TJ Vasquez
Throughout the last few years, working-class individuals and society as a whole have called out unethical business practices. Partly thanks to the internet’s ability to spread information to most corners of the world, business leaders have started accepting that society is viewing their practices under a microscope. In response to criticisms regarding climate change, employee welfare, and an array of other grievances, many companies have moved to adopt social responsibility.
Keep reading to learn about what social responsibility is, how it benefits companies and consumers alike, and discover several organizations that are already pursuing more responsible operations.
What Does Social Responsibility Mean for Businesses?
Social responsibility, also known as corporate social responsibility (CSR), is the concept that implores businesses to act in ways that benefit society as a whole instead of focusing primarily on their own growth and profits. It’s a crucial element of modern business practices. Investors and consumers alike want to align themselves with companies that generate profits AND contribute to their communities.
In the not-so-distant past, business leaders were concerned with the performance of the company itself and growing the organization’s value. The welfare of humanity and the environment weren’t on their list of priorities. However, the younger generations are pushing for positive change across the board.
Today’s business leaders, for the most part, are creating company-wide policies designed to keep ethics in mind when pursuing expansion and success. These policies aim to create a sense of balance between the goal of profitability and the responsibility to enrich society wherever possible.
Types of Social Responsibility
According to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), there are four main types of social responsibility that businesses can adopt. These types include:
- Philanthropy: Participating in charitable acts or other positive works that benefit one’s community
- Volunteering: Dedicating time and effort to providing a service without the expectation of monetary compensation
- Ethical Labor: Facilitating a work environment that utilizes fair, legal practices that promote the well-being of workers
- Environmental Change: Taking positives steps to make changes in business processes with the goal of helping to preserve the environment
For organizations to remain focused on enhancing the brand’s performance and striving for social and environmental improvements, implementing one or more of these branches of social responsibility into business practices is a must.
Examples of Social Responsibility in Practice
Social responsibility, especially corporate social responsibility, can take on many forms. As such, each company’s approach and its included practices can look a little different from what the next company does.
Let’s explore a few examples of what social responsibility might look like in practice from the perspective of one of the four main types of responsible behavior: philanthropic, economic, ethical, and environmental.
Philanthropic Responsibility
There are several ways a business can pursue more philanthropic practices. This is especially true when the business operates as a multi-million dollar corporation. The essence of philanthropy is simply striving to make the world a better place through the work an individual or group does. Some examples of philanthropic responsibility for businesses are as follows:
- Making financial contributions to worthy causes
- Creating charitable programs
- Speaking out about the company’s mission
- Taking active steps to benefit society
Economic Responsibility
In the past, economic responsibility was especially lacking when it came to the ways business leaders operated. Profits were the main goal for organizations. The executives in these businesses were tethered to the belief that inflating one’s bank account was proof of success.
However, the number of zeros behind an individual’s monetary worth means very little when there’s no one to share experiences with because these individuals were the only ones living decent lives (at the expense of those less fortunate).
Because of this, socially responsible businesses made an effort to change the way they viewed success. Nowadays, economic responsibility involves the practice of making economic decisions that help people, communities, and the environment in which we live. Such practices might include these.
- Leading one’s business with economically-sound practices
- Economic research and problem-solving efforts
- Ensuring the economic well-being of employees
Ethical Responsibility
Nobody wants to work for or buy from a corporation that expresses cruelty. As such, ethical responsibility has become a greater focus in today’s business landscape than it’s been in the past. Businesses pursuing ethical responsibility aim to operate in ways that promote fair treatment among leaders, employees, vendors, suppliers, customers, and investors.
Examples of these practices are as follows:
- Paying employees a livable wage
- Using ethically-sourced materials
- Practicing due diligence before business transactions
- Rejecting products that are the result of slave or child labor
Environmental Responsibility
The reality of climate change is not lost on Millennial and Gen X leaders. In response to the challenges we collectively face, these leaders have opted to utilize processes and resources that do less harm to the environment.
Acts of environmental responsibility include (but are not limited to) the following.
- Reducing waste production
- Regulating utility & water usage
- Decreasing emissions and other pollutants
- Implementing renewable energy and materials
- Recycling
- Contributing to environmental causes
- Reworking business processes for sustainability
Benefits of Social Responsibility for Businesses
There exists an opportunity to reap a number of benefits by embracing socially responsible behaviors, both for business leaders and their consumers.
Some of these benefits include:
- Reducing the business industry’s negative effects on the environment
- Better bottom lines for businesses that have gained the respect and loyalty of their consumer base
- Improving a company’s brand image
- Increasing a company’s brand awareness
- Enhancing employee morale
- Tax benefits
- Potential to save money
Today’s business leaders are becoming far more aware than their predecessors that humanity only has one Earth to live on. These individuals know that if we’re not willing to make sweeping changes in order to preserve the life our planet has, the outcome will be disastrous for everyone involved.
Another beneficial change that has taken hold of the corporate mindset in recent years is that young business leaders CARE about the trajectory Earth and its people are following. They have entire human lifetimes to look forward to on this planet, and many of them want to foster a healthy home for future generations.
Companies Embracing Social Responsibility
While it may seem like the concept of social responsibility is a pipe dream, plenty of prominent businesses are already taking the lead and making changes to their operating practices.
It’s worth noting that some business-minded individuals don’t believe that corporations have any responsibility to the public or the environment, and fortunately, the companies we’ll discuss below happen to disagree with that sentiment.
Corporate social responsibility is a common sense idea, and the position that humanity and the livability of Earth itself are “not our responsibility” is cruel at best and catastrophic at worst. As such, today’s leading businesses are blazing a path toward a more sustainable future.
Hopefully, the efforts made to lead by example will garner positive changes and influence far more business leaders to walk that same path.
Google has not only adopted initiatives that benefit the environment, but the company has also taken a stand in response to social issues. Google’s data centers currently use less than half the energy other centers do, and the company has pursued over $1 billion in renewable energy projects. In addition, the CEO has been very vocal about his disdain for xenophobia and cruelty toward various social groups.
Ford
The Ford Motor Company has invested $22 billion into electric vehicle development. They’ve also announced their goal to have carbon-neutral vehicles by 2050. In addition to carbon neutrality efforts, Ford is also focusing on diversity and pay equity among the brand’s employees.
TOMS
This company made it their mission to donate one pair of shoes to those in need for every pair of shoes they sell. This endeavor has led to more than 100 million pairs of shoes being distributed charitably. The profits generated from the campaign have been used to fund accessibility ventures for prescription eyewear, medical care, creating jobs in developing nations, and providing clean drinking water for areas that don’t have access to it.
Following the shoe campaign, TOMS also donated funds to several social organizations, such as Black Lives Matter and the COVID-19 Giving Fund.
Bosch
Bosch has announced its goal to reduce the company’s ecological footprint by taking climate-friendly actions, maintaining smarter water consumption, and creating a circular economy. As of now, 400 Bosch locations are carbon neutral.
Starbucks
This company pledged to diversify its workforce and has hired 25,000 veterans and their spouses. On top of that, Starbucks hires around 5,000 veterans and spouses every year. Not to mention, the mentorship program promoted by this company was created to connect BIPOC individuals with senior leaders to foster beneficial partnerships.
Lego
Over the next couple of years, Lego will invest $400 million into sustainability efforts. For starters, they’re working on eliminating single-use plastic packaging for their products. They’re also working toward creating more sustainable products, like those that are carbon neutral.
Practically everybody knows that the most powerful of us are also obligated to be the most responsible of us, otherwise, society cannot thrive. By holding businesses accountable and praising the positive changes they make, consumers and other business leaders can help facilitate more sustainable economic growth. By practicing social responsibility, companies of all sizes can develop a collective mindset that makes the environment, the community at large, and profitability of equal importance.
To learn more about smart branding practices like social responsibility, stay tuned. Content Cucumber posts marketing content on a weekly basis, and if you’d like to take a more direct approach to enhancing your marketing and operational capabilities, book a demo with us to explore the various services we offer.
