Corporate Social Responsibility – Why Should Your Company Bother?

Corporate Social Responsibility  (CSR) is not a new concept for businesses – although some see it simply as box ticking or gaining brownie points. So why should businesses properly engage with CSR? Dannie Lu Carr from Flaming Poppy gives us some insights regarding this topic, especially interesting as we start the New Year.

1)    It keeps people aware – globally, nationally and locally – of what is going on for others and reminds us of our direct impact on things. This ensures everyone stays responsible.

2)    It maintains empathy in and out of the workplace. It is impossible to be involved in CSR and not be empathetic. Once our emotional intelligence and empathy is ignited it is very difficult to turn this off. Therefore not only do we become more understanding but this impacts our all-round communication style to understand things on a human level much more effectively.

3)    It creates big picture thinking. Not only will being involved in CSR get people thinking about how they can help in that particular field but it also helps us to join the dots and see how everything connects.

4)    It unites you with likeminded businesses. This is an all round win/win. At best it means you can combine forces and do something that really makes a difference. At worst it means you have genuine similar values which gives you a lot to build a conversation and therefore a business relationship on.

5)    It promotes creative and innovative thinking. The keys to creativity and innovation are empathy, perspective, connection points and communication. The brain can’t help but ask related questions as a result of these things, which leads to innovative ideas and creative strategy. Just remember to share these with others.

So not only is it worth investing your time, energy and resources into Corporate Social Responsibility, but seeing what others are doing in and around can be inspirational and world changing. Just look around and see how your business can get involved.

At Pensar, CSR is high in our agenda. For 2014, we’ve chosen 3 charities to work with that we are helping specifically and so contributing to wider society in general. Want to know more about our charities and perhaps get involved? Any help is welcome!

Which are your altruistic resolutions for 2014? We’d love to hear your comments. And of course, we’re here for any question or suggestion you might have for us.