TEXT: Any corporate entity, in addition to reaping profit has social responsibilities too which affects the betterment of the community in which the corporation is operating. Relying solely on profitability is not sufficient in the current world environment. Patron’s sympathize by embracing brands that are active in social issues and strive to solve them.
The corporate culture can address the issues by adopting best practices in its field of operation that could be environmental, philanthropic, human rights or economic.
Socially responsible company is accountable to itself and its shareholders Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a stepping stone in the company’s progress to profitability, that most responsible companies are seeking standards of ethical practices for their competitors in commerce and industry. STARBUCKS is surely an entity to be studied; it has achieved many CSR milestones since its inception, like pioneering green building concept in its stores. Contributing hours to community service like college programs for its partners and employees. Unfortunately in Pakistan, even our large corporations are shy to create this environment, which can be easily achieved by promoting volunteerism among company employees.
These better practices in corporate culture have impact in many domains impacting the social environment like renewable energy sourcing, manage of supply chain, eliminating unethical practices by employees and donating time by sponsoring local events and charities, one other aspect to corporate recognition, the social entrepreneur who pursues an innovation path, that has the potential to solve an environmental problem , these individuals are willing to take risks to bring positive change in society they have a purpose in life and strive to help a purpose in life and strive to help others to find theirs, this way they can make a difference to their environment while eking out a living for themselves.
Better corporate practices are beneficial in many ways to business, some of which are:
Positive press and reputation building.
Consumer appeal.
Talent attraction and employee retention.
Stronger client and community relations.
The ultimate bottom line.
To elaborate these points briefly and the most powerful effects to all this is the sustainable responsible business that is able to quickly generate positive publicity for the organization.
The consumers are inclined to support those businesses that support causes and this way they can command higher price for their products, it includes sponsoring sport events and charitable efforts. The direct link between a purchase and charitable donation provides and charitable donation provides motivation for customers to spend money, connect with the brand and develop loyalty.
It is not the consumers alone, but talented professionals looking for business management careers compare them to their goals with company’s core values and this makes it worthwhile for the company to earn better with top talent recruitment. Corporate responsibility can lead to greater employee satisfaction.
The charitable work of one company can inspire other companies to do the same giving an opportunity to pool their objectives for greater results. It could even be on a global scale.
The ultimate goal of the company is to make money while focusing on corporate responsibility which comes at a cost this could have a positive net effect on the company’s bottom line. All the above mentioned benefits i.e
Reputation building
Customer appeal
Talent retention
Increased communication.
Can significantly improve financial health.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021