Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER AUGUST 2019 FEATURES 17 HR CSR Becoming a social purpose employer Many companies are moving beyond basic CSR to a holistic approach By Coro Strandberg I s corporate social respon- sibility (CSR) falling from grace? After 20 years ad- vancing into corporate Canada, the practice may be sputtering, according to a recent study. Leader companies are finding that this long-standing approach to embedding social, environ- mental and stakeholder consid- erations in business strategy and decision-making doesn't neces- sarily generate the business or social results they were hoping for. is study by Strandberg Con- sulting was based on research conducted for the Canadian gov- ernment in the fall of 2018, involv- ing interviews with 32 companies known to have established CSR practices. Most companies had a formal CSR approach and strategy, with policies, goals, targets and key performance indicators or metrics. ey were asked to describe their current CSR approach and shifts in their CSR practices over the past five years, and it was evident it has become a more formalized practice in business, with leaders moving beyond "CSR in business" to "social purpose in business." A significant minority said they don't use the term CSR and think it is passé: "CSR, as a term, is outdated" and "We consider our- selves post-CSR." Looking at the comments, there's an emergence of a new ap- proach to social impact in busi- ness. When asked if their CSR approach had shifted in the past five years, those interviewed cited the following: Approach: ey changed their approach from scattered, ad hoc activities to more strategic efforts with goals and targets. Focus: ey changed their fo- cus from philanthropy, donations and community investment to an enterprise-wide approach to em- bedding societal aspirations into everything they do. Relationships: They shifted community relationships from transactional, one-off, short-term efforts to a transformational style where they seek durable, sys- temic improvements that address the root causes of societal issues in communities in collaboration with community partners. Many respondents had ad- opted or were in the process of adopting a "social purpose" as the reason for the company's ex- istence. Notably, they don't use CSR terminology. ey view social purpose as a more holistic approach to the business, in which the business model is infused with social in- tent and not treated separately. A social purpose business is defined as "a company whose en- during reason for being is to cre- ate a better world. It is an engine for good, creating social benefits by the very act of conducting business. Its growth is a posi- tive force in society," according to the Social Purpose Institute, a program run out of the United Way of the Lower Mainland in Vancouver. e findings suggest a contin- uum or pathway of CSR practice: From level one, community in- vestment, to level two, CSR strate- gy, to level three, CSR integration, and level four, social purpose. Almost half of the companies appeared to be at level four: ey indicated they had or were devel- oping a social purpose or mission as the reason for the company's existence. "We haven't used the term CSR for a long time. We are a social purpose business. e difference between a social purpose busi- ness and a business with a CSR program is that a CSR program is bolted on. CSR programs thus have an indirect connection to the business, whereas social purpose businesses have mechanisms that address social purpose holistical- ly. All our programs are tied into supporting that social purpose, which is generally geared toward improving the community or so- ciety and that's how we operate. Our social purpose is linked into our mission and our value state- ment; the overlap is pretty much the entire thing. So, everything is aligned that way." Other trends in CSR Other CSR shifts in the past five years include integrating CSR considerations throughout the business, becoming more data- driven and community invest- ment (philanthropy) practices: Integration: Companies are embedding social and environ- mental considerations into all business decisions. For example, employers are including CSR in the roles of HR, finance and other functions. Data-driven: A number of companies are now taking a data- driven approach, improving the ways in which they track, mea- sure and collect data and using data management to inform the CSR strategy. Community investment: Com- panies are moving from pro bono volunteering and granting pro- grams to more strategic hands-on partnering, and they are also pro- viding greater access to resources such as space, employees and other assets. ey are shifting from sup- porting many non-profits in a non- impactful fashion to partnering with a reduced number on higher- impact activities. Implementation barriers Companies pursuing CSR strate- gies confront more implementa- tion barriers than those advanc- ing a social purpose, according to the study. e difference between having a CSR strategy and having a social purpose business model is profound. Employers that have a CSR strategy often struggle to gain buy-in and take-up from senior management, board and execu- tive leadership, whereas compa- nies with a social purpose have already secured that support: Leaders will have adopted the social purpose and committed to embedding it enterprise-wide and across the business model — such is the nature of a social purpose business. at said, here are the challeng- es employers face in implement- ing CSR priorities: • lack of buy-in from senior management and executive leadership • lack of evidence of the CSR busi- ness case • lack of time and resources • difficulty in shifting the cor- porate culture to embed CSR principles. ese barriers are interlinked and relate to challenges in un- derstanding the business ben- efits and the role of business in social change. In fact, the most common solution identified by interviewees is to develop the CSR business case to get senior management on board. Although admittedly based on a small sample size, the results of this study show that Canadian employers are evolving in their ap- proach to social impact. Leaders are realizing that by aligning with a social purpose as the reason for ex- istence, they can generate greater business and social impacts. Arguably, HR leaders have the most to contribute to this new so- cial purpose in business agenda. ey hold the reins. And the time is now. Coro Strandberg is president of Strandberg Consulting in Vancouver. For more information, visit www. strandberg.com. GET LISTED IN THE HR VENDORS GUIDE Visit hrreporter.com/hr-vendors-guide HR Professional Development Description: Faccaerio. Name volore pre et atur. Cerumqui consedi seraectis eos magnisi nvenihi lliquist qui accum de pres experis testior eperest que ventust qui re volorum quatat. Ed et aut aut harunt aut fugitata iur. Cerumqui consedi seraectis eos magnisi nvenihi lliquist qui accum de pres experis testior eperest volorum quatat. 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