New Advances in Business: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
New Advances in Business: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Introduction
Corporate social responsibility has been in business field for several years. Most corporate bodies are becoming sensitive to appreciate the community within which they operate even as they strive to maximize on profits and owner’s equity. Several definitions have been put forward to explain the concept but in the wider view, CSR refers to the ability of the organization to solve the poverty gap present within the organizations environment. The corporate world in the recent years has engaged in several programs and activities aimed at improving the lives of the community within which the organization operates. CSR has also been a critical promotional tool through which organization fulfils the advertisement program of the company.
It is for this reason that there is need to conduct research on the importance and essence of corporate social responsibility. There are several research gaps that should be conducted in order to fulfill a fruitful corporate social responsibility (Lee & Kotler, 2013). This is a continuous process through which the shareholders wealth must be maximized and the operations of the organization be run in an ethical manner and promote economic development. In essence, corporate social responsibility should ensure better lives for both the shareholders and the society of operation. This chapter will discuss an advanced CSR research for a major street store. This will be very essential in unearthing the best approach in achieving a fruitful program.
Research questions
In order to conduct a successful research, it is important to have a research gap. This research gap forms the basis for research process. The research gap is defined by the research questions. These questions define the purpose and the aim of the research process. The research process aims at solving the problems in question. For instance, this research process aims to answer the following questions;
- Does corporate social responsibility increase profits?
- Why corporate social responsibility is important?
- Is corporate social responsibility important for sustainability of a business organization?
- How the implementation and monitoring of corporate social responsibility is is implemented?
- What are the benefits of having a perfect corporate social responsibility?
- What are the motives associated with corporate social responsibility?
- What factors should be considered while developing a corporate social responsibility program?
By the end of the research process, all these questions should have answers and this will be vital for the management of the high street store.
Research methods
The choice of research method used in a research process is very important in determining the outcome of the process. For instance, in this case both primary and secondary sources of data will be very important. This is because the research objectives will involve determining how previous corporate social responsibility programs have been implemented. It will also be very vital to understand the poverty gap within the society. This will be very essential for the management of the store since they will be able to understand what programs would be of importance to the community.
The data collection will be carried by use of both primary and secondary sources. In order to collect first hand information, interviews will be conducted. These interviews will be guided by questionnaires where different questions will be asked the community within which the stores will be located. Such questionnaires can also be sent to other business firms to understand the nature of their corporate social responsibility. The nature of the interview questions will formulated in a way that they do not have any limitations in the way respondents will answer them. Though the interviewing process will be time consuming, it will be [paramount to use the process since adequate and comprehensive answers can be achieved. Other primary sources of data intended to be used include journals and conducting surveys within the environment in question.
Secondary sources of data collection will also be of great importance. The research process will also involve using books, biographies, newspapers and other articles to get the necessary information. Documentaries on previous research processes will also be very important in this research process. The information on previous researches could be vital and efficient since it will not be time consuming. However, the secondary sources have some critics since at times the information is not accurate. The credibility and authenticity of the information is at times in doubt. Some of these secondary sources are also time barred thus making such information irrelevant (Williams, 2013).
The data collected in this research process will be very vital in implementing the corporate social responsibility for the store. This information will be very useful to the management to understand the types of programs that will be implemented by the high end store. The research information results will also be important for the general public to understand the responsibilities they expect from the business world (Coombs & Holladay, 2012). The research data will be essential for the organizations budgeting process. This is because the information will outline the estimates of the money that the organization will offer to the society.
After data collection, the next step in the research process involves data analysis. This is a very important stage as it fulfills the purpose of the research process. The research questions can only be answered after analyzing the data collected in the research question. The data collected will be put in charts and tables to make the analysis an easy process. Other analytical tools such as regression and SPSS will also be critical components of the research analysis. Formulation of hypothesis will also be paramount since they will enable the researchers to make deductions from the research work.
Expected issues in the research process
Every research process is faced with numerous challenges and limitations which the researcher should be conversant with and knows how to mitigate them. For instance, the data collection exercise can be faced with numerous challenges. The integrity of the interviewee is at times questionable thus making the data collection through the interviews to lack credibility. The different respondents may have different understanding to the interview questions thus having very different results. Data from secondary sources may also be invalid thus making the purpose of the research difficult to fulfill.
Another major issue that may be encountered during the research process is the resources required to fulfill the research process. It is important to note that time, human and financial resources are critical in performing a successful research. Finances are instrumental tool in ensuring that the research process is amicably completed. It is for this reason that the research team will be required to have a proper budget o ensure that the finances available are utilized properly. The research team must also have a well planned action plan. This will be an important aspect in ensuring that the research process is timely and get the desired results. Failure to have such plans will either lead to doing a shoddy work or fail to complete the purpose. Ethical issues are also paramount in the research process. It is important for the research team to ensure that both finance and time dedicated to the research process are devoted to the course. This is because some irresponsible people may opt to misuse funds and time in other personal dedications.
Potential use of research findings
The research process will be culminated by analyzing the findings of the research. This will be very important since the research process must provide the answers to the research questions. For instance, the findings of the research must provide information on whether or not the corporate social responsibility has any benefit to the organization in question. All the benefits such as competitiveness, poverty reduction and governance in the community are realized.
The research findings will also be essential in determining the nature of corporate social responsibility program that will enhance perpetuity of the stores. This will be determined after understanding the poverty gap within the community. Implementation of such programs will be essential for the overall sustainability of the organization. The research findings are also expected to outline the different forms of corporate social responsibility programs and how they are beneficial to the organization. It will also be essential in achieving the promotional and advertising objective of the organization. The research process essentially is aimed at finding a balance between the shareholders interests and those of the community. The research would be of no importance if it does not provide a breakeven point for the running of the high end store.
References
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