Page 14 - Quarterly Q1-Q2 2018

QUARTERLY Q/1–Q/2 – 2018
THINKING AHEAD
Corporate Social Responsibility Is More Than Reputation Management
P14 Corporate Social Responsibility is too often regarded as a mere constraint on the operation of a company, as charity or, at best, as reputation management. Corporate Social Responsibility should, however, be the core of business strategy for all companies, writes Kari Lautjärvi.
Our Partner, Co-Head of Corporate Advisory, Compliance & CSR Kari Lautjärvi, was interviewed in Tebatti column of Talouselämä, the Nordic region’s largest and Finland’s only weekly business magazine. Below is a translated excerpt of his article.
The nature and legitimate position of limited liability companies’ Corporate Social Responsibility is the subject of ongoing lively and value-based debate. Corporate Social Responsibility issues
are sometimes seen as mere constraints on the operations of a company, as charity or at least as reputation and risk management.
Too seldom it is considered from the viewpoint
of a company’s possibilities, its innovations and competitiveness. Corporate Social Responsibility
is a part of the business strategy realized by the management. It is also linked to the Limited Liability Companies Act.
Added Value to the Surrounding Society
In economics, Corporate Social Responsibility has generally been regarded as a central part of the company’s business strategy.
University Professor at Harvard Business School, Michael E. Porter, and researcher Mark R. Kramer, has introduced the concept of Creating Shared Value.
This model suggests that companies could generate added value in a way that also produces value for the surrounding society. First, companies can reconceive their products, services and their markets by taking the true needs of the society into consideration. In which case, shared value is created by new innovations.
“Does Corporate Social Responsibility legally require anything other than complying with norms?”