How can we suddenly become true philanthropic heroes?
What do you do towards your Corporate Social Responsibility? We are delighted to publish this guest post from Valerie Besnier of Out of the Box Events, which explores how great CSR is about more than public relations. It was originally published on the Out of the Box Events Blog, which is worth a visit!
Look around you? On your desk, here and there and over there… tons of paper, envelopes, prospectus, leaflets on how each of us is fantastic at doing what we do best and Ooh! Look! We sent you a letter printed on recycled paper but would you really be bothered or notice that we’ve made this effort?
Inspired by the contemporary topic of CSR which Business & Marketing Guru Michael E. Porter has been advocating a new approach for some time now. I am enthused by his vision but see few changes in attitude. Massive short-term profits are high on the agenda of short-term shareholders; production is as efficient and as cheap as it can be. In the process have we all forgotten how much pollution and waste we’ve created? Possibly, but we’ve saved our jobs!
This is where we have the choice to integrate CSR into our corporate business strategy and when it could become a decision-making process. While most of us might still think of CSR as a PR and marketing gimmick it goes far beyond this. CSR can become an asset to drive a business and deliver competitive edge. This is a state of mind that must steer corporate culture to act, source and sell more responsively. CSR is a great buzz word which more often than not has no substance and has been adopted for pure PR benefits. It looks good but it doesn’t taste good! Putting it in practice is far more challenging as it requires a change of attitude and occasionally significant investment (which organisations are not always prepared to make). Economic value rather than shareholder value will be driven by stronger integration with our social environment. An extension and broadening of the company’s value chain if you will.
You might well remain sceptical about the benefits of adopting CSR within your organisation, however, the responsibility is on each of us to embrace it rather than being reluctantly drawn into it through imposed taxation for not doing enough!
It might also be a time for companies to take the opportunity to offer more transparency to the customers, to become more ethical, more demanding from their suppliers and to reinvest profits into sustainable means of production. Powerful corporations and individuals have the ability to change attitudes and should promote “Made with Love and Care” and perhaps 0% Carbon Footprint becomes the ultimate NEW branding.
At Out Of The Box Events Limited we have this responsibility to encourage our clients to use local venues and sites within the natural environment as much as possible. We also encourage the minimisation of the impact on the environment. Effectively, CSR must become part of our core business strategy and not remain a feel good factor.