What is good Corporate Citizenship ?
The primary motivation behind Corporate Citizenship should always be to achieve a positive social impact . The opportunities for generating this impact are as diverse as the companies themselves . However , with companies subject to ever increasing expectations , Corporate Citizenship can also support the sustainability transformation of core business on three levels :
1 . Corporate Citizenship helps to achieve sustainability goals . It contributes directly to mastering the sort of social challenges that matter to a company . This is achieved primarily through collaboration with NGOs , the state and other companies that share a commitment to common sustainability goals . The breadth of possible activities ranges from funding research into the consequences of technology and partnering local NGOs in the safeguarding of human rights in the supply chain to international multi-stakeholder initiatives for improved governance of natural resources .
2 . Corporate Citizenship helps to communicate a sustainable corporate purpose , both internally and externally , and to anchor it in the organisational culture . In this way , management and employees are motivated to see through the sustainable transformation of the core business , which also becomes legitimised in the eyes of stakeholders .
3 . Corporate Citizenship fosters sustainable innovation in processes , products , services and business models . It gives companies access to new opportunities , target groups and markets . Corporate Citizenship here functions like a laboratory in which new ideas are taken up , tested and then transferred to the core business . For example , it can provide the impetus to develop products for a clientele that might initially appear to be economically unattractive but will become more lucrative over time .
For this to happen , Corporate Citizenship must be focused , related to the core business and at the same time associated with the sustainability efforts of a company . This allows complementing these efforts through – philanthropic or hybrid societal engagement . It also allows a company ’ s core competencies to be put to use for a better society , be it the IT expertise of a software provider , the reach of a media company or the medicines of a pharmaceutical manufacturer . Good Corporate Citizenship should also be able to draw on substantial and diverse resources and be managed in a professional and results-oriented manner .
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