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Sonya P
19-07-2007, 03:15 PM
Hi,

Just wondering what others are doing with regard to Corporate Sustainability/CSR .

Is it being hand-balled to HR ?
Can it be an HR responsbility ?
Does your organisation think CSR is sugar ?

mspecht
20-07-2007, 06:59 AM
Did someone say sugar?

I think to many people right now CSR still stands for sugar, I am embarrassed to admit I was one of them until a couple of years ago. Yes I can see CSR being hand balled to HR in some organisations where HR is "for all the warm fuzzy stuff, and not yet fully seen as an executive player be the leadership team. (Even if HR is doing a great job.)

CSR is a management team issue that needs to be address by all functions, otherwise you are not "walking the talk".

HRbeat
30-07-2007, 05:53 PM
Hmmm...I thought CSR stands for Corporate Social Responsiblity??? It needs to be part of the organisational strategic plan...and if it is, someone needs to be accountable for it and need to be the driver within the organisation to get things going but it doesn't mean that just one functional group/person should implement the whole thing...we need driver(s) and supporters from the whole organisation.

Corporate Sustainability, I equate to corporate/business continuity and survival...and I think the Senior Management Team and/or the Board has accountability for it.

Sonya P
30-07-2007, 10:37 PM
Hmmm...I thought CSR stands for Corporate Social Responsiblity???

Oops,that's what I meant!
I have asked the site Admin to change the title.

Anyway, just trying to get a feel for how many companies are really taking it seriously and how many are just hand balling it to HR as a 'non core project' !

HRbeat
31-07-2007, 12:55 PM
Oops,that's what I meant!
I have asked the site Admin to change the title.

Anyway, just trying to get a feel for how many companies are really taking it seriously and how many are just hand balling it to HR as a 'non core project' !

Cool! Anyway, from my point of view, it doesn't matter if it is a non-core project or not and whether it's just being hand-balled to HR. It's a matter of assessing if it is a business imperative or part of the overall strategy and then identifying the best resource to drive it and gaining organisational commitment so that it flows through to everyone.

if HR is identified as the best resource to drive it, so be it...no hassles!

rockyhr
31-07-2007, 11:11 PM
Wow, CSR cuts across many fields of interest and it seems a hard call to place it in just one functional basket such as HR.

To me it is something that needs ownership at the board and sponsorship at the CEO level or if your business isn't that big I would be advising the Business owner/managing director that they need to brush up on this and in a hurry.

If you are coming at it from the ethical perspective I wonder whether this sits best with the professional associations/bodies that govern the actions of the various professions that operate in a business. If we are talking about meeting legislative requirements, far be it from me as HR to advise the organisation what it should and should not do in respect to greenhouse gas emissions, or waste disposal, or how to best manage shareholder returns. (My wife would definately agree that I wouldn't be a wise choice of advisor for the third matter anyway).

Don't get me wrong from the people management side HR is a player in CSR and ensuring that the organisation demonstrates socially responsible action in how it recruits, motivates, manages and retains its staff, but I wonder whether HR is the best home for CSR to sit holistically? The other major consideration is to what extent does morality define the business. In most instances it may simply be legal compliance however church organisations may have different philosophies, as might those that are predominately commerce based, or 'green' driven etc. Again is this a HR function or is this a whole of board function? Administering a system of values/code of behaviour may be HR aligned as it can be managed through people management processes. However defining the shape of those values seems to be something for wider functional influence. Is not CSR to reflect societal stances at the time, that is what may be acceptable in society one year may be abhorrent the next. Does HR know this?

The other thing that I wonder is whether this is a function that HR may want to take on. Does it sit within the broader scope of HR? One of the things that I consider HR sometimes struggles with in many businesses is being recognised as a specialist area and as a profession in its own right. Our accountant finds it humourous when I make the remark about what function really adds value to the business. My remark may be said in jest but needless to say I have a belief behind it as well.

This is simply my view though and I wouldn't mind hearing what others have to say on this line.

SAB
01-08-2007, 11:48 AM
I'm relatively new to HR and I've never heard of CSR. Could somebody explain exactly what this is?

rockyhr
02-08-2007, 09:13 PM
My understanding of CSR is how an organisations takes on board the interests of all stakeholders (customers, shareholders, employees, community groups etc) in the the context of how it runs business operations. Generally speaking it is more about the reputation of the business then being compliant with legislation, however in some instances a business may align its CSR strategy to simply being compliant, as they could have the belief that legislation adequately represents the views of society.

Hobbsy998
09-10-2007, 04:12 PM
CSR is about the ways an organisation EXCEED their minimum legislative/contractural requirements in order to create a positive image. As such I think it has to be driven from a corporate level - HR should be involved at that level (not where I come from) and could be involved in implementation

HRdevotee
04-07-2008, 06:48 PM
CSR is a vital tool for HR, as it is a strong pull in a recruitment drive. However, should HR take full responsibility for CSR? Well I think not. It is a board or a group of managers over several departments that need to implement it. HR need to keep it in their best interest to drive CSR (Especially if it is not coming from the CEO or Directors) but not be accountable for it.