New study on CSR from Cranfield School of Management
Howard Lake | 10 September 2003 | News
Cranfield School of Management’s new research study should help businesses link their corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes to business and social outcomes.
“CSR at the Crossroads” research study, published today by Cranfield School of Management, sponsored by Edelman, creates an empirically based framework to help businesses link their CSR programmes to business and social outcomes.
Written and researched by Stan Maklan and Professor Simon Knox of Cranfield School of Management, the report says that business is taking too pragmatic an approach to CSR, by focusing on process, measurement and reporting issues. There is dissatisfaction about measurement and reporting both within business and the Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) communities, with both sides unsure about the ultimate impact of the current efforts upon business decisions and social outcomes.
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In order for CSR to fulfil its promise of dramatically improving business and social outcomes the study suggests that a comprehensive framework must be developed. Failure to effectively and efficiently implement such a framework may result in CSR becoming an expensive exercise in compliance with minimal impact. The researchers argue that commonly held views about the business case for CSR are “incomplete and at times highly assumptive”. Based upon both literature and field research, a new framework is proposed that links CSR to business outcomes in a clear, structured manner – establishing a pathway from CSR, through changes in attitudes, and changes in stakeholder behaviour, through to business and social outcomes.
Report author Professor Simon Knox said: “The prize is worth the effort. “CSR at the crossroads” shows that CSR practitioners who are trying to tackle this agenda have learnt that CSR is really about creating a breakthrough in business performance, albeit defined more in the context of long term, sustainable performance.”
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.