Session 1, Van der Rijt, Hoeken & Kardol
Transcript of Session 1, Van der Rijt, Hoeken & Kardol
The strategic nature of Corporate Social Responsibility: the role of communication CSR & Communication Conference October 2011
Study group CSR & CommunicationRadboud University Nijmegen
Rob van der Rijt, M.A.Prof. Dr. Hans Hoeken Prof. Dr. Tinie Kardol
Many definitions of CSR: One of them is formulated by Caroll. He distuingishes
•economic •legal•ethical and •philantropic responsibilities.
Philantropic responsibility To what extend do organizations contribute voluntarily to an improvement of society (e.g. by donations, trainings, education).
How altruistic is this so called ‘philanthropy’?
Philanthropy can improve reputation, brand image, positioning and attractiveness for employees and investors.
Being philanthropical: a deed of altruism or egocentrism?
We argue that communication plays an important role in judging where the taken responsibility can be placed on the continuum from altruism to egocentrism.
The role of communication As soon as an organization implicitly expects communication or uses communication for its taken philanthropic responsibility, the strategic, egocentric motivation becomes operative. Communication is then used to positively influence its stakeholders’ perception of the organization.
From an anonymous donation to sponsoring.
Controlling communication
•Controlling content, form and media in line with brand values.
•No control at all is the least strategic by nature.
The strategic nature of Corporate Social Responsibility: the role of communication
Amount of communication & Control:
High-----sponsoring
Low ----anonymous donation
Altruistic motivation Egocentric motivation