The following research examined the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its influence on branding in the energy sector. This research took place at Hydro Ottawa because it is a power distribution and a power generation company, with a mixed private and public business model operating in a monopolistic context, which is a well-rounded example that can be transferred to other organizations and other sectors. This research followed a case study approach guided by Strauss and Corbin’s (1990, 1998) grounded theory. This study attempted to answer the following research question 1) Who are the main stakeholders at Hydro Ottawa and what type of influence do they have on the development of their CSR and branding strategies? 2) How is CSR enunciated and applied at Hydro Ottawa? 3) How does CSR shape the brand image of Hydro Ottawa? In order to explore the research questions, the data collected for this study consisted of interviews, organizational documents, as well as observation. Due to the time limitation for a master’s thesis, six participants were chosen for interviews, which were later transcribed, coded and analysed by the researcher. The findings indicated that building a CSR strategy based on a healthy organizational culture, stakeholder needs, and the triple bottom line (financial, social, environmental) led to CSR essentially becoming the brand. The brand can then be communicated and shaped from and inside-out (from the employees to the external stakeholders)/outside-in (from external stakeholders to inside the organization) approach. Based on a grounded theory analysis, the researcher created a step-by-step prescriptive model that could be used to advance corporate social responsibility into Hydro Ottawa’s brand as well as offer a critical perspective of the findings.

Stakeholder theory has transcended academia and is infiltrating boardrooms all over the world. However, the literature is divided and lacks a coherent narrative of stakeholder value creation. The purpose of this exploratory study is to investigate the merits of stakeholder management by examining the arguments used by stakeholder researchers. Using argument analysis an overview of the field is created which describes the preconditions, mechanisms and moderators of value creation facilitated by stakeholder management.

This report discusses the subject of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and CSR communication at Stadium. The study’s purpose is to study the role of sustainability in corporate social responsibility. This is executed through studying how Stadium chooses to communicate their sustainability practices externally. Furthermore, the report studies if and how Stadium’s CSR message reaches student consumers, and how it affects their opinions and consumer behavior. The gathered material is analyzed through the concept of CSR, reputation management and stakeholder theory. Our result shows that Stadium utilizes CSR as a business strategy, wants to contribute to a better society as well as gaining a more positive reputation. Stadium communicate the same sustainability information through the same communication channels to all stakeholders.We found that the student consumers are not reached by Stadium’s sustainability communication, and this is a contributing factor to why their opinions and consumer behavior at Stadium is unaffected. However, differences of opinion about whether sustainability practices affect the students’ view of Stadium arose - some would be affected by more sustainability information and for some it is rather a matter of price when making a purchase. The students believe that they would be better reached by Stadium’s sustainability message if it was communicated in stores. The report shows that sustainability is important for student consumers and also that inadequate communication decreases their opportunity to shop sustainably. It is less likely that a company’s reputation is affected in a positive way if sustainability is not adequately communicated / Uppsatsen behandlar företags sociala ansvar (CSR) och CSR-kommunikation på Stadium. Studiens syfte är att undersöka vilken roll hållbarhet har inom CSR. Detta görs genom att undersöka hur Stadium väljer att kommunicera sitt CSR-arbete externt, med fokus på hållbarhetsaspekten. Vidare undersöker studien huruvida Stadiums budskap når konsumentgruppen studenter och hur det i så fall påverkar konsumenternas åsikter och köpbeteende. Syftet uppnås genom att besvara tre frågeställningar med hjälp av intervjuer med representanter från Stadium samt student-fokusgupper. Det insamlade materialet från intervjuer och fokusgrupper analyseras utifrån CSR-konceptet, reputation management och stakeholder theory. Resultatet av undersökningen påvisar att Stadium vill bidra till ett bättre samhälle samt använder CSR som företagsstrategi, och vill att CSR-arbetet skall påverka sitt anseende positivt. Stadium kommunicerar samma hållbarhetinformation genom samma kommunikationskanaler till alla Stadiums intressenter (ex. genom hemsidan).Vidare framkom att studentkonsumenterna inte nås av Stadiums hållbarhetskommunikation, och att detta är en bidragande faktor till varför deras åsikter och köpbeteende på Stadium inte påverkas. Dock framkommer delade meningar huruvida studenternas syn på Stadium och beteende påverkas av hållbarhetsarbete - vissa skulle påverkas genom att få mer information och för vissa är det en prisfråga huruvida man handlar hållbart eller ej. Studenterna anser att de skulle nås bättre om hållbarhetsarbetet kommunicerades ut i butiksmiljön. Avslutningsvis visar studien på att hållbarhet är viktigt för studentkonsumenterna men att bristande kommunikation minskar deras möjlighet att handla hållbart. Det är mindre troligt att ett företags anseende påverkas positivt om hållbarhet inte kommuniceras tillräckligt.

The management of physical healthcare assets is vital for efficient delivery of healthcare services along with improving quality and productivity, amidst significant structural and funding re-organisation within the NHS. Capital allocations are under pressure and advanced strategic planning of healthcare infrastructure is required to maintain services. In doing so, the complexity of multiple interacting systems and mixed stakeholder expectations and competencies need to be addressed. The relationship between stakeholder public consultation and estates strategy development in theory and practice is poorly understood and further theoretical development is required to advance our knowledge in Strategic Asset Management (SAM). This thesis adopts an interpretivist paradigm, and an abductive approach with a case study design methodology. Data were collected from six case studies comprising 91 participants (focus groups and workshops); 6 unstructured interviews; 907 questionnaires; and observations resulting in over 30 hours of transcribed data, along with web-based document analyse (desk studies) within 149 NHS Trusts. The data were further analysed using thematic analyses. Findings reveal how localised conditions within individual healthcare Trusts influence the ways in which national initiatives are interpreted and incorporated; these impact existing ways of developing an estates strategy and in some cases, have implications on the usability of associated healthcare infrastructure spaces. This had clear implications on existing SAM practice, which were diverse, driven by individual project team competencies and associated project management practice. In practice, more focus was given to technical competencies (knowledge of SAM datasets and tools) and behavioural competencies were downplayed. Thus, the integrative Strategic Asset Management (iSAM) framework developed in this research, established a unique baseline to develop SAM plans from a complex interaction of care, estates and transport, providing a valuable resource for healthcare planning teams. Stakeholder consultation should be selective (representative sample) and the content of consultation should be appropriate at various SAM stages. Trusts should clearly indicate how their plans have been influenced, given the feedback from stakeholder consultation. Thus, moving it from a tick box exercise, to one that adds value in the decision making process. Empirical findings revealed that although literature promoted tools and methods to facilitate SAM, in practice, these were hardly used and most teams within English healthcare Trusts were not aware of best practice tools and solutions. Structuration theory was further used as a heuristic device to theoretically triangulate the empirical findings and contribute to a nuanced understanding of SAM within healthcare Trusts. In doing so, a middle range theory for integrative SAM (iSAM) was developed. It revealed that a dynamic system of individual action and organisational structure both constrained and enabled SAM. It was evident that the process of SAM is an open, emergent process of sense making rather than a pre-determined and closed process following prescriptive rules. This thesis has advanced knowledge in SAM and has raised the importance of front end project management within English healthcare Trusts. The new integrative and interdisciplinary iSAM framework facilitates the development of estates strategy and stakeholder consultation decision-making within healthcare Trusts.

Background- CSR is a highly relevant subject for corporations today, since there is an increased stakeholder demand to report corporate social, economic and environmental performance. CSR may convey numerous benefits for a firm, such as a competitive advantage, increased trust and improved corporate image, as well as many outcomes related to the employee. The automotive industry is facing high external pressures to lower their carbon footprint, and to become more sustainable, consequently, this industry is a suitable context for CSR research.   Purpose- The purpose of this study is to investigate different characteristics of employee’s and their perceptions and expectations of CSR, to find the most important aspects of the phenomena from an employee’s perspective, and thereby, engaging them in a company’s CSR initiatives. By investigating this field, it will be possible for companies to improve their CSR communication and meet the employee’s expectations. An effort will be made to distinguish different types of employees, to find out their main differences in terms of preferences and willingness to engage, and by that, find the most efficient ways to get them involved in CSR activities. These insights could help companies to successfully implement CSR programmes internally throughout their organization.   Method- A mixed method was used to fulfil the purpose of the study. A quantitative online survey was conducted and provided responses from 350 employees at a single automotive company. To acquire deeper insights, qualitative interviews with ten employees and observations as complete observers were used in a complementary manner at the same company.   Results and Conclusion- The main conclusions from the empirical results and theoretical background showed that the willingness to engage in CSR activities might diverge depending on the location and the functional area of the employee. The CSR aspect that the employees perceived as most important was an economic aspect “maintaining a solid financial performance”, followed by “providing product innovations that get ahead of market and customer needs”, and “satisfying customer needs in a measurable way”. The most efficient ways to engage the employees appeared to be mainly through training, community engagement, and accurate communication.   Practical Implications- The findings from this study provides implications and recommendations to both managers and marketers on how to market the CSR programme internally, which aspects of CSR to emphasise and how to get the employees involved. This will consequently strengthen corporation’s CSR programme and thus, benefit the society.   Keywords - CSR, Employee Engagement, Internal Marketing, Stakeholder

Effective stakeholder engagement is fundamental to water management, yet there are as many approaches to consultation as there are efforts. This paper provides an evaluation of, and lessons learned from three water management engagement processes, and uses this assessment to offer a framework for stakeholder engagement. The Stakeholder Engagement Wheel framework is centered on a bridging organization that ensures that the process continues to move forward, and a steering committee that guides and changes activities according to stakeholder interests and concerns. Around the Stakeholder Engagement Wheel are four steps designed to examine iteratively the water management issue driving the engagement process and expand the sphere of interests involved. Many engagement processes have limited effectiveness because of: (1) paucity of time; (2) complexity of water resources management; (3) difficulty of engaging diverse stakeholders; and (4) lack of methods for engagement that are centered on empowerment, equity, trust, and learning. In this study, we have encountered all four of these issues and have addressed all but the first through a deliberate, iterative, and flexible approach. By cycling through activities and actions as proposed in the Stakeholder Engagement Wheel, we can build a community of practitioners with the nuanced and shared understanding needed for cohesive action and robust decisions in the face our considerable challenges.

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Indigenous peoples in North America have a long history of understanding their societies as having an intimate relationship with their physical environments. Their cultures, traditions, and identities are based on the ecosystems and sacred places that shape their world. Their respect for their ancestors and 'Mother Earth' speaks of unique value and knowledge systems different than the value and knowledge systems of the dominant United States settler society. The value and knowledge systems of each indigenous and non-indigenous community are different but collide when water resources are endangered. One of the challenges that face indigenous people regarding the management of water relates to their opposition to the commodification of water for availability to select individuals. External researchers seeking to work with indigenous peoples on water research or management must learn how to design research or water management projects that respect indigenous cultural contexts, histories of interactions with settler governments and researchers, and the current socio-economic and political situations in which indigenous peoples are embedded. They should pay particular attention to the process of collaborating on water resource topics and management with and among indigenous communities while integratingWestern and indigenous sciences in ways that are beneficial to both knowledge systems. The objectives of this paper are to (1) to provide an overview of the context of current indigenous water management issues, especially for the U.S. federally recognized tribes in the Southwestern United States; (2) to synthesize approaches to engage indigenous persons, communities, and governments on water resources topics and management; and (3) to compare the successes of engaging Southwestern tribes in five examples to highlight some significant activities for collaborating with tribes on water resources research and management. In discussing the engagement approaches of these five selected cases, we considered the four "simple rules" of tribal research, which are to ask about ethics, do more listening, follow tribal research protocols, and give back to the community. For the five select cases of collaboration involving Southwestern tribes, the success of external researchers with the tribes involved comprehensive engagement of diverse tribal audience from grassroots level to central tribal government, tribal oversight, on-going dialogue, transparency of data, and reporting back. There is a strong recognition of the importance of engaging tribal participants in water management discussions particularly with pressing impacts of drought, climate change, and mining and defining water rights.

Despite the importance of roofs, improved roof selection has not been explored in significant depth. Therefore this research explores the possibilities that roofs offer to improve the value and sustainability of buildings. It is concerned with the roof as a system, explicitly connected with the building and their impacts on wider society. This research, develops and tests techniques to better understand what constitutes value and sustainability for a building project’s context through action research. The sustainability and value themes output through the use of such techniques are then considered as a basis for the selection of roof attributes through Keeney’s value focused thinking approach. Once the roof performance attributes have been established, designers and clients then require quantitative data to decide which roof type represents the highest value / most sustainable option. Thus the research also collates and maps peer reviewed quantitative performance data on the performance of roofing systems in relation to climate type as well as providing information from leading modelling packages for different roof options. An approach for selecting the most appropriate data is then developed. This allows the practitioner to be able to access reliable peer reviewed information and utilise leading modelling techniques to quickly gain information regarding the performance of various roof systems for use in the project context. An approach is developed to bring this information together with the important sustainability considerations for the project to inform sustainable roof selection. This combines the different types of roof performance with the relevant decision attributes early in the design process, to provide insight into which roof option represents the best overall economic, environmental and social value and therefore the most sustainable roof option. The primary contribution to knowledge presented in this thesis is the development of a pragmatic realist approach to sustainable roof selection.

Value co-creation enhances employers' branding through the engagement of organisations' corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities and employees' behaviours, such as performance, loyalty and satisfaction. Although a growing body of research has explored the notion of value co-creation, the current understanding of the interrelationship between value co-creation and corporate social responsibility is underdeveloped. There is fierce academic debate surrounding the concept of value co-creation, calling for further theoretical and empirical work on this field. Furthermore, the concept of employer branding is still a nascent area in management and marketing scholarships and requires further conceptual nourishment. Although significant studies have covered the role of organisations and consumers in value co-creation resulting in employer branding, there has been little research to address the role of employees in value co-creation, dictating further assessment of their role in the process of value co-creation and participation in employer branding in a CSR context. Therefore, this thesis seeks to identify and analyse how, and to what extent, efforts to become socially responsible can co-create value for internal stakeholders and contribute to employer branding. As such, part of the theoretical foundation for this research is built on CSR. Subsequently, relevant conceptual avenues pertaining to the co-creation of value, corporate branding and employer branding are explored and analysed. An extensive literature review is undertaken to inform the robust development of an initially proposed conceptual framework of the main factors that impact upon this process. The proposed conceptual framework has set a broad guide for the researcher regarding the empirical fieldwork involved. The context for the research explores the notion of value co-creation within employer branding in the Omani hotel sector. To analyse value co-creation in depth, a qualitative interpretive multi-case study approach is adopted. The research also considers aspects of managerial philosophies and employees' perceptions regarding their organisations' current and future CSR activities, and how these activities impact value co-creation for stakeholders. The findings indicate that value co-creation has three major elements - it is dynamic and iterative, it requires dialogical interactions among various parties, and it leads to dualistic outcomes. The adoption of CSR increases the employees' satisfaction, whereas a lack of understanding of the CSR activities leads to the co-destruction of value, which in return affects the organisational turn-over in the long run. Therefore, creating awareness about the importance of the implementation of CSR is considered crucial, as it will benefit the organisation and improve the level of performance and loyalty of the internal stakeholders. The researcher proposes an original conceptual model on this tripartite nature of value co-creation and an analysis of how value co-creation can lead to the development of sustainable and socially responsible employer branding. An employee-oriented perspective towards value co-creation is introduced as an endeavour to enrich the area of research and address current conceptual deficiencies. The research also advances scholarship by critically assessing the role of employees as an independent but integral entity in the value co-creation process, establishing clear and robust links between CSR, value cocreation and employer branding.