Aspects of Sustainability
Sustainability is the process that maintains changes and ensures that exploitation of resources; technological development as well as changes in the institution is in harmony. Sustainability is also defined in the field of the economic, social and environment. Some of the key issues of sustainability include energy and climate change. It is projected that by 2025 the global energy use will increase by 40 per cent. The common sources of energy include nuclear power, biomass fuels and fossil fuels. The dependence of this energy sources will result in major problems such as climatic change, resource depletion, and urban air pollution. Besides, the nuclear power causes health risks to the community, workers and risk of catastrophic accidents. With regard to climate change mitigation, individuals should start maximizing energy efficiency and reduce the proportion of carbon dioxide produced by adapting current waste management facilities. People should promote heat and power recovery from the disposed waste by use of modern thermal treatment facilities.
Currently, the traditional business measures of market share and profitability are not essential any more to determine the success of the company. Recent studies indicate that stakeholders have become aware of the social and environmental issues and actively demand corporate social responsibility behaviors and supporting actions in exchange for their trust (United Nation 2010). This has made CSR become a global trend among institutions as well as people (Corporate social responsibility 2013). The external and international pressures from the general public, non-profit organizations, employees and potential investors have made the organization to address these issues on different corporate responsibility agendas.
Organizations should address CSR as a value and profit generating factor instead of seeing it as an expense. According to Du et al (2011, p.1), socially responsible practices contribute to positive effects in an organization in several different ways such as employee morale enhancement, competitive positions strengthening and building the reputation. The main challenge experienced is based on how to communicate the corporate social responsibility to the public and this is a definitive motivation behind why corporate social agenda fail to meet strategic goals (Hartman, Rubin and Dhanda 2007, p.26). The main question to be answered is why managers should make effective communication a priority in addressing corporate social responsibility?’
The CSR is a multidimensional concept. This means that it covers issues that vary from community involvement, employment, human rights, to concerns of the environment such as pollution, biodiversity as well as global warming (European Commission 2011). Integrating the initiatives is not only logical but also a way to reduce the skepticism of the stakeholder and strengthens intrinsic motive idea for taking action of CSR that enhances work done efficiently. Previously, the aim of most companies was to make the profit and maximizing shareholder value (Bauman and Skitka 2012, p.14). This notion is outdated and it is not only seen as an economic entity but also as the social system.
The ABC Company’s CSR Initiatives
The involvement of the community as a dimension of CSR has become a core issue of corporate social responsibility. According to Cornelissen (2011, p.242-243), there are three categories of corporate community relations. The approach that is based on charitable donations and its objective is purely generating goodwill among employees and a community leader was referred to as charitable donation approach. Another approach discussed by Pompper (2015, p.42) is the community involvement approach which was formed to increase community involvement in social agendas. The other approach is the corporate citizenship which is based on generating stakeholders’ trust that is achieved by active public welfare participation (Pompper 2015, p.35).
The ABC Company is taking an initiative to reduce its environmental impacts. It has developed initiatives that promote the sustainable system as well as change employee behavior. The ABC formed a [email protected] program in 2007 to coordinate these initiatives that minimize energy and emissions and waste and materials (Ni and Van Wart 2015, p.19).
The company is also committed to creating a better environment where its people thrive. Its employment and labor relations are regulated to ensure worker health and safety and promote equity and diversity. The company also contributes to the society through the local radio network, ABC local websites and provision of Community Service Announcements as well as information. Energy utilization represents a significant sustainability issue for the ABC. The online and broadcasting services use a lot of energy. The ABC has introduced virtualization software to minimize computer hardware server impact on energy use. The company has also started utilizing the National Greenhouse Accounts Factors to determine the amount of greenhouse gas emitted.
The ABC Company has introduced initiatives to minimize the environmental impact which result from toner, electronic and paper equipment (Fallon 2014, p.34). The company also encourages reuse and ABC is closely monitoring and reporting waste as well as recycling at its capital cities. Regarding transport, the company has closely monitored the kilometers travelled by its employees and reduces the impact through emissions and fuel consumption. It also reports on its water use in cities and regional sites.
On social sustainability, the ABC Company has played a significant role in many communities in Australia not only through its broadcast but also through employment. Over time, the company has been responsible for the provision of Community Service Announcements as well as information about local activities in the community. The company has encouraged staff to make personal contributions to charities through their payroll (Corporate social responsibility. 2013). The company has also offered local members to learn about content-making in their workshops. The ABC Company works closely with the local community to build as well as maintain an excellent relationship with emergency services. The company encourages awareness of the country and promotes cross-cultural communication.
The Motives and Benefits of Corporate Social Responsibility
The financial sustainability is also a major element that the ABC Company has put into consideration. The company manages its budget by careful balancing in the address of important pressure points and its concern on new content and multiplatform activities while at the same time maintaining existing content, operations and facilities at a sustainable level. Each department seeks to improve its operating practices to foster efficiency and effectiveness. The company frequently monitors financial performance and reports it annually.
It is essential that managers should give effective communication a priority in addressing corporate social responsibility. The reasons for taking the initiatives of CSR can be drawn from an ethnic and social perspective. (Hartman et al. 2007, p.374). Organizations that are encouraged to perform activities of CSR are motivated by the competitive market advantage they pursue and financial gains they earn through CSR. From the ethical point of view, organizations owe communities for acquiring benefits as well as exploiting community citizens’ positions. They should, therefore, be obliged to serve as any member of the society (Bauman and Skitka 2012, p.21).
There are four CSR ethical drivers that have encouraged the application of sustainable values in their operations. The pressure from consumers, the general public, citizens as well as stakeholders is one of the motivations. The organization ought to be responsible for their operations and the consequences of their operations. The corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a determining factor in both investment and consumer at all levels. This has pushed organizations toward responsible business policies (Caramela 2018, p.34). The detrimental effects of organizations have spread worldwide and have raised justifiable concerns in individuals. Another motivation behind CSR is the social and natural habitat damages concern.
There are numerous benefits that are associated with CSR. Successful CSR efforts reduce government regulations which are favorable for the development of the organization. It is also noted that properly conducted CSR enhance the performance of businesses (Caramela 2018, p.16). First, it builds and maintains the reputation of the organization as well as minimizes business costs (Coombs and Holladay 2001, p.7). The CSR further increase the motivation and loyalty of employees to employers. The CSR also has numerous benefits to the organization. It raises the loyalty of consumer and makes customers advocates and ambassadors who can go an extra mile to pay a premium to back up the social policies of the company (Kotler 2015, p.12).
Conclusion
It is recommended that the organization should start promoting sustainable systems to change the behavior of employees. Regarding financial sustainability, the organization should begin to improve its operating practices to encourage efficiency as well as effectiveness. Organizations should be encouraged to reuse some of their items. The managers should start monitoring and reporting waste as well as recycling it at its capital cities. Additionally, effective communication should be established between the managers and employees to address the issues that arise from sustainability.
Corporate social responsibility is a vital aspect of any business. It is evident that it encourages accountability to a wide range of investors and shareholders in order to ensure the smooth running of the business. Its main area of concern is protecting the environment and social well-being of people now and in the future. The failure and success of corporate social responsibility depend on communication. Effective communication should be given a priority to address this issue to foster optimal benefits. The benefits that come with corporate social responsibility are immense. Successful CSR efforts improve the performance of businesses, minimizes business costs, increase customer loyalty and offer a competitive advantage for a business. Increased external pressure and social and natural habitat damages are some of the motives that have necessitated corporate social responsibility. CSR is the best thing that can be implemented in both large and small businesses.
List of References
Bauman, C.W. and Skitka, L.J., 2012, Corporate social responsibility as a source of employee satisfaction. Research in Organizational Behavior, 32, pp.63-86.
Caramela, S. 2018, ‘What is Corporate Social Responsibility?’ Retrieved from Business News Daily: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4679-corporate-social-responsibility.html
Coombs, T., Holladay, S. 2011, managing corporate social responsibility: A communication approach, Chapter 1. Hoboken: John Wiley
Corporate social responsibility, 2013, International Institute for Sustainable Development. Retrieved from https://www.iisd.org/business/issues/sr.aspx. Accessed 26 September 2018
European Commission, 2011, A renewed EU strategy 2011-14 for corporate social responsibility. Www document. Accessed 26 September 2018.
Fallon, N., 2014, ‘What is corporate social responsibility?’ Business News Daily. Retrieved from https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4679-corporate-social-responsibility.html
Hartman, L., Rubin, R., Dhanda, K. 2007, ‘the communication of corporate social responsibility: United States and European Union multinational corporations.’ Journal of business ethics. January. 373-389.
Kotler, P. and Lee, N., 2005, corporate social responsibility: Doing the most good for your company and your cause. John Wiley & Sons.
Ni, A. and Van Wart, M., 2015, Corporate Social Responsibility: Doing Well and Doing Good. In Building Business-Government Relations (pp. 175-196). Routledge.
Pompper, D 2015, corporate social responsibility, sustainability and public relations: Negotiating multiple complex challenges. Routledge.
United Nations 2010, Sustainable development: From Brundtland to Rio 2012. Retrieved from www document. Accessed 26 September 2018
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