Assignment
Shaik039
Sample-ArticleAbstract-BusinessEthics1.docxRunning head: CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY 1
Corporate Social Responsibility
BA61673H519
Your Name
Campbellsville University
Corporate Social Responsibility
Definition
Cooperate social responsibility is defined as a business operative model endeared on self-regulation that inclines towards the betterment of the society through the adoption of ethical and philanthropic practices (Schrempf-Stirling, Palazzo, & Phillips, 2016).
Summary
According to Girschik (2020), the concept underlying matters of corporate social responsibility (CSR) instigates the questions of the logic employed by internal activists to prompt a justification for a company’s adoption of a social-change inclined CSR initiative. In this case, the contention is rooted in the debates of strategies that ultimately convince a company to commit towards prioritization over profitability. However, the article argues that although corporations at times are left with no choice but to oblige and conduct a philanthropic or risk the future of the company. In this case, the CSR acts are merely done as their core responsibility, which is to ensure that they take care of other stakeholders.
Key to note from the article, however, is that CSR in itself is not viewed as a profit strategy inclined to cash-based profits; instead, businesses often adopt the CSR model as a PR component in their corporate image enhancement goals. As argued by Girschik (2020), while businesses strive to promote their CSR endeavors as selfless acts, a close assessment reveals that participation in CSR is often motivated by the market and business environment factors. In this case, among the factors that drive a company towards the adoption of CSR are inter and intra-organization pressures posing a dire threat to business operations. However, the article highlights that external forces are known to harbor the most considerable influence prompting organizations, in some cases, to revert the enactment of superficial CSR.
Discussion
After critical reflection on the article, the question emerges on the extent that such CSR initiatives can result in any long term or even significant changes to the society considering that at their core lies hidden motives of mere appeasement or image promotion. Accordingly, under such a rationale, it is hard to quantify how a corporation is convinced of selfless and costly CSR programs only to instigate societal changes (Siano, Vollero, Conte, & Amabile, 2017). Such activities are characterized factors that seemingly conflict with the primary objective of the company, which is maximizing shareholder value. In this case, the article outlines that while the benefits of CSR to the society can hardly be questioned at the surface, CSR's operative structure is mostly cost centered (Girschik, 2020).
Notably, while the CSR model, in theory, harbors the extensive potential to steer transformation to the society by addressing critical problems in the society, in practice, the heightened inclination to reap nonmonetary gains translates to initiatives devoid of sincere commitment towards the betterment of the society. A good example is manifest by the rising number of companies instigating CSR initiatives geared towards the reduction of carbon footprints. As pointed out by in the last decade, the public has grown critical of environmental pollution forcing businesses to adopt diverse measures aimed at selling their image as champions of a clean environment. As a result, companies flaunt their commitment towards the reduction of carbon footprints as a PR stunt, considering that a majority enact measures to achieve the legal bare minimum (Siano, Vollero, Conte & Amabile, 2017). Sadly, the desperation to sell the image of the socially responsible company has seen companies like Volkswagen capitalize on developing means to circumvent emissions control. In this case, the fact that a company can result in duping the public of their efforts to save the environment while poisoning it is a clear indication that even in CSR, the company goal is fixated on profits and image with little concern on steering positive change.
References
Girschik, V. (2020). Shared responsibility for societal problems: The role of internal activists in reframing corporate responsibility. Business & Society, 59(1), 34-66.
Schrempf-Stirling, J., Palazzo, G., & Phillips, R. A. (2016). Historic corporate social responsibility. Academy of Management Review, 41(4), 700-719.
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