4th wheel newsletter july,2011 issue 2
TRANSCRIPT
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8/6/2019 4th Wheel Newsletter July,2011 Issue 2
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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 profits and doing good. (This argument is not only focussed
on CK Prahlads case studies)
The market contradictory to the state is all about profits. Every
committed business man looks at profits and Return on Investments.
This is justifiable 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 profit motive, should not be frowned upon, calling it
selfish and a way to fulfill vested interests.
The 2001 survey of 536 companies across India, conducted by
Partners in Change reveals that philanthropy is the most significant
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 isno longer sufficient in the realm of CSR.
Hotel Orchid, Sony, Toyota and ITC have adopted environmental
sustainable methods in the areas of solid waste management, energy
efficiency, 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
CREATIVEPHILANTHROPHY
A portal to ignite energy and enthusiasm towards CSR
In this issue
Pg 2 -Examples of Profitable CSRPg 3 - The benefits to CSR
Pg 4 & 5- Views generated at a CSR
seminar organized by 4th Wheel
Pg 6 - 4th Wheel suggests...
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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 traffic 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 suppliersmust meet minimum requirements and
demonstrate best practices that are subject to
independent verification 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 hazardousmaterials in their paints.
Law suits filled on companies due to lapse in
fulfilling their social responsibility at their marketplace leads to expensive repair. In the case of
MacDonald Corporation, it had to pay $ 10million 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 andcompanies like Wipro Ltd. have developed
policies to buy back computers to recycle
electronic waste.
Under the Hindustan Unilever Limited, Shaktientrepreneur project, rural women are trained
to be independent direct to consumer salesdistributors for HUL soaps and shampoos. They
earn double their previous income and this hashelped 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 2006whereby a social business was created with an
initial capital of $1 million. The business wouldmanufacture and distribute fortified dairy
products in Bangladesh without incurring lossesand maximizing the benefits of the clients
served.What are these benefits?According toDanone's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Franck Riboud the benefit is "To bring healththrough food to the largest number of people in
Bangladesh"
Cisco supports the LifeLines India program in
India, a multi-stakeholder partnership whichprovides small-scale rural farmers with access
to useful farming advise via a voicemail systembased on the Cisco Unified Messaging platform.
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EDITORS NOTEStudies 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 astraight 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 andassist 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 toconvince 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 sustainingempowering models which
fulfills the market need for
profits in addition to social
and human development.
A charity approach towards CSR
cannot be demeaned but the only
argument against that is the
dependence it creates and the
fact that nor are profits
ploughed back to the company
and nor is any real lasting
tangible benefit created for
the stakeholders of the
company.
We look forward to your inputs
and views readers !
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CSR strategy aims at managing the economic, social and environmental
impacts of business operations to maximize benefits and minimize the
downsides.A companys performance as a responsible business
is key to financial 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 firm that is
certified 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.
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- A FORM OF
STRATEGIC BRANDING
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4TH JUNE, 2011A seminar on Sustainable
Business models as an effective
form of CSR investments
PARTICIPANTS
Mr. Asit Vora,Mayor,Ahmedabad City
Mrs. Sushama Oza,CEO,Adani Foundation
Mr. Ajay Dixit , Centre for Social
Entrepreneurship & CSR,Entrepreneurship DevelopmentInstitute (EDI)
5th June, 2011.
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Actionable IdeasAn exercise conducted to generate dialogue on
the issues and solutions for more effective CSR
between five different stakeholders in society.
The state Corporates Ngos/ Civil Society Students Sustainable social
enterprises
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 financial
is required by NGOs
which should be
provided through CSR
The young population
needs to be made
aware and educated
about social
responsibility
There is a lack of a
regulatory framework
for investing in social
businesses
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
Develop future
leadership by
incorporating the study
of CSR in management
schools curriculum
It is difficult to get
corporates to invest
without a tax break.
A combination of thepublic sector, private
sector and civil society
to work in collaboration
for inclusive and
sustainable
development
CSR should be madepart of ones business
strategy but it is difficult
to execute since CSR
initiatives lack
quantifiable and
measurable impact
assessments
Requirement of sectorspecific expertise
(Housing, Livelihoods,
Water) from corporates
Search a cause andpurpose to work
towards
There should bemetrics to track
progress of a CSR
initiative
There should be an
increase in the
awareness of citizens,
towards cultural
integration, educationand skills development
CSR should be owned
by all departments and
there should be a cross
functional team,
investing time andknowledge to engage in
a learning and
participative process
The NGO model which
has worked for time
memorial for efficient
social service delivery
should not be forgottenwhen one engages in
CSR
A growing increase in
professional career
choices towards CSR
and social development
Key issues identified:
-Investment
mechanisms
-Partnership
frameworks-Innovation
Views generated from the seminar towards CSR and social responsibility
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RECOMMENDATIONSOrganizations, blogs, books, movies,
documentaries, movements, events
THE 4TH WHEEL
A Corporate Social Responsibility consultancy, advocacy and research firm.
The name signifies 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 firms
Channel corporate decision making in socially desirable activit ies
Monitoring and Evaluation of existing CSR/social and human development
projects
Stakeholder identification/mapping/ engagement
Stakeholder Cause promotions
Compilation of CSR reports
Collaborations with NGOs
Creating partnerships between Corporates, the State and Civil society
FOR NGOsProject development
Events planning
Content writing
IT support
ADVOCACY, RESEARCH AND EDUCATION
Promoting CSR practices
Heighten public awareness and create platforms for discussion and
suggestions regarding CSR and its potential through seminars and workshops
Developing case studies and best case practices
Editor Sharon WeirContent Payal Mulchandani
Design Tania Lakadawala
Art & Logos Sameer Singh &Pravin Mishra
Marketing & Circulation
Salomi Gupte
WRITE TO USInviting views, suggestions and
feedback from corporates, NGOs,
Government employees, professionals,
media, entrepreneurs, businessmen,
academicians, social institutions,
students and anyone interested in the
well being of society
4th Wheel
16 Pahelgaon bungalows, near
judges bungalow road,
Ahmedabad, 380015
www.the4thwheel.com
http://the4thwheel.wordpress.com/
+919825885044, 079-40092492
E VENTS
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 flood 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 fromMumbai 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 backbetter for a family.Will you help them?
Ahmedabad - 1st August, 2011 !!!!!!!!!!!!!
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