Dynamics of corporate social responsibility: towards a new ‘conception of control’?

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
THOMAS LAMARCHE ◽  
MARIANNE RUBINSTEIN
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Shareholder Value ◽  
Social Demand ◽  
Ecological Society ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Governance Changes ◽  
Control Set ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Institutional Process

Abstract:Corporate social responsibility (CSR) was long associated with the ethics of company heads but now falls within an institutional process whereby practices give rise to rules which in turn modify company actions. CSR has spread as a result of social demand for a more ecological society, but it also constitutes a response to the crisis of shareholder governance. Drawing on the notion of ‘conception of control’ set out by Neil Fligstein (1990), we argue that CSR has given rise to a new ‘conception of control’, which we term ‘shareholder–CSR compatible’. Such a conception reflects how governance changes when environmental and societal responsibilities are combined with responsibility to shareholders. Shareholder value is still central within the enterprise, but top managers must now assume the position of mediators between these two imperatives.

Corporate Social Responsibility und Medienunternehmen

2008 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 35-41
Author(s):  
Matthias Karmasin ◽  
Peter Strahlendorf ◽  
Florian Nehm
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Shareholder Value ◽  
Social Responsiveness ◽  
Corporate Social

Die Fähigkeit eines Unternehmens, über den Tellerrand des rein wirtschaftlichen Handelns hinauszublicken und sich als glaubwürdiges Glied in der Gesellschaft zu definieren, gilt als zunehmend wichtiger Erfolgsfaktor. Als ungenügend wird die enge opportunistische Ausrichtung des Managementhandelns auf den Shareholder Value gegeißelt. Der Gesellschaft wird die Legitimation zugesprochen, die Unternehmen darauf hin zu beurteilen, ob sie in ihren Aktivitäten moralischen Grundsätzen standhalten und zu einem „guten“ gesellschaftlichen Leben beitragen. Umgekehrt wird von den Unternehmen verlangt, diesen Beitrag zur „Social Responsiveness“ sichtbar zu machen, sich offen gegenüber der Unternehmensumwelt zu verhalten, ein ehrliches Verhalten an den Tag zu legen und auf die Interessen und Anliegen der Stakeholder konstruktiv einzugehen. Die nachfolgenden Standpunkte zum Thema CSR beleuchten die Thematik aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven. Matthias Karmasin gibt einen methodischen Überblick über die Konzeptionen und Instrumente von CSR und verweist auf die hohe Verantwortung von Medien unternehmen, sich ernsthaft mit CSR auseinander zu setzen. Peter Strahlendorf zeigt auf, dass sich im Bereich der Medienunternehmen zahlreiche Beispiele für eindrucksvolle CSR-Aktivitäten finden lassen, dass teilweise aber auch Nach holbedarf, z. B. im Vergleich zur Industrie, besteht. Florian Nehm fokussiert den Blick auf das Nachhaltigkeitskonzept bei der Axel Springer AG.

scholarly journals From Shareholder Value to Sustainability

2010 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sigurt Vitols
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Shareholder Value ◽  
Social Crisis ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Guiding Principles ◽  
Corporate Social

The current triple crisis we face, an ecological, financial and social crisis, clearly shows the limits to Corporate Social Responsibility and shareholder value as guiding principles for our companies. Comprehensive reforms are needed in order to reorient companies towards policies which are sustainable in the long run.

Top Managers as Drivers for Corporate Social Responsibility

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane L. Swanson
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Corporate Social Performance ◽  
Social Performance ◽  
Moral Dilemmas ◽  
Moral Leadership ◽  
Business And Society ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Corporate Social

This article addresses top managers as drivers for corporate social responsibility (CSR). It summarizes the responsibility roles implied by or assigned to managers in selected models of corporate social performance. Given this backdrop for business and society research, it focuses on the importance of moral leadership in directing the formal and informal organization toward socially responsible goals. In other words, the emphasis is on the focal role of top executive managers in driving social responsibility. This focus is not meant to convey that middle or lower managers are irrelevant to CSR. It is simply that their decision-making discretion is largely circumscribed by top managers, which is why middle and lower managers often face uncomfortable moral dilemmas when their values are incompatible with those established at a higher level of command. Finally, this article points to some contextual factors that impact socially responsible leadership in terms of external and internal controls.

scholarly journals Technological Competition, Innovation Motive and Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Top Managers of European SMEs

De Economist ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 168 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Graafland ◽  
Niels Noorderhaven
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Technological Competition ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Various motives have been proposed for firms to engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR), but no attention has been paid to innovation as a motive to engage in CSR. In this paper we explore the role of this motive and hypothesize that it is particularly important for companies facing intensive technological competition. We find support for this in a sample of 2579 top managers of small and medium sized enterprises from 12 European countries. The innovation motive mediates the relationship between technological competition and CSR and is the most (second most) important motive for environmental and social CSR, respectively.

Corporate social responsibility and shareholder support for corporate governance changes

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 687-705 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles P. Cullinan ◽  
Lois S. Mahoney ◽  
Pamela Roush
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Governance Changes ◽  
Governance Practices ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper examines whether shareholders consider corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance when voting on corporate governance change proposals submitted by dissident shareholders. These proposals recommend changes to the corporate governance status quo and are made by dissident shareholders who are dissatisfied with the company’s existing governance practices. Design/methodology/approach Using 195 governance change proposals voted on during 2013, the paper examines the relationship between CSR performance (obtained from the MSCI database) and the level of voting support for these proposals. Findings This study finds that shareholder support for corporate governance change proposals submitted by dissident shareholders is positively related to firms’ CSR concerns, especially environmental concerns. Research limitations/implications The findings suggest that shareholders may be concerned with the potentially adverse effects of weak CSR performance, especially poor environmental performance, and may support changes to corporate governance structures when a company’s CSR and environmental performance is weaker. Originality/value As the first research to examine the relationship between CSR and proposed changes to corporate governance, this study provides unique insights into shareholder perceptions of the value of CSR based on shareholders’ support (or lack thereof) for governance changes proposed by dissident shareholders.

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