Tipping point for CSR?

Corporate social responsibility may well have reached its tipping point.  I’ve been following the rise of CSR for some years, and am now convinced that it’s becoming properly integrated into the strategies and practices of leading companies. 

The sense of tipping point for me was reading Gillian Tett’s article in this weekend’s FT Weekend Magazine: “How ‘good’ does a shampoo need to be?”.  She had chaired a debate on ‘The Future of Business’ at Davos, where leading companies like Unilever and Novartis explained how CSR is at the core of everything they do.

I was particularly interested to read that: “........ Bloomberg revealed that CSR pages are now one of the fastest-growing sections of its data terminals.  That is apparently because investors are clamouring for information about companies’ CSR programmes, be that in relation to “responsible “ shampoo – or anything else”.

So companies’ CSR credentials – how credible and impactful their CSR activity is, and how integrated that is with their brand and their business – has become a key commercial consideration. 

Why a key commercial consideration?  Well, that has much to do with wider societal concerns about the environment and social justice being harnessed as pressure on the corporate world. 

Why pressure on the corporate world?  Why not pressure on governments?  Gillian Tett addresses the reasons why companies are feeling the pressure to be socially responsible in her article.  My view is that, in the absence of full government support on environmental and societal needs, the moral pressure for the corporate world to step in has emerged as the notion that companies do not exist solely for the benefit of shareholders has resurfaced. 

The expectation that companies should be socially responsible has grown to such an extent that companies are commissioning research to understand the consumer drivers of preference around CSR and sustainability activity and how to ensure their CSR strategy is relevant to all stakeholders and their brand.

FreshMinds has worked with clients on several projects in the CSR/sustainability area, and I must say this type of work is definitely very motivating and rewarding on the ‘heart’ scale for our team.  As Gillian Tett says: “CSR is delivering some genuine good ...”  The capability and efficiency of the corporate world is certainly being put to good use, and we’re proud to be involved in our very small way through our consumer insight expertise.

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