Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

From philanthropy to strategic corporate sustainability: a case study in India

From philanthropy to strategic corporate sustainability: a case study in India PurposeThis paper aims to explore the drivers and barriers in the transition of the social responsibility agenda of large, emerging economy (EE) firms from non-strategic philanthropy to strategic corporate sustainability. This study also suggests a strategy that such firms may adopt for obtaining the desired corporate social responsibility (CSR) manifestation.Design/methodology/approachThe paper follows an in-depth case study approach of a large, family-managed Indian firm in a pollutant industry – Sudarshan Chemicals. The article is based on direct observation and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, namely, senior management, employees and the local community members (villagers) in the company’s plant in Maharashtra.FindingsThe study exposes a lack of alignment between firm size (large) and firm CSR manifestation (small) as the key challenge that EE firms face in transforming their social responsibility agenda. Stuck in the mould of non-strategic corporate philanthropy, even large EE companies are not exposed to the three essential elements of the Western conceptualization of CSR, namely, stakeholder pressure, environmental concerns and integration into core business. Sudarshan’s small-firm CSR orientation can be seen as symptomatic of most Indian companies which are family-led, family-managed businesses.Practical implicationsFaced with strong drivers to incorporate CSR, EE firms can strategize to leap-frog from philanthropy to corporate sustainability through obtaining the desired CSR manifestation.Originality/valueThe significance of this paper lies in the “on the ground”, detailed and empirical study of the drivers and challenges faced by a large Indian company, as it proactively sought to transition from the philanthropy orientation towards strategic CSR/sustainability. The paper identifies the major challenge large, Indian corporates are likely to face going forward, as they respond to drivers in a globalized business environment. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Journal of Business Strategy Emerald Publishing

From philanthropy to strategic corporate sustainability: a case study in India

Jayakumar, Tulsi
Journal of Business Strategy , Volume 37 (6): 12 – Nov 21, 2016
Download PDF
12 pages

Loading next page...
 
/lp/emerald-publishing/from-philanthropy-to-strategic-corporate-sustainability-a-case-study-sBckkK7rsv

References (17)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © Emerald Group Publishing Limited
ISSN
0275-6668
DOI
10.1108/JBS-10-2015-0110
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the drivers and barriers in the transition of the social responsibility agenda of large, emerging economy (EE) firms from non-strategic philanthropy to strategic corporate sustainability. This study also suggests a strategy that such firms may adopt for obtaining the desired corporate social responsibility (CSR) manifestation.Design/methodology/approachThe paper follows an in-depth case study approach of a large, family-managed Indian firm in a pollutant industry – Sudarshan Chemicals. The article is based on direct observation and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, namely, senior management, employees and the local community members (villagers) in the company’s plant in Maharashtra.FindingsThe study exposes a lack of alignment between firm size (large) and firm CSR manifestation (small) as the key challenge that EE firms face in transforming their social responsibility agenda. Stuck in the mould of non-strategic corporate philanthropy, even large EE companies are not exposed to the three essential elements of the Western conceptualization of CSR, namely, stakeholder pressure, environmental concerns and integration into core business. Sudarshan’s small-firm CSR orientation can be seen as symptomatic of most Indian companies which are family-led, family-managed businesses.Practical implicationsFaced with strong drivers to incorporate CSR, EE firms can strategize to leap-frog from philanthropy to corporate sustainability through obtaining the desired CSR manifestation.Originality/valueThe significance of this paper lies in the “on the ground”, detailed and empirical study of the drivers and challenges faced by a large Indian company, as it proactively sought to transition from the philanthropy orientation towards strategic CSR/sustainability. The paper identifies the major challenge large, Indian corporates are likely to face going forward, as they respond to drivers in a globalized business environment.

Journal

Journal of Business Strategy – Emerald Publishing

Published: Nov 21, 2016

There are no references for this article.