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On making the business case for corporate social responsibility

Paul Klein

Nov

11

There was a good piece in yesterday's Globe and Mail by Richard Blackwell called " The double-edged sword of corporate altruism". It discusses the importance of corporate social responsibility and also the challenge in measuring program performance - especially in today's economic climate.
Yesterday I met with Peter Barretto, President and CEO of Torlys Smart Floors - a remarkable company where doing the right thing in terms of environmental and social responsibility is a part of their DNA.
Samantha Taylor who writes a CSR blog called Conscious Commerce just sent me a good rationale why there has never been a greater 'Call to Action' for both for corporations and not-for-profit organizations to "re-examine their sustainability agendas, maintain a long term focus and realize the benefits amidst the current ...
More than ever, executives want to know that their company’s most high profile partnerships with non-profits are worth the investment. On November 7, I’ll be facilitating a half-day workshop with my colleague Jon Packer, President of The Idea Workshop to help community investment managers benchmark and leverage partnerships with non-profits.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to attend Canadian Business For Corporate Responsibility's Annual Summit on CSR on Monday. However, my colleagues who were there reported that one of the most important gaps that was flagged by presenters and participants is the need for greater accountability in this area - especially in ...
I just heard a new term - philanthrocapitalism - captures how people like Bill Gates are giving away their wealth.
I just received the results of Cone's newest research, the 2008 Cone/Duke University Behavioral Cause Study and the 2008 Cone Cause Evolution Study.  Key findings from their latest research include:
Over the last 2 weeks, my colleague Jon Packer (President of The Idea Workshop) and I conducted workshops in Toronto and Vancouver for corporate community investment managers. Participating corporations included TELUS, Bell, Pfizer, Shoppers Drug Mart, RBC, and 3M among others. All major corporations with significant programs in this area.
In the aftermath of the Toronto International Film Festival and the increasing association between stars and issues, I just came across some new research from Boston-based Cone about the impact of celebrity spokespeople on causes.
As I've written about before, I think partnerships with NGOs are the foundation of corporate community programs. However, these key relationships often involve significant quantitative investment but have largely qualitative benefits/outcomes that are typically difficult to benchmark and leverage.