Abraaj Capital Limited: Celebration of Entrepreneurship (CoE)

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melodena Stephens Balakrishnan ◽  
Ian Michael
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Marketing Strategy ◽  
Stakeholder Engagement ◽  
Private Equity ◽  
Ecosystem Development ◽  
Event Management ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Social

TitleAbraaj Capital Limited: Celebration of Entrepreneurship (CoE).Subject areaStrategic stakeholder engagement, entrepreneurialism, ecosystem, corporate social responsibility, event management, branding, marketing strategy.Study level/applicabilityPost‐graduate level, practitioners interested in MENSA Region, entrepreneurship policy makers and NGOs.Case overviewAbraaj Capital Ltd (Abraaj), a highly reputed private equity investment and management company, strongly believed in corporate social responsibility, strategic stakeholder engagement and entrepreneurship ecosystem development. In November, 2010, Abraaj held the “Celebration of Entrepreneurship” (CoE) a two‐day free entrepreneur event, in Dubai. CoE was attended by more than 2,400 participants. The purpose of CoE was to contribute to building an entrepreneurship ecosystem in the Middle East North Africa South Asia region (MENASA). Based on participant feedback, CoE Outcomes and stakeholder feedback, the event was very successful.This case is a good example of community engagement and showcases entrepreneurship ecosystem development. This case also highlights the challenges of putting together a signature event in a very short time frame. The future management dilemmas are also raised on various issues like whether to make this successful event a regular part of their organizational activities, and issues concerning the funding of such events. This case can be used to teach event management, branding, marketing strategy, CSR and entrepreneurship (from the ecosystem point of view). It will appeal to both educationalists and practitioners interested in the MENASA region, policy makers who facilitate entrepreneurship, CSR managers, event management companies and marketing specialist. It can be used to teach both undergraduate and postgraduate courses.Expected learning outcomesStrategy students can focus on marketing and branding strategies; like stakeholder engagement, internal marketing, social media, positioning and brand architecture. Student of event management can learn about prioritizing, adaptability, funding and the complexity of layering a program.Supplementary materialsTeaching notes, videos.

Corporate governance and corporate social responsibility interface: a case study of private equity

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 703-717 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virgo Süsi ◽  
Krista Jaakson
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Firm Value ◽  
Private Equity ◽  
Resource Dependence Theory ◽  
Medium Size ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This paper aims to explore why private equity (PE) cares about corporate social responsibility (CSR) of its investees given their relatively short investment time-horizon and how it designs corporate governance (CG) bundle to achieve both financial and CSR goals of the private firms it invests in. Design/methodology/approach Case study design is applied to get deeper insights on the why and how questions posed. Analysis is based on triangulation of secondary data and in-depth interviews with both PE and their investee firms. Findings The authors find that long-term sustainability supported by CSR increases firm value. They also outline specific CG bundle that the PE uses to achieve both its financial and CSR goals. CG mechanisms appeared to reflect agency theory, but even more resource dependence theory. Practical implications The outlined CG bundle could be used as a template for all types of private firm owners to improve both financial and CSR performance of the firm. Originality/value The paper adds to fragmented area of CG and CSR interface. The authors specifically focus on several under-researched contexts of this interface: private small and medium size firms (SMEs), emerging markets and PE investors.

Impact of corporate social responsibility practices on organizational performance: an ISO 26000 perspective

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Changiz Valmohammadi
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Organizational Performance ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Iso 26000 ◽  
Core Subjects ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose – This study aims to provide reliable and valid constructs of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and a measurement instrument in the context of Iranian organizations based on the seven core subjects of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26000 standard. It also examines the effects of these seven CSR criteria, namely, organizational governance, human rights, labor practices, the environment, fair operating practices, consumer issues and community involvement, and development on the organizational performance of Iranian organizations. Design/methodology/approach – Through an extensive study of literature review, the related items of these core subjects were identified. Data for the study were collected from 207 Iranian manufacturing and service firms. The research model was tested using structural equation modeling. Findings – Statistical analysis revealed that a number of significant relationships between CSR practices and organizational performance of Iranian organizations. The result found that community involvement and development plays an important role in enhancing organizational performance of organizations. Research limitations/implications – First, the time sequence of the association between the variables could not be concluded, given that cross-sectional data were used. A future study is suggested to conduct a longitudinal research design to present the evidence of causation which cannot be achieved through cross-sectional designs. Second, this study was limited to Iran. Hence, the findings and conclusions drawn from this research are representative of the Iranian context only. Hence, final results should be considered with caution. Practical implications – This study offers a number of implications for Iranian managers and policy-makers. First, this study identified that there is a relationship between CSR practices based on the seven core subjects of ISO 26000 and firm performance in the context of Iran. Second, the instrument developed, in this research, will be very useful to policy-makers in various industries of Iran as a tool for evaluating the effectiveness of their current CSR practices and initiatives. Third, decision-makers can also prioritize the CSR practices on which their firms should focus to improve their organizational performance. Originality/value – The novelty of this research is to determine the related items of the core subjects of ISO 26000 as the main factors and offer an instrument to measure the effects of various CSR practices on organizational performance of Iranian firms in the context of Iran.

The governance of corporate social responsibility

2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 105-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethel Uzoma Ihugba
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Stakeholder Engagement ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Policy Perspective ◽  
Conceptual Paper ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
New Framework

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the limitations of promoting corporate social responsibility (CSR) regulation and suggests a model for improving accountability in CSR practices through stakeholder engagement-based inclusive regulation framework that is effective, coherent and responsive. Design/methodology/approach – This conceptual paper uses desk-based research to analyse extant literature on the concept of regulation of CSR by looking at examples, benefits and limitations before proposing a framework for improving CSR regulation. Findings – The paper finds that the system of promoting CSR through self-regulation or introducing prescriptive regulation without sustainable stakeholder engagement is ineffective and inefficient. Originality/value – The paper is original in its development of a new framework of “Inclusive Regulation” as a strategy for limiting the shortcomings of prescriptive regulation and enhancing self-regulation as CSR tools. It thus contributes to both theoretical and policy perspective in the enhancement of prescriptive and self-regulation in CSR-regulation discourse.

Firm–civil society organizational collaborations in the context of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives; development of collaboration typology

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 359-375
Author(s):  
Som Sekhar Bhattacharyya ◽  
Surabhi Verma
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Stakeholder Engagement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Civil Society Organisations ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Six Elements ◽  
Contextual Domain ◽  
Corporate Social

PurposeBusiness firms operate in society not only for market gains but also for generating positive social externalities. Civil society organisations (CSO) have helped society to develop across various spheres of influence. The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) ushered in an era wherein both business economic objectives as well as socio-environmental responsibilities of firms were prioritized simultaneously. The path of firms and CSOs intersected through CSR. In this work, the authors develop a typology on firm–CSO collaboration regarding CSR initiatives.Design/methodology/approachThe authors through a twin approach of systematic literature review (SLR) with qualitative study developed a categorization of collaborations between a firm and a CSO in the context of CSR engagements. Apart from the SLR, the authors undertook two focus group discussions (FGD) with CSR experts (engaged in firm–CSO collaboration). This was done with a semi-structured discussion agenda frame. The data were content analysed for thematic aspects. Thus, both SLR as well as FGD outputs were considered for the study results.FindingsThe authors found six elements in firm–CSO collaboration and seven archetypes of collaboration. The six elements were CSR action elements (CSRAE) consisting of CSR agenda (CSRA), CSR resources (CSRR), CSR capabilities (CSRC), CSR Pprocess (CSRP), CSR monitoring (CSRM) and CSR stakeholder engagement (CSRSE). The seven typologies were CSO as auditor , outsourcing of CSR , CSO-driven CSR, joint CSR, support to CSO for CSR ,guided support to CSO and coordinated CSR.Research limitations/implicationsDoty and Glick, (1994) had undertaken a seminal work on theory building based upon the unique method of application of typologies. Doty and Glick, (1994) elucidated how application of typologies could through a typology study enhance the scope and level for understanding and modelling in a contextual domain involving theory. This study was a step in this direction in the context of firm–CSO collaboration in the context of CSR initiatives.Practical implicationsThis study would help managers from both CSOs and business firms to comprehend in which sphere they were required to collaborate like in resource /capabilities deployment or in designing CSR agendas or CSR process or CSR monitoring or in stakeholder engagement during CSR management. This typology would enable managers to comprehend what would be the most suitable form of collaboration between a firm and a CSO for a specific CSR engagement.Originality/valueThis is one of the first studies that theorizes regarding firm–CSO collaboration in the context of CSR initiatives both in terms of the collaboration building block elements as well as typology presented.

Examining the effect of employee green involvement on perception of corporate social responsibility

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 197-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anugamini Priya Srivastava ◽  
Sonal Shree
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Stakeholder Management ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Confirmatory Factor ◽  
Corporate Social

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to understand the extent to which green involvement (GI) can affect employee perception of corporate social responsibility (CSR), with the intervening role of green training (GT).Design/methodology/approachThe sample for the study was collected from employees working in tourist hotels. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the fit of the hypothesized model, and hierarchical regression analysis to test the hypothesis.FindingsThe results showed that GI of employees has a positive and significant relationship with their perception of CSR. The study further revealed that when there is an increase in GT, the relationship between GI and perception of CSR gets more positive.Originality/valueIt adds value to the ongoing research in the field of environment, training and CSR. The findings will be helpful for policy makers and researchers in the field of stakeholder management.

Does CFO accounting expertise matter to corporate social responsibility disclosure in 10-Ks?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Guo ◽  
Sungsoo Kim ◽  
Yang Yu ◽  
Jung Yeun (June) Kim
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Personal Attributes ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Accounting Expertise ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe study aims to understand the role of accountant in corporate social responsibility (CSR) practice.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, the authors examine whether and how chief financial officer (CFO) accounting expertise and previous work experience influence voluntary CSR disclosure, using textual analysis and natural language processing (NLP) techniques. The authors find that firms' CFOs with accounting expertise disclose more CSR issues in their 10-K reports. Overall, this study provides evidence of the impact of CFOs' professional and personal attributes on voluntary CSR disclosure in corporate annual reports. This study has important implications to investors and policy makers in the context of CSR disclosure regulations in annual reports.FindingsOverall, this study provides evidence of the impact of CFOs' professional and personal attributes on voluntary CSR disclosure in corporate annual reports. This study has important implications to practitioners and policy makers in the context of CSR disclosure regulations in annual reports.Research limitations/implicationsThere is an inherent limitation of textual analysis as the tool tries to read key words from the text.Practical implicationsThis finding is useful for policy maker and investors as CSR is known to have impact on the share price.Originality/valueThis paper is the first attempt to find out accountants' role in CSR activities, which has not been examined in the prior literature.

Effect of target-and-incentive-consistency of unexpected positive earnings news on investors’ responses to corporate social responsibility performance

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lei Wang
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Investment Strategy ◽  
Financial Information ◽  
Information Support ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Nonfinancial Information ◽  
Pricing Decisions ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This study examines the effect of target-and-incentive-consistency of unexpected positive earnings news on investors’ use of corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance information in their pricing decisions. Design/methodology/approach A 2 × 2 full factorial between-participants experiment is conducted. Findings Target-and-incentive-consistency of unexpected positive earnings news moderates the effect of CSR performance on investors’ pricing decisions. Research limitations/implications Its findings shed insights on investors’ use of a mix of CSR, financial and governance information, support the financial information elasticity effect and add to the effect of financial information on investors’ use of nonfinancial information. Practical implications The effect of inelastic financial information in mitigating the CSR information effect can benefit investors who do not plan to use a CSR investment strategy. Knowledge of investors’ conditional use of CSR information can benefit firm managers and policy makers. Originality/value Its findings support a heretofore unexamined theoretical underpinning for the effect of financial information on investors’ use of nonfinancial information.

Corporate social responsibility performance communication and portfolio management

2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (5) ◽  
pp. 595-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rashid Ameer ◽  
Radiah Othman
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Portfolio Management ◽  
Stakeholder Engagement ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Proactive Approach ◽  
Small Economy ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance communication and stocks’ performance using socially responsible investment (SRI) portfolio management approach. Design/methodology/approach The authors used the multi-factors models to examine the impact of CSR performance communication on the ex post monthly returns of three distinctly formed portfolios as well as their differential performance from 2001 to 2013 in a small economy of New Zealand. Findings The results show that SRS portfolio comprising of the stocks that demonstrate a relatively less proactive approach to the social and environmental concerns outperforms a stock portfolio that comprises of companies that have a relatively proactive approach to stakeholder engagement referred to as SVS portfolio. Furthermore, the authors’ findings show a positive relationship between social performance and market valuation. This indicates that the market values more stakeholder engagement in regard to social issues than environmental issues. Research limitations/implications The authors’ findings imply that the SRI does make perfect financial sense in a small economy such as New Zealand. The perception of the CSR communication as an “insurance” for mitigation of social and environmental risks is one of the factors driving the valuation of SRI portfolios in New Zealand. Originality/value The authors collected CSR data from the publicly available sources such as the annual reports, the CSR reports and sustainability reports because a layman investor is more likely to rely on these sources in a small economy.

Corporate social responsibility and earnings management in the EU: a panel data analysis approach

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Panagiotis E. Dimitropoulos
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Panel Data ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Negative Association ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Eu

Purpose Over the past decades, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been considered as a significant corporate strategy and also has been documented as a main information dissemination mechanism of corporations to shareholders, creditors and other external stakeholders. This fact makes the CSR activities and CSR performance interconnected with the quality of firms’ financial reporting. The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of CSR performance on the earnings management (EM) behaviour using a sample from 24 European Union (EU) countries summing up to 121,154 firm-year observations over the period 2003–2018. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a multi-country data set with various dimensions of CSR performance including indexes regarding workforce, community relations, product responsibility and human rights protection. The empirical analysis is conducted with panel data regressions. Findings Evidence supports the negative association between CSR and EM indicating that high CSR performing firms are associated with less income smoothing and discretionary accruals, thus with higher financial reporting quality. Practical implications Regulatory agencies in the EU could use the findings of the study for the improvement of the accounting framework via enhancing the use and publications of social and environmental responsibility information and reports. Social implications Also, the current paper could be of interest not only to academic researchers but also to potential and existing investors in European corporations. The negative association between CSR performance and EM could be used by investors in assessing the risk of firms and the quality and reliability of their financial information. Originality/value This is the first study within the EU, which considers the multi-facet characteristics of CSR on the quality of accounting earnings and offers useful policy implications for regulators and investors.

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