Corporations are accountable for their social and environmental impacts through corporate social responsibility (CSR). Besides maximizing profits, CSR promotes other pro-social objectives for corporations.
Environmental externalities are avoided, volunteerism is promoted, and donations to charity are among CSR objectives.
Why Should a Company Implement CSR?
As CSR becomes an increasingly important part of a brand's image, companies believe that customers will prefer to do business with ethical brands. Corporate social responsibility can therefore play an important role in corporate public relations. While engaging in CSR is not compulsory for all company founders, some are deeply committed to it.
What Is the Impact of CSR?
Several sectors have benefited from the CSR movement. The installation of renewable energy sources or the purchase of carbon offsets,
for example, have been among the measures many companies have taken to improve the environmental sustainability of their operations. Child labor and slavery have also been eliminated through the management of supply chains.
Even though corporate social responsibility programs are usually most prevalent among large companies, small businesses can operate their own CSR programs, such as donating to local charities and sponsoring local events.