Business Roles Flashcards
Social Responsibility, Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Social Investment
Meaning of Social Responsibility
It is an obligation to work towards improving the welfare of the society.
An ethical viewpoint that says every individual/ organisation has an obligation to benefit society as a whole.
The responsibility.
The responsibility of every citizen/ individual/ organisation to contribute towards the well-being of the community and the environment in which they live. This responsibility can take the form of: Avoiding any actions that could harm the environment and the society and acting in ways that improve other people’s quality of life.
What is the triple bottom line
The triple bottom line means that businesses should focus on Profit (Economic), People (Social) and Plant (Environment).
The triple bottom line is an accounting framework consisting of the above mentioned three elements.
Many businesses have adopted this framework to evaluate their performance to create greater business value.
It is a way to measure business performance by evaluating its social, environmental and economic successes.
Profit/ Economic
Triple Bottom line means that businesses should not only focus on profit/ charge high prices but also invest in CSI projects.
Businesses should not make a profit at he expense of its community.
People/ Social
Businesses operations should not have a negative impact on/ exploit people/ employees/ customers/ community.
Businesses should engage/ invest in sustainable community programmes/ projects that will benefit/ uplift communities.
Improve the lifestyle/ quality of life of their human resources/ employees.
Planet/ Environment
Businesses should not exhaust resources/ harm the environment for production/ profit purposes.
They may support energy-efficient/ eco-friendly products/ production methods.
Recycle/ Re-use waste, e.g. packaging from recycled material.
Ways in which a business project can contribute towards the community
Charitable contributions to NGOs
Involvement in community education
Employment
Employee volunteer programmes
Suggest ways in which a business project can contribute towards the community
Charitable contributions to NGOs focus on the needs of the community.
Involvement in the community education/ homelessness/ health and other programmes.
Train people within the community, especially the unemployed.
Management could mentor new business owners to improve their efficiency and increase their profits.
Socio-Economic issues and strategies to address it
HIV/AIDS
Unemployment
Poverty
Strategies to deal with HIV/AIDS
Develop counselling programmes for infected/ affected persons/ employees.
Conduct workshops on HIV/AIDS programmes/ campaigns.
Encourage employees to join HIV/AIDS support groups.
Develop strategies to deal with stigma and discrimination.
Strategies to deal with unemployment
Provide skills development programmes through learnerships.
Offer bursaries to the community to improve the level of education.
Create jobs for members of the community.
Support existing small businesses to create more employment opportunities.
Strategies to deal with poverty
Invest in a young starting SME that can be a business competitor, buyer or supplier.
Attract the best employees by being socially responsible and offering the best volunteering programmes.
Support poverty alleviation programmes that are offered by the government.
Donate money/ food parcels to local NGOs
Ways in which businesses can contribute time and effort (Employees)
Provide recreational facilities for employees.
Provide transport for employees who work unusually long hours.
Allow flexible working hours to enhance productivity.
Offer annual medical assessments to workers.
Ways in which businesses can contribute time and effort (Communities)
Ensure that the products they supply do not harm consumers/ the environment.
Make ethically correct business decisions, e.g. not engage in unfair/misleading advertising, etc.
Donate money to a community project/ run a project to uplift the community.
Provide recreational/ sport facilities to promote social cohesion/ healthy activities.
Meaning of CSR
The way businesses manage their process to affect their stakeholders in a positive way.
CSR is the way a business conducts its operations ethically and morally regarding the use of human, physical and financial resources.
A business voluntarily takes steps to improve the quality of life for employees and their families and communities.
Purpose of CSR
CSR aims at creating a safe working environment for employees.
CSR may take the form of a monetary donation to support local organisations.
CSR programmes are internal programmes that businesses use to comply with laws and ethics.
Business operations address Triple Bottom Line through CSR programmes by considering its impact on people, profit and planet.
Components of CSR
Corporate governance
Business ethics
Employment equity
Community
Meaning of CSI
It is when a business commits money, resources and time to a specific project that will improve the lives of people.
The projects are not directly for purposes of increasing company profits.
It is the money that the business spend on the community to improve the standard of living of the community.
These projects have a strong developmental approach and utilise company resources to benefit and uplift communities.
Purpose of CSI
CSI is enforceable by law and government requires businesses to make CSI contributions.
CSI projects play a positive role in the development of communities.
CSI reveals a business’s attitude towards the community in which it operates.
CSI projects are long-term investment.
Components of CSI
Community
Rural development
Employees
Environment
CSR vs. CSI
CSR is the intention to change business practices whereas CSI actively commits money and resources to uplift the community.
CSR focuses on increasing image and profits whereas CSI focuses on the upliftment of community without return on investment.
Advantages of CSI/CSR on businesses
Promotes customer loyalty resulting in more sales.
CSI projects promote teamwork within businesses.
Disadvantages of CSI/CSR on businesses
It is difficult to accurately measure the effectiveness of social investment.
Businesses find it difficult to adhere to legislation governing CSI.
Positives of CSI/CSR on communities
Provision of bursaries encourage communities to improve their skills.
Socio-economic issues are attended to by businesses which will improve the welfare of the community.
Negatives of CSI/CSR on communities
Businesses are not always equipped to address social problems.
Communities tend to be dependent on CSR programmes and struggle to take their own initiatives.
