Corporate Social Responsibility: HR’s Leadership Role
In the structural “War for Talent”, employer differentiation is becoming more and more important. People increasingly want to work for an organization that has a “conscience”, and values are key to building conscience. Thus, more and more companies are defining their organizational values in ways that are aligned with their mission and vision. People prefer to work for companies that make a difference; corporate values, infused with CSR, generate conscience. Companies that walk their talk by embedding CSR throughout all they do will continue to be the employer of choice.
Research shows that critical success factors for implementing CSR include having an overarching vision that includes CSR, having senior management commitment, engaged staff and the provision of skills and tools. Clearly staff participation and buy-in to delivering on the company’s CSR aspirations is central to success in this area. Companies seeking to build marketplace trust and reputation must embed their CSR values throughout their business. Companies are realizing that CSR can be nested in the company’s employee brand and can be part of the value proposition for working.
Sustainable Human Resource management is central to this objective. The Human Resource Department has a pivotal role to play to help a company achieve its CSR objectives.
When CSR is embedded in mainstream business strategy it becomes a mechanism for unlocking Human Potential. There is emerging evidence that effectively implemented CSR can have a significant impact in motivating, developing and retaining staff. Since, HR is a key organizational leader and can take the lead or partner with other executives to work cross
functionally to integrate CSR objectives into how business gets conducted. HR professionals can act as translators of the organization’s CSR commitment vertically and horizontally across departments.
As most Human Resource departments would emphatically share, a robust CSR program provides key support in building a skilled and loyal workforce. It helps attract and retain good talent. The voluntary involvement of the employees in CSR activities creates an engaged and motivated workforce and leads to genuine sense of pride in the company and its business. CSR activities provide an opportunity for employees at varied hierarchical levels in the organization to engage on a common platform providing an excellent platform for team-building. Studies also show that Millennials give a lot of importance to giving back to the community and as organizations struggle to effectively engage 'Millennials', CSR can prove to be an efficient tool to engage the tech savvy generation demanding a more fulfilling work life experience from their employers.
Corporates have much to gain from CSR initiatives. The philanthropic and social contributions cultivate an innate respect and goodwill for the company. Employees find it a matter of pride to work for these companies and consumers eventually buy their products and services.
The CSR efforts are a win-win for all. As businesses grow, the community gains. And as the society flourishes, businesses gain - resulting in a collaborative growth.