A portal to ignite energy and enthusiasm towards CSR

CREATIVE PHILANTHROPHY
This issue looks at the various benets of CSR

July 2011

THE FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ...... ARE THERE ANY TANGIBLE BENEFITS TO CSR ?
Yes. Here is how companies have changed their strategies from charity based CSR to sustainability and responsible practices thereby generating prots and doing good. (This argument is not only focussed on CK Prahlads case studies) The market contradictory to the state is all about prots. Every committed business man looks at prots and Return on Investments. This is justiable from the fundamentalist view of Milton Friedman who stressed that the only motive of a business establishment should be its shareholders. We are in a stakeholder world of the 21st century and not a shareholder world anymore. That being said, the focus of a business house on their investment returns and the legitimate question on why engage in social development to such an extent that it impinges on the basic crux of the prot motive, should not be frowned upon, calling it selsh and a way to fulll vested interests. The 2001 survey of 536 companies across India, conducted by Partners in Change reveals that philanthropy is the most signicant driver (64%)of CSR, followed by image building(42%), employee morale (30%) and ethics(30%), respectively. The CSR survey conducted in 2002 by British Council, United Nations Development Program, Confederation of Indian Industries and Price Waterhouse Coopers proved that the philanthropy model of CSR is most rampant and highlighted the growing recognition of companies that philanthropy is no longer sufcient in the realm of CSR. Hotel Orchid, Sony, Toyota and ITC have adopted environmental sustainable methods in the areas of solid waste management, energy efciency, water conservation and preservation and others. These have reduced their operational costs to a larger extent and have also provided unique positioning in the minds of the consumers. This is not a charity based approach but stresses on responsible business practices and merges the facilitation of common good for society with a businesss core competencies. ITC and Unilever in their initiative to uplift the rural sector have entered the rural consumer market by providing products at subsidized costs. In a similar way, companies like Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro distribute their special softwares to help teachers impart computer education to rural students

In this issue
Pg 2 -Examples of Protable CSR Pg 3 - The benets to CSR Pg 4 & 5- Views generated at a CSR seminar organized by 4th Wheel Pg 6 - 4th Wheel suggests...

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EDITORS NOTE
Studies have confirmed the low levels of CSR activity and the even lower demand for executing social development activities by business houses in the country. One of the reasons for this lack of interest is a straight forward answer to our cover page question. We as a young social enterprise have as our vision a future where business houses partake in creating a sustainable and equitable world and work in collaboration with other development entities like NGOs and the government. We research current CSR endeavors of companies, approach and convince companies who do not engage in CSR and assist companies to execute CSR activities. In this entire spectrum of work, at every step, one strong and difficult question confronted us. What are the tangible benefits of CSR? Is it merely intangible benefits of gaining visibility and a legitimacy to operate in society as a hot favorite company? We knew the answer but to convince our clients or our potential clients we decided our issue would highlight and explain the ample benefits accrued with a CSR initiative. Most CSR endeavors require investments whether it is charity based or is incorporated into core business operations. Our solution to this question is to move from the tradition of philanthropic CSR to something more creative, innovative, self sustaining empowering models which Maecenas aliquam maecenas fulfills the market need for profits in addition to social Sociis mauris in integer, and human development. a dolor netus non dui A charity approach towards CSR aliquet, sagittis felis cannot be demeaned but the only sodales, dolor sociis argument against libero is the mauris, vel eu that dependence it creates and the cras. Interdum at. Eget fact that nor are profits habitasse elementum est, ploughed purus pede class. ipsum back to the company and nor is anyante auctor real lasting Sodales nulla tangible benefitdolor erosfor excepturi wisi, created the stakeholders of condimentum dis, sodales the company. nunc. lacus We look forward to your inputs and views readers !

A few examples ................. "PUMA's Clever Little Bag sets the bar for responsible corporate citizenship! Using 65% less paper to manufacture, reducing water, energy and diesel by 60% per year and representing a 10,000 ton per year reduction in carbon emissions, PUMA's packaging is much more than a "clever little bag". It's a rally cry for the true power and ROI of great design in the 21st century!". An approach which may capitalize on a new opportunity and address the needs of certain key stakeholders like a food retailer creates strategy on combating obesity and an automobile industry works on trafc safety by introducing training in safe driving methods would be a good way to engage in advertising and cause related marketing. Starbucks has found a solution in their program Coffee and Farmer Equity (CAF) practices. To become a Starbucks caf practices strategic supplier farmers, processors and suppliers must meet minimum requirements and demonstrate best practices that are subject to independent verication under its guidelines. High scoring suppliers receive preferential buying status, high prices and better contract terms. Nestles Infant formula product distribution, included nurses on commission to promote their baby milk product Kansai Nerolac paints Limited has developed technology to reduce the usage of hazardous materials in their paints.

Law suits lled on companies due to lapse in fullling their social responsibility at their market place leads to expensive repair. In the case of MacDonald Corporation, it had to pay $ 10 million to vegetarians and religious groups in a proposed settlement in March 2002. Toxic link a delhi based NGO states that India annually generates $1.5 billion of e-waste and companies like Wipro Ltd. have developed policies to buy back computers to recycle electronic waste. Under the Hindustan Unilever Limited, Shakti entrepreneur project, rural women are trained to be independent direct to consumer sales distributors for HUL soaps and shampoos. They earn double their previous income and this has helped HUL have access to a new supply chain at low cost and high community support. The French dairy company Danone and the Grameen Group signed a joint venture in 2006 whereby a social business was created with an initial capital of $1 million. The business would manufacture and distribute fortied dairy products in Bangladesh without incurring losses and maximizing the benets of the clients served.What are these benets?According to Danone's Chairman and Chief Executive Ofcer Franck Riboud the benet is "To bring health through food to the largest number of people in Bangladesh" Cisco supports the LifeLines India program in India, a multi-stakeholder partnership which provides small-scale rural farmers with access to useful farming advise via a voicemail system based on the Cisco Unied Messaging platform.

CSR should be aligned with core business goals

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CSR- A FORM OF STRATEGIC BRANDING

India represents the most rapidly growing economy and is one of the developing nations where social and environmental crises are most acutly felt. (iMF,2006; WRI, 2005; UNDP,2006)

CSR strategy aims at managing the economic, social and environmental impacts of business operations to maximize benets and minimize the downsides.
A companys performance as a responsible business is key to nancial and stock market standing, helping to protect it from instability and share price volatility. CSR initiatives and cause related marketing helps build reputations and goodwill among suppliers and customers. CSR as a form of strategic branding, serves as a tool in differentiating from competitors as global consumers today are more selective and sensitive to consider a companys image and CSR efforts. A small rm that is certied to have environmental and social standards like ISO 14000, ISO 9000, SAI 8000, UN Global Impact principles among others, has more potential to be a supplier to international retailers like Marks and Spencers, Levis, Mitsubishi, etc. The growth emphasis on SRI (Socially Responsible Investments) clearly indicates that companies with a good CSR standing is more likely to secure equity and debt capital. Recent surveys indicate that corporate social responsibility is increasingly an important factor in attracting and retaining a talented and diverse workforce (Globescan Inc 2005). Companies that account for the interests of their employees by offering good working conditions will achieve better performance in terms of quality and delivery, and, therefore, experience higher levels of productivity.Learning and innovation are critical to the long-term survival of any business.Corporate social responsibility can be a vehicle for business to respond to environmental and societal risks and turn these into business opportunities.Companies that fail to manage their responsibilities to society as a whole risk losing their license to operate a concept whereby a companys stakeholders grant the company an unwritten authority to do business. This may be evidenced by favoring competitors, boycotts or calls for de registration of companies. Thus the requirements of the global market place and the advantages of engaging in participatory CSR has innumerable pros and fewer cons.

The intangible benets of CSR are underestimated

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4TH JUNE, 2011

A seminar on Sustainable Business models as an effective form of CSR investments

5th June, 2011.

Mr. Asit Vora, Mayor, Ahmedabad City

Mrs. Sushama Oza, CEO, Adani Foundation

PARTICIPANTS

Mr. Ajay Dixit , Centre for Social Entrepreneurship & CSR, Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI)

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Actionable Ideas
An exercise conducted to generate dialogue on the issues and solutions for more eective CSR between ve dierent stakeholders in society.

Views generated from the seminar towards CSR and social responsibility The state Corporates Ngos/ Civil Society Students Sustainable social enterprises There is a lack of a regulatory framework for investing in social businesses

Public private partnerships should be established for water and solid waste management among other social cause initiatives

There is a trend of one off charity and achieving the license to operate in an area at the basis of CSR initiatives

Support- Managerial, technical and nancial is required by NGOs which should be provided through CSR

The young population needs to be made aware and educated about social responsibility

Incentive creation for participation in development by corporates

The lack of a holistic approach and understanding leads to a disconnect between CSR and employees of a company

Serve as a monitoring agency in society- as a watchdog over ill practices of entities and hence need better understanding between the entities Requirement of sector specic expertise (Housing, Livelihoods, Water) from corporates

Develop future leadership by incorporating the study of CSR in management schools curriculum

It is difcult to get corporates to invest without a tax break.

A combination of the public sector, private sector and civil society to work in collaboration for inclusive and sustainable development

CSR should be made part of ones business strategy but it is difcult to execute since CSR initiatives lack quantiable and measurable impact assessments CSR should be owned by all departments and there should be a cross functional team, investing time and knowledge to engage in a learning and participative process

Search a cause and purpose to work towards

There should be metrics to track progress of a CSR initiative

There should be an increase in the awareness of citizens, towards cultural integration, education and skills development

The NGO model which has worked for time memorial for efcient social service delivery should not be forgotten when one engages in CSR

A growing increase in professional career choices towards CSR and social development

Key issues identied: -Investment mechanisms -Partnership frameworks -Innovation

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RECOMMENDATIONS
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E VENTS
THE 4TH WHEEL
A Corporate Social Responsibility consultancy, advocacy and research rm. The name signies the business sector in addition to the other three integral wheels- the state, NGOs and international development organizations, required and capable of driving human development.

Services
FOR CORPORATES
Strategising and planning CSR projects/ Needs Assessment Project implementation for corporate rms Channel corporate decision making in socially desirable activities Monitoring and Evaluation of existing CSR/social and human development projects Stakeholder identication/mapping/ engagement Stakeholder Cause promotions Compilation of CSR reports Collaborations with NGOs Creating partnerships between Corporates, the State and Civil society

A Bike Expedition to Build Back Better 24th July 15th August 2011 Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Delhi The Leh Disaster Response Project will help in rebuilding
24 homes which were completely destroyed in the ood and mudslides in Leh, Ladakh last year. With support, the project will provide these families safe, environmentally friendly, culturally relevant and disaster resistant shelters. These new houses will enable the families to survive the extreme cold weather they are faced with each winter. The 5 riders who are physically handicapped will ride from Mumbai to Leh to dispel stereotypes of being dependent and motivate other differently abled to explore their own strengths. Each rider has pledged to raise Rs.300000/- to help build back better for a family.Will you help them? Ahmedabad - 1st August, 2011 !!!!!!!!!!!!!

FOR NGOs
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ADVOCACY, RESEARCH AND EDUCATION

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4th Wheel
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Editor Sharon Weir Content Payal Mulchandani Design Tania Lakadawala Art & Logos Sameer Singh & Pravin Mishra Marketing & Circulation Salomi Gupte

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