<p>Background: Research results show that the potential of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has increased. That means there is a growing pressure on Swedish companies to act with responsibility: general public has a positive attitude towards companies that communicate their CSR. Advertising agencies have been criticized by their way to manage the question of social responsibility. One of the characteristics of an advertising agency is their anonymity; even though their products are extremely visible, it is rarely clear who gave rise to an advertising production. If this is put in relation to CSR in general, we find ourselves in a contradictory situation when CSR in many cases is about exposure of the responsible corporation. </p><p>Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to explain whether CSR can be applied to advertising agencies, by describing in which way their conditions limit respectively make possible to run business in terms of CSR. </p><p>Research Method: The thesis has a qualitative approach, and the empirical data is in large parts based on personal interviews, where the interviewees represent Swedish advertising agencies. </p><p>Result: We have identified a number of limitations and possibilities related to advertising agencies concerning CSR. Principally limits are that the advertising industry by tradition does not sanction responsibility in this matter, that professionals belittle the social effect by their own business but recognize the impact of advertising productions taken all together. Finally, efficient advertising and customer satisfaction are top priority concerns: ethics may have to step aside due to these matters. On the other hand, there are several aspects to suggest that CSR is to be applied on agencies: the surrounding world is an important matter to agency activities. Our results show that the attention given an agency in factual can be used in characteristics of CSR: the professionals have the opportunity to choose how and what to produce.</p>

<p>Vietnam is a developing country in South-East Asia with borders toward China, Laos and Cambodia. As other countries in the same area are far more developed, Vietnam can gain a lot from international trade. It is an important factor for a country to build prosperity and gain economic growth and thereby reach a higher standard of living. But for a company to succeed in the international market is a demanding task. Both internal and external factors that influence a company’s competence need to be taken into consideration. The awareness of Corporate Social Responsibility is increasing every day and it is becoming a more and more important factor for the end-customer as well as the buyers and suppliers. This Master Thesis deals with the relationship between Vietnamese suppliers and their international buyers and how Corporate Social Responsibility affects that relation.</p><p>The result of the study shows that there are advantages for both the Vietnamese supplier and the international buyer. Companies that work together and care for each other will end up with a strong and long-term relation. Both the quality and the productivity increased and that the staff turn-over decreased when introducing CSR. One also has to understand that the international customers are in command and that the suppliers are merely following the customer’s demands. Furthermore, quality, price and delivery time are the most important factors when choosing a supplier but by working with CSR these factors will also be affected positively.</p><p>It was also, apart from the main focus of this thesis, interesting to discover how corruption and cultural differences affected the supplier-buyer relation and also the discussion about whose responsibility it actually is to work with these issues; the buying rich customer or the relatively poor supplier?</p>

<p>Bakgrund: Enligt en undersökning gjord av Livsmedelsverket beräknas tjugo procent av Sveriges barn i dagsläget vara överviktiga eller lida av fetma. Orsaker till detta sägs vara bland annat ändrade levnadsvanor som exempelvis mindre fysisk aktivitet och mindre hälsosam mat. Övervikt ses i normala fall av samhället som ett problem och på senare tid har allt fler samhällsaktörer börjat uppmärksamma frågan. Kravet från samhället ökar på att bland annat företagen skall ta sitt sociala ansvar och hörsamma samt agera för en samhällsförbättring med syfte att komma tillrätta med överviktsproblemet. Något som dock inte har fått lika mycket utrymme i debatten om socialt ansvar i samband med övervikt är hur den offentliga sektorn agerar i denna situation.</p><p>Syfte: Utgör statens, kommunens, landstingets och skolans nuvarande agerande var för sig ett socialt ansvartagande med syfte att skapa de bästa förutsättningarna för en grundskolelev att komma tillrätta med sin övervikt? Skapar dessutom de fyra parternas gemensamma sociala ansvarstagande tillräckligt med förutsättningar för att grundskoleleven skall komma tillrätta med sin övervikt?</p><p>Tillvägagångssätt: Resultatet baseras på en intervjuundersökning med representanter för landsting, kommuner och skolor i Östergötlands län, närmare bestämt i kommunerna Linköping och Mjölby. Ytterligare har statens offentliga handlingar studerats och utvärderats.</p><p>Resultat: Resultatet av undersökningen visar att det fyra olika aktörerna uppmärksammar problemet om barns-, och i detta specifika fall grundskolelevers övervikt. De fyra aktörerna staten, kommunen, landstinget och skolan tar var och en ett socialt ansvar genom både kort och långsiktiga projekt. På frågan om de fyra parternas gemensamma ansvarstagande utgör tillräckliga förutsättningar för att ett barn själv skall komma tillrätta med sin övervikt är svaret nej. Exempelvis erkänner alla inblandande parter själva att de skulle kunna göra mer för att förbättra den rådande situationen. Aktörerna menar att det som saknas är ett helhetstänkande, att exempelvis hälsokunskap skulle behöva integreras i hela skolverksamheten och inte bara i samband med ämnet idrott och hälsa eller i olika temaveckor. Det som ytterligare skulle behövas för att lösa situationen är ett bättre samarbete mellan, de i denna undersökning, fyra olika aktörerna.</p>

<p>Background: Ambiguity and confusion of ideas within the area of social responsibility have led to that companies not really know how to work with these types of questions. One way for companies to deal with their social responsibility is to affiliate to an initiative that exists and through this show their standpoint. One of these is Globalt Ansvar, a Swedish governmental initiative that is based on Global Compact’s principles and the guidelines of OECD. What does it mean for the companies when showing their point of view? Is this a way to gain legitimacy?</p><p>Purpose: The purpose with the thesis is to judge if organisations’ work with Corporate Social Responsibility gains more legitimacy by affiliating to Globalt Ansvar.</p><p>Research method: A survey made through telephone interviews with representatives from all of the fifteen Swedish companies which today are affiliated to Globalt Ansvar.</p><p>Conclusions: In order to give the affiliated companies more legitimacy, Globalt Ansvar has to be a legitimate initiative. Today Globalt Ansvar has problems with their legitimacy due to external and internal communication. The internal communication falls short while the companies have a lack of conceptual ideas. In addition the internal conversations do not create incentives sufficient enough to create a common platform. Globalt Ansvar hasn’t led to any concrete activities and the roles in the cooperation are indistinct. The external communication is lacking because of the failure in packaging the brand [Globalt Ansvar] in a successful way but also due to poor marketing.</p>

<p>The media has responded toward unethical behavior in rainforests during the ‘80’s, triggering</p><p>the still upcoming trend of investigation of ethical considerations, as described by Macfarlane</p><p>(1995). Many researchers are constantly improving the ethical theories and showing</p><p>continued change in the perception of ethics (Svensson & Wood, 2007)</p><p>The purpose of this research is to identify the effect of ethics on the proactive or reactive</p><p>behavior of companies, with a downward tendency provided in the value chain.</p><p>The theoretical framework consists out of a set of theories supporting the goal of identifying</p><p>ethics within a company, applying a new business ethics model and measuring the pro-active</p><p>and re-active behavior of the stakeholder in the value chain. Finally, all the theories used, are</p><p>combined in an integrated theoretical model used to justify the collection of empirical data</p><p>and to give structure to the analysis.</p><p>The empirical data has been gathered through non structured and semi-structured interviews</p><p>with customers, employees within the case company, and a supplier to the case company.</p><p>These findings are complemented with secondary data gathered through websites, annual</p><p>reports, codes of conduct, media articles and others sources.</p><p>The findings of the study showed that the (in the theoretical framework) assumption of a</p><p>downward effect in perception and change in ethical considerations is not as obvious as</p><p>previously thought. Within this case study, the ethical influences come from the case</p><p>company, situated in the middle of the value chain, influencing both the consumer and the</p><p>supplier, in ethical considerations.</p>

<p>Denna uppsats behandlar fenomenet och begreppet <em>Corporate Social Responsibility </em>(CSR). Begreppet används synonymt med företags samhällsansvar och innebär att företag frivilligt vill medverka till ett bättre samhälle. Utgångspunkten är Carroll och Buchholtz mångciterade modell <em>The Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility, </em>som förklarar CSR utifrån fyra ansvar: ekonomiskt-, legalt-, etiskt- och filantropiskt. Fokus ligger på CSR som en del i ett företags marknadsföringsstrategi, med betoning på det ekonomiska-, etiska- och filantropiska ansvaret. Problemformuleringen lyder: Hur ser chefers uppfattningar om <em>Corporate Social Responsibility,</em> som en del i marknadsföringsstrategin, i ett brittiskt respektive svenskt fastighetsbolag ut? Syftet är att ta reda på svaret på problemformuleringen samt att se om det finns likheter och skillnader i de båda studerade företagens chefers uppfattningar om CSR. Uppsatsen har en kvalitativ metod med en deduktiv ansats, där fallstudier i form av fyra stycken djupintervjuer har använts för att samla in primärdata. De två studerade företagen är The Community Housing Group Ltd (TCHG), England respektive Halmstads Fastighets AB (HFAB), Sverige. I studien har bland annat framkommit att de båda studerade företagen använder CSR<em> </em>som en del i sin marknadsföringsstrategi. Skillnaden är att HFAB har uttalat att de gör detta, medan TCHG gör det undermedvetet. Skillnaderna mellan de två studerade företagen angående om och hur de använder CSR i sin marknadsföringsstrategi beror troligen på att TCHG ännu inte har insett vikten av att marknadsföra CSR-aktiviteter, till skillnad från HFAB som har förstått vikten av att ha ett starkt varumärke.</p> / <p>This essay discusses the phenomenon <em>Corporate Social Responsibility</em> (CSR). The concept is used synonymous to a company’s responsibilities to the community, which means that they voluntary contribute to a better society. The model <em>The Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility </em>by Carroll and Buchholtz is the basis. It explains CSR as a company’s economical-, legal-, ethical- and philanthropical responsibility. The focus is on CSR as a part of a company’s marketing strategy, with economical-, ethical- and philanthropical responsibility in center. The problem enunciation is: How do managers apprehensions about <em>Corporate Social Responsibility,</em> as a part of a company’s marketing strategy distinguish between a British and a Swedish social housing business? The purpose is to answer the question and see if there are any similarities or differences between the managers at the two companies The Community Housing Group Ltd (TCHG), England and Halmstads Fastighets AB (HFAB), Sweden. This essay has a qualitative method with a case study with four interviews in depth. The result of the study is that both companies use CSR as a part of their marketing strategy. The difference is that HFAB express that they do, while TCHG do it subconsciously. This difference probably depends on that HFAB has realized the effect of having a strong brand, while TCHG do not.</p>

<p><strong>Aim: </strong><em>Problem background -</em><strong> </strong>CSR has today increased its strategic status and consumer demand of sustainable development has also increased lately. However, there are still companies that have not adjusted their strategies to fit this swift in demand. This study offers a strategic tool, based on sustainable core competencies, for companies to implement in order to use CSR to boost their business.<strong> </strong></p><p><em>Research issue -</em><strong> </strong>How can Swedbank increase stakeholder confidence and value?<strong> </strong></p><p><em>Delimitations -</em><strong> </strong>This study focuses on the concept of integrating CSR work into the strategy and how this could result in added value for the B2B customer of Swedbank Corporate Market. <strong></strong></p><p><strong>Method:</strong> This study has an abductive approach and the author has collected qualitative primary data in the form of interviews with employees at Swedbank, Sparbanken Nord and with five of Swedbank’s customers from the public sector.</p><p><strong>Result & Conclusion:</strong> Swedbank needs to re-position their brand with a differentiated strategy, including a supportive vision and Market Communication, in order to gain a competitive advantage, strengthen their image, stakeholder confidence and financial performance. The author recommends the sustainable core competence, “Sparbankssjälen”, in order to deploy an ethical, economical and environmental responsible strategy to implement into all their activities.</p>

<p>Introduction and research question:  This study investigates the widely discussed notion “Corporate Social Responsibility” and its practice in the tourism industry. In the contemporary society more companies are realizing the significance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and its potential as a means of differentiation.  The author’s interest in this particular phenomenon was awakened after reading about the business case of Scandic Hotels. This is a company that nowadays is referred to as “Scandinavia’s leading hotel chain”. However, in the early 90’s the company was facing bankruptcy. Hence, a new strategy based on responsibility towards the environment was developed and later on executed. These facts led the author to question how can and as of today are CSR implemented in the tourism industry. Consequently the research question for this thesis is: how is CSR implemented in the tourism industry?</p><p>Purpose: This study aims to explore the CSR operations of two hotel chains.</p><p>Delimitation: In order to present a study with greater depth and obtain a deeper understanding of the implementation of CSR, the study is therefore limited to two hotel chains.</p><p>Method: The results of this study have been derived through the use of a qualitative method referred to as “grounded theory”.  Unstructured interviews with employees from the different hotel chains have been conducted in order to collect vital data and answer the research question as successful as possible. In order to develop a theoretical analytical framework the author has studied various scientific articles and other appropriate literature in the subject.</p><p>Empirical data and conclusion: The study clarifies how CSR in this particular context is implemented strategically, both locally and globally. The hotel chains perceive CSR as an approach of enhancing their corporate reputation and thus its profitability. Due to these beliefs, CSR is implemented as a tool in e.g. the development of new services and/or modifications of services.  However, it is also revealed that acting responsible to employees is a precondition in order to successfully and legitimately practise CSR. In order for the CSR activities to be successfully implemented, the study also concludes the significance of leadership and employee knowledge and engagement. Ideas for further research involve investigating how organisational structures affect the implementation of CSR. Moreover, another proposition involves investigating how CSR is implemented as a competitive tool in customer sales interactions.</p>

<p>The starting point of this thesis is the importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in China. CSR can certainly not solve all of the social and environmental problems, but we believe that it can play a part, which is why we find it interesting to study the status quo of the concept in China. The research question of the thesis is “How is CSR depicted in China?”. The purpose of this study is to identify and describe Chinese views of CSR and analyze the differences between these views and CSR, as it is commonly understood in the West, in order to contribute to a better understanding of the CSR concept in China. We spent ten weeks in China conducting a qualitative case study. We interviewed companies, academics and governmental and non-governmental organisations, within the CSR area in China. Our material was then categorised into five views of CSR, where CSR is depicted as:</p><p>- CSR as labour law compliance</p><p>- CSR as law enforcement</p><p>- CSR as codes of conduct compliance</p><p>- CSR as a PR exercise</p><p>- CSR with Chinese characteristics</p><p>In addition to describe these views, we set out to analyze the differences between these views, and CSR as understood in the West. When analyzing the views we have mainly departed from CSR theory and translation theory. The main differences can be seen when it comes to the, from a Western point of view, limited scope of corporate responsibility, the lack of stakeholder dialogue, the lack of consideration for environmental issues, and in the concept of a harmonious society, which is not a part of CSR in the West. CSR with Chinese characteristics still seems to be an aspiration they are striving for, while the other four views rather are different aspects of the problems related to CSR in China at present. Our views are examples of how CSR has been translated in China, but none of them seems to be a suitable option for the further development of the concept. Put together, these views give a quite negative image of CSR in China, and it comes forth as rather ineffective. If the concept is going to have any impact on the social and environmental problems in China there is a need for further research. The development of the concept needs to be in accordance with the realities of the Chinese society, addressing the problems in the society as well as the problems with the concept.</p>

<p> </p><p>Världen idag blir alltmer globaliserad och öppen, vilket medför att betydelsen växer för företag att vårda och förvalta företagets varumärke och identitet. Ett sätt att göra detta på och som har fått stor spridning på senare år är Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), vilket kan beskrivas som bidragande till hållbarutveckling genom socialt-, miljömässigt- och ekonomisktansvarstagande. Företag påverkas även av en rad olika intressenter såsom investerare, ägare, kunder och medarbetare för att nämna några. Dessa intressenter ställer i olika utsträckning krav på företaget att förmedla information om företagets verksamhet.</p><p>Syftet med uppsatsen var att undersöka olika företags CSR-rapportering genom att studera varför innehållet i de undersökta hållbarhetsrapporterna skiljer sig åt, samt undersöka vilka intressenter som kunde tänkas påverka hållbarhetsrapporteringen.</p><p>De metoder som valdes ut för undersökningen bestod av en kvantitativ del samt en kvalitativ del. Den kvantitativa delen bestod av empiri i form av hållbarhetsrapporter inhämtade från undersökningsobjekten. Den kvalitativa delen bestod av intervjuer med tre företag som är verksamma inom området för rapportering av CSR. Även en förstudie genomfördes, för att motivera urvalet av undersökningsobjekten. Förstudien resulterade i följande urval som studerades: SKF, Atlas Copco, TeliaSonera, Holmen.</p><p>I uppsatsens teorikapitel presentas hur CSR utvecklas som begrepp. Vidare beskrivs teorier för att analysera arbetet med CSR samt Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) ramverk för hållbarhetsrapportering.</p><p>Empiri för studien inhämtades från undersökningsobjektens hållbarhetsrapporter. Empirin analyserades sedan utifrån teorierna samt även ifrån den infallsvinkel, som respondenterna som intervjuades för studien bidrog med.</p><p>I slutsatsen presenteras hur hållbarhetsrapporteringen är individuellt anpassad för olika verksamheter och företag. Vidare beskrivs i slutsatsen hur hållbarhetsrapporteringen kan tänkas påverkas i olika utsträckning beroende på intressent.</p><p> </p>