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METHODOLOGY
OF THE STUDY
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
We share the view that companies should be active corporate
citizens and we believe that they should bring the same
rigor to their Corporate Citizenship as they do to their core
business, revising their approach to Corporate Citizenship
from good intentions to creating real results.
SCOPE
Our definition of Corporate Citizenship excludes pure PR
and marketing-related sponsoring, e.g. of cultural events or
sports teams. All other activities are included in our analysis,
although we believe that three different kinds of Corporate
Citizenship have to be distinguished:
We are aware that our assumptions on what constitutes
good Corporate Citizenship are not unanimously shared
in either the for-profit or non-profit sector. But with this
study we hope to encourage a debate on the status of good
Corporate Citizenship and criteria to measure its quality
by...
ANALYZING the current Corporate Citizenship of
Germany’s DAX 30 companies as the most
prominent sample of Germany’s economy,
SHARING good national and international
Corporate Citizenship practices and
PROVIDING guidance for good Corporate
Citizenship.
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2
REACTIVE CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP
includes activities in response to requests for support,
mainly from the local community, such as donations to
regional events or clubs. While this kind of engagement
certainly does good, the long-term impact orientation
remains limited.
TRADITIONAL CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP
encompasses all classic tools at hand to engage
socially, including financial and in-kind donations,
as well as corporate volunteering.
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INNOVATIVE CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP
includes new forms and levers of social engagement
by companies with a clear impact orientation, such
as inclusive business models, impact investing, advocacy
and campaigning activities or the creation of
an NGO by the company.