TITLE:
A Case against CSR Initiatives
AUTHORS:
Arjun Kathayat
KEYWORDS:
CSR, CSR Initiatives, Organizational Performance, Financial Performance, Shareholders, Stakeholders
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Business and Management,
Vol.10 No.2,
March
9,
2022
ABSTRACT: There is fuzzy information in the existing body of knowledge regarding
what CSR is. CSR initiatives require extensive resources and investment from
the organizations and their shareholders. But, interest in implementing CSR
initiatives in the contemporary business world is ever-growing. Business
leaders cherish CSR initiatives, and consumers also expect business
organizations to do more for the greater
good of societies and communities. Then again, shareholders may not
appreciate the idea of investing wealth and resources in CSR initiatives if CSR
initiatives fail to be a proven tool or strategy to enhance financial or
organizational performance. The purpose of this article is to investigate the scholarly arguments against CSR
initiatives in operations so that business organizations and
shareholders can make informed decisions if they should invest resources and
wealth in CSR initiatives. In other words, the article explores why business
organizations or shareholders should not employ CSR initiatives in their
operations for the sustainability and profitability of the organizations. Based
on the systematic literature review, the study found that CSR initiatives did
not always negatively impact financial or organizational performance. CSR initiatives and financial or organizational
performance also had a neutral, mixed, or favorable relationship. The
literature review results imply that organizations
with CSR initiatives have a greater chance of attaining enhanced financial or organizational performance than those without CSR initiatives. It recommends
further research on what percentage of operating costs or marketing costs
organizations should invest in CSR initiatives to generate break-even or
enhanced financial or organizational performance.