Human resource and CSR (Final Part)
The non-profit organisations learn immensely by getting the professional volunteers to learn how to manage in a resource-constrained crisis environment that non-profit organisations operate in.
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Therefore, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a significant way for Human Resource (HR) to positively affect company performance with the combined impact of CSR and human resource activities reinforcing desirable behaviour and thereby make a major contribution in creating long-term success in organisation.
Organisational appeal
Reputable companies have been found to use CSR to attract, motivate and retain human resource talents and this in turn improved their competitive positions. Research findings show that CSR leads to an improved recruitment and the company that shows greater commitment to CSR initiative is more attractive to potential employees.
A strong relationship also exists between CSR and training functions as a strategic issue and employees are more likely to respond if training programmes incorporate policies, procedures and system use in the workplace that meet the CSR objectives.
New recruits or employees who are trained in CSR policy and projects during the orientation period are likely to perceive the importance of CSR policy and will buy into it. Equitable employment practices appear to affect employees through improved morale, increased engagement, higher productivity and better retention which further reflect on an organisation’s position as an employer of choice.
Corporate culture
Corporate culture refers to the shared values, attitudes, standards and beliefs that characterise members of an organisation and define its nature. Corporate culture is rooted in an organisation's goals, strategies, structure and approaches to labour, customers, investors and the greater community.
The HR professional will be contributing to sustainable practices in the organisation when the HR professional embeds the CSR values in the corporate culture. The HR policies and strategies which form the framework for culture in the organisation help to create awareness among employees, of the need to achieve the corporate goals in the best possible and ethical manner.
The HR can lead and educate organisational members on the value of CSR and provide the action plans on how to strategically and successfully implement the programme. HR provides requisite training opportunities for employees to identify with the CSR activity and provide the necessary support during implementation.
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By helping to develop action plans to analyse CSR activities, the HR professional is equally promoting corporate citizenship, which is vital for developing a culture for social responsibility.
Corporate reputation
This refers to observers’ collective judgements of the organisation based on the assessment of such parameters as the organisation’s social responsibilities.
Researchers argue that HR function can play a critical role in embedding CSR within corporations through facilitating CSR strategy development, implementation and related change issues and this will further enhance the corporate reputation of the organisation.
It has been argued that if a company wants to add organisational value, the HR function must focus on actions that build employee competencies and motivation that in turn positively influence corporate reputation.
Many agencies publicly assess organisations, and Fortune Magazine is one of such. Fortune Magazine produces a global annual rating called ‘the world’s most admired companies’. The criteria used to rank these companies include a company’s social responsibility profile.
Communicating CSR activities
The HR professional can serve as a veritable channel or source for effectively communicating CSR activities to employees and the public or community. This communication allows a company to gain additional benefits from their investment, including improving their public image, increasing employee morale and support from the community.
The ultimate goal of CSR communications should be to engage employees in the CSR mission of the firm to help build out the firm’s CSR architecture. In other words, communicating with employees greatly improve the performance of CSR mission.
The HR’s role, therefore, involves developing the strategies to enhance business sustainability and communicating the values that enable the company to look beyond their short-term interests and see that acting responsibly can enhance their very ability to survive.
CSR standards
The HR professional can play an important role in helping the organisation achieve CSR standards. The HR leader can accordingly, influence three primary standards of CSR - ethics, employment practices and community involvement - that relate directly or indirectly to employees, customers and the local community.
In fact, human resources management practices have a key role to play by ensuring that their organisation abides by accepted legal and ethical standards.
Indeed, it is part of the role of HR to ensure employee effectiveness with an environment that maximises the return on the investment in human capital by observing legal, ethical and fair treatment.