IBM's Global Study Points to Greater Corporate Social Responsibility

Companies are increasingly motivated to pursue corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs for growth opportunities, rather than a necessitated by public or community relations posturing, according to a new global study released recently by IBM.

Driving this shift is the unique role of the Internet in influencing buying behavior by providing easily accessible, in-depth information about companies, their global supply chain partners, and their impact on society and the environment.

To gauge how deeply CSR has penetrated the core of the corporation — it's strategies and operations, IBM surveyed more than 250 business leaders globally and found that two-thirds of them are focusing on CSR activities to create new revenue streams

Many companies now believe that putting social responsibility principles at the core of their corporate strategy will make them more competitive and able to attract/retain top talent. According to the study, 68 percent of those surveyed focused on generating revenue through CSR activities. In addition, 54 percent believe CSR initiatives contribute to giving their corporations a competitive advantage.

Driving these beliefs is the rising influence of customers who are becomming increasingly aware of a range of values and issues -- from concerns about climate change, to product safety issues, to labor practices, to community accountability.

Although customers are driving much of this increased focus on CSR, many businesses surveyed still don't feel they understand their customers' CSR concerns. Nearly two-thirds of companies surveyed believe they have sufficient information about the sources behind their products and services to satisfy customer concerns, but half of those admit they don't understand their customers CSR expectations well.

The study also cites an increase in the number of advocacy groups collecting and reporting information on companies' CSR practices in the last three years.

"The more information these stakeholders get, the more they want to know. This increased visibility of corporate behavior is driving consumers' decisions on what to buy and who to buy from, who to work for, who to partner with, where to invest," said George Pohle, VP and Global Leader of IBM's Business Strategy Consulting Practice.

The survey results are part of a new report released today by IBM Institute for Business Value, titled, "Attaining Sustainable Growth Through Corporate Social Responsibility." The full study is available at www.ibm.com/gbs/csrstudy.

Source: IBM and LOHAS.com