November
2009
PR’s Role in Corporate Social Responsibility0
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) can roughly be defined as having knowledge of and managing society’s expectations of an organization’s impact on consumers, employees, the community, and the environment. As the Ogilvy PR site put it, regardless of whether people are consumers or customers of an organization, they should benefit from it’s existence. CSR is becoming an important business aspect and without PR, many organizations may not understand how to monitor their impact on the community.
CSR, if ignored, could turn into crises for organizations. Labor practices, globalization, and environmental impacts are just a few issues that society deems highly revered and expects organizations to take responsibility for their actions. Here is where a PR professional may come in handy. PR people can help monitor and prepare organizations for these types of issues in hopes of preventing them from turning into crises. The PR consultant should evaluate whether the company acts in line with its values and society’s, and identify issues that could arise. They will track the status of each issue and come up with plans of action and reaction to issues that develop. PR plays a significant role in CSR and maintaining a positive attitude towards the organization in question.
CSR can also be a great opportunity for organizations to boost their reputation and receive publicity. If an organization has recovered from an issue that developed into crisis or reacted in a favorable way, the PR professional will be able to use this towards the company’s advantage and promote its good business practice. Hopefully, if company’s are already aware of their impact and take actions to improve their impact on society, the PR professional will also be able to promote this to the community. Company’s will receive lots of recognition for good CSR such as being named a “100 Best Company to Work For”.