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Can We Break the Spell of CSR Curses?
By Dr. Wayne Visser
Quest for CSR 2.0 Series No.5
Looking back, we can see that the 1990s were the decade of CSR codes and standards – from EMAS and ISO 14001 to SA 8000 and the Global Reporting Initiative. But these were just a warm up act compared to the last 10 years, when we have seen codes proliferate in virtually every area of sustainability and responsibility and all major industry sectors. So much so that in the A to Z of Corporate Social Responsibility, we included over 100 such codes, guidelines and standards – and that was just a selection of what it out there.
Continue reading “Can We Break the Spell of CSR Curses?” »
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Corporate Values: The Case of Seguros Unimed (Unimed Insurance) Brazil
Written by Denise Barbosa Fejgelman
In its 19 years of existence, Seguros Unimed (Unimed Insurance) has improved the relationship with its strategic public, based on ethical principles and socially responsible performance. Being part of the largest cooperative medical system in the world (Unimed System), this public company has in its history a philosophy of cooperatives.
Continue reading “Corporate Values: The Case of Seguros Unimed (Unimed Insurance) Brazil” »
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Exposing the CSR Pretenders
By Dr. Wayne Visser
Quest for CSR 2.0 Series No.4
Industrialism created a limitless appetite for resource exploitation, and modem science provided the ethical and cognitive license to make such exploitation possible, acceptable, and desirable. – Vandana Shiva
Continue reading “Exposing the CSR Pretenders” »
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Is Philanthropy a Smokescreen?
By Dr. Wayne Visser
Quest for CSR 2.0 Series No.3
“I believe it is my duty to make money and still more money and to use the money I make for the good of my fellow man, according to the dictates of my conscience.” —John D. Rockefeller Sr. The Rockefeller story is a good one to introduce the Age of Philanthropy, not only because of John D.’s iconic status as a tycoon and philanthropist, but also because his life and views on charity embody much of the philanthropic attitudes that still prevail today in business.
Continue reading “Is Philanthropy a Smokescreen?” »
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Is Greed Still Good?
By Dr. Wayne Visser
Quest for CSR 2.0 Series No.2
If CSR isn’t working, could it be because it pales into insignificance in the face of a much more pervasive force at work in business and society, namely greed? After all, “greed is good!” So declared the fictional character Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone’s 1987 film, Wallstreet. “Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms – greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge – has marked the upward surge of mankind.” I wonder if today, nearly 25 years and a $7 trillion global financial meltdown later, we are finally ready to lay this powerful myth to rest?
Continue reading “Is Greed Still Good?” »
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Governance Research Digest – October 2011
1. Sustainable Finance: The Risks and Opportunities that (some) CFOs are Overlooking
The report provides a unique view into how CFOs think about the challenges and opportunities associated with sustainability. Read the report summary in the Digest (see download/purchase links below) ...
Continue reading “Governance Research Digest – October 2011” »
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So many words on CSR
Here is our collection of over 40 CSR related blog sites we found on the web. Opinions, statements, discussion, thoughts, comments, issues, knowlegde, analasys, feeback, inspiration, reports, strategies, solutions, recomendations…. so many words on CSR and we have made a sellection of the most interesting ones. -
Why Small Businesses Should Care about Sustainability
These days leaders of small businesses have their hands full just trying to survive. So why would they add a sustainability strategy to their already overloaded priorities?Because sustainability strategies are all about business survival. Like it or not, sustainability offers both threats and opportunities for small businesses. And the potential impact on companies’ long-term success is too great to ignore.
There are many reasons why small businesses should care about sustainability, but based on and here are the top five:
Continue reading “Why Small Businesses Should Care about Sustainability” »
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You Are Brilliant and The Earth Is Hiring
Earth Care
A brilliant commencement by Paul Hawken
If you are going to figure out what it means to be a human being while making a contribution to our society, create economic growth, develop a business, or do your daily job on this planet at a time when every living system is declining, and the rate of decline is accelerating, you will end up in a kind of a mind-boggling situation…..
Basically, the earth needs a new operating system, you are the programmers, and we need it within a few decades.
This planet came with a set of operating instructions, but we seem to have misplaced them. Important rules like don’t poison the water, soil, or air, and don’t let the earth get overcrowded, and don’t touch the thermostat have been broken. Buckminster Fuller said that spaceship earth was so ingeniously designed that no one has a clue that we are on one, flying through the universe at a million miles per hour, with no need for seatbelts, lots of room in coach, and really good food, but all that is changing.
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Your next CSR Job is already here
For more than 20 years we have committed ourselves to offering the best experience to every organisation and every individual. Executive Search, Recruitment, and Corporate Social Responsibility became our specialties.
We continuously search, find, and retain the best for the better!
Join us at CSRJobs.nl Employers search the resume database looking for qualified candidates to fill open positions. Now you can enable employers to connect and reconnect with you.
Put your resume to work
When you post your resume at CSRJobs, our job matching engine scans your resume and matches it to the jobs in our database while creating job recommendations tailored to you. Register at CSRJobs and select the user type: Job Seeker. Continue reading “Your next CSR Job is already here” »
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New Values Change The Way Consumers Buy
Now mor
e than ever, consumers of all stripes are demanding that the brands they buy and the companies that make them, share their own personal social and environmental values.Consumers are increasingly seeing businesses as linchpins with the resources and the incentives to address pressing societal needs (and this is especially so when government is seen as falling behind or inadequate in this regard.) This perception is changing the rules of the road for marketers who must respond quickly or risk being left behind by offerings viewed as more authentic and committed to sustainability. New rules are being written by consumers for manufacturers and marketers. Continue reading “New Values Change The Way Consumers Buy” »
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CSR and Access to Finance
With this paper, written with George Serafeim (HBS) and Beiting Cheng (HBS), we contribute both empirically and theoretically towards the debate of whether CSR strategies create value for the firm in the long run. Unlike previous studies that have focused primarily on the social – financial performance link, in our work we investigate whether CSR may contribute to long-term value creation by facilitating access to financing resources through capital markets. -
20 Simple Steps to Sustainability
Wait. A. Minute.What does that headline say again? Have I just promised that your enterprise can attain sustainability in 20 easy steps?
You know better, right? You know, don’t you, that sustainability is an aspiration, a path, not a truly achievable goal (at least not in today’s misbegotten economic system)?
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What is SRI?
Socially Responsible Investment (“SRI”) is a form of investment that integrates environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) criteria into analysis processes and investment decisions, in addition to traditional financial criteria.SRI comprises two major approaches with different underlying motivations and philosophies
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The CSR 2.0 Principle of Scalability – The Limits of Ethical Consumerism
What makes Wal-Mart such a good example of scalability is not just its size, but the principles underlying its actions, such as mainstreaming sustainability, measuring total impacts, empowering customers, working with suppliers and setting audacious goals. The lesson of history is that the ‘ethical consumer’ is the enemy of progress!Continue reading “The CSR 2.0 Principle of Scalability – The Limits of Ethical Consumerism” »
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Do graduates know where to start in CSR?
Do graduates who are interested in a career within Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) know where to start when it comes to being successfully employed?By Deap Khambay
Since completing my MSc in international Business and Corporate Social Responsibility I have been on a challenging journey of seeking employment. My first port of call was making an appointment with the careers advisor at university. I have to say I did not find it helpful at all, if anything it had got me more confused when I left than when I walked in! I found myself educating them on what CSR is and where it can fit in the employable world to the best of my understanding.Continue reading “Do graduates know where to start in CSR?” »
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Designing Curious Employees
Design thinking is a process of empathizing with the end user. Its principal guru is David Kelley, founder of IDEO and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford (otherwise known as the d.school), who takes a similar approach to managing people. He believes leadership is a matter of empathizing with employees. In this interview, he explains why leaders should seek understanding rather than blind obedience, why it’s better to be a coach and a taskmaster and why you can’t teach leadership with a PowerPoint presentation. -
IKEA 2010 Sustainability Report
Image via Wikipedia
The world’s largest retailer of home furnishing had a busy year last year, and not just in retails sales. IKEA just released its 2010 Sustainability Report highlighting its significant achievements in both social and environmental responsibility and sustainability.
Last year, IKEA created a ‘Sustainability Direction.’ This company directive outlines goals and priorities for sustainable operations and manufacturing by 2015. Its priorities include:
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Sustainable Business Spending 2009-2014
As with many things gauging corporate commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is partially a matter of measuring the financial investment to CSR business expansion. According to a new report from the independent analyst firm Verdantix that investment looks set to increase in Canada at a tremendously encouraging pace over the next few years. Corporate responsibility of course involves far more than just talking about it, but requires an investment in processes that improve energy use, ethical supply, workers rights, corporate donations and fair trade to name just a few arenas. Each step on the path towards more robust CSR involves both commitment from the individuals who work for a company but also the investment to realign those daily practices.
Continue reading “Sustainable Business Spending 2009-2014” »
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Random Act of Kindness
WHY KIND HUMAN BRANDS WILL THRIVE IN A CONNECTED ECONOMY
With R.A.K. featuring prominently in our recent 11 Crucial Consumer Trends for 2011, here’s a full, in-depth briefing explaining why practicing R.A.K. will be a winning strategy in 2011. First, our definition:RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS
For consumers long used to (and annoyed by) distant, inflexible and self-serving corporations, any acts of kindness by brands will be gratefully received. For brands, increasingly open communications both with and between consumers (especially online), means that it’s never been easier to surprise and delight audiences with R.A.K.: whether sending gifts, responding to publicly expressed moods or just showing that they care*. By Trendwachting.com
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A quintuple bottom line
Image via Wikipedia
A quintuple bottom line. ‘Sustainable development’ (‘sustainability’ for short) was well-defined in 1972 by the Bruntland Commission as “development that meets the needs of the current generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
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Guide to 10 actions for more peace
Peace and Collaborative Development Network has developed several short guides to careers, academic programs, funding, research, teaching resources, practice in peacebuilding, international development, human rights and related fields. Please feel free to suggest additional resources for each guide and ideas for new themes and check back periodically as new guides are being developed. -
Your Guide to a Career in Corporate Citizenship
Your Guide to a Career in Corporate Citizenship A growing number of graduates and working professionals believe they can use business to make a positive impact on the world. But what are they to do when faced with such a rapidly increasing demand for dedicated positions in corporate responsibility and sustainability?Continue reading “Your Guide to a Career in Corporate Citizenship” »
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Deborah Leipziger on "The Age of Responsibility"
The Age of Responsibility will change the way you think about CSR, allowing you to discard myths and to work towards a systemic view of CSR. Wayne Visser holds up a mirror to the CSR community and to business and society itself, providing a brilliant lens with which to see our past and envision a new future. Visser projects a new type of CSR he terms "CSR 2.0". The Age of Responsibility is a call to arms: inspiring, engaging and visionary.
- Deborah Leipziger, author of The Corporate Responsibility Code Book and SA8000: The Definitive Guide to the New Social Standard -
CrowdSourcing towards Sustainability
Jeff Howe, one of first authors to employ the term CrowdSourcing, established that the concept of crowdsourcing depends essentially on the fact that because it is an open call to an undefined group of people, it gathers those who are most fit to perform tasks, solve complex problems and contribute with the most relevant and fresh ideas.CrowdSourcing is used by small and large organizations who develope and provid consumer products and services. It is used to interact with customers for marketing, and for product development purposes. Is today’s crowdsourcing enhancing sustainability?
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Usefull Links, Social compliance of Sustainability
Launched end of 2006, the Global Social Compliance Programme is a business-driven programme for the continuous improvement of working and environmental conditions in global supply chains. The GSCP compiled a usefull list of empowering bodies that foster the development of the social compliance of Sustainability.Continue reading “Usefull Links, Social compliance of Sustainability” »
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The Age of Greed
By Wayne Visser
In my view, the Age of Greed began when the first financial derivatives were traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in 1972 and peaked when Lehman’s collapse in 2008. It was a time when ‘greed is good’ and ‘bigger is better’ were the dual-mottos that seemed to underpin the American Dream. The invisible hand of the market went unquestioned. Incentives – like Wall Street profits and traders’ bonuses – were perverse, leading not only to unbelievable wealth in the hands of a few speculators, but ultimately to global financial catastrophe. -
CSR in South Africa (Guest Blog)
Guest Blog by Mervyn E. King
In the broadest sense, CSR refers to the role of business in society. It entails how business is governed and how it contributes to a just and sustainable society. Continue reading “CSR in South Africa (Guest Blog)” » -
Do Urban trends drive sustainable innovation?
Sustainability and Shareconomics
As rapid urbanization is one of the biggest macro trends of our time, you can’t go wrong innovating for existing and newly minted ‘CITYSUMERS’ around the world. Cities are increasingly seen as a solution to the quest for environmental sustainability, with high density living promoting a more efficient distribution of resources (although not everyone agrees).Here are some examples of brands delighting CITYSUMERS around the world in sustainable innovative ways.
Continue reading “Do Urban trends drive sustainable innovation?” »
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Global CSR Education Research Network
The current international corporate citizenship landscape demands global perspectives on the defining characteristics of corporate citizenship across regions and sectors. The Global Education Research Network connects academics and researchers who takes specific interest in application of corporate citizenship principles, and can offer perspectives from developing and developed economies on issues related to responsible business practice. Its goal is to deconstruct and unpack everyday questions on the role of business in society in a manner that can result in practical application.
