Leveraging Corporate Social Responsibility As A Strategy by Melvin Young - Lewis

Corporate Social Responsibility, No Longer An After Thought

I was inspired to write this blog after reading a recent corporate social responsibility (CSR) study conduct by Cone Communications.   Corporate social responsibility or sustainability as some would like to refer to it has interestingly become an important issue for most global corporations.  Corporate and brand reputation is no longer just tied to market share or category leadership. Read more from Cone CSR study.  

Corporate image and reputation is impacted by a company’s domestic and global presence and its relationship with an array of audiences.  Most leading corporations are urgently trying to create and deliver sustainable businesses through connecting globally with communities and stakeholders.  They understand that their image and reputation are both impacted by their relationship with key stakeholders including customers, employees, shareholders, advocacy groups and a growing list of watchdogs interested in knowing how their organization is operated and run.  Not surprisingly, a company can be exposed or questioned in a matter of minutes if their operations, products and services appear to have negatively impacted communities and the environment. 

Most of us are familiar with 2010 BP disaster, the worst oil spill in U.S. history. However, many may not be familiar with the BP Texas City refinery explosion in 2005 injuring and killing several in Texas City, Texas. Several family members of mine were involved this explosion.  As a result of useless safety precautions and careless procedures and what many residents viewed as a disregard for their community, BP resulted to paying out millions of dollars to employees and families of those killed in the explosion. In my opinion, BP did not learn from this experience and continues to use corporate social responsibility only in crisis situations. The Texas City refinery explosion and U.S. oil spill are both examples of their need to have proactively promoted and implemented social and environmental CSR programs in Texas City and here in the U.S..  On the other hand, Chevron appears to have learned from BP’s mistake. I actually like Chevron’s Greenwashing CSR advertising campaign. Corporations have an obligation to tailor and align their corporate social responsibilities to the communities they served globally.

There are significant rewards for developing a socially responsible business. It’s not only good business, but can improve productivity, increase recruiting and staffing, strengthen competitive positioning, increase employee moral and help to restore or build a positive corporate image. It should be leverage as a strategic initiative.

Read about the BP Texas City refinery explosion, 

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/10/26/60minutes/main2126509.shtml

Contat Melvin, mystrategyhouse@gmail.com 
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