Dear Students,

Towards the Skill Development Subject (Code 394), Following are the details of the Group
Projects needs to be submitted in the First week of Feb. 2023. (4th Feb. 2023)
The Sub Subject under Skill Development is - Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) &
Sustainability.
The students have been divided into different groups under which you have to perform on the
given topics.
All Students are instructed to prepare Spiral Binding of their Topic and present and submit
the same in the last week of of Feb. 2023. (4th Feb. 2023) and same project converted into
PDF FILE then upload to same channel in MS Team.
The evaluation of the same will be done out of 50 marks and will be counted in your internal
evaluation.

Regards,
Prof. Avinash Darbare

SAVITRIBAI PHULE PUNE UNIVERSITY

MASTER DEGREE OF BUSINESS ADMINSTRATION (MBA)

A SKILL DEVELOPMENT (394) PROJECT REPORT

ON

TOPIC NAME

SUBMITTED BY

ABC STUDENT
NAME

1
 UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

Prof. Avinash Darbare

KES’s
PRATIBHA INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
CHINCHWAD – 411019.

2
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am extremely grateful to Pratibha Institute of Business Management for having prescribed

this project work as a part of academic requirement in the Masters of Business Administration

(MBA) course. I wish to express a special thanks to my project guide “Prof. Avinash Darbare”.

Without whose guidance the project may not have taken shape.

I would like to thank all those who have directly or indirectly helped me towards the execution

of this project with full sincerity. Sincere thanks to all.

ABC
SYMBA

3
 EXECUTIVE SUMMERY

Nowadays, CSR and Innovation are the foundation of business competencies. CRS and

innovation has emerged slowly over the past decade. Improvements in the CRS process can

refer to as ‘Social Innovation’. Companies should do more to tackle the issues such as: social

justices, poverty and climate change. The only successful brands of the future will be the ones

that see these challenges as opportunities for innovation, rather than risks to be alleviated. As

stated by the department of Trade and Industry in the United Kingdom, CSR represent “The

integrity with which a company govern itself, fulfils its mission, lives by its value, engages

with its stakeholders, measures its impact and reports and it’s activities.

Further, we analyze the main four topics related to CRS and innovation, starting with Corporate

Social Innovation; which will refer to a product innovation with a social purpose, in addition

we will focus on the important subtheme of corporate social innovation focused on low-income

market - Base of the Pyramid (BOP). Moreover, Social Entrepreneurship will be analyzed since

they act as the change agents for society, seizing opportunities others miss and improving

systems, inventing new approaches, and creating solutions to change society for the better.

Likewise, the paper will point the significance of Eco Innovation as a new discipline with the

purpose of describing products and processes that contribute to sustainable development.

4
 INDEX

SR.NO CONTENTS PAGE NO.

1. INTRODUCTION 5

2. OBJECTIVE OF STUDY 9

3. STATE OF THE ART 10

4. CSR DRIVEN INNOVATION 14

5. LITERATURE REVIEW 17

6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 20

7. CSR & INNOVATION 26

8. CSR ISSUES 30

9. RISK IN CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP 33

10. ROLE OF ORGANISATION IN CSR 38

11. ELEMENTS OF CSR 40

12. IMPORTANCE & ROLE OF CSR 44

13. TANGIBLE & INTANGIBLE CSR 48

14. A SURVEY ON COMPANIES THAT FULFILLED THEIR CSR 49

15. LIMITTIONS 54

16. CONCLUSION 57

17. BIBLIOGRAPHY 58

5
 INTRODUCTION

Corporate social responsibility (CSR, also called corporate conscience, corporate citizenship

or sustainable responsible business/ Responsible Business) is a form of corporate self-

regulation integrated into a business model. CSR policy functions as a self-regulatory

mechanism whereby a business monitors and ensures its active compliance with the spirit of

the law, ethical standards and international norms. With some models, a firm's implementation

of CSR goes beyond compliance and engages in "actions that appear to further some social

good, beyond the interests of the firm and that which is required by law." CSR aims to embrace

responsibility for corporate actions and to encourage a positive impact on the environment and

stakeholders including consumers, employees, investors, communities, and others.

Definition Business dictionary defines CSR as "A company’s sense of responsibility towards

the community and environment (both ecological and social) in which it operates. Companies

express this citizenship

(1) through their waste and pollution reduction processes,

(2) by contributing educational and social programs and

(3) by earning adequate returns on the employed resources."

Innovation:

Innovation is not just represented by introducing or implementing new ideas or methods. The

definition of innovation can be defined as a process that involves multiple activities to uncover

new ways to do things. It should not be confused with creation since this can be defined as the

act of making, inventing, or producing something. However, new innovations can be realized

6
With creativity. People need to think outside the box in order to create incremental

enhancements.

At this moment, we are positioned in a fast-paced environment where technology is advancing

and globalization is increasing. This means that distances only get shorter, and as a result,

competition is increasing, customer expectations are more demanding, and disruptions in the

economy is more likely to occur. For a business or an organization to realize competitive

advantages, it should be able to adapt and innovate the to the changing trends and new

generations. Innovations apply for management and organizations on all levels, sizes and in

operating in all industries.

Innovations create bigger opportunities and are critical for the survival, economic growth, and

success of a company. Innovating helps developing original concepts and is a driver of

optimizing operations. Companies that innovate are able to set the organization in a different

paradigm in order to identify new opportunities and best methods to solve current problems.

In order to realize innovation, leaders should be open-minded and collaborative. Feeling

comfortable with uncertainty and manage changes are behavioral components to innovate.

Innovative leaders are curious and are optimistic since they dare to take risks. No one knows

where innovation will bring the organization or individual.

On the other hand, everyone is an innovator because the innovative ability is in all of us. Since

we were born, we innovate by learning by doing. The pitfall is that school have formatted by

proving us knowledge us and has diminished our ability to innovate, while the ability to

innovate is higher valued because innovation cannot be learned or taught.

7
Corporate Social Responsibility is not a new area of the study; but recently is gaining

attention and interest among leading world companies, universities, researchers, media, the

governments and NGOs. While some companies are totally sold out on CSR by incorporating

CSR as part of their business strategies, others are less enthusiastic, wondering if such efforts

are just public relations stunts or corporate image-building activities. If companies see CSR as

mere philanthropy or charity and nothing more, then they do not yet clearly understand what

CSR is. CSR, when properly understood, is not what you do with your money once you have

made it but how you make your money.

Being a socially responsible company is much more important than ever before. Ever since

society’s expectations have changed, the expectations of customers, partners and employees

have altered as well. Still, the issues now are far more various, complex, global, and fast-

changing than ever before. In the era of globalization, businesses are no longer able to conduct

destructive and unethical business practices such us unfair labour practices, childhood obesity,

environmental pollution, without receiving negative response from the public. In order to retain

in the market, the importance of conducting sustainable business practice has become

inevitable demand from civil society, consumers, other corporations and governments in

general.

Defining CSR is not an easy task, since there is no single absolute definition to use and one

size does not fit all. According to Lord Holme and Richard Watts in the article “Making Good

Human Sense” published by World Business Council for Sustainable Development define

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as, “the continuing commitment by business to behave

8
ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the

workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large.”

According to the authors there are effects on society that can be divided into three broad

overlapping areas, such as :

1) Social: involvement in external social issues such as education, social inclusion, generation

and employee volunteering.

2) Economic: addressing issues relating to jobs, ethical training standards and product value.

3) Environment: consideration of emissions and waste control, energy use, product life cycle

and sustainable development.

9
 OBJECTIVE OF STUDY

 To study Innovation & CSR: Do they go well together?

 To study what is CSR & Innovation?

 To study relation between CSR & Innovation in an organization

 To study elements, importance and role of CSR

 To study types of CSR in an organization

 To get information from company’s CSR & Innovation Survey

10
 STATE OF THE ART

To date little attention seems to have been paid to the space or fit between CSR and

innovation. This is perhaps true only on an explicit level: very few published works

explicitly discuss CSR in conjunction with innovation. Implicitly, however, much work in

each of the general domains of CSR and innovation has overlapped, as in the case of

sustainable development. It is here that clues may be uncovered to advance an

understanding of the specific fit between the two concepts. For example, sustainable design

(and other related terms in the design field, such as design for re-use, design for

environment/eco-design) looks at how designers may develop innovative solutions that

take account of primarily environment-related issues and use a variety of tools and criteria

to drive the innovation process at each stage. The design field offers other movements that

address different facets of CSR: accessible design, or Design for All, looksat how designed

products and services may be made more fit for use for a larger percentage of the

population, with particular emphasis on the elderly and disabled. Much of this

development can be traced back to the Social Design movement, advanced primarily by

pioneers such as Buckminster Fuller and Victor Papanek. For many outside the field,

design is merely a stylistic exercise, completed after innovation, yet it ought to be at the

core. Design is essentially a structured creative process and although designers (in

whatever guise, be they engineers or graphic artists) are not all that is needed for successful

innovation, they have many of the skills and tools required to make innovation happen.

Returning to the roots of social design, R. Buckminster Fuller was perhaps the first

designer to actively address social issues, stating that, “making the world’s available

resources serve one hundred percent of an exploding population can only be accomplished

by a boldly accelerated design revolution.” Victor Papanek was a student of the work of

Fuller and helped to develop the Social Design field. He laid the foundations for the fields

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of Design for the Third World and Design for Older People, among others, believing that

“designers and creative professionals have a responsibility and are able to cause real

change in the world through good design.” Social Design thinking therefore combines the

development of human and social capital with the development of profitable new products

and processes. Nigel Whitely (1993) also made an important contribution to the field,

advancing the work of Papanek and others by developing areas such as inclusive design,

ethical manufacture and eco-design and sustainability. In the 1980s greater attention was

given to the environment, yet only recently has sustainable design taken hold in the mass

consciousness, moving beyond environmental issues to address social and economic needs

as well. As a result of the recent focus on climate change, environmental issues may lead

the way to a more responsible approach by business toward society in general.

A contemporary contribution is Socially Responsible Design (SRD). Building on existing

design areas that overlap with areas of responsibility and sustainability such as Design for

Environment, SRD takes an integrative approach to several existing design initiatives.The

link with CSR is described as being the part of CSR that has an external focus;

alternatively, SRD is described as “CSR in action”. This is contrasted with the

conventional view of CSR, built around financial reporting and management structures,

which, the authors say, has a more internal focus. A key message is that an understanding

and implementation of design is necessary in order for companies to include CSR in the

production of the products, processes, environments and services that create their imagein

the marketplace. The SRD model involves eight areas (government, economic policy, fair

trade, ecology, social inclusion, health, education and crime) which can be positively

addressed through the use of design and which will contribute to a healthier social

environment. The authors state that SRD “focuses attention on the products, environments,

services and systems that can alleviate real world problems and improve quality of life.”

12
From the CSR point of view, interest has focused increasingly on certain corporate actions and

processes where companies have no choice but to innovate on several levels, including

products (where they have to satisfy the demand for socially responsible products) and

processes (where they must pay attention to the implications of social responsibility across the

whole supply chain). Furthermore, legislation and environmental pressures have forced

changes in production processes and in the use and recycling of used materials. The demand

for free-trade products has also resulted in companies establishing agreements with NGOs in

order to import and sell products from and to developing countries, including coffee and craft

products. The involvement of disadvantaged social groups and the inclusion of the disabled has

necessitated the design of appropriate production processes and the development of products

adapted to such groups’ limited mobility.

So what exactly is the relationship between CSR and innovation? Recent phenomena such as

Open Innovation have the concept of stakeholder dialogue at their core and therefore overlap

strongly with one facet of CSR. However, linking the overall concept of CSR with the overall

concept of innovation is not easy. In this paper we aim to establish some key overlapping

points, which may serve as “scaffolding” to construct a stronger, more sustainable argument

for real integration between the two areas, promoting academic dialogue and practical

implementation. On the CSR side, if we examine the different perspectives from which CSR

may be viewed, we find a limited amount of previous research exploring the benefits, be they

economic (through market reputation, for example), political (through better legal awareness

and compliance) or ethical (through recognizing the intrinsic worth of values and taking moral

considerations seriously), for example, mentions four areas that justify managers’ taking a

serious interest in values: risk management, organizational functioning, market positioning and

corporate citizenship positioning. In sum, the multiple facets of CSR have been discussed with

varying degrees of detail and justification.

13
There is, of course, a valid argument that the exact semantics of any approach are not as

important as action. We share this view. For us, establishing the link between CSR and

innovation is not a means of semantic clarification. Rather, it is a means of uncovering clues

for better strategy design and policy formulation in organizations, in order to leverage the

recent increase in awareness and motivation and advance organizations’ actual CSR and

innovation performance.

14
 CSR-DRIVEN INNOVATION AND INNOVATION-DRIVEN CSR

This bi-directional system may be defined as CSR-driven innovation and innovation-

driven CSR (see Figure 6 below).

The virtuous circle of CSR and innovation

Research has recently begun in Denmark2 centered on CSR-driven innovation. CSR-driven

innovation has as its end result products and services that have some sort of social purpose. It

is driven by values for the creation of social products and services. In our model we define

these social products and services as being in the areas of Design against crime, eco-design,

and Design for All. Innovation-driven CSR, on the other hand, may be more aligned with

creating social processes and is driven by value. The end result may not have a solely social

rationale, yet the way that the output was developed, through, for example, employee or

15
supplier actions, is more socially responsible. We can say that CSR-driven innovation is about

“doing the right things,” while innovation-driven CSR is about “doing things right.”

CSR-driven innovation and innovation-driven CSR

Such an understanding necessitates an awareness of the tools and methods available in each

area that will facilitate the right process. We have attempted to address the relative poverty of

the CSR field (at least in comparison to innovation) by developing the RESPONSE Social

Innovation (CSR:I) model. On a basic level, the model (see Figure 8 below) is developed from

the virtuous circle concept. The reality of the bi-directional system is shown through the four

spheres: social, relationship, organization and process.

The RESPONSE Social Innovation model

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The model is specified by completing a series of questionnaires (see Figure 9 below) which

enable an organization to define its current state, identify areas of opportunity and establish an

action plan to undertake corrective actions. It is therefore both descriptive (or diagnostic) and

prescriptive and can be used in auditing or strategy design situations. However, it is essential

that users be aware of the motivation behind the organization before undertaking the analysis.

This therefore defines the starting point for the model. The questionnaire is divided into three

sections and the procedure for using the toolkit is as follows:

17
 LITERATURE REVIEW

Today’s companies operate in a rapidly-changing environment. Such a background forces them

to constantly seek for new solutions guaranteeing gaining or maintaining a competitive

advantage. In light of this, innovation is crucial and inevitable for every entity. Also, nowadays

companies seem to favour socially responsible solutions. According to scientific evidence

social responsibility positively influences a company’s performance inter alia by improving its

reputation. Therefore, it seems essential for companies to stimulate the synergic effectsbetween

the two concepts.

Nowadays, the notion of innovation refers to the process of implementing positive and new

ideas into business practice. Innovation represents a significant component of a company’s

strategy as it determines the direction of the firm’s evolution. Furthermore, its role in

stimulating market value increase is well documented.

The definition of CSR was formulated as “the responsibility of enterprises for their impacts on

society” with the aim of “maximising the creation of shared value for their owners/shareholders

and for their other stakeholders and society at large” (European Commission, 2011, p. 6). Thus,

the connection between the two concepts seems to be established based on the value

maximization principle.

In relation to the previous definitions of CSR the most important shift lies in the purpose of

CSR that appears to be value maximisation achieved by the introduction of innovativeproducts,

services and business models. By and large the scientific community seems to reject a

philanthropic or marketing attitude to CSR and follows the trend developed in recent years that

CSR needs to be linked to the modification of business models and concentration on innovation

(Visser, 2010). In other words, companies should implement innovative productionto transform

the impact of its business activities on society.

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Innovation may occur in every field of business activity, which results in its strong diversity.

The most common approach of classifying innovation is perhaps the one proposed in the Oslo

Manual. It covers four types of innovation: product, process, organisational and marketing,

each of which is marked by socially responsible aspects differently. While the principal benefit

of new socially responsible products seems to be increased consumer satisfaction, the main

advantage of new socially responsible processes manifests through the reduced use of resources

and cost cutting. Also new organisational structures, which involve improved working

conditions, are better received by the staff. The second basic classification of innovation covers

the degree of novelty involved in it. Such classification consists of three categories:

incremental, new to the company and radical innovation. From the point of view of social

responsibility radical innovation seems to entail most advantages as its effects spread over both

the company and its surroundings.

Although the classifications of CSR tend to be strongly diversified, the tendency to highlight

the importance of innovation is strongly marked in the contemporary papers.

concluded that there are three types of CSR: philanthropic, integration and innovation.

The philanthropic type of CSR puts the emphasis on sponsorships, charity and employee

voluntarism.

The integration type concentrates on conducting existing business operations more

responsibly.

The innovation type underlines the meaning of new business models for solving social and

environmental problems. Even though on the semantic level only this type refers to innovation,

philanthropic and integration CSR may both entail innovative solutions improving their

efficiency. Furthermore, described five stages of CSR: defensive, charitable, promotional,

strategic and systemic. The presence of innovation as a driver of CSR, concerns mainly the

19
strategic and systemic CSR stages. Company systematic dedication to social responsibility

impacts strongly on innovation, for it entails regular and orderly improvements supported at

the strategic level. distinguished reactive and proactive CSR. In relation to innovation,

proactive CSR constitutes the clue as it concerns improvements in company principal activity.

Reactive CSR on the other hand involves minimizing negative effects, which rarely is the core

activity and constitutes a necessary burden.

On the one hand the growing importance of CSR and innovation is reflected through the

growing number of reports on social, environmental and research activities. On the other hand,

the relation between a company’s corporate social responsibility and its innovation

performance seems to be the domain of academia, rather than business practice. The

development of synergic effects through the conduct of CSR and innovation activities seems

to be impeded by the lack of knowledge on the conditions in which the innovation/CSR relation

appears and develops. That is one of the reasons why modelling the link between CSR and

innovation is of vital theoretical and practical importance.

The first important research gap concerns the conditions in which the innovation/CSR relation

appears and develops. It seems that in the current state of knowledge further advancements are

impeded by the lack of firm conceptual elaboration on the studied relation. The second one

concerns the lack of a comprehensive, conceptual model presenting the relationship between

innovation and CSR. Despite fragmentary evidence, performed in different contexts and only

indirectly referring to it, a firm attempt to model the relationship seems to be still missing.

There is scarce conceptual and empirical evidence of the existence of the relationship. In this

context it seems necessary to continue the scientific discussion on the innovation/CSR mutual

relation.

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 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The present research is aimed at determining the conditions in which the innovation/CSR

relation appears and develops. Moreover, it attempts to model the relationship between

innovation and CSR. The research relied on the systematic literature review performed using

the SALSA method. Moreover, the use of a backwards-snowballing approach enabled the

inclusion of breakthrough and influential works. The meta-synthesis approach underpinned the

synthesis and analysis of the data. The search encompassed Scopus – a comprehensivescientific

database covering academic articles published in nearly 22000 journals. The search strategy

was determined in a preliminary study. The whole procedure is presented in Figure 1

accompanied by a descriptive component.

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The database was searched using different combinations of the following terms: innovation,

novelty, improvement, social responsibility, CSR and sustain. The research was limited to

papers published between January 2000 and August 2016 (inclusive) and to the subjective areas

of social science, business, management and accounting, and economics, econometrics and

finance. Both English and American spellings were complied. Search terms were researched in

titles, keywords and abstracts. The procedure resulted in identifying 2109 papers.

The appraisal procedure was divided into two parts: exclusion and inclusion. The first part

aimed at choosing the papers most suitable for research from the set. The second part aimed at

supplementing the set of chosen articles by the influential works named in the reference

sections.

The exclusion procedure was divided into two parts – technical and substantial. It was

performed to assure the suitability of individual studies for the research. Firstly the duplicates

and non-English papers were eliminated (n=427). Secondly, all papers from the domains

beyond the authors’ interest were eliminated (n=897). The remaining publications belonged to

such domains as: business, management, accounting, economics, econometrics, finance, and

general social science (eliminated ones included computer science, medicine, engineering etc.).

Thirdly, only publications released in journals listed on Journal Citation Report by Thomson

Reuter’s were taken into consideration. At this step of the literature review 164 papers

remained.

The substantial part consisted of three siftings: title sifting, abstract sifting and full text sifting.

Firstly, the titles were reviewed to eliminate publications that do not concentrate on the studied

relation (n=77). Secondly, in-depth sifting based on the abstracts was performed eliminating

unsuitable papers (n=57). Thirdly, the full text of the remaining papers was studied in detail.

22
At this step, 17 papers were eliminated, leaving 13, which fully concentrate on the studied

relation, for further analysis.

In order to fully exploit the determined set of articles, a check of references was performed

using the procedure of one-step backwards snowballing. It was assumed that the references of

the papers will be a valuable source of supplementary publications as

(1) widely accepted publications should include good quality references and

(2) the 9 texts concentrated on the studied relation. The procedure allowed incorporating 4

supplementary publications described as breakthrough and influential works. Thus finally the

set of analysed papers counted for 17 publications.

The last steps of the literature study relied on content analysis. The relations between

innovation and CSR reported in particular papers were compared, and explained one by the

other using the meta-synthesis approach. The data was synthesised in a table form. The

breakdown into dependent and independent variables was delivered. The analysis of the

research material allowed the indication of the determinants of a company’s CSR-driven-

innovation and innovation-driven-CSR as well creating the model explaining the relation

between a company’s CSR policy and its innovativeness. The last two steps in the SALSA

method are described in detail in the next part of the paper.

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 SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Social Responsibility: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we

give.” – Winston Churchill.

There is always a trade-off between economic development, in the material sense, and the

welfare of the society and environment. Social responsibility means sustaining the equilibrium

between the two. It pertains not only to business organizations but also to everyone whose any

action impacts the environment. This responsibility can be passive, by avoiding engaging in

socially harmful acts, or active, by performing activities that directly advance social goals.

In our daily life, you perform a number of activities. For example, brushing our teeth, listening

to our parents, showing respect to elders obeying traffic rules on road etc. why do we perform

all these activities? It is because we live in a family as well as in society and the members of

your family as well as the society want from us to do all of them. They do several things for us

and expect something from you, which you must do.

The expectations of the family or society become our obligations, which we need to fulfil. For

example, taking care of your parents or children, keeping the road clean by not throwing

garbage on it, etc. There are also obligations towards yourself, which you need to fulfil. For

example, taking food timely, going to sleep early at night, etc. that keep you fit and takes care

of your health. Now you fulfil all these obligations by performing certain activities which are

called your responsibilities. Any responsibility you have, particularly towards members of the

24
society with whom you interact or towards the society in general, are called your social

responsibility.

Social responsibility can be classified into two parts:

individual social responsibility or ISR is the responsibility of every individual for his/her

actions. It is morally binding on everyone to act in such a way that the people immediately

around them are not adversely affected. ISR is a commitment everyone has towards the society

– contributing towards social, cultural and ecological causes. ISR is based on an individual’s

ethics. Instead of giving importance only to those areas where one has material interests the

individual supports issues for philanthropic reasons. “ISR is viewed as a tool for CSR”. ISR

forms the base for CSR or Corporate Social Responsibility because if everyone in a business

organization does his/her bit the bigger things automatically fall into place.

Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR has been defined by Lord Holmes and Richard Watts

in The World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s publication, Making Good

Business Sense‟ as “…the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and

contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and

their families as well as the local community and society at large".

This is true in case of business also. As we know, every business operates within a society. It

uses the resources of the society and depends on the society for its functioning. This creates an

obligation on the part of business to look after the welfare of society. So all the activities of the

25
business should be such that they will not harm, rather they will protect and contribute to the

interests of the society. Social responsibility of business refers to all such duties and obligations

of business directed towards the welfare of society. These duties can be a part of the routine

functions of carrying on business activity or they may be an additional function of carrying out

welfare activity.

Let us take an example. A drug-manufacturing firm undertakes extensive research and thus,

produces drugs which are qualitatively superior. It also provides scholarships or fellowships to

the family members of its employees for studying abroad. We find, in both the cases, the drug-

manufacturing firm is carrying out its social responsibility. In case of the former, it is a part of

its routine business function while in the latter case it is a welfare.

26
 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR)

Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR has been defined by Lord Holme and Richard Watts

in The World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s publication „Making Good

Business Sense‟ as “…the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and

contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and

their families as well as the local community and society at large". CSR is one of the newest

management strategies where companies try to create a positive impact on society while doing

business. There is no clear-cut definition of what CSR comprises. Every company has different

CSR objectives though the main motive is the same. All companies have a two point agenda-

to improve qualitatively (the management of people and processes) and quantitatively (the

impact on society). The second is as important as the first and stake holders of every company

are increasingly taking an interest in “the outer circle”-the activities of the company and how

these are impacting the environment and society.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR, also called corporate conscience, corporate citizenship,

social performance, or sustainable responsible business) is a form of corporate self- regulation

integrated into a business model. CSR policy functions as a built-in, self-regulating mechanism

whereby business monitors and ensures its active compliance with the spirit of the law, ethical

standards, and international norms. The goal of CSR is to embrace responsibility for the

company's actions and encourage a positive impact through its activities on the environment,

consumers, employees, communities, stakeholders and all other members of the public sphere.

27
The term "corporate social responsibility" came into common use in the late 1960s and early

1970s after many multinational corporations formed the term stakeholder, meaning those on

whom an organization's activities have an impact. It was used to describe corporate owners

beyond shareholders as a result of an influential book by R. Edward Freeman, Strategic

management: a stakeholder approach in 1984. Proponents argue that corporations make more.

28
Innovation Types:

1) Social Innovation:

The results of social innovation are all around us. Self-help health groups and self-build

housing; telephone help lines and telephone fundraising; neighborhoods nurseries and

neighborhood wardens; Wikipedia and the Open University; complementary medicine, holistic

health and hospices; microcredit and consumer cooperatives; charity shops and the fair-trade

movement; zero carbon housing schemes and community wind farms; restorative justice and

community courts. All are examples of social innovation new ideas that work to meet pressing

unmet needs and improve people’s lives. Social Innovation refers to new ideas that work in

meeting social goals.

2) Eco Innovation:

Eco Innovation as a new concept which differs from generic innovation on two significant

characteristic “Innovation that reflects the concepts explicit emphasis on a reduction of

environmental impact, no matter whether or not that effect is intended. This is not limited to

innovation in products, processes, marketing methods and organizational methods, but also

includes innovation in social and institutional structures.

3) Product Innovation:

Product innovation is the introduction of a new or improved good or service. These inventions

or changes may have to do with improving technical specifications, the materials or the

software used or even advancing on UX (user experience). However, product innovations don’t

need to improve all functions or performance specifications. An improvement to or addition of

29
a new function can also be merged with a loss of other functions or the downgrade of some

other functions or the downgrade of some other specifications. Moreover,

a product innovation must add available to potential users but doesn’t necessarily need to

generate sales. Because if it did, then innovations with low demand or, for instance, digital

products like apps that are free would be excluded. At the same time, routine changes or updates

aren’t considered product innovations as they are only correcting errors or making some

seasonal changes.

30
 CSR ISSUES

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) aims to optimise the benefit to an enterprise’s

stakeholders and to prevent or dampen the potential adverse affects of its activities. CSR

therefore covers a broad spectrum of issues that must be taken into account in business conduct.

This includes working conditions, human rights, the environment, preventing corruption,

corporate governance, gender equality, occupational integration, consumer interests and taxes.

1. Human Rights

An enterprise’s responsibility to respect human rights relates to internationally recognised

human rights, particularly those of the United Nations. Human rights due diligence enables

enterprises to identify any adverse effects resulting from its activities and in its value chain in

good time and to prevent or reduce them. The shape it takes in practice depends above all on

the size of the enterprise and on certain risk factors such as the region and sector.

2. Working Conditions

By ensuring the best possible employment conditions based on the applicable statutory

provisions and international labour standards, in particular those of the International Labour

Organization, enterprises can play a role in creating high-quality jobs. This primarily concerns

the granting of trade union rights, the abolition of child and forced labour and the elimination

of employee discrimination (e.g. based on where they come from, their social background, skin

colour, religion or political views). Constructive cooperation with social partners is also an

important part of this.

31
3. The Environment

Responsible environmental management aims to continuously improve an enterprise’s impact

on the environment. This includes a progressive internal environmental management system

based on high standards, environmental due diligence, an environmentally friendly strategy

with closed cycles, consistent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and a contingency plan

for reducing harmful effects on the environment.

4. Combating Corruption

Corruption has an extremely harmful effect on democratic institutions, good corporate

governance, investments and international competition. Enterprises can play a key role in

combating corruption by introducing internal control mechanisms to avoid and expose it. It is

also important to publish the policy on combating corruption supported by the management

and to train employees.

5. Disclosing Information

As part of a transparent reporting process, enterprises inform the public about their business

activities and their effects in terms of the economy, society and the environment. The regular,

timely and pertinent disclosure of information improves an enterprise’s transparency and

credibility. The reporting process also gains the trust of the enterprise’s stakeholders (e.g.

shareholders, financial institutions, employees and interest groups) and can facilitate access to

capital.

32
7. Corporate Governance

Good corporate governance involves striving towards transparency and a balanced ratio of

management and control while protecting the decision-making power and efficiency at the

topmost corporate level. These are underpinned by good accounting und reporting practices,

supervision by the Board of Directors and respect for shareholder rights and the concerns of

key stakeholders.

8. Consumer Interests

For consumers, it has become increasingly difficult to compare products and services and to

make informed decisions about purchases, particularly due to the increasing numbers of

products on offer and the complexity of many markets. They are therefore reliant on enterprises

adopting fair business and marketing practices and guaranteeing the safety and quality of their

products and services. This involves providing accurate and clear product information,

promoting sustainable consumption and taking customer concerns seriously.

33
 RISK IN CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP

Trying to find connections and dependences between CSR and risk management without

deeper analysis, it may seem that these concepts are remote and do not have much in common.

However, as it was presented earlier, one of CSR goals is to minimize negative influence, which

may be perceived in the light of risk, using means used in a process of risk management. Risk

management itself is not a unified process. Its construction largely depends on the risk it refers

to. Similarly, CSR risk must be managed using appropriate instruments. These are usually the

methods of operational risk management or more definite nonfinancial, reputational risk.

Reasons why companies decide to manage risk in the area of CSR are connected with wanting

to improve the image and maintain good reputation. On the basis of areas of social

responsibility identified in ISO 26000, we can show risks they refer to. These areas include

(PKN 2010): – organizational order, – human rights, – work relationships, – protection of

nature, – honest market practices, – relations with clients, – social commitment.

CSR risk is a consequence of many factors which influence business activity on following

basis: – economic – e.g. the way of managing the value of business, investment policy,

remuneration policy, managing relations with suppliers and clients, – environmental – e.g.

availability of resources, ecological catastrophes, changes in protection of nature legal

regulations, failures, production methods, length of supply chain, – legal – e.g. presence of

regulations and legal system tightness, – cultural – e.g. system of values and behaviour of

members of an organization, – personal – e.g. individual approach regarding organizational

matters. Analysing CSR risk we need to pay special attention to a dialogue with the most

important stakeholders, which makes this process different from processes of managing other

types of risks. Properly created strategy of dialogue, which includes areas of dialogue, its form

and appropriate assessment of expectations, makes it possible to support risk management

34
process and increase its efficiency. When it comes to CSR, stakeholders are “risk bearers” and

they can appear as voluntary stakeholders (e.g. investors) or forced stakeholders, who are in

relation with organization not necessarily by their own choice. Summing up connections and

dependences between CSR and risk management it is worth to try to define the role of risk

management within CSR. With reference to CSR, risk management needs to be understood as

strategy, policy and processes, whose goal is to address potential ethical, social and

environmental factors. These factors, by influencing stakeholders, are to organization’s

disadvantage (Wisser 2007: 15). In such context, CSR is one of the main means of managing

risk of social factors and their influence on financial aspect of an organization.

Each process of risk management is based on set framework, established methodology. CSR

risk management in a greater part can be efficiently implemented in already existing in a

company process of risk management. This will not only influence on minimizing likelihood

of risk but will also be a positive signal for all stakeholders. Creating a model of CSR risk

management, we can adopt two approaches: top-down and bottom-up. In top-down approach

international contracts (especially on the area of human rights and natural environment

protection), national law and other regulations which organization must comply with, are

factors which decide on paying attention to CSR in risk management. Such an approach is

particularly advisable for organizations whose activities are in close relations with these

factors. Bottom-up approach is more adequate for organizations, where the main factor is

commitment of stakeholders. In the further part of this paper, bottom-up approach is going to

be discussed, as it is most frequently used and adapted for business organizations and local

non-profit organizations. Thus, the process of CSR risk management will include conventional

elements: – risk identification, – evaluation (risk assessment), – description and application of

risk management methods, – risk evaluation and monitoring.

35
Risk identification

The first stage is risk identification. Information about potential risks can be found in risk

registers, annual reports and governance documents. Nonmaterial risks must be carefully

looked at. Prepared list of risks should be looked through regarding gaps and lacks and

completed with results of analysis, which will reduce the chance of overlooking significant

risk. The next step should be risk mapping, based on expert knowledge and external data, such

as benchmarks or available risk classifications. On this stage attention should be paid specially

to risks characteristic for areas where an organization operates and to influence of risks on

reputation capital. CSR risk identification should be made on the basis of efficient and complete

procedures, which must be documented and familiar to everybody involved in the process.

36
Risk assessment

Risk is a combination of likelihood and consequence of appearance, which is a threat for an

organization. Thus risk assessment is subjective and depends on its perception. Perception of

risk by stakeholders may significantly differ from organization one. It may be said that subject

matter of CSR is to take actions so that stakeholders perceive threats properly. CSR risk

evaluation, which is mostly composed of assessing likelihood of risk realization and its

influence on organization, should be taken regarding an event carrying risk and its influence

on stakeholders and their perception of this event. It may happen that risk manager’s evaluation

of likelihood of risk and its influence will be much lower than evaluation done by stakeholders.

It is also advisable to prepare a few evaluations of the same risk for each group of stakeholders,

pointing to the right level of their importance. To evaluate stakeholders we can use the scale of

stakeholders commitment (Figure 1).

37
CSR risk that refers to stakeholders whose scale of involvement is high should be a matter of

particular interest, because it may result in serious losses. Apart from losses we need to

remember about likelihood of its appearance and adequacy of control measures.

38
 ROLE OF ORGANISATION IN CSR

1. Responsibility towards itself - It is the duty of every corporate entity to carry out its

business activities and stay in business for a longer period. Generally, it is assumed that for

every organization profit maximization is the main objective, but it is not true. The managers

try to attain to achieve organizational goals in all management areas which reduces cost and

brings maximum prosperity for the organization. It has to work towards survival, profit,

growth, and thus earn enough profits. It the company wants to achieve social and economic

objectives; it has to give enough importance to the efficiency factor.

2. Responsibility towards shareholders - The main responsibility of any corporate entity is

to secure the rights and interests of the shareholders and provide a reasonable return on their

money. However, a careful balance has to be maintained between the long-term needs and the

need to pay current dividends. If the corporation behaves in any manner which is against the

interest of the shareholders, then the shareholders will be free to take action against the

corporation.

3. Responsibility towards state - A number of rules and legislations are formed for proper

regulation and control of the business. Businesses must comply with all the legal requirements,

pay taxes honestly on time, and execute government contracts. Thus, out of the available profit,

the state is entitled to get the share as per the income tax laws and this commitment has to be

performed at priority. It's the responsibility of the business to obey the laws and follow the

social obligation of society.

39
4. Responsibility towards consumers - It is the customers who decided the fate of every

business organization. Therefore, it is imperative for every business to fulfill the contractual

obligations towards its customers. In every way, the company should benefit the customers and

must safeguard their interest in the business. Not only contractual needs but also the economic

and social needs must be fulfilled.

40
 ELEMENTS OF CSR

1. Encourage customer participation

The best way to guarantee the successful adoption of a CSR program is to involve customers

in the process of giving back.

“When customers are able to give back as part of their interaction with your brand, it’s a more

memorable experience that can help differentiate you from competitors,” added Tattar.

For example, Verizon collected old phones and batteries to be redistributed to local domestic

violence victims. Verizon made it simple for customers to put their old phones to use, feel good

about their role in the process and most of all, help people in need.

2. Aim for a singular focus

Many organizations have given to charity prior to having a formal CSR program, which

certainly makes an impact.

However, writing checks to unrelated little leagues, philanthropic causes and local events will

distort the results you’re seeing and limit the impact you’re having on a singular cause, argues

Tattar.

Don’t try to be “all things” with your CSR program, develop a specific focus for what you’re

trying to accomplish to ensure consumers identify the results of a program with your brand.

41
3. Align with the company offerings

“Your program should be relevant to what you actually do as a brand, otherwise the initiative

may backfire,” warned Tattar.

In the past Burger King launched a program about childhood obesity, which was a mistake

because it drew additional attention to their product’s fallibility, he added.

Instead, remain clear on what you’re known for and develop a program centered on your

strengths as a business.

4. Possible to make a measurable impact

Brands often try to take on too much with their CSR program, leading to failed promises and

not meeting the expectations they set for themselves.

“Aspire to great things with your program, but settle for doable as the hope is to make more

than just a dent in an issue facing the community,” said Tattar.

For instance, Starbucks’ Race Together campaign attempted to tackle racism in America

during a customer’s interaction with their barista, a lofty goal and the wrong way to go about

that particular objective.

Whereas the Ronald McDonald House isn’t setting out to solve childhood illness as that isn’t

quite possible yet, but they’ve made major strides in making families more comfortable during

this difficult time in their lives.

“Structure your CSR program as a doable endeavour and you’re more likely to incite the

noticeable change you’re after,” said Tattar.

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5. Relevancy to the right buying community

According to Tattar, the best case scenario is to create a program fueled by your customers that

impact members of the communities where your brand is actually active.

Often you’ll see organizations supporting international causes as a part of their CSR focus,

which certainly drives value to those communities, but misses the mark.

If your company operates in the United States, but your assisting communities in Latin America

from a CSR standpoint, rethink the approach to move your focus to the audience you’re actually

trying to reach.

6. Be completely honest and take action

“If you say you’re going to do something, you need to do it, said Tattar. Otherwise, you’re

pandering and today’s consumer sees right through that.”

When establishing a CSR program, follow through on the promises you’re making and

genuinely work towards the goals you’ve set for yourself.

Too often do companies create a CSR program due to pressure to do so from consumers and

critics, leading to shallower promises and a tendency to neglect reporting on their progress.

Don’t let criticism fuel a contrived program, but instead develop an effort around issues that

have meaning for your organization that’ll you’ll act on.

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7. Share stories about the program

Don’t feel bad about telling others about your good work in the community, suggests Tattar.

“The age of social media allows companies to humblebrag about the impact of their CSR

programs, driving more awareness of the company’s efforts, increased interest from future

hires and an influx of donations and participation from existing customers,” he added.

Share how customers can participate in your CSR program on social media as one part of your

messaging mix and pitch writers on the measurable impact you’ve made over time.

Whether you’re a larger brand or a local pizza shop, readers want to hear about the

organizations leading the way with corporate citizenship in their own community.

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 IMPORTANCE OF CSR

1. Brand Value

A quick look at the top 10 brands in the world would suggest that responsibility is at the core

of their operations. A well-managed CSR program can help increase brand equity, awareness

and resonate with strong values.

Tata Group is India’s most valuable brand at $19.5 billion dollars. People appreciate the

company not only for its high-quality products but also for the activities that they do for the

greater good of the people. The company has exceptional goodwill and the name exudes trust.

2. Increased Sales – Customer Matters

Companies that lead with a purpose are perceived positively by the customers. According to a

study, 88% of the people surveyed would buy products from a responsible company. 85% of

the people said that they would support the company in their community.

Millennials and Generation Z connect with companies having a positive impact on the

communities. This engagement translates into greater sales in today’s highly connected world.

This further highlights the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility projects.

3. Employee Retention and Engagement

There was a time when people looked at their jobs from the bread and butter perspective alone.

Today, employees look for a higher purpose other than their monthly salary.

Employees enjoy working for companies that have a positive public image. CSR initiatives

incorporate volunteering programs which foster values such as empathy and loyalty. This leads

45
to better team-work and camaraderie among employees. It is a well-known fact that happy

employees lead to low attrition.

Godrej Group CSR projects include a volunteering program that helps NGO’s to create

sustainable models. They are also known to run several programs that help protect the

environment. This has led to higher employee satisfaction and a positive image for the

company. No wonder it is one of the most sought-after companies to work for in India.

4. Cost Savings

In the past, operating sustainably came at a huge cost to the company. Cost savings as one of

the factors in the importance of CSR would be surprising a few years ago. Responsible

companies have found new technologies that have reduced the operating costs.

Cochin Airport in India is a very good example of sustainable operations leading to cost

savings. It is the first Airport in the world to operate completely on solar power. It has become

a pioneer and is inspiring other airports to go solar and make this world a better place to live

in.

5. Poverty Alleviation

India is home to almost 1.4 billion people and the top 1% of its population owns 73% of the

wealth. In spite of the plethora of welfare programs, the gap between the haves and have-nots

is one of the steepest in the world.

The corporate sector’s core competency is the execution of projects. They have the talent and

know-how to ensure maximum impact at minimum cost. CSR programs bring out change at

the grassroots level by harnessing this operational efficiency.

46
Mahindra and Mahindra’s Nanhi Kali is one of the pioneers when it comes to CSR projects in

India. The World Bank’s 2018 report states that limited educational opportunities for girls and

barriers to complete 12 years of education, cost countries between $15 trillion and $30 trillion

in lost lifetime productivity and earnings. Project Nanhi Kali educates girls which not only

empowers them but also helps their families come out of poverty.

6. Risk Management

It is no longer a debate that social and environmental risk affect businesses in a big way. In the

long term, these factors affect the growth strategies and are completely out of its control.

Mumbai incurred a loss of Rs 14,000 crore due to floods from 2005 to 2015 according to a

study conducted by the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and leading

accounting company KPMG. Environmental and Social factors damage the infrastructure or

lead to the loss of business hours due to absenteeism.

Depleting mangrove cover is one of the biggest reasons for flooding in Mumbai. Bajaj

Electricals’ CSR arm planted 10,000 mangroves by partnering with NGO, United WayMumbai

(UWM) to create awareness on the importance of mangroves among the youth.

47
 ROLE OF CSR

 Responsible sourcing of materials and supplies

 Employee, vendor, customer and community engagement and relations

 Adherence to labour standards

 Environmental protection and management

 Anti-corruption measures

 Upholding social equity, gender equity and other human rights goals

 Conservation of resources, like water and energy, in production

48
 TANGIBLE & INTANGIBLE CSR

TANGIBLE CSR :

from the accountant’s point of view, an organization’s financial (tangible assets) have been

material things like factories, machinery, and physical human capital. In a somewhat more off

the beaten path approach, financial assets should also include intangible, non-physical

(invisible) elements that are rooted in human knowledge (know-how) and a business’

relationships and profile.

INTANGIBLE CSR :

Corporate social responsibility (CSR), community relations, accountability, corporate

citizenship, transparency, stakeholder engagement, (I could go on for a while here) are too

often seen as nice-to-haves or nice-to-pursue by executives. Bottom line is, all of these are

directly affecting your organization’s finances.

How so? They’re all closely linked to your intangible assets. And even if they’re still not quite

obvious to everyone yet, intangible assets are as impactful as tangible assets (sometimes even

more) to business continuity. That being said, I’m sure that whether you’re the owner, top

executive, Community Relations or Public Relations professional in your organization, your

brand’s reputation, its place in the market and its perception by communities where you operate

are fairly high on the agenda. Especially if recently your name has been all over the news.

49
 A SURVEY ON COMPANIES THAT FULFILLED THEIR CSR

Corporate India has seen in the last decade that the path towards growth is not linear. Expansion

means a constant hunt for resources that go into manufacturing and invariably a conflict

between man and nature.

The western world has simplified much of this debate into the climate change challenge which

rests on this simple logic. The Indian challenge and that of any developing country like ours is

much more complex. We need food for our teeming millions, education for our children and

women

With this the conversation in corporate circles has moved beyond 'should CSR be mandatory'

to 'what should we do and how'? Indian companies are now new to sustainability reporting. In

fact, there are companies that have been generating sustainability reports for ten years or more.

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) that forms the basis for this reporting has several parameters

that are far in excess of what the Indian Companies Act prescribes. It covers sustainability and

CSR issues while at the same time also looking at employee standards, health and safety issues

and much more. Attempt is made to examine GRI reports and publicly disclosed information

online and via annual reports under the CSR lens. I believe that it is not sufficient for companies

to merely invest in CSR projects and meet the 2 per cent norm, but we need to understand

whether CSR is looked at strategically. The 2 percent norm is not the only criterion looked for

but beyond this percent the paper looks for the spontaneous contributions by the corporates.

50
 Indian
Ranking Best practice
Company
The CSR program is
managed by three
organization — Tata Steel
Rural Development Society
(TSRDS), Tata Steel Family
1 Tata Steel Initiatives Foundation
(TSFIF) and the Tribal
Culture Society (TCS). The
Company uses Human
Development Index to keep
track of CSR in villages.
Conservation of whale shark-
a rare species. The Company
spends Rs 12 cr on CSR
every year & wildlife
conservation tops priority.
Tata
2 Google
Chemicals
'Nanhi Kali’ -focuses on
educating the girl child. CSR
is a mix of strategic
philanthropy, shared values
& sustainability.
Mahindra
3 Disney
Group
‘Making it Matter’-
Community development
and road safety propel
Maruti Maruti's CSR in the fast
4 BMW
Suzuki lane. The village
development will include
construction of household
toilets, upgrading
Global
Best practice
Company
Microsoft Youth
Spark is committed to
helping young people
capture opportunity.
Use programs to learn
Microsoft skills, to prepare for the
jobs of the future, even
to start your own
business. Youth Spark
is created for you.
Tech giant Google is
donating $11.5 million
to several coalitions
fighting to end the
modern-day slavery of
some 27 million people
around the world. The
largest ever corporate
grant devoted to the
advocacy, intervention
and rescue of people
being held, forced to
work or provide sex
against their will,
Google said it chose
organizations with
proven records in
combating slavery.
Disney encourages
environmental
education. Earth,
Oceans, and African
Cats – have planted
three million trees in
Brazil’s threatened
Atlantic Forest,
protected 40,000 acres
of coral reef in the
Bahamas, and
conserved 50,000 acres
of savanna wildlife
corridors in Africa.
BMW Warm-Heart
Fund BMW Warm-
Heart Family, including
firms, employees,
dealers, customers and
warm-hearted people to
provide from financial
assistance and spiritual
51
 Government schools, support to people in
separate toilets for girl need.
students.
A deep concern for the Building environmental
environment drives Tata responsibility into
5 Tata Motors Motors undertake green Apple products and processes.
projects that preserve and
regenerate local ecologies.
Raising health awareness in Promote climate
India. Fitness, in general, is protection, conserve
still not a high priority for valuable resources, and
most people in India. To contribute to the
6 Siemens Daimler
change this, the Health preservation of a livable
Management team at environment – at their
Siemens India introduced locations and
the Fit4Life program. beyond.
Offering employees
L&T's participates in vocational
building a healthy qualifications and
community through continuing professional
continuing initiatives in development in vehicle
Larsen & several areas of healthcare, and production
7 Volkswagen
Toubro with a focus on mother & technology. This
child care and HIV/AIDS represents one of
awareness. Volkswagen India’s
contributions to
sustainable regional
development.
As an official FIFA
Coca-Cola India has partner, Sony launched
supported community "Dream Goal 2014," a
programs with a focus on special CSR program
education, health and water conducted in
conservation. The Company conjunction with the
has commissioned 400 2014 FIFA World Cup
rainwater harvesting Brazil™. This program,
systems, provided clean made possible through
drinking water to more than collaboration across the
Coca-Cola
8 100 schools, supported Sony Sony Group in
India
school projects and driven partnership with
reform in sustainable participating NGOs
packaging, disaster relief and worldwide, showcases a
rehabilitation”. wide range of online
and offline initiatives
that are expected to
benefit approximately
30,000 children in
Latin America, Africa
and Asia.
SAIL has supported Free dental health care
maintenance of monuments packs, including
in Delhi’s Lodhi Gardens, samples, are also
and Vedvyas, Saraswati kund distributed by the
Steel
in Rourkela. To take care of Colgate company to encourage
9 Authority of
distinct features of tribal Palmolive good oral hygiene.
India
culture, a 5-day Chhattisgarh
Lok Kala
Mahotsav is celebrated every
year in Bhilai and

52
 nearby places in which more
than 600 artistes participate.
To promote local culture and
games, various Gramin
Lokotsavs and Gramin
athletics competitions are
organized by SAIL at
different locations
throughout the year.

In 2013 the LEGO

Provide schools with Group became the first
computers it has also helped – and remains the only
build 60,000 school libraries, - toy company to be
Nirmala shouchalayas. named a World Wildlife
Fund (WWF) Climate
Savers Partner. One of
the world’s largest
conservation
organizations, WWF
collaborates with
leading global
10 Infosys Lego Group companies committed
to setting ambitious
targets to reduce
greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions. Through its
Climate Savers
program, WWF
encourages its partners
to transform into low-
carbon leaders, acting as
change agents within
their sphere of
influence.

53
 IMPACT

 The ICC has tied up with McGrath Foundation, Cancer Society of New Zealand, Room

to Read and Think Wise for its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) partnerships

during the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. The ICC will once again be

working with Room to Read and will also partner with UNAIDS and UNICEF to deliver

the global cricket AIDS awareness partnership THINK WISE.

 Corporates to Pump in Rs. 14,000 Crore towards CSR in 2014-15: Arun Jaitley.

 Tata Group CSR Spend Crosses Rs. 660 Crore in 2013-14.

 Infosys to Contribute Rs. 240 Crore towards CSR.

54
 LIMITATIONS

Costs:

The factor of costs impacts an organization in two ways when it embeds the system of CSR

into its operations. The first was in which costs is a factor is that when an organization looks

for and establishes methods that are different from their usual mode of practice, in order to

meet the requirements of CSR, they need to incur special costs for implementing such differed

mode of operation which becomes burdensome for the organization. The second way in which

costs are a disadvantageous factor is because it brings along with itself a number of expenses

that a corporation is required to fulfil such as training the employees, investing in dedicated

programs for the upliftment of the society as well as the safety of the environment, etc. which

increases the overall costs and expenditures for the organization.

Clashing of business objectives

It is a well-established fact that the main aim of a business organization is to create profits,

which is why it produces various products and services to the customers, in order to be able to

gain profits. Corporate Social Responsibility requires the corporations to keep the interests of

the people into consideration which can cause a conflict in the business objectives of the

corporation while making important decisions. For example, whether or not to buy a land that

is beneficial for the business needs, but such buying will not be beneficial for the people living

around that land.

55
Interests of the shareholders

When a corporation has to embed CSR in their operations, the costs of operations tend to

increase and such costs are obviously paid by the funds of the shareholders which is why this

point is often raised that the interests of the shareholders of an establishment face disadvantage

when the practices of Corporate Social Responsibility are embedded in the system of the

organization.

Competitive Disadvantage

The establishment of CSR in a corporation can also be disadvantageous for an organization

because an organization that has established CSR would incur more costs to finish and

complete their tasks and operations while those who do not embed the concept of CSR into

their operations will be able to provide their products at lower costs to their customers in the

market which would imply that a corporation ensuring the fulfilment of CSR would be at a

disadvantageous position in the market as compared to its various competitors in the markets.

Such a situation can also cause a company to face a number of losses in the market in both

short and long run.

Impact upon the reputation of the Corporation

When an organization established the concept of CSR as a part of its operations in the

organization, they become bound to express and share a number of shortcomings of their own

products to the customers in the market. Because of such sharing of information and

shortcomings of the products or processes of a corporation, the corporation becomes vulnerable

to a number of negative impacts upon its own reputation in the market and hence, CSR can

lead to a drop in the established reputation of a corporation in the market.

56
Corporate Social Responsibility is one of the most widely discussed issues in respect to

business organizations and corporations in the global markets and has both benefits and

disadvantages for its establishment and amalgamation within the organizational and

operational setup of an organization. Hence, embedding CSR in the organization becomes a

difficult choice for many companies.

57
 CONCLUSION

The growing importance of both company innovation and company CSR practices, results from

the high competition faced by entities operating in the contemporary market. Moreover,

constant development, in association with taking into consideration the needs of all

stakeholders, seems an absolute necessity. However, the interdependence between innovation

and CSR still constitutes an important research gap. Therefore, the purpose of the present

research was to determine the conditions in which the innovation/CSR relation appears and

develops. The research relied on systematic literature studies and the meta-synthesis approach.

First, the procedure allowed the identification of six exogenous factors moderating the mutual

relation: external factors, industry, company characteristics, attitude, performance, and R&D

intensity (the latter only moderates the impact of CSR on innovation). Second, two main

features of innovation determining their effects on CSR were indicated: type and degree of

novelty involved. Third, three features of CSR important in the light of its impact on innovation

were pinpointed: type of reaction, degree of development, and field of activity. Finally, the

relation was presented in the graphic and functional models with a descriptive component.

The purpose of the research was achieved to a large extent. However, the study was not free of

limitations. The main limitation was that the research did not indicate how to customize the

variables’ operationalization in order to achieve the highest informative value. The technical

limitation concerned the article selection, which confined the set to the papers written in

English. Moreover, the model was built on the evidence from empirical researches. However,

its final form was not tested empirically. Therefore the model constitutes a starting point for

in-depth studies. Further research should concentrate on the models’ verification in the business

environment.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1) Corporate social responsibility (CSR): Wikipedia

2) Baseline Study on CSR in Macedonia. UNDP. (2007).

3) Procedia: Social and Behavioural Sciences

4) CSR in India: Some Theory and Practice in Wall Street Journal dated Thursday, April

23, 2009.

5) Wiser, W. (2007), The A to Z of Corporate Social Responsibility, Wiley, London.

6) Rogers, E. M. (1962), “Diffusion of Innovations,” New York: The Free Press.

7) thecsrjournal.in/what-is-the-importance-of-csr/

8) https://www.researchgate.net/

9) www.legalserviceindia.com

10) www.sciencedirect.com

11) www.makemyassignments.com/blog/disadvantages-of-csr/

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