Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is: An obligation, beyond that required by the law and economics, for a firm

irm to pursue long term goals that are good for society 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 that of the local community and society at large About how a company manages its business process to produce an overall positive impact on society

Corporate social responsibility means: Conducting business in an ethical way and in the interests of the wider community Responding positively to emerging societal priorities and expectations A willingness to act ahead of regulatory confrontation Balancing shareholder interests against the interests of the wider community Being a good citizen in the community

Is CSR the same as business ethics? There is clearly an overlap between CSR and business ethics Both concepts concern values, objectives and decision based on something than the pursuit of profits And socially responsible firms must act ethically

The difference is that ethics concern individual actions which can be assessed as right or wrong by reference to moral principles. CSR is about the organisations obligations to all stakeholders and not just shareholders. There are four dimensions of corporate responsibility Economic - responsibility to earn profit for owners Legal - responsibility to comply with the law (societys codification of right and wrong) Ethical - not acting just for profit but doing what is right, just and fair Voluntary and philanthropic - promoting human welfare and goodwill Being a good corporate citizen contributing to the community and the quality of life

Stakeholder priorities
Increasingly, corporations are motivated to become more socially responsible because their most important stakeholders expect them to understand and address the social and community issues that are relevant to them. Understanding what causes are important to employees is usually the first priority because of the many interrelated business benefits that can be derived from increased employee engagement (i.e. more loyalty, improved recruitment, increased retention, higher productivity, and so on). Key external stakeholders include customers, consumers, investors (particularly institutional investors), communities in the areas where the corporation operates its facilities, regulators, academics, and the media.