scholarly journals An ethical perspective of business CSR and the COVID-19 pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 235-253
Author(s):  
Timothy Manuel ◽  
Terri L. Herron
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Ethical Perspective ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Individual Health ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
External Stakeholders ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to focus on business responses to the pandemic through an ethical lens and to make recommendations for future research in this unique environment. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic presents many ethical implications for businesses’ responses in balancing individual health and firm risks during the initial and recovery stages. What decisions are businesses making in this pandemic environment? What ethical foundations most align with these decisions? Design/methodology/approach The authors review recent business actions taken in response to the pandemic in light of models of motivation for corporate social responsibility (CSR). Findings Businesses have engaged in a wide range of philanthropic CSR actions during the pandemic, likely motivated by both utilitarianism and deontological factors in response to the needs of internal and external stakeholders. The pandemic has disparate impacts, generally hurting lower-income individuals more, likely increasing inequality. Research limitations/implications There are many questions for future research to determine where pandemic-related CSR has different effects for businesses over the long term compared to the pre-pandemic environment. Social implications Businesses must act to benefit society, protect employees and maintain the trust of their stakeholders during the pandemic. Originality/value Existing models have examined corporate disaster philanthropic responses that were localized and acute. Business responses to the COVID-19 virus are unique given the severity, the widespread nature and the duration of the crisis.

Intertwining CSR with strategy – the way ahead

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shital Jhunjhunwala
Keyword(s):  
Business Strategy ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Corporate Strategy ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the importance and means of making corporate social responsibility (CSR) an integral part of corporate strategy with the help of case studies. Design/methodology/approach – The article explores the transformation of business from being egocentric to socially responsible. With the use of examples it demonstrates how integrating CSR into strategy can create sustainable business models. Findings – Firms need to develop a framework for integrating CSR into their business strategy for long term successful survival. Social implications – Corporates and society are intertwined and mutually dependent. Business cannot survive without society's acquiescence nor succeed without its active support. Originality/value – The article explains the benefits of CSR and how to make it an integral part of business strategy to gain a competitive advantage.

Professional trilemma of students with family business experience

Kybernetes ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 446-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaka Vadnjal ◽  
Predrag Ljubotina
Keyword(s):  
Family Business ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Senior Student ◽  
Content Type ◽  
East European ◽  
Educational Backgrounds ◽  
The Mean

Purpose – Family businesses represent the largest share of small-sized firms in majority of economies around the world. Having in mind the global economic situation this trend is expected to be continued. With the goal of better understanding of the process of transferring the business to the next generation, which ensures a long-term success, the purpose of this paper is to investigate expectations of student’s with family business background. Design/methodology/approach – The research addresses the issue of an individual’s perception of entrepreneurship and the related factors that influence individual’s decision on whether to build a career as an employee, become a successor of family business or start own business as an independent entrepreneur. The authors separately analyzed West European (data from another study), East European and Slovenian senior student population for the purpose of comparative study. Students were surveyed and binominal regression was used for statistics. Findings – The results show differences between investigated populations and positions Slovenian students in the mean. The authors anticipate that differences are caused by historical, cultural and educational backgrounds. This challenging area is raising a lot of sub-questions for possible future research. Originality/value – The value of the study is in the replication of the existing methodology from the benchmarking study and result comparison.

scholarly journals A biopsychosocial framework for recovery from COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 1021-1039
Author(s):  
Kaz Stuart ◽  
Mark A. Faghy ◽  
Elaine Bidmead ◽  
Ruth Browning ◽  
Catriona Roberts ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Living Arrangements ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Narrow Range ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThis paper proposes a biopsychosocial (BPS) analysis of COVID-19 experiences which enhances understanding of complex and interrelated factors and leads to the proposition of a BPS recovery framework.Design/methodology/approachOnline narrative research was used to explore people's experiences of COVID-19 and was conducted over a four-month period. The call was distributed via a short open-ended qualitative online survey advertised on social media platforms and 305 responses came from across England.FindingsThe findings illustrate people with a narrow range of BPS characteristics experienced over a wide range of BPS impacts which are nuanced, complex and dynamic. Left unaddressed these may create future adverse BPS characteristics. An integrated BPS framework for recovery is proposed to avoid such further negative outcomes from the pandemic.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample contained a bias in age, gender and living arrangements.Practical implicationsThe paper offers a clear framework to enable integrated holistic recovery/regrowth planning.Social implicationsUsing the framework would reduce social and health inequities which have been recently deepened by COVID-19 in the long-term.Originality/valueThe paper is original in its use of a BPS analytical framework.

scholarly journals All insects are equal, but some insects are more equal than others

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (4) ◽  
pp. 852-863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnout R.H. Fischer ◽  
L.P.A. (Bea) Steenbekkers
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Prior Experience ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Valuable Contribution ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Insects As Food ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Lack of acceptance of insects as food is considered a barrier against societal adoption of the potentially valuable contribution of insects to human foods. An underlying barrier may be that insects are lumped together as one group, while consumers typically try specific insects. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the ways in which Dutch consumers, with and without insect tasting experience, are more or less willing to eat different insects. Design/methodology/approach In a quasi-experimental study (n=140), the participants with and without prior experience in eating insects were asked to give their willingness to eat a range of insects, and their attitudes and disgust towards eating insects. Findings Insects promoted in the market were more preferred than the less marketed insects, and a subgroup of preferred insects for participants with experience in eating insects was formed. Research limitations/implications Although well-known insects were more preferred, general willingness to eat remained low for all participants. The results indicate that in future research on insects as food the specific insects used should be taken into account. Practical implications Continued promotion of specific, carefully targeted, insects may not lead to short-term uptake of insects as food, but may contribute to willingness to eat insects as human food in the long term. Originality/value The paper shows substantial differences between consumers who have and who have not previously tasted insects, with higher acceptance of people with experience in tasting insects for the specific insects that are frequently promoted beyond their generally more positive attitude towards eating insects.

Corporate involvement brings environmental improvement: the language of disclosure in Malaysian CSR reports

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 130-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kumaran Rajandran
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Systemic Functional Linguistics ◽  
Corporate Communication ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Environmental Improvement ◽  
Corporate Context ◽  
Corporate Actions ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose – This paper aims to analyse how Environment Sections in Malaysian corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports disclose environmental CSR. Design/methodology/approach – The analysis is grounded in Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), which helps to examine the macrostructure (topics) and microstructure (language features) of Environment Sections. It is complemented by interviews with corporate representatives to obtain insights about these structures. Findings – The macrostructure consists of five topics of Introduction, Initiative, Featured Initiative, Adherence and Finance to enable a comprehensive understanding about environmental CSR. The microstructure emphasizes language features about corporate actions and descriptions to enable environmental CSR in a particular time, place and way. Through the macro- and microstructures, the disclosure in Environment Sections portrays corporate involvement as bringing environmental improvement. It displays the corporate perspective, which promotes corporations as agents of positive social change. The disclosure is seen to be influenced by Malaysia’s corporate context. Research limitations/implications – As the corpus is limited to ten corporations in three years, future research should expand the corpus to comprise Environment Sections from other years, countries, languages and industries. Originality/value – The paper is useful to people practicing and studying corporate communication, as knowing SFL can improve discursive competence or a systematic way to decipher and deploy language.

Colleague curriculum wins bronze for Barclays

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 15-16
Keyword(s):  
Blended Learning ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Learning Program ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – Describes a blended-learning program at Barclays bank that won bronze in the 2015 Learning Awards. Design/methodology/approach – Examines the reasons for the program, the form it takes and the results it is achieving. Findings – Explains that the program, named Colleague Curriculum, is designed to create a learner-led blend of learning for more than 135,000 Barclays employees. Practical implications – Highlights the program’s flexibility, which helps to ensure that it is suitable for a wide range of employee skills and cultures. Social implications – Sites the learning program in the context of Barclays’ Transform program, a long-term journey of change which aims to make the bank the partner of choice for all its stakeholders. Originality/value – Reveals how technology can help to transform an organization’s learning.

Reflective leadership review: a framework for improving organisational performance

2016 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-236 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Ann Castelli
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Performance ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Organisational Performance ◽  
Effective Practice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Scholarly Literature ◽  
Potential Efficacy ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe, examine and discuss scholarly literature on reflective leadership, a topic gaining momentum as a result of globalization. Despite the growing popularity of reflective leadership techniques, current and aspiring leaders are struggling to find ways in which to effectively practice reflection as a consequence of a lack of tangible available guidance. Design/methodology/approach – Scholarly literature on reflective leadership was examined and presented in this paper. Discussion on the potential efficacy of reflective leadership is also included as the available literature on the topic is scarce in comparison to other more established leadership techniques. Findings – Reflective leadership has been shown to improve organizational performance. The advent of globalization further intensifies the need for an effective approach leaders may deploy when assessing the long-term consequences of their actions and decisions. Therefore, methods to extend the theory and effective practice of reflective leadership are necessary to enable the future development of leaders. Practical implications – This paper provides leaders with strategies for improving their leadership effectiveness. Practical techniques for utilizing reflective leadership are offered. Originality/value – This paper describes the challenges faced by leaders when adopting reflective leadership as a way to improve organizational performance. A universal framework is presented for the effective practice of reflective leadership. This framework provides a basis for future research to test the efficacy of the model.

scholarly journals Corporate social responsibility in a local subsidiary: internal and external stakeholders’ power

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 377-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pilar Marques ◽  
Merce Bernardo ◽  
Pilar Presas ◽  
Alexandra Simon
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Beverage Industry ◽  
External Stakeholders ◽  
Food And Beverage ◽  
Local Company ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose Using a theoretical and empirical focus on the power stakeholders exert, the purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the factors that influence the subsidiaries of multinationals’ participation in corporate social responsibility (CSR) under the pressures (expectations and demands) their complex system of internal and external stakeholders’ places upon them. Design/methodology/approach Using an in-depth case study, the relationship a local subsidiary in the food and beverage industry has with its stakeholders as regards CSR is analyzed. Findings The findings illustrate three main aspects: how the local company is affected by and how it affects its stakeholders (an example of the multidirectionality of power and influence); the direct and indirect practices that are adopted to address challenges; and the importance of the role the local subsidiary plays as an implementer and diffuser of its parent organization’s responsible practices across the industry value chain. Originality/value To the best of authors’ knowledge, the focus is on analyzing the power stakeholders have in the context of multinational companies that has not been applied before, and the outcome of using this approach is that the authors have uncovered gaps in the literature for future research.

Objectives and measures of performance of Islamic microfinance banks in Indonesia: the stakeholders' perspectives

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Taufik Akbar ◽  
A.K. Siti-Nabiha
Keyword(s):  
Islamic Law ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
External Stakeholders ◽  
Islamic Microfinance ◽  
Measures Of Performance

PurposeThis study investigates both internal and external stakeholders' views on the objectives and measures of performance of Indonesian Islamic microfinance banks (IMFBs).Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a qualitative approach. In-depth interviews were conducted with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders of IMFBs in Indonesia. The primary stakeholders interviewed comprised the board of directors of IMFBs located in several provinces in Indonesia, including rural and urban areas. The external stakeholders were the regulators/supervisors, represented by the Indonesian Financial Services Authority and Sharīʿah advisors of the National Sharīʿah Board as well as Muslim scholars. The data were analysed using CAQDAS, a computer-assisted tool for qualitative analysis.FindingsThe objectives of the IMFBs are seen to represent more than profits or economic well-being. Their objectives also comprise spirituality and daʿwah (Islamic propagation). Daʿwah is conducted through the provision of funding and services that are aligned with Sharīʿah (Islamic law), the dissemination of information about Islamic financing, which is based on Islamic values and principles, and the payment of zakat (Islamic alms) and charitable contributions. The measures of performance are considered to be more holistic than those of conventional banks. Profit and growth are deemed important as the means to achieve social well-being objectives.Research limitations/implicationsBetter insights into the objectives and measures of IMFBs could be achieved from interviews with other stakeholder categories, such as customers and the community. This could be the focus of future research.Originality/valueThis study added a new discussion to the limited empirical literature on IMFBs by investigating the views of stakeholders on the objectives and performance of IMFBs in Indonesia.

scholarly journals An ideological analysis of sustainable careers: identifying the role of fantasy and a way forward

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Matthijs Bal ◽  
Lee Matthews ◽  
Edina Dóci ◽  
Lucy P. McCarthy
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Current Paper ◽  
Future Research ◽  
General Interest ◽  
Theoretical Understanding ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Agency ◽  
The Individual

PurposeScholarly and general interest in sustainable careers is flourishing. Sustainable careers are focused on the long-term opportunities and experiences of workers across dynamic employment situations, and are characterized by flexibility, meaning and individual agency. The current paper analyzes and challenges the underlying ideological assumptions of how sustainable careers are conceptualized and advocates the inclusion of the ecological meaning of sustainability and the notion of dignity into the sustainable careers concept.Design/methodology/approachUsing Slavoj Žižek's (1989, 2001) conceptualization of ideology as fantasy-construction, the authors explore how the use of sustainable careers is influenced by fantasies about the contemporary workplace and the role of the individual in the workplace. This is a conceptual method.FindingsThe authors argue that the concept of sustainable careers is grounded in the neoliberal fantasy of the individual. The paper concludes by presenting an alternative concept of sustainable careers grounded in a dignity-perspective on sustainability, which offers an alternative theoretical understanding of sustainable careers in the contemporary workplace, sharpening its contours and usefulness in theorizing careers.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to systematically analyze the use and conceptualization of sustainable careers in the literate and to expose the ideological underpinnings of the concept. Propositions are developed to be explored by future research.

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