Corporate social responsibility (CSR)
Having a good CSR policy means that both through its day-to-day business activities and extra curricular activities such as charitable donations, a company thinks of the needs of communities and the environment.
Essentially, it is an acknowledgement by companies that they should be accountable not only for their financial performance but for the impact of their activities on society and for the environment.
Increasingly, customers and other stakeholders look favourably upon organisations that take a broader view of how their activities impact on the wider world – so it can be good for business, too.
Successful CSR policies can lead to
- Increased media coverage
- Elevated company profile
- Contact with new customers
Examples of highly effective CSR include Tesco Baby & Toddler Club’s ‘Save a Life’ campaign and Sainsbury’s ‘Choir of the Year’ and whilst these are large scale, smaller CSR schemes can be just as effective.
Correctly implemented, CSR policies boost the corporate image and reputation. Organisations with good reputations enjoy many advantages including improved staff morale, easier recruitment and reduced staff turnover.
In the words of Brian Gosschalk, CEO, MORI, quoted in the Financial Times:
“Stakeholders want companies to make a profit, but not at the expense of their staff and the wider community.”
Outwrite Public Relations works with organisations to put together CSR policies and programmes that meet their aims – and budgets.
We work alongside our clients to fully understand their mission and business ethics. Sometimes, elements of a CSR programme are already in place and we recommend how to pull them together.
We then implement tactics, collecting feedback from stakeholders along the way to measure their effectiveness.
We also set up communications to inform stakeholders that the company takes corporate social responsibility seriously and explain the activities it is undertaking.
What do we do?
Here at Outwrite PR we are keen to practice what we preach.
We have implemented several of our own green policies to do our bit to help reduce our carbon footprint and help the fight against global warming.
We recycle as much as we can, car share when going to meetings and keep the thermostat turned down several degrees on office heating systems and appliances such as the dishwasher.
As well as trying to green our workplace, staff also go all out to help the wider community. Individually, we’ve undertaken sponsored swims and walks. The company also carries out some PR work each year pro bono for non-for-profit or charitable organisations.
Contact us today to see how our experience can help you.