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C(I)RC

Corporate (Ir-)Responsibility and its Consequences in a Globalized World

International workshop held

February 20-21, 2015 at Ruhr University of Bochum,

Germany

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Mul$na$onal corpora$ons are becoming increasingly powerful in our globalised world. They typically control substan$al resources while enjoying considerable freedom to choose where and under which legal frameworks they want to conduct their business. In many cases, the business prac$ce of mul$na$onal corpora$ons is accompanied by nega$ve externali$es for the environment, local ci$zens, poli$cal stability, and social development. Internal displacement owing to resource extrac$on, health threats stemming from the absence of protec$on of labour, and violent conflicts arising from the local popula$on’s grievances are only a few examples of consequences of irresponsible corporate behaviour. Tradi$onal regulatory mechanisms (legal frameworks) oFen fail in such cases, as corporate ac$vi$es cross na$onal borders and are hard to trace. On the other hand, in more posi$ve uses of their power, corpora$ons are increasingly taking on a sub-‐poli$cal role by serving the public good where governments fail. Some$me these “corporate ci$zens” are even referred to as quasi-‐governmental ins$tu$ons and agents of jus$ce. This interdisciplinary workshop provides a plaLorm for discussions covering themes rela$ng to corporate (ir-‐)responsibility and its global consequences. It brings together 33 scholars from various countries (Russia, China, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Italy, Sweden, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and Germany), academic backgrounds (economics, sociology, poli$cal science, philosophy, law, and business management) to present and discuss state-‐of-‐the art research related to the topic.

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Workshop Goals & Keynotes

The first keynote speaker is Prof. Valérie Swaen, who is Professor of Marke$ng and Corporate Social Responsibility at the Louvain School of Management (Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium) and at IESEG School of Management (France). She studied corporate social responsibility from different fields of management (marke$ng, organisa$onal behaviour, strategy, leadership, and accoun$ng), but her main research interest concerns stakeholders’ reac$ons to CSR (communica$on). She has published academic papers in interna$onal journals such as Marke$ng Le\ers, Journal of Business Ethics, Interna$onal Journal of Management Reviews, and Management Accoun$ng Research, among others. She has also contributed to the edi$on of various special issues of interna$onal journals on the topic of CSR. In her keynote speech, she will first provide a general introduc$on to how the understanding of corporate responsibility and the role of private business in society has changed over the last decades and which new challenges arise from these changes. Then, she will present examples from her own research that illustrate the role of stakeholder reac$ons to corporate (ir-‐)responsible ac$ons as one regula$ng mechanism of corporate behaviour.

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Workshop Goals & Keynotes

The second keynote speaker is Prof. Diana M. Weinhold, who is Associate Professor of development economics in the Department of Interna$onal Development at the London School of Economics (LSE), UK. She works in the field of growth, development, and environmental economics and has published a large number of ar$cles in highly ranked interna$onal journals. She is an expert on the consequences of deforesta$on, and has analysed, for example, the consequences of soybean produc$on in the Brazilian Amazon, land use and transporta$on costs, and ecological consequences of conserva$on easements. She is especially suited to present one of the keynotes at the workshop because of both her exper$se and her mul$disciplinary research approaches; she has collaborated with philosophers, anthropologists and health researchers. In her keynote speech she will provide a general overview of the literature on the consequences of corporate behaviour and her own research, primarily based on the two ar$cles: “Soybeans, Poverty and Inequality in the Brazilian Amazon”, with Evan Killick and Eustaquio Reis, World Development, Vol. 12, December 2013, and “A social and ecological assessment of tropical land uses at mul$ple scales: the Sustainable Amazon Network”, with Toby A. Gardner, et al. Philosophical Transac6ons of the Royal Society B, 368 April 2013, and her book: The Dynamics of Deforesta6on and Economic Growth in the Brazilian Amazon, with Clive W.J. Granger, Eustaquio Reis, Lykke Andersen, and Sven Wunder. Cambridge University Press, December 2002.

We are welcoming you in Bochum. The workshop organisers (Maren M. Michaelsen and Laura Marie Schons)

Workshop Participants

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Stella Wolters

Martina Shakya

Laura Marie Schons

Maren M. Michaelsen

Bu Maoling

Enrico Cerrini Anne-Kathrin Ulke

Valérie Swaen

Jos Bartels Giorgi Sulashvili Marc Hansen Robin Braun

Andreas Rühmkorf

Lisa Fehrenbach

Janina Bischoff Kathrin Böhling

Diego Murgúia Dirk C. Moosmayer

Catherine Janssen

Neil T. Ferguson

Stefanie Lemke

Sorcha MacLeod

Andreas Oldenbourg

Sabrina Scheidler Rhuks Ako

Jeroen Veldman

Diana M. Weinhold

Workshop Program: Overview

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Time Programme 20th of February

09:00-‐9:30 Registra$on, Welcome, Coffee

09:30-‐10:30 Keynote 1: Valérie Swaen

10:30-‐11:30 Session 1: Roles and du$es of corpora$ons I

11:30-‐11:45 Coffee break

11:45-‐12:45 Session 2: Roles and du$es of corpora$ons II

12:45-‐13:45 Lunch

13:45-‐15:15 Session 3: Stakeholder's percep$ons of CS(I)R I


15:30-‐17:00 Session 4: Stakeholder's percep$ons of CS(I)R II

17:45-‐19:15 Visi$ng Bergbaumuseum (Mining Museum)

19:30-‐ open Dinner

Time Programme 21st of February

09:30-‐10:30 Keynote 2: Diana M. Weinhold

10:30-‐11:30 Session 5: Corporate behaviour and conflicts


11:45-‐13:15 Session 6: Economic and social consequences of CS(I)R

13:15-‐14:15 Lunch

14:15-‐16:00 Session 7: Government regula$on of CS(I)R


16:15-‐18:00 Session 8: Corporate self-‐regula$on

18:00-‐19:30 Panel discussion

19:30-‐20:00 Drinks

Workshop Program: Sessions Day 1

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Session 1 Roles and duBes of corporaBons I Authors & Presenters: Chris$an Neuhäuser & Andreas Oldenbourg (TU Dortmund, GER)

Title: Social Responsibility and Poli$cal Power of Mul$na$onal Corpora$ons Abstract: In current debates on CSR it is disputed whether mul$na$onal corpora$ons do not only have a responsibility to respect human rights but also to fulfill them. We tackle this ques$on philosophically and focus on the connec$on between responsibility and power. It seems reasonable that powerful MNCs bear a responsibility to fulfill human rights, if they are opera$ng in areas of limited statehood, where the power of the state to fulfill human rights is considerably diminished. However, we argue that MNCs should try first to strengthen state actors, because the power of these actors can be controlled democra$cally in turn. Only if this goal cannot be reached, do MNCs have the responsibility to fulfill some human rights themselves.

Author & Presenter: Janelle Pötzsch (RUB, GER)

Title: Corporate (ir-‐)responsibility: The case of corporate philanthropy Abstract: Corpora$ons are increasingly taking on func$ons which used to lie with governments. One example of this is corporate philanthropy, i.e. the voluntary financial support of various ventures by corporate actors. Although this communicates the idea of corpora$ons as responsible ‘corporate ci$zens’, the charitable or philanthropic engagement of corpora$ons actually has only li\le to do with meaningful corporate responsibility. To illustrate this thesis, I’ll focus on the poli$cal implica$ons of corporate charity. I will claim that corporate charity undermines the basic social principles of jus$ce and impar$ality. These are suscep$ble to both the economic interests as well as the financial power of corporate actors. For one, firms can increase their social acceptance by charitable ac$ons, making it thus easier to influence public debates in their favour and to silence possible cri$cs. Second, given the economic interests of corpora$ons, they will support mainly causes which either align with their business goals or have the effect to advance their reputa$on. Areas which don’t have such poten$al are therefore likely to dry out. Thirdly, due to the financial power of corpora$ons, their decision on whom or what to support comes up to sesng a poli$cal agenda. Consequently, corporate charity enables business to translate its financial power into poli$cal influence, while at the same $me conveying a distorted picture of corporate actors and their mo$ves. In that way, it also works to impede meaningful reforms of macroeconomic policy.

Session 2 Roles and duBes of corporaBons II Author & Presenter: Lisa Fehrenbach (RUB, GER)

Title: Do Corpora$ons have Posi$ve Du$es? – An Inves$ga$on of the applicability of criteria for posi$ve du$es of individual actors to the corporate context Abstract: The paper is concerned with posi$ve du$es for corpora$ons. It gives an overview over the two possible points of views. The shareholder view does not consider posi$ve du$es relevant for corpora$ons. The stakeholder view, on the other hand, includes several approaches and reasons for posi$ve du$es of corpora$ons. Criteria for the argumenta$on in favor of posi$ve du$es were iden$fied. Through an interview study the applicability of criteria for posi$ve du$es from the individual level (developed by C. Mieth) to the corporate context was analyzed. The five criteria discussed are: Neediness, responsibility, Reasonableness, Probability of Success and Permissibility.

Authors: Dirk C. Moosmayer and Susannah M. Davis (Nosngham University Business School China, CHN) Presenter: Dirk C. Moosmayer

Title: How European NGOs, Chinese NGOs, and the U.S. Consumer Electronics Brand Apple Define Corporate Social Responsibility in the IT Supply Chain Abstract: We examine how Apple, interna$onal NGOs, and Chinese environmental NGOs discursively construct Apple’s responsibility for condi$ons in its supply chain. We analyze firm and NGO reports, interview data, and media reports and find that Apple understands itself as a “responsible buyer” due to adherence to its Supplier Code of Conduct. Chinese environmental NGOs by contrast see Apple as “enforcer” of this code, responsible for collabora$ng with civil society groups to stop environmental viola$ons. Finally, EU-‐based NGOs demand that Apple play the role of “good corporate ci$zen” with responsibili$es that extend beyond audi$ng prac$ces. We discuss implica$ons for the ins$tu$onaliza$on of CSR prac$ces in Chinese supply chains.


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Session 3 Stakeholders’ percepBons of CS(I)R I Authors: Catherine Janssen, Valérie Swaen (Université catholique de Louvain, BEL), and Joëlle Vanhamme (IESEG School of Management, Erasmus Universiteit Ro\erdam, NL) Presenter: Catherine Janssen

Title: Corporate Crises: A Consumer-‐Oriented Perspec$ve and their Link to Corporate Social Responsibility Abstract: When corporate crises surface, companies face the difficult task of dealing with consumers’ appraisals of the crisis and developing appropriate communica$on strategies to manage them. Exis$ng conceptualiza$ons fail to reflect consumers’ percep$ons of crises adequately though, and li\le is known about how consumers’ growing corporate social responsibility (CSR) concerns interact with those percep$ons. This research draws on in-‐depth interviews with consumers to iden$fy three criteria that determine consumers’ percep$ons of corporate crisis situa$ons and their link to CSR: their relevance to the consumer, their seriousness, and the perceived salience of company profit-‐driven goals. In turn, this research offers new, relevant insights for crisis management research and prac$ces.

Authors: Sabrina Scheidler, Stefanie Kochheim, and Jan Wieseke (RUB, GER) Presenter: Sabrina Scheidler

Title: The many faces of corporate social irresponsibility – an empirical study on consumers’ evalua$ons of the diverse scandal types and their protest behavior Abstract: The many faces of “corporate social irresponsibility” (CSI) – ranging from environmental harm such as caused by the BP oil spill to the use of child labor or financial fraud -‐ are ever present in today’s corporate reality. Despite this evident mul$-‐face\ed nature of real-‐life CSI, no research to-‐date captures consumers’ perceptual differences dependent on the type of CSI and divergences in their drivers of protest behavior (i.e. boycosng and nega$ve word-‐of-‐mouth). This study draws on survey par$cipants’ ra$ngs of their top-‐of-‐mind real life CSI (n= 4,663) on a broad range of criteria, such as severity of outcomes, personal relevance, and emo$onal reac$ons. By analyzing perceived differences, CSI categories were developed and compared against their potency to evoke protest behavior.

Authors: Anne-‐Kathrin Ulke and Jan Wieseke (RUB, GER) Presenter: Anne-‐Kathrin Ulke

Title: CSR as a Selling of Indulgences: An Experimental Inves$ga$on of Customers’ Percep$ons of CSR Ac$vi$es Depending on Corporate Reputa$on Abstract: The study empirically examines customers’ evalua$ons of corporate credibility as a reac$on to companies’ CSR engagement con$ngent on the firms’ corporate reputa$on. Drawing from psychological theories a conceptual framework is derived which proposes that firms with a bad reputa$on will benefit more from engaging in CSR as compared to those with a favorable reputa$on. The framework is put to test using a large (N = 2,904), cross-‐industry sample, and a between-‐subjects experimental design. Results confirm that, indeed, whereas companies with a bad reputa$on significantly benefit from CSR in terms of an increase in corporate credibility, there is no posi$ve effect of CSR for companies with a good reputa$on.


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Session 4 Stakeholders’ percepBons of CS(I)R II Authors: John Cadogan, and Roumpini Tsakona (Loughborough University, UK) Presenter: Roumpini Tsakona

Title: “Should charity begin at home?” –An empirical study of consumer responses to brands' varying geographic alloca$ons of dona$on budgets Abstract: In our globalized and interconnected world, companies are increasingly dona$ng substan$al budgets to good causes all around the globe, thereby stepping into government-‐like roles, providing important public goods. Interes$ngly, although there are many studies of consumers’ reac$ons to philanthropic Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) ac$vi$es, past research on corporate dona$ons has neglected the ques$on of whether consumers differen$ally reward companies for geographically varying alloca$ons of dona$on budgets, i.e., dona$ng at home versus abroad. The paper at hand remedies this gap by developing and empirically tes$ng a conceptual framework of customer reac$ons to ‘ethnocentric CSR ac$vity’ (i.e., the extent to which a brand favors its own ethnic group over other ethnic groups through its philanthropic CSR ac$vity).

Authors: Laura Marie Schons, Sabrina Scheidler (RUB, GER), and Jos Bartels (VU Amsterdam, NL) Presenter: Jos Bartels

Title: “Tell me how you treat your employees!” – A Field-‐experimental study on customers’ preferences for companies’ CSR efforts in the Employee domain Abstract: In communica$ng their good deeds to customers, most companies typically focus on messages featuring company-‐external CSR ac$vi$es such as their philanthropic engagements. Company internal CSR prac$ces such as support for employees are hardly ever to be found in CSR ads. In this paper, the authors propose that customers are much more interested in how companies make their profits in the first place, i.e. how they treat their employees, than in how these companies decide to allocate the profits to company-‐external good deeds. A large-‐scale field-‐experiment is conducted among (N=5,614) customers of a large interna$onal retailer. Results indicate that, compared to philanthropic, environmental, or local community support messages, messages on the company’s employee support ac$vi$es elicit the most posi$ve customer responses not only in terms of more intrinsic a\ribu$ons of the company’s mo$ves to engage in CSR, but also in terms of customers’ iden$fica$on with the company, and their real patronage behavior.

Authors: Sabrina Scheidler, Laura Marie Schons (RUB, GER), and Jelena Spanjol (Liautaud Graduate School of Business, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA) Presenter: Laura Marie Schons

Title: Scrooge Posing as Mother Theresa? Exploring the Detrimental Effects of Imbalanced Corporate Social Responsibility PorLolios on Internal Customers Abstract: When customers perceive a firm’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) communica$ons and ac$ons to be incongruent, percep$ons of corporate hypocrisy emerge and customers defect. This research posits that percep$ons of hypocrisy might also arise from a firm’s unequal investment across CSR domains and within firms’ internal customer base (i.e., among employees). Through two studies, we employ a stakeholder-‐informed porLolio approach to develop predic$ons of CSR porLolio configura$on effects on employee outcomes at the organiza$onal and individual levels. On both macro and micro levels, our study demonstrates the poten$ally detrimental effects of neglec$ng the internal side in a CSR porLolio and thus contributes to establishing a porLolio-‐oriented view of CSR management.


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Session 5 Corporate behaviour and conflicts Authors: Neil T.N. Ferguson (Stockholm Interna$onal Peace Research Ins$tute, SWE) and Maren M. Michaelsen (RUB, GER) Presenter: Neil T.N. Ferguson

Title: Legal Sale for Illegal Use? The Role of Gun Shops and Smuggling Across the US-‐Mexico Border Abstract: The ATF research suggests 90% of firearms seized in Mexico can be traced to the USA. Although excessive, frequent use of this figure shows the complexity of accurate es$ma$ons and the importance of such figures. We present a novel approach, measuring latent demand in the USA and proximity to the US-‐Mexico border. Using popula$on thresholds for market-‐entry, we es$mate 4.8% of US weapons sales in 2011 were illegally smuggled to Mexico. Considering the role of firearms in human rights viola$ons in Mexico, the ques$on arises about the frameworks in which corpora$ons can freely sell products that are oFen used to spread terror.

Author & Presenter: Enrico Cerrini (Universita di Siena, ESP)

Title: Lean Produc$on versus Flexible Specializa$on (1969-‐1989): How Social Conflicts shaped Work Organiza$on Abstract: The dominant work organiza$on since the Second World War had been Mass Produc$on. Between the 1980s and the 1990s it was subs$tuted by Lean Produc$on, which was characterized by produc$on flexibility. The big problem is that some authors predicted that Mass Produc$on would have been replaced by Flexible Specializa$on, which would have provided the workers with greater autonomy. This paper considers why Flexible Specializa$on didn't become the dominant work organiza$on. It does it through an historic and a game theore$cal analysis. The paper stresses the key role of social conflicts in the development of the different work organiza$ons.

Session 6 Economic and social consequences of C(I)R Authors: Wilhelm Löwenstein, Mar$na Shakya, Marc Hansen, and Sanjay Gorkhali (RUB, GER) Presenter: Mar$na Shakya

Title: The Private Sector as Development Agent? Impacts of Corporate Social Responsibility of a Private Energy Provider on Poverty Allevia$on in Sri Lanka Abstract: This contribu$on analyzes the welfare effects of six community-‐based water projects that were supported by a thermal power plant in Southern Sri Lanka as part of the company’s CSR strategy. First, the water projects affect households’ farm income via an “irriga$on channel,” i.e. the availability of irriga$on for agricultural produc$on. Second, the projects have an indirect effect on households’ non-‐farm income via a “$me channel,” i.e. the effect of $me savings that are available for other produc$ve income-‐genera$ng ac$vi$es. The study finds a systema$c, posi$ve net income effect of the company’s CSR investment via both channels.

Authors: Janina Bischoff and Robin Braun (RUB, GER) Presenter: Robin Braun

Title: Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Ci$zenship in Mexico-‐ Adap$on of global strategies on a local level in the case of ‘Volkswagen’ Abstract: The paper depicts the rela$on between Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Ci$zenship in Mexico using the example of the German automobile manufacturer Volkswagen. From the perspec$ve of an important mul$na$onal enterprise with a long history in the field of research, the paper highlights the transfer of a global CSR strategy to local frameworks. The analysis of the conducted expert interviews illustrates that on the one hand, CSR in Mexico is dominated by the influence of interna$onal actors, driven by business interest and less affected by transna$onal work arrangements. On the other hand, specific local factors have an impact on the outcome of CSR programs, which results in a characteris$c focus of mexican CSR on Corporate Ci$zenship ac$vi$es.

Authors: Stella Wolters and Anica Zeyen (Friedrich-‐Alexander Universität Erlangen-‐Nürnberg, GER) Presenter: Stella Wolters

Title: CSR in the extrac$ve industries and its effect on mining-‐affected communi$es in developing countries: A mul$ple case study Abstract: A mul$ple case study of exis$ng empirical work (case studies) in the extrac$ve industries is conducted in order to generate a deeper understanding of the prac$ce of CSR and its impact on local mining communi$es. In par$cular, we focus on the consequences (both posi$ve and nega$ve) of foreign companies that take over government tasks such as building hospitals or local infrastructures such as schools and roads. Moreover, our analysis draws a clearer picture of the current state of knowledge regarding mechanisms, challenges of CSR in an extrac$ve industries context as well as on poten$al reasons for mismanagement across cases.


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Session 7 Government regulaBon of corporate behaviour Authors: Rhuks Ako and Eghosa Ekhator (University of Hull, UK) Presenter: Rhuks Ako

Title: The Roles of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights in the Regula$on of Mul$na$onal Corpora$ons in Nigeria Abstract: The paper examines interna$onal mechanisms in the form of con$nental/regional apparatuses that are veritable tools for the regula$on of MNCs. It concentrates on the situa$on in Africa, where the MNCs are believed to be free of effec$ve regula$on as na$ons scramble to a\ract foreign investment and revenues to boost their economic development indices. Specifically, the paper considers the poten$al for the African Commission of Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) to provide some measure of regula$on over MNCs. This paper aims to examine the role of this ins$tu$on thus far in regula$ng MNC opera$ons on the con$nent as the discourse on the need to effec$vely regulate these corpora$ons interna$onally con$nues unabated.

Authors: Kathrin Böhling (TU München, GER) and Diego I. Murguía (Wuppertal Ins$tut für Umwelt, Klima, Energie GmbH, GER) Presenter: Kathrin Böhling

Title: Sustainability repor$ng to avoid governmental regula$on? (Counter-‐)Evidence from Argen$na’s metal mining sector Abstract: We look at Argen$na’s mining sector to study corporate (ir-‐)responsibility in the globalized market of minerals extrac$on. Our qualita$ve research centers on the country’s flagship copper, gold and molybdenum open pit mine Minera Alumbrera which seems to take on a sub-‐poli$cal role by promo$ng to serve the public good while regulatory oversight of the conflic$ve mining opera$ons through the public agency in place fails. The consor$um’s sustainability repor$ng prac$ce plays an important role here. We propose that GRI-‐based repor$ng has been used by the Alumbrera mining consor$um as a mechanism for a corporate-‐centred resource governance; it consolidates the growing authority of the private sector in the region while minimizing, at some point perhaps overtaking, the role of the state in enforcing environmental regula$ons.

Author & Presenter: Stefanie Lemke (Universität Hohenheim, GER)

Title: The promo$on of corporate responsibility by lawyers: the (im)possible mission to implement legal ethics on business and human rights within the legal professions? Abstract: In a period of serious human rights viola$ons commi\ed by mul$na$onal businesses lawyers can play a key role to address the corporate (ir-‐)responsibility. This is demonstrated by the a\empt of several bar associa$ons around the globe to implement the United Na$ons Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) within the legal professions. Taking into account that lawyers play an essen$al role in enhancing jus$ce and human rights through the provision of legal services, there is no doubt that legal professionals can have a strong influence on the prac$cal impact of this (non-‐binding) UN framework. Hence, this paper proposal looks at the various approaches to implement the UNGPs within the legal profession and discusses the essen$al role of lawyers to promote the corporate responsibility to respect human rights.

Author & Presenter: Ricarda Roesch (Friedrich-‐Alexander Universität Erlangen-‐Nürnberg, GER)

Title: Considering Emancipatory Responses to Corporate Irresponsibility -‐ The Poten$al of the Right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) in Sub-‐Saharan Africa Abstract: It is oFen argued that the par$cipa$on of the local popula$on could be a way of addressing the problem of corporate irresponsibility in the Third World. This essay examines the emancipatory poten$al of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for Sub-‐Saharan Africa. Due to the Western-‐centrism of most scholarly works and NGO ac$vi$es on corporate irresponsibility a different approach that seeks to present the Third World as an equal and capable actor will be taken. The origin of FPIC is historically analyzed as well as whether an African appropria$on of the concept has occurred. Moreover, the limits of a rights-‐based approach to corporate irresponsibility in Africa will be assessed and whether FPIC could become a workable solu$on for tackling the problem on a larger-‐scale level.


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Session 8 Corporate self-‐regulaBon Author & Presenter: Andreas Rühmkorf (University of Sheffield, UK)

Title: Promo$ng Corporate Social Responsibility in global supply chains: Towards a hybrid regulatory approach Abstract: This paper will discuss the promo$on of CSR in global supply chains from a legal perspec$ve. It will show why the exis$ng private governance approaches to CSR, based on codes of conduct, have failed. The paper will discuss two ini$a$ves that were developed aFer the 2013 Rana Plaza building collapse: The Accord on Factory and Building Safety and the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety. The paper will then develop a hybrid model for a more effec$ve system of promo$ng CSR in global supply chains which would combine different regulatory techniques such as public and private law, soF and hard law.

Authors: Jeroen Veldman and Hugh Willmo\ (Cardiff Business School, UK) Presenter: Jeroen Veldman

Title: The UK Code of Governance and Interna$onal SoF Law Abstract: There is a wide recogni$on that corpora$ons present a specific type of business representa$on and that the understanding of this specific type of business representa$on in disciplinary domains like law, economics, and more applied domains like corporate governance has large effects in terms of structuring the domain of possibility for corporate behaviour. In this paper, we focus specifically on the adop$on in worldwide codes of corporate governance. We argue that such ‘soF law’ models of regula$on are based on a hegemonic rendering of the corporate form, which relates to highly problema$c methodological and ontological assump$ons. This perspec$ve and its embedding in codes of governance, we argue, is centrally implicated in the defence of a specific no$on of poli$cal economy and paves the way for a par$cular division of wealth and power worldwide.

Author & Presenter: Sorcha MacLeod (University of Sheffield, UK)

Title: Socialisa$on and Internalisa$on of Human Rights in Private Security Companies: Towards ‘Human Rights Preparedness’ Abstract: In the absence of interna$onal legal regula$on of Private Security Companies there has been a dis$nct move towards using what the UK government has termed ‘robust regula$on and monitoring’ through the crea$on of the Interna$onal Code of Conduct for Private Security Providers (ICoC) and a mul$stakeholder oversight body, namely, the Interna$onal Code of Conduct Associa$on (ICoCA). The ICoC and ICoCA seek to ensure blanket improvement of PSC industry standards, including respect for and compliance with human rights standards, through the use of a voluntary, risk-‐based, cer$fica$on or audit process with combine governmental, civil society and industry oversight. This paper contends that what is being witnessed in this recent PSC standard-‐sesng and the cer$fica$on processes advocated is a shiF towards norm-‐internalisa$on or socialisa$on of human rights as a means of effec$ng behavioural change within these companies. It outlines some of the empirical findings of a PSC research project and considers the extent to which the cer$fica$on or audit approach to regula$on is effec$ve in ensuring human rights compliance. It also contemplates what insights the project findings might provide for those seeking to regulate human rights compliance in other business sectors.

Author & Presenter: Katja Lepper (EBZ Business School, Bochum, GER)

Title: Co-‐opera$ve Non-‐Financial Repor$ng – A Chance to Be\er Opera$onalise CSR? Abstract: Though Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been subject to discussions in the literature for over 60 years, a clear and unique defini$on does not exist. This is especially true for social aspects of CSR, resul$ng in difficul$es regarding their opera$onalisa$on and consequently their control and regula$on. Whether exis$ng sustainability and CSR-‐repor$ng standards are able to fully capture the social dimension is ques$onable. Co-‐opera$ves face a similar problem. As they support their members by providing them with goods and services, this support can hardly be measured using financial indicators only. Various co-‐opera$ve approaches to capture non-‐financial aspects have been developed. It can be shown that these concepts hold great poten$als for the further development of exis$ng social repor$ng standards and guidelines which could expand companies’ accountability and -‐ consequently -‐ their behaviour in accordance to CSR.

Panel Discussion

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On day 2 of the workshop we will conclude with a panel discussion concerning the following leading ques$ons: 1. The changing role of corpora$ons and their responsibili$es in a global society: how is the

understanding of CSR changing and which core ques$ons should lead the future academic

debate?

Lead discussant: Chris6an Neuhäuser, Ruhr University Bochum

2. Are corporate development projects effec$ve and do they represent (adequate) tools to

compensate for reckless business ac$vi$es?

Lead discussant: Diana M. Weinhold, LSE

3. In how far does the ‘regula$on vacuum’ of MNC behaviour really exist and who should be

in charge of regula$on; governments, companies, NGOs, or consumers?

Lead discussant: Valérie Swaen, Université Catholique de Louvain

4. What do we know and where do we go? The role of C(I)RC in research and teaching

Lead discussant: Michael Roos, Ruhr University Bochum

Open discussion

Social Program

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AFer the first day‘s presenta$ons we will take you to one of the most important sites of Bochum: The Deutsches Bergbaumuseum (German Mining Museum). The Deutsches Bergbaumuseum Bochum offers extensive insights into the worldwide mining of all mineral resources from prehistoric $mes to the present day. Its exhibits are not only technological, but also include a wide range of mineralogical specimens and unique objects from history and art history. This makes it the most important mining museum in the world and, at the same $me, a highly regarded research ins$tu$on for mining history. Exhibi$ons above ground and a faithfully reconstructed visitor mine underground offer visitors an insight into the world of mining. As an added a\rac$on, the headframe provides a fantas$c view of Bochum and the Ruhr. A series of exhibi$ons deals with the various different technologies used in the mining industry to extract, transport and u$lise the coveted mineral resources. The main focus is on underground mining, but surface mining, borehole mining and marine mining are also covered. In addi$on to the actual mining engineering, separate sec$ons of the exhibi$on are concerned with the processing and refining of raw materials, e.g. by briquesng or coking.

AFer the visit to the museum we will all have dinner at the Restaurant TAPAS, which is located in the middle of the „Bermuda Triangle“, the centre of Bochum‘s nightlife. The restaurant offers a wide range of culinary op$ons including vegetarian and vegan meals.

Area Map

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Campus Map

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Workshop Venue Room: ID04/471 & ID 04/459

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Bochum City Maps

Ruhr University Bochum

Main sta$on (Hbf)

Bergbau-‐museum

You can take the U35 subway from the University to the main sta$on as well as to

Bergbaumuseum

To get from the Bergbaumuseum to the Restaurand TAPAS you can either walk or take the subway

back to main sta$on

If you get lost, contact Maren M. Michaelsen +491777988969

international workshop held at ruhr university of bochum ... · c(i)rc corporate...

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