Corporate Social Responsibility

Definition: 

CSR recognises that all businesses operate within a society and that practices must not violate human rights of individuals, a community, or a nation and must ensure sustainability of the broader environment. 

Triple Bottom Line: There is social pressure upon businesses to not pursue profit at the expense of people and the planet. Businesses should aim for the Triple Bottom Line; Profit, People and Planet, and should set targets in each of the these categories to be a good corporate citizen (rather than a destructive entity out for profit).

How it can influence operations: 

• Alter supply chain / global contracting to ensure no human rights / slavery / sweat shop conditions exist ‘upstream’ in the value chain

• Uphold high standards for treatment of workers and environmental standards of practice in operations

• Could lift overall cost of operations (cheaper inputs are usually the ones that exploit human labour in developing nations)

• CSR initiatives could lift morale of employees in the workplace, increasing productivity