Corporate Social Responsibility - What is it and do we need it?

With the new financial year fast approaching and businesses ready with their budget spending power, we hear a lot from clients who are bidding on tenders that require Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies. While having a policy is not mandatory, it’s a great way to demonstrate commitment to ethical practices, sustainability and community impact.

With newer generations entering the workforce who have a keen interest in society, the environment, and the impact their employer makes, having a CSR strategy in place is a great way to showcase your business commitment in the best possible light and of course, make a difference to societies and those around you.

And of course, having a clear approach to CSR capitalises on your endeavors with your employees too by ensuring how you support communities around you is reflected in your Employer Value Proposition (EVP).

Here are our top tips for writing an effective Corporate Social Responsibility strategy:

• Engage stakeholders including colleagues, local community groups, 3rd parties you choose to support, regulators and any other party who may have a vested interest in how your business impacts them.

• Align your aims with your corporate objectives to ensure consistency and buy-in from everyone involved in the business.

• Create a framework for implementation and ensure everyone understands their role.

• Focus on key areas of impact and responsibility.

• Communicate effectively with everyone involved to ensure you can hold people to account.

• Measure and evaluate your effectiveness regularly and have a feedback mechanism to continually improve.

• Create a policy that is transparent and let’s everyone in your business know what you are delivering and how they can be involved.

  
  

In addition, at Holla HR we are often asked about how this evolves to implementing a volunteering strategy into your workplace. Again, while not a legal requirement, this enables your employees to see how they can get involved and work with others to make an impact.

If you’re considering introducing a volunteering policy, here are some key considerations:

• Do you have the correct risk assessments in place? Ensure you consider the health and safety of your employees if they’re off-site volunteering.

• Ensure both you, and the organisation you’re supporting, have the correct insurances in place to support any activity.

• Brief your employees on your own policies and procedures so they know how they should be conducting themselves – they are representing your business when volunteering.

• You have a duty of care to your team members, even when they’re not at your place of work. Make sure they know how to report any instances of behaviour they encounter that are not right, including harassment.

• Have a clear policy which outlines how to request to volunteer, any approval process to be followed, and what needs to be in place for the venture to go ahead.

  
  

If you’re thinking of focusing on CSR or volunteering in your business and giving something back is important to you, we’d love to help.

Contact Holla HR at info@hollahr.com 📩 today to discuss your plans.