Corporate social responsibility

Seminar paper from the year 2005 in the subject Organisation and administration - Miscellaneous, grade: 1,3, University of applied sciences, Neuss, course: Marketing, language: English, abstract: "Corporate Social Responsibility", or CSR for short, is the buzzword for company'svoluntary initiatives involving a number of various activities and company's programs.But the question is what does Corporate Social Responsibility really means and how isit implemented in German companies? Expectations are growing as the public at largeand, increasingly, the financial markets want to know not just what a company doeswith its profits, but also how it earns them.This assignment examines first in what extend ethical aspects are an essentialcondition for the justification of Corporate Social Responsibility. Therefore the basicaspects of CSR and the paradigms to ethics will be discussed in the first part.Afterwards before examining the situation of CSR in the German businesseslandscape, the main elements to build up a program focussing on social responsibilitywill be listed. Then with the insight of what drives a CSR program, the question how isit implemented in German companies in order to meet stakeholders expectations willbe answered. Several surveys conducted by agencies and the German ministry will bethe basis for an objective reflection of the situation in Germany and illustrating thevariety of initiatives and commitments. Final regards on the problems and risksconnected with Corporate Social Responsibility are mentioned to close up the study. If you follow the literature and daily press, marketers are verifying their relationshipswith social values and responsibilities. Philip Kotler is pointing out in his 'Principles ofMarketing' that "as the worldwide consumerism and environmentalism movementsmature, today's marketers are being called upon to take greater responsibility for thesocial and environmental impact of their actions." Demands in corporate ethics andsocial responsibility have become important topics for the companies. Only fewcompanies can ignore this demanding change, but are being forced to take actionwhen authorities and the public are claiming. More forward-looking businesses readilyaccept their role and seek ways to best serve the interests of their customer andcommunities. They are building social responsibility and action into their companygoals and with that approach, they include concerns for individual and communitywelfare in their daily decisions.