The Magazine of Corporate Responsibility

Tag Archive for ‘CSR’

Manifesto for the Corporate Idealist

While daily news headlines can sometimes make it easy to assume that big business is incapable of doing good in the world, contributor Christine Bader argues that there exists a “global army” of Corporate Idealists hard at work on a host of environmental and social issues. She offers the beginnings of a Manifesto to help support that army – “an outline of the principles and actions that will help us better align the interests of business and society.”

Executives Optimistic Sustainability Will Be “Core Strategy” for Business

Executives responsible for sustainability and corporate social responsibility programs at large companies are overwhelmingly optimistic that those initiatives will be part of the “core strategies and operations” of global businesses in the next five years, according to a new survey. Top priorities for those companies in the year ahead are human rights and workers’ rights, climate change, and the availability and quality of water on a global basis.

Business and Human Rights: Interview with John Ruggie

In July 2011, the United Nations Human Rights Council endorsed a set of principles designed to address human rights abuses by business. In an interview, the man who led development of those principles – Harvard professor John Ruggie – discusses their implications and explains why he thinks the newly-coined term “human rights due diligence” has already become a permanent entry in the lexicon of international business.

Making the Case for “Shared Value” for Business and Society

Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter and his colleague Mark Kramer argue that the time has come for global businesses to adopt the principle of “shared value.” Shared value, they write, “is not social responsibility, philanthropy, or even sustainability, but a new way to achieve economic success.”

Corporate Citizenship at McDonald’s: 10 Lessons Learned

Managing the corporate social responsibility program for one of the world’s biggest and best-known brands is no simple task. Bob Langert, the man who has that job at McDonald’s – which serves more than 64 million people in 117 countries each day – offers his Top Ten list of observations about what’s involved in trying to be a good corporate citizen.

UN Council Endorses Principles on Business and Human Rights

The UN’s endorsement of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights marks not just a successful end to the mandate of UN Special Representative John Ruggie. It also signals a new beginning for business and human rights as companies around the world begin to implement the principles to ensure respect for human rights in all their operations.

Marketing to Children: Accepting Responsibility

Product marketing campaigns that target children – such as McDonald’s Happy Meals – are once again coming under fire. Columnist Gael O’Brien thinks they raise important questions about corporate behavior and who bears responsibility for unhealthy outcomes.

Does Corporate Social Responsibility Increase Profits?

It is generally held that corporate social responsibility (CSR) could increase company profits and thus most large companies are actively engaged in it. But few executives and managers are aware of the research on this important subject. Analyst Ron Robins takes a look at what’s been written.

To Create a CSR Culture, You Have to Start with Wall Street

Columnist Ann Charles says that in order to successfully integrate Corporate Social Responsibility into business, there’s a need to start changing the culture of Wall Street, and that change has to come from within. She shines a spotlight on some individual leaders who are working to change the rules of the game in the financial sector.

Video: Companies Can’t Be Parasites Anymore

Stephen Miles, vice chairman of Heidrick & Struggles, the executive search firm, tells Big Think that the global financial crisis and the advent of the Internet age have transformed the relationship between business and stakeholders.