Introduction to CSR
In today’s society, corporate social responsibility is an essential component of company operations. However, not all businesses approach their obligations in the same manner. CSR is a significant burden for some businesses, while it is a vital component of their business plan for others. In this essay, we will discuss the function of social participation in business.
Goals of CSR
Humanity is living in the Reputation Economy, which sets its own laws and determines new priorities. In today’s atmosphere, what a firm stand for is more important to most stakeholder groups than what items it provides. The major elements with the greatest influence on business reputation, according to the 2017 Global RepTrak® 100 research, were product and service quality (20.5%), governance (15.0%), and corporate citizenship (14.4%) (Šontaitė-Petkevičienė, 2019). As a result, Google’s selected endeavor is to implement CSR as a significant organizational reform program.
Adopting CSR may necessitate reorganizing the management team, modifying job functions, and finding and reducing duplication of tasks. CSR will aim to improve the company’s reputation, which has a significant influence on government relations and the business climate. The size, structure, and sophistication of the CSR program, among other factors, influence GR’s negotiating position at the federal and regional levels. It is worth noting that many huge industrial enterprises are currently competing fiercely for employees.
CSR, in turn, contributes to the image of a preferred employer. Consumers have been impacted by the push toward sustainable development. Companies, like workers, require a high level of social responsibility. CSR is one of the most important components in increasing customer happiness, especially in a situation when competition is fierce, and customers must pick between comparable products.
Google is one of the world’s top technological corporations, with a strong focus on corporate social responsibility (CSR). Despite the evidence in the literature, the question of the nature of the interaction between the interests of business and society as a whole still needs to be solved outside a small group of prominent critical players. The corporation has changed to a sustainability approach after setting an ambitious aim of offering knowledge to four billion people on the earth.
Google is aware of the environmental consequences and externalities of technological advancement, notably its link to climate change (McLean, 2018). By implementing fundamental sustainability practices into its corporate structure, Google is growing its triple bottom line while delighting its shareholders and stakeholders. This is an excellent illustration of how a firm may accomplish environmental impact through CSR. Google issues an environmental report that details its CSR actions and objectives, which include a variety of activities intended to improve working conditions, conserve the environment, and enhance consumer pleasure.
Example of CSR Introduction by Other Companies
BMW Group
An excellent example of introducing CSR can be the BMW Group, as the company owes much of its current success to its active participation in social projects. Environmental efficiency is a strategic priority at all levels of the organization. BMW was the first carmaker to create the post of Environmental Officer, which is responsible for ensuring that production environmental criteria are met.
BMW Group has reduced emissions from new automobiles sold in Europe by 40% in the last ten years (Pardi, 2022). The adoption of cutting-edge technologies allows for considerable reductions in fuel usage and greenhouse gas emissions. Such activity addresses contemporary societal needs and offers the organization a competitive advantage in the industry.
Converting some items to electric motors (BMWi) has also enhanced the environmental efficiency of produced automobiles. The BMW Group contributes to important educational programs, tackles road safety concerns, and aids in the treatment of AIDS/HIV patients. The BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt and The Eberhard von Kuenheim Foundation support the advancement of contemporary art, jazz, classical music, design, and architecture.
Emirates Airlines
Another example is Emirates Airlines, one of the pillars of the UAE economy, which also demonstrates a high degree of involvement in corporate citizenship activities. Supporting local communities and philanthropic initiatives in nations where the firm is the main carrier is a unique area of action. Support for major athletic events and organizations, such as the FIFA World Cup and the International Cricket Council, is among its various social activities.
Emirates is also the title sponsor of the famed British team Arsenal, naming the new stadium after it and emblazoning its emblem on the players’ jerseys. For £100 million, the firm has purchased the right to be associated with one of the most valuable sports brands in the eyes of the club’s 27 million-strong fan base until 2021 (Brice et al., 2022). One of the primary goals of Emirates’ corporate citizenship is to promote a favorable image of Dubai outside of the nation and the Middle East region.
Descriptions of the Approach
A Kaizen strategy may be required at Google to implement a large-scale organizational reform program. This technique necessitates the top management developing an action plan centered on numerous targets to enhance the company’s procedures and personnel in order to execute the improvements. The following procedures should be used to implement changes using Kaizen: identify the problem that requires change, analyze processes, suggest modifications, test solutions, assess outcomes, standardize changes or solutions, and encourage continuous improvement.
The top manager should first enlighten all staff about Google’s intents and ambitions. This phase is required to assist staff in meeting the plan’s objectives. Next, the senior leader should assess the existing status of the organization to identify challenges and potential areas for change by polling or interviewing personnel. The senior management should define the particular activities to be done to implement the program after recognizing obstacles and opportunities. The senior management should also give numerous tools and ways for tracking the program’s performance. Key performance indicators, cost analysis, and result analysis are examples of these methodologies (Goyal & Law, 2019). This stage will assess the program’s success and assist in developing the next steps to attain the goals.
To maximize the impact, the senior management should meet with Google employees on a frequent basis to exchange thoughts and suggestions for development, allowing the team to be more focused and accomplish the desired objectives. Overall, the senior manager should always seek to enhance the team’s performance and propose new ideas to fulfill the goals under the Kaizen strategy (Google, 2023). Since the Kaizen method emphasizes continuous development, these procedures should continue to have the most impact.
Objectives, Their Measurement, and Program Implementation
This program is designed to minimize employee turnover while increasing profitability. Strategic CSR initiatives attract bright people who are dedicated to doing meaningful work. Companies benefit from an improvement in employee performance of up to 13% and a reduction in staff turnover of up to 50% (Al-Ali et al., 2019).
Furthermore, the average cost savings per retained employee ranges from 90% to 200% of the yearly wage (Al-Ali et al., 2019). A socially responsible company approach helps to avoid conflict. Reliable relationships with local communities, politicians, and labor unions make it feasible to work efficiently. Strong stakeholder relationships are the foundation for a company’s long-term development.
The CSR 4.0 technique assists in the development of such linkages in advance. It contributes to the company’s image as a reputable and trustworthy organization. Furthermore, conflict risks are reduced, and unforeseen costs are avoided. CSR 4.0 is a new approach to the execution of socially meaningful corporate projects, much like Industry 4.0 has become an age of technical progress in the industry (Nasr et al., 2021). Employee turnover and performance reports will be used to track progress toward goals.
The organization must also recruit partners for quality implementation in order to implement the program. Following that, a communication plan will be developed to aid in the resolution of several issues. Participation of all groups of people in the debate of contemporary problems, many of which society does not even suspect, does not notice, and does not comprehend, is a crucial requirement for sustainable growth. To correct the problem, when executing the CSR plan, the company should prioritize publicity and competent contact with the general public. The main objective is to spark debate, “illuminate” problems, and provide solutions.
Employee support will be achieved through discussions emphasizing the company’s difficulties and ways to solve them through CSR. Managers should realize all the benefits of CSR not only for the company but also for the world. The involvement of the management in implementing the program with the help of the chosen strategy is extremely important, as managers create the basis for CSR implementation and contribute to its development.
The role of the management in implementing the innovation is very important as they are the ones who make sure that it is implemented correctly and manage all the processes. An organization’s culture is based on its ideals, which often come from the management. The work environment, expectations, and goals are all aspects of a company’s culture. As a result, CSR can influence an organization’s culture to meet society’s needs and concerns. The organization’s procedures will address global issues and improve society.
References
Al-Ali, W., Ameen, A., Isaac, O., Khalifa, G. S., & Shibami, A. H. (2019). The mediating effect of job happiness on the relationship between job satisfaction and employee performance and turnover intentions: A case study on the oil and gas industry in the United Arab Emirates. Journal of Business and Retail Management Research, 13(4).
Brice, J., Grainger, A., Beissel, A., & Postlethwaite, V. (2022). The world cup trilogy: An analysis of Aotearoa New Zealand’s leverage strategies for the women’s cricket, rugby, and football world cups. International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics, 14(4), 621-639. Web.
Google. (2023). Home page. Web.
Goyal, S., & Law, E. (2019). An introduction to Kaizen in health care. British Journal of Hospital Medicine, 80(3), 168-169.
McLean, S. (2018). Hey Google: The business case of environmental sustainability in developing corporate social responsibility. PHP Dialogues, 1(1), 1-10. Web.
Nasr, M., Islam, M. M., Shehata, S., Karray, F., & Quintana, Y. (2021). Smart healthcare in the age of AI: Recent advances, challenges, and future prospects. IEEE Access, 9, 145248-145270. Web.
Pardi, T. (2022). Heavier, faster and less affordable cars: The consequence of EU regulations for car emissions. ETUI Research Paper-Report, 7. Web.
Šontaitė-Petkevičienė, M. (2019). Dimensions and attributes building corporate reputation of rural businesses. Research for Rural Development, 2, 175-182. Web.
Loading...
