A JOURNAL ANALYSIS

Title: “Why CSR should be popularized but not imposed”

By Fred Robins

I. Underlying Issues/Major Ideas and Concepts

 Should CSR be imposed
 Who pays for CSR
 Who decides about CSR
 What are the political consequences of CSR

II. Relevance/Contribution to the Existing Body of Knowledge on CSR

The author introduces an important idea regarding CSR, which is

“systematic ambiguity.” The said idea aims to explain how the goal of CSR can
be contradictory to the general goal of businesses. CSR has the nature of non-
profit objectives in contrast with the businesses’ common purpose which is highly
associated with profit motive. Companies in the Philippines, such as ABS-CBN
Corporation and GMA Network Inc., created distinct entities (Sagip Kapamilya
Foundation and Kapuso Foundation, respectively) which are philanthropic in
nature to separate the profit and non-profit objectives of the business
organization.

Furthermore, the author is also able to discuss “stewardship theory.”

Stewardship hypothesizes that managers may achieve their own goals best by
serving the interests of the organization. It can be considered as fundamentally
“pro-organization and collectivist rather than individualistic and self-serving” in
theory.
III. Opinion on the Article

The article tackled issues regarding CSR which are considered to be

sensitive and controversial such as who pays for CSR, who makes the decision
about the CSR, and what are possible consequences of CSR in political, social,
and business aspects. These issues help answer whether CSR should be
imposed or not. Moreover, imposing CSR would ultimately defeat its purpose and
nature. The author clearly believes that CSR movement is “a moral and ethical
one.” It is impossible to impose CSR entirely especially when not all businesses
genuinely practice fair dealings.

On the other hand, the author’s stance that the precise cost-benefit
relationship between CSR and any measure of revenue is virtually impossible to
estimate is clearly agreeable. Companies have different takes on how to
measure CSR success. Some corporation considers mutually beneficial
relationship with the host community as a major measurement of CSR success.
A survey conducted among the large companies operating in the Philippines
showed that 70% of the respondents said that community acceptance is their
main goal. Another 30% of the respondent corporation believes that publicity is a
measurement of success for their CSR. It can be observed that these success
indicators are intangible in nature and cannot be measured with specific
numbers.

IV. Possible Implications to the Philippine Setting

CSR is not entirely new to the Philippine setting. Several large

corporations have embraced and practiced CSR. Incorporation of CSR within
local organization has been largely attributed to the top executives and company
directors. For the multinational companies, the main trigger came from their head
office abroad which requires local counterparts to engage in CSR. Currently,
most of the CSR activities are still mainly philanthropy and event-driven.
However, CSR in the Philippines is gradually evolving to become a cornerstone
of business strategy.