Corporate Social Responsibility in Bangladesh Essay Sample

Business houses. right from the origin of human race. have been regarded as constructive spouses in the communities in which they operate. Though they have been instrumental in making employment. wealth. merchandises and services. yet the force per unit area on concern to play a function in societal issues affecting employees. stakeholders. society. environment. authorities etc. is continuously increasing. The society is oppugning the being of concern houses. particularly in the aftermath of the dirts and cozenages conducted by the concern houses like UTI. Enron. and WorldCom. In response to it. the organisations around the Earth are forced to wake up to the demand for being committed towards Corporate Social Responsibility.

Over the old ages this construct of Corporate Social Responsibility ( CSR ) has gained unprecedent impulse in concern and public argument and has become a strategic issue traversing the departmental boundaries. and impacting the manner in which a company does concern. It has become so of import that many organisations have rebranded their nucleus values to include societal duty. Almost all corporate websites/ policies/reports talk about their enterprises for CSR which has become a manner of guaranting that the organisation is carry throughing all the duties towards society and therefore is eligible for the licence to run. It assures that the organisation can turn on sustainable footing.

These activities of CSR runing from little contributions to bigger undertakings for societal public assistance sustainable patterns differ from organisation to organisation depending on the resources available to an organisation for set abouting sustainable patterns. Business patterns of large and successful companies. with plentifulness of resources at their terminal. have set the tendency for being committed to sustainable patterns. Such concern houses around the Earth show their committedness to societal duty. In India. the enterprises of Dabur India Limited. for illustration. which commenced ‘Sundesh’ in 1993. a non-profit organisation. with an purpose to advance research and public assistance activities in rural countries are appreciable. On the same path to carry through its impulse to make something for community. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited has adopted 37 small towns as their duty to develop in all walks of life. It has made attempts to do them autonomous. provided them fresh imbibing H2O. sanitation installations. medical installations. vocational preparation and literacy cantonments. Around its industrial installations. Tata Group has created towns and metropoliss like Jamshedpur. Mithapur. Babrala for the benefit of its employees. Cadbury India. Glaxo and Richardson Hindustan are some of the companies which are assisting husbandmans to turn harvests which in bend shall function as natural stuffs for them ( Tripathi & A ; Reddy. 2006 ) .

Although the execution of such activities involves clip. attempt and resources yet the concern houses have realized that it ( CSR ) is one of the of import ways in which an organisation can separate itself from its rivals. The touchable and intangible benefits associated with for organisation are huge. A powerful tool like CSR non merely enhances the trade name image and repute of the concern but besides leads to betterment in gross revenues and client trueness. and increased ability to pull and retain employees. By capitalising on it. the organisations can better their fiscal public presentation and pull more investing with huge economic value. The word CSR has. as a consequence. occupied really of import topographic point in the programs and schemes of the organisations in the present epoch. ( 1 )

Definition of Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate societal duty ( CSR ) . besides known as corporate duty. corporate citizenship. responsible concern. sustainable responsible concern ( SRB ) . or corporate societal performance- is a signifier of corporate self-regulation integrated into a concern theoretical account. Ideally. CSR policy would work as a constitutional. self-acting mechanism whereby concern would supervise and guarantee its attachment to jurisprudence. ethical criterions. and international norms. Business would encompass duty for the impact of their activities on the environment. consumers. employees. communities. stakeholders and all other members of the populace sphere. Furthermore. concern would proactively advance the public involvement by promoting community growing and development. and voluntarily extinguishing patterns that harm the populace sphere. regardless of legality.

Basically. CSR is the calculated inclusion of public involvement into corporate decision-making. and the observance of a ternary bottom line: Peoples. Planet. Net incomes. The pattern of CSR is capable to much argument and unfavorable judgment. Advocates argue that there is a strong concern instance for CSR. in that corporations benefit in multiple ways by runing with a perspective broader and longer than their ain immediate. short-run net incomes. Critics argue that CSR distracts from the cardinal economic function of concerns ; others argue that it is nil more than superficial window-dressing ; others yet argue that it is an effort to preempt the function of authoritiess as a watchdog over powerful transnational corporations. Corporate Social Responsibility has been redefined throughout the old ages. However. it basically is titled to help to an organization’s mission every bit good as a usher to what the company stands for and will continue to its consumers. ( 2 )

Other definitions of CSR:

The impression of companies looking beyond net incomes to their function in society is by and large termed corporate societal duty ( CSR ) … . It refers to a company associating itself with ethical values. transparence. employee dealingss. conformity with legal demands and overall regard for the communities in which they operate. It goes beyond the occasional community service action. nevertheless. as CSR is a corporate doctrine that drives strategic decision-making. spouse choice. hiring patterns and. finally. trade name development. ( 3 )

South China Morning Post. 2002 )

The societal duty of concern encompasses the economic. legal. ethical. and discretional outlooks that society has of organisations at a given point in clip. ( 4 )

Archie B. Carroll. 1979

CSR is about concerns and other organisations traveling beyond the legal duties to pull off the impact they have on the environment and society. In peculiar. this could include how organisations interact with their employees. providers. clients and the communities in which they operate. every bit good as the extent they attempt to protect the environment. ( 5 )

The Institute of Directors. UK. 2002

CSR is a agency of analysing the inter-dependent relationships that exist between concerns and economic systems. and the communities within which they are based. CSR is a agency of discoursing the extent of any duties a concern has to its immediate society ; a manner of suggesting policy thoughts on how those duties can be met ; every bit good as a tool by which the benefits to a concern for run intoing those duties can be identified.

Corporate Social Responsibility: Unlocking the value

Harmonizing to the consequences of a planetary study in 2002 by Ernst & A ; Young. 94 per cent of companies believe the development of a Corporate Social Responsibility ( CSR ) scheme can present existent concern benefits. nevertheless merely 11 per cent have made important advancement in implementing the scheme in their organisation. Senior executives from 147 companies in a scope of industry sectors across Europe. North America and Australasia were interviewed for the study.

The study concluded that CEOs are neglecting to acknowledge the benefits of implementing Corporate Social Responsibility schemes. despite increased force per unit area to include ethical. societal and environmental issues into their decision-making procedures. Research found that company CSR plans influence 70 per cent of all consumer buying determinations. with many investors and employees besides being swayed in their pick of companies. “While companies recognize the value of an integrated CSR scheme. the bulk are neglecting to maximise the associated concern chances. ” said Andrew Grant. Ernst & A ; Young Environment and Sustainability Services Principal. “Corporate Social Responsibility is now a finding factor in consumer and client pick which companies can non afford to disregard. Companies who fail to maximise their acceptance of a CSR scheme will be left behind. ” ( 6 )

Arguments Against Business Performing Social Responsibility Activities

The best-known statement against concern executing societal duty activities has been advanced Milton Friedman. one of America’s most distinguished economic experts. Friedman argues that doing concern directors at the same time responsible to concern proprietors for making net income aims and to society for heightening societal public assistance sets up a struggle of involvement that could potentially do the death of concern as it is known today. Harmonizing to Friedman. this death will about surely occur if concern is continually forced to execute socially responsible actions that straight conflict with private organisational aims. ”

Friedman besides argues that to necessitate concern directors to prosecute socially responsible aims may. in fact. be unethical. because it compels directors to pass money on some persons that truly belongs to other persons.

In a free endeavor. private belongings system. a corporate executive is an employee of the proprietors of the concern. He has direct duty to his employers. That duty is to carry on the concern in conformity with their desires. which by and large will be to do as much money as possible while conforming to the basic regulations of society. both those embodied in jurisprudence and those embodied in ethical usage. Insofar as his actions cut down returns to stockholder. he is passing their money. Insofar as his actions raise the monetary value to clients. he is passing the customer’s money.

An illustration that Friedman could utilize to exemplify his statement is the Control Data Corporation. Former president William Norris involved Control Data in many Social responsible plans that cost the company 1000000s of dollars- from edifice workss in the interior metropolis and using a minority work force to researching farming on the Alaskan tundra. When Control Data began to incur net losingss of 1000000s of dollars in the mid-1980s. critics blamed Norris’s “do-gooder” outlook. Finally. a new president was installed to reconstitute the company and return it to profitableness. ( 7 )

Corporate Social Responsibility in Bangladesh

CSR constructs and patterns in Bangladesh have a long history of philanthropic activities from clip immemorial. These beneficent activities included contributions to different charitable organisations. hapless people and spiritual establishments. Till now. most of the concerns in Bangladesh are household owned and first coevals concerns. They are involved in community development work in the signifier of charity without holding any definite policy sing the disbursals or any concrete motivation sing fiscal additions in many cases. Furthermore. most of the SMEs autumn under the informal sector holding low direction construction and resources to turn to the societal and environmental issues. These restrictions drive the top direction of local companies to believe merely about the net income maximization instead than making concern sing the ternary bottom line: net income. planet and people ( CSR definition of Lotus Holdings ) .

The treatments on CSR patterns in Bangladesh in its modern planetary footings. are comparatively new. but non so for the construct itself. Because. being a portion of the planetary market. it is hard to disregard CSR criterion specifically in the export sector. In general. it is true that in Bangladesh. the position of labour rights patterns. environmental direction and transparence in corporate administration are non satisfactory. mostly due to hapless enforcement of bing Torahs and unequal force per unit area from civil society and involvement groups like Consumer Forums. Globally. as CSR patterns are bit by bit being integrated into international concern patterns and hence is going one of the finding factors for market entrees. it is going every bit instrumental for local acceptableness. A focal point on CSR in Bangladesh would be utile. non merely for bettering corporate administration. labour rights. work topographic point safety. just intervention of workers. community development and environment direction. but besides for industrialisation and guaranting planetary market entree.

Since. CSR entails working with stakeholders it is of import to work from within and name the stakeholders ; concerns so that CSR is genuinely embedded in the companies. By now. many CSR dimensions are practiced in Bangladesh. The SMEs mostly depend upon export. The US and EU purchasers set guidelines to Readymade Garment ( RMG ) industry to guarantee the criterions. The 1992 Harkin’s Bill and subsequent consumer and industry boycott of RMG merchandises by USA and the attendant remedial moves by local RMG sector is one illustration. Furthermore. some purchasers from EU visited the sites of late collapsed garments mills. A impermanent prohibition was besides imposed on runt export to the EU on wellness and hygienic criterion and appropriate remedial action followed in that case excessively. But. some of the exporters found trouble in converting the US/EU purchasers to hold positive attitude towards Bangladesh due to inadequate CSR patterns.

Businessmens need to acknowledge the deductions of CSR for concern activities. Companies are confronting the challenges of accommodating efficaciously to the altering environment in the context of globalisation and in peculiar in the export sector. Although Consumer Rights Movement. enforcement of authorities ordinances and a structured position sing the economic importance of CRS are non yet so widespread in the corporate universe in Bangladesh. companies have bit by bit been attaching more importance to CSR in the local market every bit good. They are progressively cognizant that CSR can be of direct economic value. Companies can lend to societal and environmental aims. through incorporating CSR as a strategic investing into their nucleus concern scheme. direction instruments and operations. This is an investing. non a cost. much like quality direction. So. concern organisations can thereby hold an inclusive fiscal. commercial and societal attack. taking to a long term scheme minimising hazards linked to uncertainness.

CSR in Bangladesh can besides lend a batch to community development. The corporate house can develop the community by making employment. supplying primary instruction. part to infrastructure development like route and high-ways and turn toing environmental concerns. This is more relevant for a state like Bangladesh where the authorities intercessions in these Fieldss augmented by corporate confederation can travel a long manner in developing the economic system. society and environment.

Lack of enforcement of Industrial Laws and Regulations. weak brotherhoods. absence of consumer rights groups and high degree of corruptness within the regulative organic structures make CSR misdemeanor rampant in Bangladesh. Two most important foreign exchange beginnings is the RMG sector and the abroad work force export. Incredibly low compensation. on the job hours. health/hygiene/sanitation conditions. fire safety and assorted types of maltreatment are so common and to the extent of inhumaneness that will floor any painstaking person to the nucleus. Recently. the RMG sector employees have embarked on a industry broad motion to set up their rights.

Abroad workers are largely exploited by enrolling bureaus whereas these rural and largely illiterate people have to sell all their properties going paupers and borrow money at really high involvement. Owing to rip offing by the recruiters and improper behaviour by the abroad employers. many of them are compelled to come back as mendicants. some after long parturiency in abroad gaols. Barely any redress is available from the jurisprudence implementing bureaus. Many industrial units run with half-century old machinery bring forthing fatal air. dirt and H2O pollutions. More modern mills besides don’t attention to put in Effluent Treatment Plants. Get downing from FMCGs. veggies. fruits and all other consumable goods. debasement. unnatural maturation at times with toxicant elements. maintaining fish fresh with using lifelessly formol and all other malpractice is rampant and unworried. Good administration and efficient jurisprudence implementing bureaus can merely work out these predicaments.

Although a underdeveloped state. because of planetary fight and demand. the CSR patterns and criterions are being bit by bit implemented in Bangladesh. But there is a long manner to travel. There are challenges to implement CSR decently in Bangladesh. Ultimately CSR patterns should be better practiced in Bangladesh for better and enhanced public presentation. In the publication “Good Governance and Market-Based Reforms: A Study of Bangladesh. Fara Azmat and Ken Coghill relates Good Administration with CSR by discoursing the good administration indexs of regulative quality. regulation of jurisprudence and control of corruptness in the context of Bangladesh and analyses how deficiency of good administration indexs affects the success and sustainability of reforms and contributes to the deficiency of concern moralss and CSR in Bangladesh. ( 8 )

Some Example of Performing Corporate Social Responsibility Activities

Corporate Social Responsibility of IBM:

# Education- IBM realizes the world-wide power and importance of instruction. Through major enterprises such as Reinvestment Education. KidSmart. and undertaking FIRST. the company hopes to advance cognition and accomplishments that will guarantee that communities thrive around the Earth.

# Adult preparation and work force development- IBM invests in assisting others to utilize engineering as a powerful tool in instruction and occupation preparation plans for grownups. There is a particular focal point on utilizing engineering to broaden chances and strengthen plans available to grownups in demand of new accomplishments and employment.

# Humanistic disciplines and Culture- IBM’s support of the humanistic disciplines steam from its strong committedness to breaking its communities. By fall ining with libraries. museums. and other cultural establishments in exciting partnerships that leverage IBM expertness. the company demonstrates the critical function of engineering dramas in heightening the humanistic disciplines. ( 9 )

Corporate Social Responsibility of GRAMMENPHONE:

# Safe Motherhood and Infant Care Project-
Grameenphone Safe Motherhood & A ; Infant Care Project is therefore designed to guarantee free. yet quality. safe maternity and baby attention services to hapless female parents and their babies throughout the state. It besides aims to help in necessary substructure development and extension of basic health care services. particularly in the hard-to-reach and distant countries.

# Education- In coaction with Grameen Shikkha. an organisation of the Grameen Bank household. Grameenphone provides scholarship to some 100 bright but underprivileged pupils at different academic degrees through a scholarship fund yearly. It besides provides educational support to a figure of particular schools – Tauri Foundation. HANS. CDC. and SEID Trust – with an aim to assistance in the learning procedure of the talented kids in our society. Grameenphone is besides a proud spouse of the Enrichment Program of Bishsho Shahitto Kendro through which free books are distributed. It late initiated a CSR undertaking to print and administer illustrated publications on the Liberation War for school-going kids. with the aim to animate them with the heroics of our freedom-fighters.

# Fight against HIV/AIDS- One of the eight Millennium Development Goals for Bangladesh is to hold the spread of HIV and AIDS by 2015. Hence. Grameenphone is committed to work closely with Bangladesh Government and concerned development bureaus to accomplish that mark. with the purpose to raise consciousness and advocator for necessary policy reforms on HIV/AIDS through different communicating channels. ( 10 )

Corporate Social Responsibility of AKTEL:

# Aktel in Bishwa Estema- Aktel had taken enterprise of put to deathing assorted activities in Bishwa Estema. the 2nd largest Muslim assemblage in the universe after Holy Hajj in which 1000000s of people came from different parts of the universe to take part in this pilgrim’s journey. Among the enterprises. are to supply instant primary AIDSs to the pilgrims through free medical check-up by a squad of certified doctors’ at the Aktel voluntary medical service point from forenoon to dark. Aktel besides served free pure imbibing H2O for the pilgrims of Bishwa Estema.

# Aktel stands besides cold affected underprivileged people- On a CSR run Aktel has distributed covers to the underprivileged people of the state. ( 11 )

Corporate Social Responsibility of Dutch-Bangla Bank:

# Education- Dutch-Bangla Bank provides a batch of scholarship to underprivileged pupils for their instruction. It has given support many pupils for higher instruction. It besides arranges Olympiad of Mathematics to develop students’ mathematical cognition.

# Environmental Development- To develop environment of Bangladesh it has taken tree plantation plans across the state.

# Social Development- It has taken some necessary stairss against dowery and drugs which are the expletive of Bangladesh. ( 12 )

Corporate Social Responsibility of UNILEVER BANGLADESH

# Public Health- Unilever Bangladesh ( pvt. ) limited implements many plans on public wellness. They already have taken enterprise for free alveolar consonant look into up. They create consciousness among the rural people about Health by their many activities.

# Humanistic disciplines and Cultural development- In Bangladesh for cultural development Unilever Bangladesh ( pvt. ) limited has done many things giving patron to many cultural organisation. ( 13 )

Mentions

1. Business Intelligence Journal – January. 2009

2. Wikipedia.
3. Michael McComb. ‘Profit to be found in companies that care. ’ South China Morning Post. April 14. 2002. p. 5. 4. Archie B. Carroll. ‘A Three-dimensional Conceptual Model of Corporate Performance. ’ Academy of Management Review. 1979. Vol. 4. No. 4. p. 500. 5. Ruth Lea. ‘Corporate Social Duty: IoD Member Opinion Survey. ’ The Institute of Directors. UK. November. 2002. p10. 6. Corporate Social Responsibility. ASOCIO Policy Paper June 2004 7. Samuel C. Certo & A ; S. Trevis Certo. Modern Management. 10th edition. 8. World Wide Web. ammado. com. Website of Ammado Foundation.

9. Report on Corporate Social Responsibility of IBM. 2009
10. Annual CSR publications of Grameenphone. 2009
11. Aktel CSR Campaign. 2009
12. CSR activities of Dutch-Bangla Bank. 2009
Report on Corporate Social Responsibility of Unilever Bangladesh. 2009
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