefónica S.A.” was released in 2007, 2008, and 2009, and every year, there was a notable improvement in the contents and in the processing of information, as well as in its dissemination. Phase 6. Within the Telefónica MIP are the following steps in the verification process: internal audit on the correctness of the information; external audit; certifications; and verifications [ 73 ]. All the processes relating to the customers of Telefónica and Telefónica Moviles in Spain are certified according to the ISO 9001/2000 20 standard, and in Telefónica America Latina, they were carried out in 2004. Two characteristics can be observed in the design of these certifications: a) The development achieved is measured in proportion to the certified processes; and b) the priority of certification is assigned to the processes closest to the customer, who is the main beneficiary of quality. These continuous quality improvement plans include “service indicators” and “strategic quality indicators, with objectives of improvement and comparison with the quality perceived by the customer.” Six Sigma 21 is the reference methodology for process improvement and staff training. These systems include internal controls. In 1996, Telefónica of Spain acquired the environmental commitment of ETNO (European Telecommunications Operators), and in 1999, the development of an “environmental management project” takes the UNE EN ISO 14001 standard as a model. The environmental management system for Telefónica Moviles in Spain covers all its activities and is certified by AENOR by the UNE EN ISO 14001 standard. The various collective agreements of the company are applied to more than 100,000 employees of Telefónica . It is important to underline a way of expressing and communicating the ISO certifications that were used in the report produced by Telefónica . The reference to the percentage of processes subject to certification is clear information and should be standardized by quality managers (certifiers, consultants, and companies with quality systems). The 2000 edition of ISO 9001 provides for the focus of society as an integrated set of processes, and it is this vision of integration that should be strengthened. And this contrasts with the widespread practice among companies of citing the number of certificates earned (on quality, on the environment) as to their merit, without referring to what they represent for all processes in society. Thus, the reader could interpret a company, A, with four certificates as being in a better position than another company, B, with a single certificate, when the reality may be that company B has certified all its processes, and only some of these. Phase 7. The improvement phase is seen as the analysis of, and reflection on, the overall path and includes external recognition. This recognition can be evaluated in terms of awards obtained and by other means or methods that the market and institutions can design and use. Finally, in this phase of improvement, and through a DOFA 22 analysis, the diagnosis is fed, with which the next cycle begins, before continuing toward excellence. Telefónica has received many awards and recognitions for its commitment and its application to the principles of CSR. However, the field of international recognition of the progress achieved in social responsibility will never be complete without a common interpretation and evaluation of information by interest group representatives. There are at least four elements of variation, and they are difficult to interpret: the agent who subsidizes it; the means used for the assessment; the characteristics; and the degree of recognition granted. Concluding the discourse on the progressivity in the analysis of the Telefónica case and on the other elements observed, it is shown that the progressive advancement systems for the establishment and accreditation of the CSR are of a mixed nature, including progress in the unity of the organizational structure, in the processes, and in assessing compliance with the principles [ 74 ]. As a detail on the possible developments during the evaluation, the improvement in the quality and transparency of the communication is highlighted, which is to report the percentage covered by a certification process, rather than the number of certifications. Progress is also being made in the standardization, measurement, and accounting of the results achieved with CSR, particularly for the improvement and expansion of the reports made by the GRI [ 75 ], which with its guides since 2002 has started the elaboration of an articulated reporting on the sustainability [ 76 ]. However, it is still a process that requires a lot of development, especially in the use of measurements and in annual and cross-cutting improvement. It is internally validated that the reports are made according to the GRI guidelines, but they are not being carefully checked.

5.3 Focus on interest groups in Telefónica 23

Telefónica ’s approach to its stakeholders is to recognize legitimate interests and try to demonstrate their commitment and earn their trust. The following statement, which is exhaustive of the policy implemented by the Spanish group toward all its interlocutors, is reported on the company Web site on Telefónica ’s corporate responsibility: “A company of this size generates, every day, millions of contacts with groups that, directly or indirectly, maintain a legitimate interest in it: customers, shareholders, investors, employees, partners, media and suppliers. Furthermore, following these relationships, the Telefónica Group also maintains close contacts with all the companies and countries in which it operates. Each of these relationships is an opportunity to demonstrate Telefónica’s commitment to its interest groups … and therefore it is a chance, whether or not to win your trust.” 24 The previous quotation highlights a direct relationship with the six interest groups, while the reference to contacts with companies and the countries in which the company operates is presented because of relations with those groups. In the classification of Telefónica ’s interest groups, the following distinctive features must be noted: 1) special mention, to divide shareholders and investors even if it is considered the same interest group; 2) express reference to shareholders and consideration as an interest group; 3) governments (regulators) are excluded from the interest groups; 4) it includes the means of communication (mass media); and 5) no specific consideration of the “company” as an interest group but derivative of the relationships with the seven interest groups. Furthermore, they do not mention the concept of “company,” but a plural and diversified “company and countries in which it operates.” Telefónica has recognized, in its sustainability communication, suppliers as one of its stakeholders. The procurement process is a process that has standardized the Telefónica group, with standardization being carried out through the application of a “common management model,” already applied by 100 companies from the group, called the Sistema Avanzado de Compras (SAC). The SAC is a manual of conduct that states “the importance of intervening with rigour, objectivity, transparency and professionalism in the purchasing function, and which reflects the principles and guidelines that should guide actions with suppliers.” This manual is mandatory for all people involved in the procurement process, whether in commercial areas or working in different units. The manual includes 13 general principles, including those most directly connected with the principles of CSR, and the six approaches are as follows: I) customer satisfaction [ 77 ]; II) compliance with commitments; III) transparency in the procurement process; IV) equal opportunities for suppliers; V) objectivity in the decision-making process; and VI) contribution to the development of society. To strengthen the implementation of these principles, the manual underlines the “guidelines to be followed in situations deriving from the relationship with suppliers that can generate conflicts of interest” and indicates what to do in the working relationship with Telefónica suppliers and in other situations of constraint with a supplier, as well as the prohibition of accepting gifts or personal benefits associated with purchases ( Figure 4 ).

The Telefónica procurement process, CSR approach. Source: Own elaboration from Telefónica S.A. data.

The procurement process has five stages or phases, as shown in Figure 4 ; these phases are represented by their principal or actor, and in the same way, it is indicated in each phase how to proceed with the distinctive approach in CSR, resulting from the application of the six principles of the conduct manual (SAC). Telefónica has classified the acquisitions necessary to satisfy any type of need in five product lines (network infrastructures, services and works, products, market information systems, advertising, and marketing) in the definition of the requirements considering the global policy of sustainable development of society. Homogeneity is applied in requests for offers so that the information provided to suppliers (through the purchasing area) is the same for everyone to ensure equal opportunities for all interested groups. Another principle is contributing to the development of society, so the policy aims to promote the country’s economic activity, which influences purchases. The whole process up to the tender requires the supplier to be approved. The approval of suppliers is achieved by registering in the “supplier catalog,” which includes a presentation of the company and the opening of a register managed by the corresponding SAC process unit (there is at least one in each of the 19 countries in which Telefónica operates), to the verification process after inclusion in the catalog or to rejection. For the approval or rejection of the supplier, among other things, the criteria set out by the CSR are considered. Purchasing management is done through seven purchasing tables, which are in Madrid, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Santiago de Chile, Lima, and Mexico City. Some products require technical approval before being used and therefore require a specific approval process. The specifications of the products/services being assessed include elements of social responsibility, such as those relating with respect to the environment. The negotiation phase is governed by a set of guidelines to ensure compliance with the supplier’s treatment, transparency, and objectivity; here are some guidelines for specific situations: a) Limit the requisites required for suppliers, without using the purchasing power of Telefónica because the supplier accepts abusive conditions well below the market; b) no offer will be negotiated without any possibility of awarding; c) confidentiality of information obtained from the supplier on offers and other aspects of the purchase tables; and d) there will be no meals or recreational activities during the negotiation period. The trading phase is carried out using the method of trading cycles or auctions. The management of the purchases of some product categories is carried out through an electronic commerce platform: e-Sourcing Adquira 25 , with over 4,300 affiliated providers. The ratio of products purchased by these means is not identical in the seven purchase tables and includes a series of items for each of the five product lines. This platform allows the management of bids and negotiation, as well as the implementation and management of purchase auctions. Transparency and objectivity are the principles of CSR that directly affect this phase. It must also ensure that the contract entered reflects what is negotiated with the supplier. In the final phase of contract implementation, the affected areas that they manage must strictly abide by the agreement and check that the supplier complies with its commitments. For the award, the calendar and the specifications of the offer will be considered. As the main aspect of the process analyzed in Telefónica , the principles of transparency and objectivity are preferred for the IT solutions that are transforming the company’s purchasing system. They point out that there is also an improvement in the efficiency of the system by reducing process costs, which affect both the supplier and the buyer. Telefónica is automating all purchasing processes in the value chain with the supplier. Together with the e-Sourcing, the e-Procurement company platform supports all internal procurement cycles (post-purchase), including the delivery of orders.

6. Communication on CSR in Telefónica : the annual reports on social responsibility

The first social report published in Spain was that of Banco Bilbao 26 in 1978, and this was followed by other large companies such as Telefónica , RENFE, 27 and Construcciones Aeronáuticas 28 . These relationships represent the aspect of social, not economic, indicators referring to customers, employees, the environment, and the community. However, this effort was soon stopped, due to the accentuation of a purely financial approach in the 1980s, which emphasized the relationship with investors, shareholders, and the media. The increase in CSR, as well as the importance within it of the information provided to interest groups, motivated Telefónica to decide to present the reports on corporate responsibility, for which it adopted the methodology of guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Telefónica has also undertaken an attitude of active participation in the GRI, forming part of its Stakeholder Organization (SO) and being represented in its Stakeholder Council by its General Management of Reputation, Brand and Social Responsibility. Telefónica creates an integrated corporate responsibility report for the whole group, but it has also left certain freedom to the companies that want it to carry out their reports independently on sustainability; in fact, the following five companies appear in the list of Spanish companies in the GRI database: Telefónica S.A., Telefónica de España, Telefónica Móviles España , Telefónica Publicidad y Información, S.A. (TPI), and Telefónica Investigación y Desarrollo ( Telefónica I + D). The logic of this plurality of relationships is that companies have considered it as an element of competitive advantage relevant to their strategy in every sector. In other groups of companies (Ferrovial, BBVA, and Repsol YPF), this proliferation does not occur. The GRI database has a temporary delay concerning the publication of the reports on the Web site of each company; this may be due to the request of the GRI to grant the status of “in accordance” with the reports, which implies a review by this organization. Telefónica ’s reports are increasingly complete and sophisticated in trying to achieve the stated goal of more transparent information. Similarly, the effect of the improvements in the tool used is felt, following the publication of the 2008 edition of the GRI guidelines. El informe anual de responsabilidad corporativa 2008 29 by Telefónica begins with the president’s statement 30 and with a specific chapter for each interest group. The information is structured and standardized according to guidelines provided by the group and contains indicators both on the general commitment and on specific areas in the field of telecommunications. The list of indicators (referring to the 2008 report) is shown in its content in the following tables and graphs. In addition to the ratios, the company’s annual report includes the company profile, structure, governance [ 78 ], stakeholder engagement, and global policies. It should be noted that there are several indicators of social performance suitable for analyzing working conditions, respect for human rights, the relationship with society, and product responsibility because the company is very committed to this type of policy as also demonstrated by the annual report produced by the OSE 31 . Telefónica is a driving force for economic, technological, and social development in the countries where it operates. In 2008, the company generated more than 69,000 million euros in revenue. These revenues made it possible to pay 6,767 million euros to its employees (5% more than in 2007), 10,336 million euros to public administrations (4% more than in 2007), 32,832 million euros to its suppliers (2% more than in 2007), and approximately 6,700 million euros to its shareholders (22% more than in 2007). This is how society has distributed the wealth created. In 2008, Telefónica set aside more than 4,600 million euros for technological innovation, which represents a 6% increase compared with 2007. From this amount, 668 million euros were invested in research and development (R&D), meaning that Telefónica ranked sixth in the world in this category and first among Spanish companies, with an amount dedicated to investments that were four times than those of the runner-up in this ranking 32 . Significant progress in some areas of the group in the field of corporate responsibility and the need to improve implementation in others, together with the objectives set for 2011, constitute the reference target for 2009; this is the central message of the 2008 annual report by Telefónica . Here are the “milestones”: Corporate Responsibility and Business Principles . At the end of 2008, about 50% of the group’s employees (excluding Atento teleoperators) had received training in Business Principles , which represents 60,219, double the figure for 2007. The aim of promoting dialog with employees on business principles was achieved through the development of forms of internal communication such as publications (e.g., Somos magazine), and a variety of presentations in various locations and forums. Abdullah et al. [ 79 ] suggest that employees who value CSR campaigns and other practices identify with their company to a greater degree, work with more devotion and loyalty, and show more creativity in their work performance. Or better CSR practices have a significant influence on employee performance in terms of relationships between employee perception of CSR and employee outcome for firms [ 80 ]. Training initiatives were launched for employees in Ecuador, while CSR continued its consolidation process in the remaining countries where it had begun to be applied in 2007. Thematic panels were promoted in Peru on social inclusion in the sector of telecommunications, the Intégrame Project , and the 1st Forum on Antennas and Health. Telefónica O2 Germany 33 confirmed its status as the best company in relations within the group and the online dialog issue ( Figure 5 ).

Driving force of progress in Telefónica. Source: Annual Corporate Responsibility Report Telefónica S.A. 2008.

To encourage initiatives aimed at ensuring responsible behavior by interest groups and to help consolidate the companies and the good perception of Telefónica , the CSR guidelines have been developed for 10 countries, including the 2008 targets. Environment: An Environmental Management System has been developed for the entire group based on the ISO 14001 standard. A model that emphasizes the energy efficiency of equipment and products has also been implemented by suppliers in the work area of the OCC. Hang et al. [ 81 ] identified a significant and positive impact of CSR and green product innovation on organizational performance. Accordingly, green product innovation positively influences competitive advantage. Competitive advantage mediates the relationship between corporate social responsibility, green product innovation, and organizational performance. Measures aimed at improving energy efficiency, promoting the use of renewable energy and Green IT models, have been developed and implemented as part of the activities of the work area in the Climate Change Office 34 . The year 2008 marks the development of the Telefónica Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 35 based on a balanced scorecard 36 of environmental indicators. The rules that are expected to be implemented in 2009 and 2010 in all operations were designed in 2008 as part of the Global Environmental Management System 37 . These regulations cover aspects such as waste management, noise pollution control. Customers: Efforts invested in the Customer Experience 38 methodology that was introduced in 2007 resulted in an improvement in the Customer Satisfaction Index, bringing it up to 6.92% with an improvement of 2%. According to a pre-established work plan, in 2008, advice was distributed to customers and the public on the responsible use of technologies, with recommendations on safety, recycling, the use of technologies by children, intellectual property, and the use of technology in public places. The analyses include surveys involving approximately 85,000 children from 800 schools in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela; the conclusions were recorded in the White Book and will form the basis for the development of future educational initiatives. Ten principles that constitute the golden rules on advertising have been defined and are included in the Agencies Evaluation Model and are applied as part of the contractual conditions with these agencies. Employees : The ongoing initiatives have led to an improvement in the Employee Satisfaction and Commitment Index, bringing it up to 69%, three percentage points more than in 2007 and with participation in questionnaires equal to 70.4%. Progress has been made in dissemination and implementation tasks across the internal areas that will constitute the future Diversity Committee. The Telefónica Group work accident analysis procedure was developed to establish a set of common criteria to analyze the working conditions in all companies that belong to the Telefónica Group. Providers: Telefónica has more than met its 2008 target of assessing the risks of the value chain of 1,000 suppliers and carrying out 50 audits, reaching figures of 1,100 and 55, respectively. Community: Nearly 107,602 children were introduced to primary schools in 2008, doubling the previous year, in Latin America. The EducaRed 39 model was used to provide teachers, pupils, and families with the technological tools necessary to guarantee access to learning processes and teaching quality. Progress has been made in the following areas covered by the Accessible Telefónica Plan: accessibility of Telefónica mobile phones, ease of the integration process in the workplace, accessibility of procurement procedures, web accessibility, accessibility in stores, accessibility of digital TV, and accessibility of hardware. In addition to these results, communication actions and consolidation of the network of collaborations have been launched with other interested parties as well as constant support for innovation initiatives. At this point, it appears essential to analyze the strategic system of Telefónica ; corporate responsibility is considered an integral part of its objectives for the group and how it conducts its activities is based on doing business in the “right way.” Its initiatives are in the correct balance between positive and negative effects to prevent the adverse impacts affecting the value chain for each stakeholder. Telefónica ’s vision is to “improve people’s lives and business performance, as well as the advancement of the communication technologies in which it operates, offering innovative services based on information and communication technologies” (ICT). The objective of the strategy is to contribute to the sustainability of its business in the long term through the implementation of policies in favor of ethics and honesty, which in turn contributes to improving the satisfaction of customers, employees, shareholders, and, above all, the community, as summarized in the diagram below ( Figure 6 ).

Reference framework for the management of social impacts in Telefónica. Source: Adaptation from the Corporate Responsibility Report 2008, Telefónica S.A.

The philosophy of business excellence , that is, doing business in the “right way,” is the key principle of Telefónica ’s CR policy and underlies the whole context of its strategy. The company uses various indicators to measure its degree of implementation in these dynamics: in addition to the Customer Satisfaction Index , there is the Employee Satisfaction Index and the RepTrak ™ 40 , further highlighting the need to keep the focus on excellence, keeping the commitments made with customers. “Honesty and transparent management aimed at minimizing the negative impact of the value chain, through a commitment to ethics and honesty.” This represents the basic set of rules set out in the Business Principles , aimed at generating policies and regulatory frameworks necessary for the fulfillment of these objectives. The following graph better defines the role of corporate responsibility in the public and social aspects together with the economic and environmental impacts in a dynamic framework of variables. It must be emphasized that Telefónica tends to underline these objectives in its annual report precisely to highlight and guarantee its maximum transparency. Telefónica contributes to progress by maximizing the positive impact of its business and thus offering a contribution to improving the lives of people and other companies with which it enters a relationship. Educational programs for the use of ICT also have a positive impact on the environment and the productivity of businesses due to their ability to help reduce the consumption of natural resources and promote the fight against climate change. Social and cultural activities reinforce the impact of social action, allowing anyone, regardless of social position or cultural condition, to enjoy the benefits of progress. These activities are carried out through the Fundación Telefónica , ATAM 41 , the politics and sponsorships of Telefónica Europa, the Proniño project 42 , EducaRed, and other important initiatives such as Telefónica Voluntarios , Debate y Conocimiento , and Arte y Tecnología . Improving the benefits of CSR through initiatives of transparent communication and constructive dialog with stakeholders in Telefónica helps to define a guide and an economic, technological, and social progress force. The Spanish group publishes annual reports on CSR in 17 countries where it operates, which are compiled using the GRI standards, with 12 of these reports also being screened by the AA1000AS standards. In contrast, social and cultural action is evaluated with the LBG standards. To ensure that the initiative keeps pace with stakeholder expectations, an ongoing dialog with these interest groups is essential. The general objective is to move away from a mono-stakeholder strategy to implement a multi-stakeholder approach, which allows the company to develop a closer understanding of the interests of all these groups and to identify the most significant aspects and existing criticalities ( Figure 7 ).

Interrelations between public and private aspects with the economic prospectus. Source: Adaptation from the Corporate Responsibility Report 2008, Telefónica S.A.

7. Study limitation

Empirically [ 82 , 83 ], it was demonstrated that qualitative research helps entrepreneurs and small businesses understand what drives human behavior. It is also used to see how employees feel about workflows and tasks. However, qualitative research has many limitations that include possible small sample sizes [ 84 ], potential bias in answers [ 85 ], self-selection bias [ 86 ], and potentially poor questions from researchers [ 87 ]. It also can be artificial or unusual because in terms of it is not typical to observe participants in focus groups, ask them questions at work, or invite them to partake in this type of research method [ 88 ]. The significant limitations of this chapter’s contribution are associated with the study’s theoretical nature and the qualitative inquiry due to the unique case study analyzed [ 89 ].

8. Conclusions

Through this work, we have tried to bring some order to a subject characterized by a strong and constant evolution, in need of certain points of reference, from which to start for a better and more rigorous methodological definition. First, it emerged quite clearly how, at least in the medium to long term, the assumption in the field of social communication of a superficial, or even elusive, attitude toward the expectations of stakeholders can determine unfavorable consequences not only in terms of image but also from an economic/financial point of view, especially in large companies. Based on these considerations, it is necessary to ask what the most effective tools are for communicating the assumption of responsibility of the company. The ongoing debate on the methods and tools most suitable for representing and disseminating corporate responsibility in the social, environmental, and economic fields is going through a crucial phase. After a series of effective initiatives by public or private organizations, the impression is that among business representatives there is a real desire to collect the disjointed results produced so far in an organic project. At an international level, efforts are being made to re-organize the various standards and models developed in the context of economic, environmental, and social sustainability (the so-called “triple bottom line”). The broad process of involvement and consultation of stakeholders is fundamental, as they are the real arbiters of corporate success. Some of these initiatives (such as the AA 1000 of the ISEA or the “Guidelines” of the GRI) are characterized by an appreciable dynamic character, of a “work in progress” one could say, since “they do not foreshadow a final and definitive solution,” but rather involve a voluntary and continuous process of verification and review. This is more important the more one reflects on the problematic, and perhaps uncertain, the definition of the areas of responsibility of the company. The hope for the coming years is that principles and general criteria can be defined in a univocal or widely shared way, which can guide any organization, regardless of geographic location, size, and activity, in accounting processes, auditing, and reporting. If the various initiatives in progress converge into a single project, which integrates them efficiently, the dispersion of efforts and ideas on the subject, as happened in the past, could be avoided [ 90 ]. It is with this spirit that the study group for the establishment of the principles of drafting the social report (GBS) is working in Italy [ 91 ]. Founded in 1998, bringing together the main scholars and operators in the sector, the study group is still working to disseminate and improve social communication, based on certain principles and procedures for creating the social report [ 92 ]. The document presented in last May represents only the first step toward a more organic definition of the controversial subject under consideration. However, we can affirm that some critical problems in the field of social reporting have already been identified; these are the following aspects: a) poor standardization in content and subsequent difficulty in making inter-company and inter-temporal comparisons; b) poor reliability and credibility of social reporting tools; and c) difficulties for SMEs (small- and medium-sized enterprises) in adopting these tools due to the scarce economic convenience in drafting them. About the first point, the solution could be to start from a single aspect (e.g., through the creation of thematic balances), normalize their content by pursuing certain guidelines, and then progressively incorporate the other aspects, to arrive at a more complex and complete tool such as the social report [ 93 ]. In this process, the guidelines defined by the GBS and the GRI should be followed: In this way, companies would be stimulated and incentivized to adopt a single reporting model, while those that intend to depart from it would at least be required to explain their reasons. As regards the low credibility and reliability of corporate documents, which for a long time have been translated into simple “books of good intentions,” it is necessary to proceed in the direction of certification (auditing). Both are based on standards recognized by international organizations and by these certificates (HDE index, SA 8000, etc.), and by having external auditing firms certify the social financial statements. About the latter, an important role is played by the added value, which allows the social balance to be anchored to certain accounting data, as it derives from the financial statements. Finally, as regards the last point outlined above, it will be appropriate for SMEs to prepare a simple social report formed, for example, by the added value account and the surplus account; these are immediate processing that even the smallest company can conduct with very low costs since it simply requires a reprocessing of accounting data already collected. In conclusion, it is appropriate to clarify how the various social reporting tools and the social report serve not only to bring out the issues discussed so far in a public and transparent way but also to verify how they have been dealt with (through the comparison of subsequent documents) and what steps have been taken to resolve them. Specifically, it is necessary to encourage correct disclosure among companies of the principles and purposes of the social report, to avoid distortions in its interpretation [ 94 ]. It cannot be seen as a simple means of protecting or promoting the corporate image, but rather as an effective communication, management, and control tool that renders an effective service to the management of the company and its stakeholders. From these premises and other observations relating to the issues analyzed during this work such as CSR, sustainable development, and social ethics, Telefónica has built within it a “system of values,” based on a structure capable of fully merit understanding and responding to the new economic and environmental challenges of the international scene. The Telefónica case, therefore, represents a successful example of the integration of commercial, social, and environmental policies that find their strategic position within the group. This does not create critical issues but becomes the basis for building the “new competitive proposal,” where natural and energy resources tend to run out inexorably; in the not-so-distant future, the only way to be able to compete will be in social and environmental performance.

Acknowledgments

This work is based on research carried out in the Basque Country during a 6-month Erasmus study period abroad. The research was the subject of the master’s degree final thesis in the Business Economics course of the Federico II University of Naples. I thank the University of the Basque Country and my Italian tutor of Federico II University of Naples, Professor Riccardo Viganò, for the opportunity. I also thank the company Telefónica S.A. for the valuable interviews and company materials provided for the drafting of the chapter.

Conflicts of interest

The author declares no conflict of interest.

www.bbva.es

www.bilanciosociale.it

www.bilanciosociale.com

www.bitc.org.uk

www.bvqina.com

www.csreurope.org

www.educared.net

www.ethics.org

www.ethicscan.on.ca

www.ethicsinaction.com

www.foretica.es

www.fundacion.telefonica.com

www.globalreporting.org

www.hdr.undp.org

www.kld.com

www.iso.org

www.obrsc.org

www.orsadata.it

www.sa8000.info

www.sa-intl.org

www.sustainability-index.com

www.telefonica.es

www.tt.mtin.es

www.smaer.it

• 1. Renzo A. La Corporate social responsability e il ruolo del bilancio sociale. 2016
• 2. Barbé S. Uno: missione e valori guida. In: Fuori Orario 18 e 19. 1999
• 3. Bonal J, Jacquet JL, Vermay A, Hemmer E, Kuller HD, Bonal J, et al. Responsabilità sociale e bilancio sociale d’impresa: Esperienze e prospettive negli Stati Uniti e in Europa. Franco Angeli; 1981
• 4. Mio C, Concini C. Il budget ambientale: Programmazione e controllo della variabile ambientale. Egea; 2001
• 5. Bertini U. Il sistema d’azienda (The enterprise as a System). Torino: Giappichelli; 1990
• 6. Basile V, Capobianco N, Vona R. The usefulness of sustainable business models: Analysis from oil and gas industry. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management. 2021; 28 (6):1801-1821
• 7. Sacconi L. Guida critica alla responsabilità sociale e al governo d’impresa: problemi, teorie e applicazioni della CSR. Bancaria; 2005
• 8. Panati G, Golinelli G. Tecnica economica industriale e commerciale: Imprese, strategie e management. Nuova Italia Scientifica; 1988
• 9. Sacco PL, Viviani M. La responsabilità sociale d’impresa: Prospettive teoriche nel dibattito italiano. Economia politica. 2008; 25 (2):317-350
• 10. Sarfraz M, Qun W, Abdullah MI, Alvi AT. Employees’ perception of corporate social responsibility impact on employee outcomes: Mediating role of organizational justice for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Sustainability. 2018a; 10 (7):2429
• 11. Catturi G. Lezioni di economia aziendale. Cedam; 1984
• 12. Bartolomeo M. La contabilità ambientale d’impresa. Il Mulino, Bologna; 1997
• 13. Terzani S. Responsabilità sociale dell’azienda. Rivista Italiana di Ragioneria e di Economia aziendale. 1984; 8 :286-299
• 14. Blackorby C, Bossert W, Donaldson D. Utilitarianism and the theory of justice. Handbook of Social Choice and Welfare. 2002; 1 :543-596
• 15. Harsanyi JC. Bayesian decision theory and utilitarian ethics. The American Economic Review. 1978; 68 (2):223-228
• 16. Quinton A. Utilitarian ethics. Springer; 1973
• 17. Amartya S. Etica ed economia. Roma: Editori Laterza; 1988
• 18. Marchesini GC, Zamagni S. L’impresa etica e le sue sfide: Interventi, interviste, casi. Egea; 2003
• 19. Coda V. Etica ed impresa: Il valore dello sviluppo. Rivista dei Dottori Commercialisti. 1996:792
• 20. Di Toro P. L’etica nella gestione d’impresa. Cedam; 1993
• 21. Battini F. Riflessioni su etica, economia e finanza: con un saggio introduttivo di Donato Masciandaro Mucchi; 2000
• 22. Onida P. Economicita’, socialita’ed efficienza nell’amministrazione d’impresa. Casa ed. della Rivista italiana di ragioneria; 1961
• 23. Vermiglio F. Il bilancio sociale nel quadro evolutivo del sistema d’impresa. Messina: Grapho Editor; 1984
• 24. Zamagni S. L’economia del bene comune. Città nuova; 2007: 3
• 25. Argandoña A. Sobre los sistemas de gestión ética social y medioambiental en las empresas. Revista papeles de ética, economía y dirección. 2003; 8 :90-114
• 26. Matacena A. Impresa ed ambiente: il bilancio sociale. Bologna: Clueb; 1984
• 27. Molteni M. Responsabilità sociale e performance d’impresa. Per una sintesi socio-competitiva. Vita e pensiero; 2004
• 28. Matacena A. Responsabilità sociale e informativa sociale, in Stato dell’arte e dell’innovazione, Milano 8/9 giugno 1999
• 29. Gabrovec Mei O. Il valore aggiunto delle imprese: Schemi di calcolo applicati alle Principali societa’ italiane, In: Amministrazione e Finanza n. 7; 1993
• 30. Rappaport A. Creating Shareholder Value: The new standard for business performance. Free Press; 1986
• 31. Pestoff V. Rendiconto sociale per cooperative e organizzazioni non profit. Impresa Sociale. 1996; 28
• 32. Chiesi A, Martinelli A, Pellegatta M. Il bilancio sociale, Stakeholder e responsabilità sociale d’impresa, Il sole 24Ore. 2000
• 33. Airoldi G, Brunetti G, Coda V. Corso di economia aziendale. Il Mulino; 2020
• 34. Wood DJ, Mitchell RK, Agle BR, Bryan LM. Stakeholder identification and salience after 20 years: Progress, problems, and prospects. Business & Society. 2021; 60 (1):196-245
• 35. Baxter P, Jack S. Qualitative case study methodology: Study design and implementation for novice researchers. The Qualitative Report. 2008; 13 (4):544-559
• 36. Yin RK. Case Study Research: Design and Methods (Applied Social Research Methods). London and Singapore: Sage; 2009
• 37. Meyer B. Case studies. In: researching translation and interpreting. Routledge; 2015. pp. 195-202
• 38. Fowler MD. Ethical issues in nursing research: Issues in qualitative research. Western Journal of Nursing Research. 1988; 10 (1):109-110
• 39. Groves RM. Survey errors and survey costs. John Wiley & Sons; 2005
• 40. Guion LA, Diehl DC, McDonald D. Conducting an In-depth Interview. McCarty Hall, FL: University of Florida; 2001. pp. 1-3
• 41. Yin RK. Designing case studies. Qualitative Research Methods. 2003; 5 (14):359-386
• 42. Johnston MP. Secondary data analysis: A method of which the time has come. Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries. 2017; 3 (3):619-626
• 43. Hox JJ, Boeije HR. Data collection, primary versus secondary. 2005
• 44. Devine P. Secondary data analysis. The AZ of Social Research. 2003
• 45. Legard R, Keegan J, Ward K. In-depth interviews. Qualitative Research Practice. 2003; 6 (1):138-169
• 46. Bandettini A. Contabilità sociale dell’azienda e bilancio sociale. Scritti in onore di Pietro Onida. Vol. 1983. Milano: Giuffrè; 1983
• 47. Vermiglio F. Il cantiere aperto del bilancio sociale. Rivista della cooperazione, (1/2). 2000
• 48. Klassen AC, Creswell J, Plano Clark VL, Smith KC, Meissner HI. Best practices in mixed methods for quality of life research. Quality of Life Research. 2012; 21 (3):377-380
• 49. Delgado JB. La ética y la comunicación en el ámbito global de las organizaciones. In: Reflexiones sobre la responsabilidad social, la empresa y el tercer sector: Memoria académica curso 2003-2004. Universidad Pontificia Comillas; 2005. pp. 17-52
• 50. Viganò R. Il valore dell’azienda: Analisi storica e obiettivi di determinazione. Cedam; 2001
• 51. Argentaria, BBVA. Informe anual de responsabilidad social corporativa. 2002
• 52. Bruni G. Il bilancio di missione delle aziende non profit. Rivista italiana di ragioneria e di economia aziendale. 1997; 97 (5/6):234-244
• 53. Benavides Delgado J, Fernández JL. Reflexiones sobre la responsabilidad social, la empresa y el tercer sector . 2005
• 54. Cavalieri E. Aspetti sociali dell’informazione economica d’impresa. 1981
• 55. Trujillo E. Modelo de Gestión de Responsabilidad Corporativa, V Conferenza Interamericana sulla Corporate Social Responsabilty, Telefónica S.A., 2007
• 56. Sciarelli S. Etica e responsabilità sociale nell’impresa. Giuffrè Editore; 2007
• 57. Sicca L. La gestione strategica dell’impresa: concetti e strumenti. Cedam; 2001
• 58. Horovitz J. La calidad del servicio: A la conquista del cliente. In: La calidad del servicio: A la conquista del cliente. 1991:105-105
• 59. Bryant B, Fornell C. American Customer Satisfaction Index, Methodology Report; 2005
• 60. Preston LE. Corporation and society: The search for a paradigm. Journal of economic literature. 1975:434-453
• 61. Cassandro PE. Sulla cosiddetta performance dell’azienda e sulle possibilità di una sua valutazione. Rivista Italiana di Ragioneria. 1985:4-5
• 62. Andreu R. Una herramienta de competitividad para el futuro, Cuadernos de comunicación e innovación, Revistas Politica y Culturales Número 79 Abril / Junio 2009
• 63. Navas JE, Guerras M. La Dirección Estratégica de la Empresa: Teoría y Aplicaciones, Civitas Ediciones, S.L., 1998
• 64. Fiol CM, Lyles MA. Organizational learning. Academy of management review. 1985; 10 (4):803-813
• 65. Pistoni AI, Songini L. Misurare e comunicare la Corporate Social Responsibility; 2005
• 66. Ajaz A, Shenbei Z, Sarfraz M. Delineating the influence of boardroom gender diversity on corporate social responsibility, financial performance, and reputation. LogForum. 2020; 16 (1)
• 67. Franceschetti JM, Gramigna S. Verso uno standard per la certificazione sociale: La SA 8000; 2002
• 68. Carroll. A three-dimensional conceptual model of corporate performance. Academy of Management Review Chap. 1979; 4 :497-505
• 69. Joyner, Payne. Building values, business ethics and corporate social responsibility into the developing organization. Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship. 2002; 7 :113-131
• 70. Zadek S, Evans R, Pruzan P. Building corporate accountability: Emerging practice in social and ethical accounting and auditing. Routledge; 2013
• 71. Clavero AMC. La responsabilidad de la empresa en el contexto social: Su articulación gestión y control [Doctoral dissertation]. Universidad de Málaga; 1986
• 72. Tettamanzi P, Minutiello P. ESG: Bilancio di sostenibilita’e integrated reporting. IPSOA; 2022
• 73. Lepore G, D’Alesio M. La certificazione etica d’impresa. La norma SA 8000 ed il quadro legislativo. Informa Health Care. 2004: 560
• 74. Gandini G. Gennari, F, di Economia Aziendale, R. Funzione di compliance e responsabilità di governance; 2008
• 75. Simonazzi R. Il bilancio e la contabilità ambientale. Halley editrice, Roma; 2004
• 76. Vermiglio F. Nuovi strumenti di comunicazione aziendale. Confronto di esperienze in tema di bilancio sociale. 2000
• 77. Busacca B. Le risorse di fiducia dell’impresa: soddisfazione del cliente, creazione del valore strategie di accrescimento. Torino: Utet; 1994
• 78. Spitzeck H. The Governance of Corporate Responsibility: A ‘How to’Guide. 2010
• 79. Abdullah MI, Ashraf S, Sarfraz M. The organizational identification perspective of CSR on creative performance: The moderating role of creative self-efficacy. Sustainability. 2017; 9 (11):2125
• 80. Sarfraz M, Qun W, Hui L, Abdullah MI. Environmental risk management strategies and the moderating role of corporate social responsibility in project financing decisions. Sustainability. 2018b; 10 (8):2771
• 81. Hang Y, Sarfraz M, Khalid R, Ozturk I, Tariq J. Does corporate social responsibility and green product innovation boost organizational performance? a moderated mediation model of competitive advantage and green trust. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja. 2022:1-21
• 82. Dana LP, Dana TE. Expanding the scope of methodologies used in entrepreneurship research. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business. 2005; 2 (1):79-88
• 83. Neergaard H, Ulhøi JP. Handbook of qualitative research methods in entrepreneurship. Edward Elgar Publishing; 2007
• 84. Boddy CR. The sample size for qualitative research. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal. 2016
• 85. Chenail RJ. Interviewing the investigator: Strategies for addressing instrumentation and researcher bias concerns in qualitative research. Qualitative Report. 2011; 16 (1):255-262
• 86. Norris N. Error, bias and validity in qualitative research. Educational Action Research. 1997; 5 (1):172-176
• 87. Palaganas EC, Sanchez MC, Molintas VP, Caricativo RD. Reflexivity in qualitative research: A journey of learning. Qualitative Report. 2017; 22 (2)
• 88. Morgan DL, Spanish MT. Focus groups: A new tool for qualitative research. Qualitative Sociology. 1984; 7 (3):253-270
• 89. Ritchie J, Lewis J, Nicholls CM, Ormston R editors. Qualitative research practice: A guide for social science students and researchers. Sage; 2013
• 90. Puddu L. Gli strumenti contabili tradizionali e le decisioni. In: Aa VV., Strumenti informativo-contabili per le decisioni aziendali. AIDEA, Clueb: Bologna; 1988
• 91. De Santis G, Ventrella AM, Tozzi S. Il bilancio sociale dell’impresa. Franco Angeli; 1980
• 92. Rusconi G. D’IMPRESA, I. B. S. PROBLEMI E PROSPETTIVE. Giuffrè, Milano; 1988
• 93. Pulejo L. Esperienze in tema di bilancio sociale Il modello francese. Giappichelli; 1996
• 94. Rusconi G. Il ruolo del bilancio sociale nel contesto dell’economia aziendale. Rivista Italiana di Ragioneria e di Economia Aziendale. 1987
• The Green Paper is communication with which the European Commission illustrates the state of a particular sector to be regulated and clarifies its point of view regarding certain problems; it is part of the so-called "atypical acts" envisaged but not governed by the EEC Treaty, and this type of communication can have an informative, decision making, declarative, or interpretative nature, and is subject to the advertising regime.
• Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) is a Spanish multinational banking group with a strong regional origin (Basque Country). Its origin dates to the merger of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya and Argentaria in 1999, which led to the creation of the second-largest Spanish bank, behind Banco Santander Central Hispano. It is the 10th European bank by capitalization with 64.6 billion capitalizations and is highly sensitive to issues of social responsibility and environmental sustainability, and in fact, according to the President of the BBVA Foundation Francisco Gonzàles Rodrìguez, as well as the Guggenheim and Fine Arts Museum of Bilbao: "There can be no sustainable development without a sustainable financial system."
• AENOR is a private, independent, and non-profit Spanish organization recognized nationally, in Europe, and internationally that contributes to the improvement of quality in companies, their products and services and to the protection of the environment, and, consequently, to the well-being of the company, through the development of standardization and certification of company activities.
• Telefónica I + D is the innovation company of the Telefónica Group. Over the past few years, Telefónica I + D has grown within the global market to become a network of centers of technological excellence that extends far beyond the Spanish borders, starting its R&D activity up in its offices located in Barcelona, Granada, Huesca, Madrid, Valladolid, São Paulo, and Mexico. In addition to the numerous technical awards, it has won since its founding, the company received the Príncipe Felipe for Business Excellence Award in 2002.
• Graduated in Law from the Pontifical University of Comillas, he was an MBA from the Instituto de Empresa and at this School of Business he began his career in the research department and went on to become Associate Professor of Organization of Behavior and Communication. He is a member of the Committee of CSR experts of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, of the Spanish Commission of the United Nations Global Compact, of the Patronage of the Chair of Ethics Javier Benjumea of ICADE, on the boards of directors of the Institute of Analysis of Intangibles and the Spanish Forum for the Main Brands.
• Esther Trujillo is the Head of Territory Development of the Sol Meliá hotel chain but has developed much of her career in the Telefónica Group, where she has worked for the past 12 years, mainly in the network management and institutional participation in social responsibility initiatives and sustainable development. She has edited for the Spanish telephone group the annual reports on the management model of the RSC and the complications in its application in the value chain.
• Comité Técnico de Normalización 50 AENOR-CTN50 Documentación; the main functions of the committee (in the abbreviation AEN / CTN50) are the development and updating of the documentation related to UNE-EN ISO 9001 (the brand used to indicate the certifications issued by AENOR), as well as monitoring the reports on the work of technical committees on quality and safety, proposing opinions and comments through technical documents and nomination experts and national delegates participating in international meetings.
• Ethical commitment initiative, intended for companies in all countries of the world that adopt the 10 principles of behavior and respect for human, labor, and environmental rights as an integral part of their strategy and conduct and are working to fight corruption. The idea of a United Nations Global Compact in the field of corporate social responsibility was launched by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 31, 1999. In recent years, platforms and local networks in many countries of the world the principles on which the organization is based have been acknowledged and shared by all institutional and corporate members as well as by civil society [60].
• An organization that strives for the global economy as a force for economic growth, job creation, and prosperity. Because national economies are so closely intertwined today, government decisions are much stronger internationally than in the past. The ICC as the only global contact states that it is more determined to express opinions on the businesses in progress. Its activities cover a broad spectrum of functions, from arbitration to dispute resolution, to promote free trade and make the market economy system transparent: from self-regulation to the fight against corruption and commercial crime. The ICC has direct access to national governments around the world through its national and international committees and is based in Paris.
• Ministry of Labour and Immigration (Ministerio de Trabajo y Inmigración de España).
• The specific interests of small- and medium-sized enterprises are represented by the Spanish Confederation of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, a national organization and member of the CEOE. An organization for progress, the CEOE continuously analyzes the socioeconomic activities of Spain, in order to improve and propose the best competitive solutions for companies. The CEOE is active internationally through the presence of offices in different parts of the world. Another sector activity of the CEOE is that of protecting the artistic heritage and what it represents as well as the interest in the research and development of a country.
• In the Spanish government, the Ministerio de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales is managed by the Undersecretary of Labour and Social Affairs of the Ministry of Labour and Immigration, established by royal decree on May 8, 1920.
• The FTSE Group (FTSE) is a world leader in the creation and management of more than 120,000 stocks, bonds, and alternative asset class indices. With offices in London, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Beijing, Boston, Shanghai, Madrid, Paris, New York, San Francisco, Sydney, and Tokyo, the FTSE Group works with partners and clients in 77 countries around the world. FTSE is an independent company jointly controlled by the Financial Times and the London Stock Exchange. These FTSE indices are widely used by a variety of investors, such as advisors, asset owners, fund managers, investment banks, exchanges, and brokers. The indices are used for the purposes of investment analysis, performance measurement, an asset at the location, risk-hedging profiles, and the creation of fund monitoring indices.
• For further study, the Talleres de Reputación Corporativa held by Telefónica S.A. can be considered, periodically, the workshop of the Conferencia Interamericana de RSC de la Empresa held in Panama on October 28, 2003, on Reputación y Responsabilidad Social Corporativas.
• The foundation aims to promote a reference model in order to improve company performance through a more extensive and articulated overall approach than the classic ISO 9000 models. In the EFQM model, the company is analyzed based on many elements, which are then grouped into nine main criteria, each with its own weight. The grade obtained with respect to each criterion then contributes, based on the weight envisaged by the model, to the final evaluation of the company.
• In this regard, it is possible to consult the publications on the subject produced by important corporate responsibility scholars Carroll [68] and Joyner and Payne [69].
• It serves to promote a culture of quality that is aimed at the continuous improvement of processes and the optimal use of resources. This tool starts from the assumption that in order to achieve the highest quality, constant interaction between research, design, testing, production, and sales is necessary. To improve quality and satisfy the customer, the four phases must constantly rotate, with quality as the main criterion. Edwards Deming in Japan in the 1950s. In those years in Japan, quality production was ensured simply by the testing phases. Post-process inspections only made it possible to discard the defective parts and, following this logic, the increase in quality would have meant an increase in inspections and consequently in costs. Waste and costs were not in tune with the concept of quality sought by Japan. Edwards Deming, to introduce tools to ensure a progressive improvement in quality. The Japanese subsequently reinvented the Deming wheel and called it the PDCA Cycle, constituting a method to be applied to all phases and situations. Now, the concept of constantly spinning the Deming wheel to generate continuous improvement is extended to all phases of management, and the four stages of the wheel correspond to specific activities.
• For an in-depth analysis, see the paper "Determinants of collateral" in which the authors conduct an extensive examination of the effects of information asymmetries and of the relationships of the financial and banking market in the various economic cycles: GABRIEL JIMENEZ (Banco de España), VICENTE SALAS (Universidad de Zaragoza and Banco de España), and JESUS SAURINA (Banco de España), February 2004.
• Acronym corresponding to the Italian PMI (small and medium enterprises), PyMEs (pequeñas y medianas empresas).
• The standard that specifies the requirements for a quality management system in which an organization must demonstrate its ability to consistently supply products that satisfy the customer and the applicable regulatory requirements, aiming to increase customer satisfaction through the effective application of this system, including processes for continuous improvement and customer compliance assurance. All requirements of this international standard are generic and are intended to be applicable to all organizations, regardless of the type, size, and product supplied.
• This denomination indicates a quality management program based on the control of the mean square deviation, which aims to bring the quality of a product or service to a certain level that is particularly favorable for the consumer. This variability is so limited that initially the common opinion was that it was impossible to achieve, and many believed that a three-sigma strategy might be acceptable. This guarantees a direct impact on the customer, intended as a user of the process or product.
• The analysis can concern the internal or external environment of an organization. The usefulness of SWOT analysis is not limited to organizations for profit. SWOT analysis can be used in any decision-making process where the desired end state has been defined.
• With this expression, Telefónica wants to include all the subjects and interested parties who meet the company; this expression could also be translated with the common term of Anglo-Saxon derivation "stakeholder."
• The text is taken from the Telefónica Web site in the specific section dedicated to RC and sustainability 2009 (www.telefonica.com/es).
• Adquira is the leading trading and provisioning solutions company in Spain, striving to facilitate business relations between businesses through an integrated e-commerce platform. Its mission is to enable companies to take part in e-commerce, meeting their procurement needs, allowing them to do business with significant competitive advantages and offer reliable solutions. Adquira began operating in 2000 as an initiative of four of the largest companies in Spain: BBVA, Telefónica, Iberia, and Repsol YPF; the company has a very full database of more than 4,500 suppliers in Spain, in order to improve the purchasing processes of its customers. Its activity, with almost 10 years of experience in the market, allows it to offer specialization, experience, and guarantee of service.
• Bank founded in Bilbao in 1857 that gave rise (through subsequent mergers) to the current BBVA group (Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A.).
• The Red Nacional de Los Ferrocarriles Españoles is a Spanish state structure of railway transport founded in 1941 and in force until 2004–2005, which was divided into ADIF (Spanish railway infrastructure management body) and Renfe Operadora (the company that deals with the railway service).
• The Empresa Construcciones Aeronáuticas S.A. (CASA) created by José Ortiz Echagüe on March 3, 1923, was the first Spanish company in the aerospace sector.
• Telefónica presents in this annual report on corporate responsibility its behavior toward customers, employees, shareholders, suppliers, society, and the environment. The content is part of the company’s CSR strategy and includes information on Telefónica’s achievements in this area, its objectives, and challenges for the future.
• Cesar Alierta Izuel graduated in Law from the University of Zaragoza in 1967 and after 3 years earned a master’s in business administration from Columbia University in New York, United States. Executive President of Telefónica S.A. since July 26, 2000, he has contributed significantly to the growing development of the Spanish telephone group in recent years.
• The Observatorio de la Sostenibilidad en España is an independent project in operation since February 2005, based at the University of Alcalá, and starts its activities following an agreement signed with the Ministry of the Environment, the Foundation for Biodiversity, and the General Foundation of the University of Alcalá.
• The 2008 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard.
• Telefónica O2 Germany GmbH & Co. The company offers its German private and commercial customers fixed and mobile telephone services with prepaid contracts, as well as innovative mobile telephone and data transmission services based on GPRS and UMTS technologies, thus becoming an integrated high-speed communication provider, the leader in Germany by market share. In it, the communications company provides information on key performance indicators for 2009 and its commitment to customers, employees, and the community, as well as its CSR goals for 2010.
• The Office of Climate Change was established in September 2006 in the UK to help and support the analysis work on climate change and the development of policies and strategies for the future. The organization’s goal is to reduce the environmental impact deriving from "hardly responsible" choices by companies and to promote and raise public awareness of issues of great interest today, such as human health and sustainability.
• The EPI aims to give the company a more accurate picture of the state of environmental progress, for each company, by providing reliable quantitative information; the index will help evaluate the measures taken so far and facilitate decision making for the future. These indicators reflect characteristics such as environmental objectives, ongoing legal proceedings, and employee training.
• For an extensive discussion of the BSC as an "integrated dashboard of indicators" see Vigano, "The value of the company. Historical analysis and determination objectives" 2001, chap. 3, pp. 93–101.
• In 2008, the company designed an Environmental Management System in accordance with the international standard ISO 14001 to set environmental management guidelines for all group companies. The documents that make up the Environmental Management System worldwide are the environmental policy, the Basic Standard, nine specific environmental management standards, and the Environmental Sustainability Index.
• The CSI is an "average" synthetic indicator, built based on the assessments given by customers on the individual aspects that put the customer in a relationship with Telefónica and on the level of importance that the individual aspects have for each customer. For a careful analysis of the index, see Bryant and Fornell, "American Customer Satisfaction Index, Methodology Report," April 2005.
• This program, sponsored by the Fundación Telefónica, aims to encourage the use of the Internet as a tool for innovation and pedagogical training for teachers, parents, and students of primary, secondary, high school, and intermediate training cycles. To do this, for 10 years, it has operated through a dedicated portal signed by more than 12,000 Spanish centers and holds an international congress every 2 years with an influx of thousands of teachers.
• The tool is used by the Reputation Institute to measure the reputation among stakeholders, interested countries, and industry. The Reputation Institute is involved in an ongoing effort to measure and monitor the corporate reputation of companies around the world. The Global Pulse project measures the overall reputation of the world’s largest companies by capturing consumer data in 27 countries using the core of the RepTrak™ model. In 2006, the RI did a multicenter, national study to understand how reputation had evolved over the previous decade.
• State non-profit association, declared to be of public utility, with the agreement of the Council of Ministers, adopted at the meeting of 09/12/1977. Its purpose is to coordinate and support disability prevention efforts and protect the rights of disabled people by providing resources whose primary objective is the social integration of people with disabilities. It focuses its activity based on the following approach: "... to be the first prestigious reference in the world on disability, as an institution that provides complete assistance for people with disabilities, to offer our beneficiaries a personalized, professional, efficient continuous and fully satisfactory, throughout their life path."
• The social action program of the Telefónica Group, managed by its Foundation with the mobile phone operators of 13 Latin American countries, contributes significantly to eradicating child labor in the region. The program is aligned with the regional objectives of the Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OCT), seeking to eliminate the worst forms of child labor by 2015, and all child labor by 2020.

© 2022 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Continue reading from the same book

Published: 03 May 2023

By Adane Mengist

91 downloads

By Isaac Onyeyirichukwu Chukwuma and Uzoma Ogochukwu ...

123 downloads

By Maha Elkateb, Ouidad Yousfi and Abdelwahed Omri

159 downloads

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

The Truth About CSR

• V. Kasturi Rangan,
• Lisa Chase,
• Sohel Karim

Despite the widely accepted ideal of “shared value,” research led by Harvard Business School’s Kasturi Rangan suggests that this is not the norm—and that’s OK. Most companies practice a multifaceted version of CSR that spans theaters ranging from pure philanthropy to environmental sustainability to the explicitly strategic. To maximize their impact, companies must ensure that initiatives in the various theaters form a unified platform. Four steps can help them do so:

Pruning and aligning programs within theaters. Companies must examine their existing programs in each theater, reducing or eliminating those that do not address an important social or environmental problem in keeping with the firm’s business purpose and values.

Developing metrics to gauge performance. Just as the goals of programs vary from theater to theater, so do the definitions of success.

Coordinating programs across theaters. This does not mean that all initiatives necessarily address the same problem; it means that they are mutually reinforcing and form a cogent whole.

Developing an interdisciplinary CSR strategy. The range of purposes underlying initiatives in different theaters and the variation in how those initiatives are managed pose major barriers for many firms. Strategy development can be top-down or bottom-up, but ongoing communication is key.

These practices have helped companies including PNC Bank, IKEA, and Ambuja Cements bring discipline and coherence to their CSR portfolios.

Most of these programs aren’t strategic—and that’s OK.

Idea in Brief

The problem.

Many companies’ CSR initiatives are disparate and uncoordinated, run by a variety of managers without the active engagement of the CEO. Such firms cannot maximize their positive impact on the social and environmental systems in which they operate.

The Solution

Firms must develop coherent CSR strategies, with activities typically divided among three theaters of practice. Theater one focuses on philanthropy, theater two on improving operational effectiveness, and theater three on transforming the business model to create shared value.

Companies must prune existing programs in each theater to align them with the firm’s purpose and values; develop ways of measuring initiatives’ success; coordinate programs across theaters; and create an interdisciplinary management team to drive CSR strategy.

Most companies have long practiced some form of corporate social and environmental responsibility with the broad goal, simply, of contributing to the well-being of the communities and society they affect and on which they depend. But there is increasing pressure to dress up CSR as a business discipline and demand that every initiative deliver business results. That is asking too much of CSR and distracts from what must be its main goal: to align a company’s social and environmental activities with its business purpose and values. If in doing so CSR activities mitigate risks, enhance reputation, and contribute to business results, that is all to the good. But for many CSR programs, those outcomes should be a spillover, not their reason for being. This article explains why firms must refocus their CSR activities on this fundamental goal and provides a systematic process for bringing coherence and discipline to CSR strategies.

• VR V. Kasturi Rangan is a Baker Foundation Professor at Harvard Business School and a cofounder and cochair of the HBS Social Enterprise Initiative.
• Lisa Chase is a research associate at Harvard Business School and a freelance consultant.
• SK Sohel Karim is a cofounder and the managing director of Socient Associates, a social enterprise consulting firm.

Partner Center

Apple Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability

Image credit: Nong4/shutterstock.com

As the world’s leading innovator in technology, Apple Inc. is known for its personal computers, smartphones, tablets, software, digital media, and music platform. Headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple holds the mantle for being the most valuable brand in the world today and the first publicly traded company to be valued at over $2 trillion. [1]

Founded in 1976 in a garage in Los Altos, California, Apple has one of the most fabled origin stories in business. What started out as a mission to change how people view computers has helped power the digital revolution. In 2020, Apple reported an annual global revenue of $274.5. With 511 retail stores spanning 25 countries and employing 147,000 people worldwide, Apple continues to exert immense influence over how technology is used and integrated into everyday life across the globe.  

Apple’s Corporate Social Responsibility Policy 

Given Apple’s notorious penchant for secrecy – both in the launching of new products and internal operations – how the company measures and assesses the impact of its Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability initiatives is not always apparent. However, despite Apple’s reputation for confidentiality, its CSR programs have expanded considerably over the last decade, with particular emphasis being placed on greener and more equitable business practices. [2]

I. Apple’s Green Business Practices

As one of the first global companies to achieve a net-zero carbon impact for corporate emissions, Apple announced plans in 2020 to extend this initiative across its entire supply chain by 2030. In line with this goal, all products sold will likewise be carbon neutral by the end of the decade. [3]

Apple’s environmental sustainability efforts also include improving the durability and longevity of its products, with a number of programs (launched in 2020) to refurbish and reuse Apple products. These initiatives include ensuring that 40% of all materials used in the production of its MacBook Air line are made from recycled sources.

Last year, Apple partnered with The Conservation Fund to protect 36,000 acres of sustainable forest in North Carolina and Maine and in 2021, announced a $200 million first-of-its-kind carbon removal initiative called Restore Fund. In collaboration with Conservation International and Goldman Sachs, this program will invest in forestry projects to remove at least 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year.

Apple’s environmental sustainability efforts also include reducing toxic materials such as mercury, PVC, and Beryllium in their product lines. These safer and stricter guidelines have earned the company an A+ rating from Mind the Store, a North American campaign that evaluates retailers on chemical safety. Apple was also the first consumer electronics company to receive the EPA Safer Choice Partner Award in 2020 for its work on using safer cleaning solvents.

Additionally, Apple focuses on reducing the overall environmental impact of its supply chain, particularly in its approach to sourcing raw minerals. In line with this priority, all Apple suppliers, smelters, and refiners of tin, tantalum, tungsten, gold, and cobalt are required to undergo third-party audits.

II. Apple’s Equality & Fairness Programs

In 2021, Apple announced a series of new CSR programs under its $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative (REJI). These efforts focus on addressing systemic racism faced by communities of color by promoting educational support, including:

• A developer academy to support tech education in Detroit, Michigan.
• A $25 million learning and innovation center to support historically black colleges and universities
• Venture capital funding for minority entrepreneurs. [4]

In addition to these initiatives, Apple’s social responsibility programs continue to support diversity and professional growth throughout its workforce. Over the last 6 years, the number of employees from underrepresented communities (URCs) increased by 64%. The number of female employees worldwide also increased by 70% with an 85% increase in female employee leadership positions.

COVID-19 Relief 

In 2020, Apple donated over $15 million to help mitigate the impact COVID-19 has had on its workforce. It introduced a range of protective measures throughout its supply chain, including health screenings, social distancing protocols, increased cleaning procedures, as well as providing masks and sanitizers to employees. Apple also launched a number of apps to help keep people up-to-date about the pandemic and CDC guidelines for COVID-19 quarantining, testing, and tracing procedures. [5]

Apple’s Corporate Social Responsibility Issues 

Despite Apple’s investment in CSR, the company continues to face a number of labor and human rights allegations regarding its Chinese subcontractors. According to recent reports, Apple has been accused of being too slow in cutting ties with Chinese supplies known for violating the company’s CSR labor policies, particularly if doing so would negatively impact profits. [6]  

Apple has also been accused of lobbying the US Congress to alter legislation designed to limit goods made with forced labor from Muslim minority groups in Xinjiang, China. [7] In a March 2020 report issued by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, [8] Apple was cited for unfair labor practices in the Xijiang region of China. After an internal investigation with their Xijiang suppliers, Apple announced that no evidence of human rights violations had occurred, but that it will continue to monitor the situation.

In addition to these labor allegations, Apple faces a number of European lawsuits over its alleged obsolescence design for its Series 6 iPhone product line. [9] According to these claims, consumers were forced into buying new or updated phones earlier than necessary due to the company’s alleged manipulation of the batteries in its devices.

Apple’s Corporate Social Responsibility Report 

Access the Apple Inc. Corporate Social Responsibility 2019-20 Environmental Progress Report here . [10]

Answering calls to become “A Greener Apple,” the tech giant has taken positive steps over the last decade toward improving its social and environmental impact. As one of the most profitable and innovative companies today, Apple is uniquely positioned to lead the way toward creating a more sustainable, more equitable, and healthier planet. How well the company responds to issues pertaining to responsible corporate citizenship and sustainability will continue, no doubt, to be closely monitored by various consumer groups, environmental organizations, and governmental agencies around the globe.

Related Articles

• Nike Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability
• Amazon Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability
• IKEA Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability
• CSR vs. ESG: Making the Case for Measurable Sustainability
• A Brief History of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• Examining Corporate Social Responsibility in the Industrial Space
• Staying Ethical with the Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility
• Can Corporate Social Responsibility Affect Your Company’s Stock Prices?

Adorno, José. “Apple Hit with New Lawsuit Over Alleged iPhone Planned Obsolescence.” 9 To 5 Mac, March 1, 2021. https://9to5mac.com/2021/03/01/apple-lawsuit-portugal-planned-obsolescence/ . Accessed 10 May 2021.

Apple.com. “2021 Apple Supplier Code of Conduct.” https://www.apple.com/supplier-responsibility/pdf/Apple-Supplier-Code-of-Conduct-and-Supplier-Responsibility-Standards.pdf . Accessed 1 May 2021.

Apple.com. “2021 Environmental Progress Report.” https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental_Progress_Report_2021.pdf . Accessed 9 May 2021.

Apple Insider. “Coronavirus.”   https://appleinsider.com/inside/coronavirus . Accessed 29 April 2021.

Apple Newsroom. “Apple Commits to be 100 Percent Carbon Neutral for its Supply Chain and Products by 2030.” Apple Press Release, July 21, 2020. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/07/apple-commits-to-be-100-percent-carbon-neutral-for-its-supply-chain-and-products-by-2030/ . Accessed 10 May 2021.

Apple Newsroom. “Apple Launches Major New Racial Equity and Justice Initiative Projects to Challenge Systemic Racism, Advance Racial Equity Nationwide.”  Apple Press Release, January 13, 2021. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/01/apple-launches-major-new-racial-equity-and-justice-initiative-projects-to-challenge-systemic-racism-advance-racial-equity-nationwide/ . Accessed April 29, 2021.

Murray, Poppy. “Is Apple Turning a Corner in its Social Responsibility?” https://blog.mywallst.com/is-apple-turning-a-corner-in-its-social-responsibility/ . Accessed 3 May 2021.

Schneider, Avie. “Apple Worth $2 Trillion – 1st American Company to Hit Milestone.” NPR Business, August 19, 2020. https://research-methodology.net/apple-inc-report-2-2/ . Accessed 2 May 2021.

Sonnemaker, Tyler. “Apple Knew a Supplier was Using Child Labor but Took 3 Years to Fully Cut Ties.” Insider, December 31, 2020. https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-knowingly-used-child-labor-supplier-3-years-cut-costs-2020-12 . Accessed 22 April 2021.

Swanson, Ana. “Nike and Coca-Cola Lobby Against Xinijang Forced Labor Bill.” The New York Times, November 29, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/29/business/economy/nike-coca-cola-xinjiang-forced-labor-bill.html . Accessed 7 May 2021.

Xu, Vicky Xiuzhong, Cave, Danielle, Leibold, James, Munro, Kelsey, and Ruser Nathan. “Uyghurs for Sale.” Australian Strategic Policy Institute. https://www.aspi.org.au/report/uyghurs-sale . Accessed 12 May 2021.

[1] https://www.npr.org/2020/08/19/903858871/apple-is-1st-2-trillion-american-company

[2] https://blog.mywallst.com/is-apple-turning-a-corner-in-its-social-responsibility/

[3] https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/07/apple-commits-to-be-100-percent-carbon-neutral-for-its-supply-chain-and-products-by-2030/

[4] https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/01/apple-launches-major-new-racial-equity-and-justice-initiative-projects-to-challenge-systemic-racism-advance-racial-equity-nationwide/

[5] https://appleinsider.com/inside/coronavirus

[6] https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-knowingly-used-child-labor-supplier-3-years-cut-costs-2020-12

[7] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/29/business/economy/nike-coca-cola-xinjiang-forced-labor-bill.html

[8] https://www.aspi.org.au/report/uyghurs-sale

[9] https://9to5mac.com/2021/03/01/apple-lawsuit-portugal-planned-obsolescence/

[10] https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental_Progress_Report_2021.pdf

How CBD Gummies are Made

Stresses Produced by Shocks

Types of Diffraction Gratings and What They Are Used For

Publications & Thought Leadership

January 2020, best csr practices in canada: six case studies, posted in leadership strategies.

This Report on “Best CSR Practices in Canada: Six Case Studies” provides insights into leading Canadian companies advancing their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) impacts.

Leading CSR in Canada is underdoing a strategic pivot from corporate efforts to embed social and environmental considerations in governance, risk, strategy, decisions, functions, products, supply chains and operations to the embedment of societal or humanitarian ambitions in the core purpose of the company. This approach to CSR embeds CSR in the “business model” and influences everything across the company and the role the company plays to influence and transform its industry, communities and ecosystem for good. It is called Social Purpose.

This was one of the main conclusions drawn from a 2018 research project which studied recent and projected shifts in CSR among 32 leading CSR companies across Canada . Following up on this research, the Federal Government commissioned (and contributed to) “Best CSR Practices in Canada: Six Case Studies” of companies demonstrating this shift from CSR to “social purpose”.

These companies include:

• Chandos Construction (Alta)
• Libro Credit Union (Ont)
• Maple Leaf Foods (Ont)
• Mills Office Productivity (BC)
• Vancity Credit Union (BC)

“Best CSR Practices in Canada: Six Case Studies” profiles current efforts in the following areas:

• Social Purpose
• Community Partnerships
• Social Innovation
• Lessons Learned

“Reading Best CSR Practices in Canada: Six Case Studies” will give you insights into emerging good CSR practices you can pursue at your company.

Read / Download Best CSR Practices in Canada: Six Case Studies

Coro Strandberg works with businesses, government and industry associations to envision and innovate a sustainable future. Coro is an expert on sustainability leadership and transformational business practices and relationships. She believes sustainable business changes everything for the better.

Strandberg Consulting works from the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ílwətaʔ /Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

A few times a year, Strandberg Consulting sends out a newsletter to keep Coro’s network up-to-date on her latest projects, publications and tools. You may subscribe to the newsletter here or visit the archives .

Get Coro's biography and media materials

Impact of CSR Activities Towards Different Stakeholders on Indian Firms’ Performance

• Original Article
• Published: 01 February 2024

Cite this article

• Ansita Aggarwal   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-2510-2025 1 &
• Nisarg A. Joshi 1  

50 Accesses

Explore all metrics

This article investigates the subtle interplay between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities aimed at distinct stakeholders and their detectable impacts on both financial and non-financial components of organisational performance. This study leverages the sophisticated analytical framework of Structural Equation Modelling to clarify a comprehensive model using a robust dataset covering 600 Indian enterprises. The empirical findings of this study provide crucial insights with significant significance for managerial decision-making and regulatory issues. Notably, the findings highlight the strategic importance of adapting CSR initiatives to specific stakeholder groups. A strong positive link develops between CSR efforts directed at suppliers and investors and the achievement of improved overall organisational performance, spanning both financial and non-financial domains. Furthermore, the study identifies a compelling possibility for enterprises to improve their financial performance by implementing customer-focussed CSR efforts. This discovery reveals a previously unknown option for increasing financial prowess. Concurrently, the study advises caution, demonstrating a varied trend in terms of CSR targeting of employees and the community. While such programmes initially have good connections, there is a threshold beyond which the proclivity for negative effects on financial performance becomes obvious. Notably, by diving into the deep fabric of stakeholder-targeted CSR activities and their numerous repercussions on both financial and non-financial dimensions of organisational performance, this study makes a pioneering contribution.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price includes VAT (Russian Federation)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Rent this article via DeepDyve

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Implementation: A Review and a Research Agenda Towards an Integrative Framework

The impact of corporate governance on financial performance: a cross-sector study

Do esg controversies matter for firm value evidence from international data.

Arlow, P., and M. Gannon. 1982. Social responsiveness, corporate structure, and economic performance. Academy of Management Review 7 (2): 235–241.

Article   Google Scholar  

Barnett, M., and R. Salomon. 2006. Beyond dichotomy: The curvilinear relationship between social responsibility and financial performance. Strategic Management Journal 27: 1101–1122.

Bender, P.M. 1990. Comparative fit indexes in structural models’. Pschological Bulletin 107: 238–246.

Bollen, K.A. 1989. Structural equations with latent variables , vol. 210. John Wiley & Sons.

Book   Google Scholar  

Boulouta, I., and C.N. Pitelis. 2014. Who needs CSR? The impact of corporate social responsibility on national competitiveness. Journal of Business Ethics 119: 349–364.

Dakhli, A. 2021. The impact of ownership structure on corporate social responsibility: The moderating role of financial performance. Society and Business Review 16 (4): 562–591.

De Jong, M.D., and M. van der Meer. 2017. How does it fit? Exploring the congruence between organizations and their corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Journal of Business Ethics 143: 71–83.

Derchi, G.B., L. Zoni, and A. Dossi. 2021. Corporate social responsibility performance, incentives, and learning effects. Journal of Business Ethics 173: 617–641.

Dodd, E. 1932. For whom corporate managers are trustees? Harvard Law Review 45: 1145–1163.

Erhemjamts, O., Q. Li, and A. Venkateswaran. 2013. Corporate social responsibility and its impact on firms’ investment policy, organizational structure, and performance. Journal of Business Ethics 118: 395–412.

Gouda, S., A.G. Khan, and S.L. Hiremath. 2017. Corporate social responsibility in India. Trends, issues and strategies . Hamburg: Anchor Academic Publishing.

Google Scholar  

Hou, J., and B.H. Reber. 2011. Dimensions of disclosures: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting by media companies. Public Relations Review 37 (2): 166–168.

Hu, L.T., and P.M. Bentler. 1999. Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal 6 (1): 1–55.

Huselid, M.A. 1995. The impact of human resource management practices on turnover, productivity, and corporate financial performance. Academy of Management Journal 38 (3): 635–672.

Kiessling, T., L. Isaksson, and B. Yasar. 2016. Market orientation and CSR: Performance implications. Journal of Business Ethics 137: 269–284.

Kuokkanen, H., and W. Sun. 2020. Companies, meet ethical consumers: Strategic CSR management to impact consumer choice. Journal of Business Ethics 166: 403–423.

Ma, C., and L. Yasir. 2023. Carrot or stick? CSR and firm financial performance. Journal of Business Ethics 26 (1): 1–17.

Mackey, A., T.B. Mackey, and J.B. Barney. 2007. Corporate social responsibility and firm performance: Investor preferences and corporate strategies. Academy of Management Review 32 (3): 817–835.

McWilliams, A., and D. Siegel. 2000. Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: Correlation or misspecification? Strategic Management Journal 21: 603–609.

McWilliams, A., and D. Siegel. 2001. Corporate social responsibility: A theory of the firm perspective. Academy of Management Review 26: 117–127.

McWilliams, A., D. Siegel, and P. Wright. 2006. Corporate social responsibility. Journal of Management Studies 43: 1–18.

Miller, S.R., L. Eden, and D. Li. 2020. CSR reputation and firm performance: A dynamic approach. Journal of Business Ethics 163: 619–636.

Mishra, S., and D. Suar. 2010. Does corporate social responsibility influence firm performance of Indian companies? Journal of Business Ethics 95: 571–601.

Muller, A., and A. Kolk. 2009. CSR performance in emerging markets evidence from Mexico. Journal of Business Ethics 85: 325–337.

Parmar, B.L., R.E. Freeman, J.S. Harrison, A.C. Wicks, L. Purnell, and S. De Colle. 2010. Stakeholder theory: The state of the art. Academy of Management Annals 4 (1): 403–445.

Peloza, J., and J. Shang. 2011. How can corporate social responsibility activities create value for stakeholders? A systematic review. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 39: 117–135.

Platonova, E., M. Asutay, R. Dixon, and S. Mohammad. 2018. The impact of corporate social responsibility disclosure on financial performance: Evidence from the GCC Islamic banking sector. Journal of Business Ethics 151: 451–471.

Reinartz, W., B. Dellaert, M. Krafft, V. Kumar, and R. Varadarajan. 2011. Retailing innovations in a globalizing retail market environment. Journal of Retailing 87: S53–S66.

Rettab, B., A.B. Brik, and K. Mellahi. 2009. A study of management perceptions of the impact of corporate social responsibility on organisational performance in emerging economies: The case of Dubai. Journal of Business Ethics 89: 371–390.

Rodgers, W., H.L. Choy, and A. Guiral. 2013. Do investors value a firm’s commitment to social activities? Journal of Business Ethics 114: 607–623.

Saridakis, C., S. Angelidou, and A.G. Woodside. 2020. What type of CSR engagement suits my firm best? Evidence from an abductively-derived typology. Journal of Business Research 108: 174–187.

Torugsa, N.A., W. O’Donohue, and R. Hecker. 2013. Proactive CSR: An empirical analysis of the role of its economic, social and environmental dimensions on the association between capabilities and performance. Journal of Business Ethics 115: 383–402.

Wei, Z., H. Shen, K. Zhou, and J. Li. 2017. How does environmental corporate social responsibility matter in a dysfunctional institutional environment? Evidence from China. Journal of Business Ethics 140: 209–223.

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Institute of Management, Nirma University, S G Highway, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, 382481, India

Ansita Aggarwal & Nisarg A. Joshi

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ansita Aggarwal .

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest.

The authors have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.

Additional information

Publisher’s note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Appendix: Questionnaire items

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Aggarwal, A., Joshi, N.A. Impact of CSR Activities Towards Different Stakeholders on Indian Firms’ Performance. Corp Reputation Rev (2024). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41299-023-00174-y

Download citation

Published : 01 February 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1057/s41299-023-00174-y

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Stakeholders
• Financial performance
• Non-financial performance
• Indian firms
• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

• Onsite training

3,000,000+ delegates

15,000+ clients

1,000+ locations

• KnowledgePass
• Log a ticket

01344203999 Available 24/7

Change Management Case Study Examples: Lessons from Industry Giants

Explore some transformative journeys with efficient Change Management Case Study examples. Delve into case studies from Coca-Cola, Heinz, Intuit, and many more. Dive in to unearth the strategic wisdom and pivotal lessons gleaned from the experiences of these titans in the industry. Read to learn about and grasp the Change Management art!

Exclusive 40% OFF

Training Outcomes Within Your Budget!

We ensure quality, budget-alignment, and timely delivery by our expert instructors.

Share this Resource

• Certified Professional Change Management CPCM
• Risk Management for Change Training
• Managing Change with Agile Methodology Training
• Complete Change Management Assessments Training
• Managing Organisational Change Effectively

In the fast-paced world of business, staying ahead means being able to adapt. Have you ever wondered how some brands manage to thrive despite huge challenges? This blog dives into a collection of Change Management Case Studies, sharing wisdom from top companies that have faced and conquered adversity. These aren’t just stories; they’re success strategies.  

Each Change Management Case Study reveals the smart choices and creative fixes that helped companies navigate rough waters. How did they turn crises into chances to grow? What can we take away from their successes and mistakes? Keep reading to discover these inspiring stories and learn how they can reshape your approach to change in your own business. 

Table of Contents  

1) What is Change Management in Business? 

2) Top Examples of Case Studies on Change Management 

    a) Coca-Cola 

    b) Adobe 

    c) Heinz  

    d) Intuit  

    e) Kodak 

    f) Barclays Bank 

3) Conclusion

What is Change Management in Business?  

Change management in business refers to the structured process of planning, implementing, and managing changes within an organisation. It involves anticipating, navigating, and adapting to shifts in strategy, technology, processes, or culture to achieve desired outcomes and sustain competitiveness.  

Effective Change Management entails identifying the need for change, engaging stakeholders, communicating effectively, and mitigating resistance to ensure smooth transitions. By embracing Change Management principles, businesses can enhance agility, resilience, and innovation, driving growth and success in dynamic environments. 

Top Examples of Case Studies on Change Management  

Let's explore some transformative journeys of industry leaders through compelling case studies on Change Management: 

1) Coca-Cola  

Coca-Cola, the beverage titan, acknowledged the necessity to evolve with consumer tastes, market shifts, and regulatory changes. The rise of health-conscious consumers prompted Coca-Cola to revamp its offerings and business approach. The company’s proactive Change Management centred on innovation and diversification, leading to the launch of healthier options like Coca-Cola Zero Sugar.  

Strategic alliances and acquisitions broadened Coca-Cola’s market reach and variety. Notably, Coca-Cola introduced eco-friendly packaging like the PlantBottle and championed sustainability in its marketing, bolstering its brand image. 

Acquire the expertise to facilitate smooth changes and propel your success forward – join our Change Management Practitioner Course now!  

2) Adobe  

Adobe, with its global workforce and significant revenue, faced a shift due to technological advancements and competitive pressures. In 2011, Adobe transitioned from physical software sales to cloud-based services, offering free downloads or subscriptions.  

This shift necessitated a transformation in Adobe’s HR practices, moving from traditional roles to a more human-centric approach, aligning with the company’s innovative and millennial-driven culture. 

3) Heinz  

Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital’s acquisition of Heinz led to immediate, sweeping changes. The new management implemented cost-cutting measures and altered executive perks.  

Additionally, it introduced a more insular leadership style, contrasting with 3G’s young, mobile, and bonus-driven executive team. 

Commence on a journey of transformative leadership and achieve measurable outcomes by joining our Change Management Foundation Course today!  

4) Intuit  

Steve Bennett’s leadership at Intuit marked a significant shift. Adopting the McKinsey 7S Model, he restructured the organisation to enhance decision-making, align rewards with strategy, and foster a performance-driven culture. His changes resulted in a notable increase in operating profits. 

5) Kodak  

Kodak, the pioneer of the first digital and megapixel cameras in 1975 and 1986, faced bankruptcy in 2012. Initially, digital technology was costly and had subpar image quality, leading Kodak to predict a decade before it threatened their traditional business. Despite this accurate forecast, Kodak focused on enhancing film quality rather than digital innovation.  

Dominating the market in 1976 and peaking with £12,52,16 billion in sales in 1999, Kodak’s reluctance to adopt new technology led to a decline, with revenues falling to £4,85,11,90 billion in 2011.  

In contrast, Fuji, Kodak’s competitor, embraced digital transformation and diversified into new ventures. 

Empower your team to manage change effectively through our Managing Change With Agile Methodology Training – sign up now!  

6) Barclays Bank  

The financial sector, particularly hit by the 2008 mortgage crisis, saw Barclays Capital aiming for global leadership under Bob Diamond. However, the London Inter-bank Offered Rate (LIBOR) scandal led to fines and resignations, prompting a strategic overhaul by new CEO Antony Jenkins in 2012.  

Changes included rebranding, refocusing on core markets, altering the business model away from high-risk lending, fostering a customer-centric culture, downsizing, and embracing technology for efficiency. These reforms aimed to strengthen Barclays, improve shareholder returns, and restore trust. 

Conclusion  

The discussed Change Management Case Study examples serve as a testament to the transformative power of adept Change Management. Let these insights from industry leaders motivate and direct you as you navigate your organisation towards a path of continuous innovation and enduring prosperity. 

Enhance your team’s ability to manage uncertainty and achieve impactful results – sign up for our comprehensive Risk Management For Change Training now!  

Frequently Asked Questions

The five key elements of Change Management typically include communication, leadership, stakeholder engagement, training and development, and measurement and evaluation. These elements form the foundation for successfully navigating organisational change and ensuring its effectiveness. 

The seven steps of Change Management involve identifying the need for change, developing a Change Management plan, communicating the change vision, empowering employees, implementing change initiatives, celebrating milestones, and sustaining change through ongoing evaluation and adaptation. 

The Knowledge Academy takes global learning to new heights, offering over 30,000 online courses across 490+ locations in 220 countries. This expansive reach ensures accessibility and convenience for learners worldwide.  

Alongside our diverse Online Course Catalogue, encompassing 17 major categories, we go the extra mile by providing a plethora of free educational Online Resources like News updates, Blogs , videos, webinars, and interview questions. Tailoring learning experiences further, professionals can maximise value with customisable Course Bundles of TKA .

The Knowledge Academy’s Knowledge Pass , a prepaid voucher, adds another layer of flexibility, allowing course bookings over a 12-month period. Join us on a journey where education knows no bounds.  

The Knowledge Academy offers various Change Management Courses , including the Change Management Practitioner Course, Change Management Foundation Training, and Risk Management for Change Training. These courses cater to different skill levels, providing comprehensive insights into Change Management Metrics .   

Our Project Management Blogs cover a range of topics related to Change Management, offering valuable resources, best practices, and industry insights. Whether you are a beginner or looking to advance your Project Management skills, The Knowledge Academy's diverse courses and informative blogs have got you covered.  

Upcoming Project Management Resources Batches & Dates

Mon 1st Jul 2024

Sat 6th Jul 2024, Sun 7th Jul 2024

Mon 15th Jul 2024

Mon 29th Jul 2024

Mon 12th Aug 2024

Sat 17th Aug 2024, Sun 18th Aug 2024

Tue 27th Aug 2024

Mon 9th Sep 2024

Sat 14th Sep 2024, Sun 15th Sep 2024

Mon 23rd Sep 2024

Mon 7th Oct 2024

Sat 12th Oct 2024, Sun 13th Oct 2024

Mon 21st Oct 2024

Mon 28th Oct 2024

Mon 4th Nov 2024

Sat 9th Nov 2024, Sun 10th Nov 2024

Mon 11th Nov 2024

Mon 18th Nov 2024

Mon 25th Nov 2024

Mon 2nd Dec 2024

Sat 7th Dec 2024, Sun 8th Dec 2024

Mon 9th Dec 2024

Mon 16th Dec 2024

Mon 6th Jan 2025

Mon 13th Jan 2025

Mon 20th Jan 2025

Mon 27th Jan 2025

Mon 3rd Feb 2025

Mon 10th Feb 2025

Mon 17th Feb 2025

Mon 24th Feb 2025

Mon 3rd Mar 2025

Mon 10th Mar 2025

Mon 17th Mar 2025

Mon 24th Mar 2025

Mon 31st Mar 2025

Mon 7th Apr 2025

Mon 28th Apr 2025

Mon 12th May 2025

Mon 19th May 2025

Mon 9th Jun 2025

Mon 23rd Jun 2025

Mon 7th Jul 2025

Mon 21st Jul 2025

Mon 4th Aug 2025

Mon 18th Aug 2025

Mon 1st Sep 2025

Mon 15th Sep 2025

Mon 29th Sep 2025

Mon 13th Oct 2025

Mon 20th Oct 2025

Mon 27th Oct 2025

Mon 3rd Nov 2025

Mon 10th Nov 2025

Mon 17th Nov 2025

Mon 24th Nov 2025

Mon 1st Dec 2025

Mon 8th Dec 2025

Mon 15th Dec 2025

Get A Quote

WHO WILL BE FUNDING THE COURSE?

My employer

By submitting your details you agree to be contacted in order to respond to your enquiry

• Business Analysis
• Lean Six Sigma Certification

Share this course

Our biggest spring sale.

We cannot process your enquiry without contacting you, please tick to confirm your consent to us for contacting you about your enquiry.

By submitting your details you agree to be contacted in order to respond to your enquiry.

We may not have the course you’re looking for. If you enquire or give us a call on 01344203999 and speak to our training experts, we may still be able to help with your training requirements.

Or select from our popular topics

• ITIL® Certification
• Scrum Certification
• Change Management Certification
• Business Analysis Courses
• Microsoft Azure Certification
• Microsoft Excel Courses
• Microsoft Project
• Explore more courses

Press esc to close

Fill out your  contact details  below and our training experts will be in touch.

Fill out your   contact details   below

Thank you for your enquiry!

One of our training experts will be in touch shortly to go over your training requirements.

Back to Course Information

Fill out your contact details below so we can get in touch with you regarding your training requirements.

* WHO WILL BE FUNDING THE COURSE?

Preferred Contact Method

No preference

Back to course information

Fill out your  training details  below

Fill out your training details below so we have a better idea of what your training requirements are.

HOW MANY DELEGATES NEED TRAINING?

HOW DO YOU WANT THE COURSE DELIVERED?

Online Instructor-led

Online Self-paced

WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE TO TAKE THIS COURSE?

Next 2 - 4 months

WHAT IS YOUR REASON FOR ENQUIRING?

Looking for some information

Looking for a discount

I want to book but have questions

One of our training experts will be in touch shortly to go overy your training requirements.

Your privacy & cookies!

Like many websites we use cookies. We care about your data and experience, so to give you the best possible experience using our site, we store a very limited amount of your data. Continuing to use this site or clicking “Accept & close” means that you agree to our use of cookies. Learn more about our privacy policy and cookie policy cookie policy .

We use cookies that are essential for our site to work. Please visit our cookie policy for more information. To accept all cookies click 'Accept & close'.

To read this content please select one of the options below:

Please note you do not have access to teaching notes, csr and happiness: indonesian study from banking sector revealed positive effect of csr involvement on employee wellbeing.

Human Resource Management International Digest

ISSN : 0967-0734

Article publication date: 17 June 2024

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

Design/methodology/approach

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

A study from the financial sector in Indonesia showed that CrM (cause-related marketing) has a positive effect on employee happiness. This was especially the case when the employees were actively involved in the CrM.

Originality/value

The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

• Corporate social responsibility
• Cause-related marketing (CrM)
• Happiness at work (HaW)

(2024), "CSR and happiness: Indonesian study from banking sector revealed positive effect of CSR involvement on employee wellbeing", Human Resource Management International Digest , Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/HRMID-04-2024-0094

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

Related articles

We’re listening — tell us what you think, something didn’t work….

Report bugs here

All feedback is valuable

Please share your general feedback

Join us on our journey

Platform update page.

Visit emeraldpublishing.com/platformupdate to discover the latest news and updates

Questions & More Information

Answers to the most commonly asked questions here

• Fact sheets
• Facts in pictures
• Publications
• Questions and answers
• Tools and toolkits
• HIV and AIDS
• Hypertension
• Mental disorders
• Top 10 causes of death
• All countries
• Eastern Mediterranean
• South-East Asia
• Western Pacific
• Data by country
• Country presence 
• Country strengthening 
• Country cooperation strategies 
• News releases
• Feature stories
• Press conferences
• Commentaries
• Photo library
• Afghanistan
• Cholera 
• Coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
• Greater Horn of Africa
• Israel and occupied Palestinian territory
• Disease Outbreak News
• Situation reports
• Weekly Epidemiological Record
• Surveillance
• Health emergency appeal
• International Health Regulations
• Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee
• Classifications
• Data collections
• Global Health Estimates
• Mortality Database
• Sustainable Development Goals
• Health Inequality Monitor
• Global Progress
• Data collection tools
• Global Health Observatory
• Insights and visualizations
• COVID excess deaths
• World Health Statistics
• Partnerships
• Committees and advisory groups
• Collaborating centres
• Technical teams
• Organizational structure
• Initiatives
• General Programme of Work
• WHO Academy
• Investment case
• WHO Foundation
• External audit
• Financial statements
• Internal audit and investigations 
• Programme Budget
• Results reports
• Governing bodies
• World Health Assembly
• Executive Board
• Member States Portal

Call for Case Studies: Strategic Action for Urban Health

The WHO Urban Health team is seeking examples that illustrate a strategic approach to urban health. Collectively, these case studies are intended to show that such an approach can originate and flourish from a wide range of entry points across a diversity of sectors and scales, while leveraging many different combinations of partners. The case studies will inform a major global WHO report on strategic action for urban health, expected in fall 2024. Selected cases will be developed for inclusion in the report; the urban health team will work with submitters of these cases to produce concise summaries. All submitted cases that meet eligibility criteria will be promoted and made available on the WHO website and, as appropriate, in subsequent publications.

Background to this call

The health of urban populations emerges from the interactions of urban environments with the behaviour of individual actors and human institutions. Urban health is both a measure of the levels and patterns of health and wellbeing in cities and the art and science of safeguarding and continually improving them.

Because every aspect of urban life can affect human wellbeing, urban health relies on action across all sectors—not only within health, but across planning, housing, transportation, water, sanitation, energy, and many others. This breadth of influences is widely recognized, yet urban health action has often focused on improving health impacts within a single sector or system, or alternatively, on addressing a narrowly defined set of health outcomes, modifying certain key behaviours, or improving health for a particular population group.

Such efforts have widely succeeded in improving urban health outcomes, and cities are healthier, on average, than rural areas. Yet, much remains to be done. Urban areas feature large—and often growing—health inequities, especially in slums and informal settlements. In virtually all cities, there remain unrealized opportunities to improve health and health equity.

Moreover, the actions needed to improve health in cities often positively impact other goals of sustainable development. There is thus tremendous potential for achieving co-benefits through an approach that accounts for dynamic interactions across sectors.

Achieving the highest levels of urban health—and realizing its wide-ranging potential co-benefits—requires coordinating action across all urban sectors and systems while anticipating future challenges. That is, it depends on a strategy to sustainably mainstream health across urban policy and practice. This ‘strategic’ approach to urban health depends, among other things, on sophisticated arrangements for governance and finance, generating and working with evidence, fostering innovation, and generating and sustaining effective partnerships while promoting broad participation.

WHO’s urban health team has been working to develop guidance on strategic action for urban health, including through a recent series of policy briefs focusing on these issues. This case study call will add to this effort, helping to make visible the relevance, potential, and possibilities of strategic action.

Eligibility criteria and call information

Case studies may represent action at national or subnational (e.g., province, state, municipality, or city) scales and should describe specific interventions, policies, institutions, partnerships, or other pertinent efforts. They need not involve the health sector (though many will) but should be relevant to the health and wellbeing of urban residents. Cases need not represent unqualified successes—indeed, cases that illustrate barriers to success or failed attempts at strategic action will be considered. We are seeking illustrative cases representing all regions, cultures, and levels of development, and a diverse range of urban contexts (including different city sizes, demographic profiles, informal communities, governance structures, and other factors).

This call is for cases that illustrate strategic action, as described in the WHO Strategic Guide to Urban Health Policy briefs. Cases that highlight potential or intended actions that have yet to be formalized or initiated will not be accepted. Likewise, cases that describe narrowly focused interventions or research related to health determinants, risk factors, or outcomes will not be considered unless linked to broader strategic action. We are particularly interested in cases that can demonstrate evidence of health impacts.

Cases should:

• involve a diversity of stakeholders (both government and non-government)
• encompass multiple sectors and health outcomes
• illustrate one or more of the eight principles underlying a strategic approach to urban health referenced in the WHO Strategic Guide to Urban Health Policy briefs.  
• ideally, be relevant to one or more of the cross-cutting recommendations from the WHO Strategic Guide for Urban Health policy briefs.
• represent action currently underway or implemented during the past decade.

Please review the principles and recommendations in the policy briefs to ensure that your case meets the established criteria.

Any stakeholder involved in managing the actions described is invited to submit a case study by completing the survey form here .

In responding, you will be asked to provide basic contact and descriptive information, describe how your case is relevant to the principles and recommendations, answer several questions intended to capture key elements (e.g., context, enablers and barriers, what was done and by who, outcomes) with short textual summaries, and supply additional materials to enrich and substantiate your description (potentially including figures, photos or video, internal or external reports, links to media coverage, or other). Your complete, clear answers will help us ensure that cases are relevant and useful.

The deadline for case submission is July 30, 2024. Please be prepared to work with the WHO team to produce a concise summary if your submission is selected for inclusion in the WHO global report. Any questions can be directed to [email protected] .