CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (Pages 33-42) by Dr. Mrs. S. A. Bajpai in THE INTERNATIONAL MANAGER / ISSN: 2348-9413 (Online); 2348-9405 (Print)

The issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been debated since the 1950s. The definition of CSR has been changing in meaning and practice. The classical view of CSR was narrowly limited to philanthropy and then shifted to the emphasis on business-society relations particularly referring to the contribution that a corporation or firm provided for solving social problems. In the early twentieth century, social performance was tied up with market performance. The pioneer of this view, Oliver Sheldon (1923, cited in Bichta, 2003), however, encouraged management to take the initiative in raising both ethical standards and justice in society through the ethic of economizing, i.e. economize the use of resources under the name of efficient resource mobilization and usage. By doing so, business creates wealth in society and provides better standards of living. The present-day CSR (also called corporate responsibility, corporate citizenship, responsible business and corporate social opportunity) is a concept whereby business organizations consider the interest of society by taking responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities and other stakeholders as well as their environment. This obligation shows that the organizations have to comply with legislation and voluntarily take initiatives to improve the well-being of their employees and their families as well as for the local community and society at large. CSR simply refers to strategies corporations or firms conduct their business in a way that is ethical and society friendly. CSR can involve a range of activities such as working in partnership with local communities, socially sensitive investment, developing relationships with employees, customers and their families, and involving in activities for environmental conservation and sustainability. Keywords: Corporate social responsibility, community development, competencies of CSR managers, multinational corporations, corporate-society relations.