CR measures & standards

International Certifiable Management Standards: window-dressing, smoke-screening or the route to Corporate Social Responsibility?
(Iatridis, Kosta)

Financial Value Measurement of Corporate Responsibility
(Niskala, Mikael & Schadéwitz, Hannu)

Corporate Social Responsibility self-assessment model using the Brazilian excellence model structure
(Zanca, José Francisco Ramos & Quelhas, Osvaldo Luiz Gonçalves & Costa,Helder Gomes)

International Certifiable Management Standards: window-dressing, smoke-screening or the route to Corporate Social Responsibility?
(Iatridis, Kosta)

Abstract

International Certifiable Management Standards (ICMS) are widely accepted as effective means of promoting Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices among companies and are promoted as models to which firms must conform for being able to ensure their legitimacy and credibility (Boiral, 2003a). While numerous studies have focused on these standards (Christmann and Taylor, 2006; Gonzalez-Benito and Gonzalez-Benito, 2005; Kimerling, 2001; King, et al., 2005; Terlaak, 2007b) it is not clear whether companies adopt ICMS as a way of improving their social and environmental performance or as a windowdressing policy that enables firms to continue the business-as-usual scenario without facing any objections from society.

This paper aims to empirically analyse how companies use ICMS to legitimize their activities, based on a survey conducted in Greece. A total of 221 responses from small, medium and large companies coming from services, commerce and manufacture were collected resulting in a considerable response rate of 22,4%.

Findings suggest that the Greek institutional environment fails to promote CSR practices through ICMS and that the Greek society has not a clear idea about ICMS' implementation leaving companies to opportunistically behave and use ICMS as a public relations ploy.

Keywords: International Certifiable Management Standards, Corporate Social Responsibility, Legitimacy

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Financial Value Measurement of Corporate Responsibility
(Niskala, Mikael & Schadéwitz, Hannu)

Abstract

Corporate responsibility is a widely accepted concept. It is also argued to be a business approach that creates long-term shareholder value by embracing opportunities and managing risks deriving from economic, environmental and social developments. In practice, companies are developing tools for comprehensive responsibility management and disclosing related information in responsibility reports. The major challenge is how to transform the concept of corporate responsibility so that it is also reflected in a company's financial performance.

We analyse the issues behind corporate responsibility practices and developments that have been typical of Finnish corporations' approach to responsibility management and reporting. By the means of classification we demonstrate the extent to which companies put a value on their social and environmental impacts and, where this is done, how. We also discuss the need for the quantitative and financial analysis of corporate responsibility performance. Finally, some illustrations based on actual data are constructed in order to establish a link between corporate responsibility performance and financial measures.

Keywords: Corporate responsibility; Economic value; Performance measurement; GRI; Income statement; Balance sheet

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Corporate Social Responsibility self-assessment model using the Brazilian excellence model structure
(Zanca, José Francisco Ramos & Quelhas, Osvaldo Luiz Gonçalves & Costa,Helder Gomes)

Abstract

This paper will introduce a self-assessment structure that allows organizations to include and control social and environmental factors in its management structure. The structure's fundaments are: First: Concepts about extended excellence models and excellence models that should include the social and environmental factors in every model criteria. Edgeman (2000), McAdam e Lambert (2003) Second: Corporate Social Responsibility concept has to be treated in a integral way (Varey, 2008a), (Varey, 2008b), (Wood , 1991), (Wartick;Cochran, 1985), where the organization has a responsibility with the society , a responsibility with the products and services that it offers, and also with the individuals that work in relation to the organization. Third: Every organization has different maturity stages related to its social/economical and environmental management behavior. These different maturity stages are always varying between the legal and ethical behavior (Ethical continuum) (Carrol, 1979), (Joyner; Payne, 2002) , (Payne, Dinah.; Raiborn et al., 1997), (Raiborn; Payne, 1990) Fourth: The self-assessment system has to consider the economical, social and environmental behavior in separate ways, where every factor (economical/social/environmental) can be located in a different maturity stage, (different continuum stage). This paper will present and characterize every one of the four fundaments of the self-assessment structure in a deep and extended way, presenting a practical case using the Brazilian and Chilean civil construction company's.

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