The Challenge For Business And Society

A roadmap to improve corporate social responsibility The 2016 U.S. Presidential Campaign focused a good deal of attention on the role of corporations in society, from both sides of the aisle. In the lead up to the election, big companies were accused of profiteering, plundering the environment, and ignoring (even exacerbating) societal ills ranging from illiteracy and discrimination to obesity and opioid addiction. Income inequality was laid squarely at the feet of us companies. The Trump administration then moved swiftly to scrap fiscal, social, and environmental rules that purportedly hobble business, to redirect or shut down cabinet offices historically protecting the public good, and to roll back clean power, consumer protection, living wage, healthy eating initiatives and even basic public funding for public schools. To many eyes, and the lens of history, this may usher in a new era of cowboy capitalism with big companies, unfettered by regulation and encouraged by the presidential bully pulpit, free to go about the business of making money—no matter the consequences to consumers and the commonwealth. While this may please some companies in the short term, the long term consequences might result in just the opposite. And while the new administration promises to reduce "foreign aid" and the social safety net, Stanley S. Litow believes big companies will be motivated to step up their efforts to create jobs, reduce poverty, improve education and health, and address climate change issues — both domestically and around the world. For some leaders in the private sector this is not a matter of public relations or charity. It is integral to their corporate strategy—resulting in creating new markets, reducing risks, attracting and retaining top talent, and generating growth and realizing opportunities. Through case studies (many of which the author spearheaded at IBM), The Challenge for Business and Society provides clear guidance for companies to build their own corporate sustainability and social responsibility plans positively effecting their bottom lines producing real return on their investments. This book will help: • Create an effective corporate social responsibility and sustainability plan • Provide long-term bottom line benefit • Protect and enrich brand value • Recruit and retain top talent Perfect for CEOs, CFOs, Human Resource/Corporate Affairs executives, but also for government and not-for-profit leaders, this book helps you come up with a solid plan for giving back to society, producing real sustainable value.

A roadmap to improve corporate social responsibility The 2016 U.S. Presidential Campaign focused a good deal of attention on the role of corporations in society, from both sides of the aisle. In the lead up to the election, big companies were accused of profiteering, plundering the environment, and ignoring (even exacerbating) societal ills ranging from illiteracy and discrimination to obesity and opioid addiction. Income inequality was laid squarely at the feet of us companies. The Trump administration then moved swiftly to scrap fiscal, social, and environmental rules that purportedly hobble business, to redirect or shut down cabinet offices historically protecting the public good, and to roll back clean power, consumer protection, living wage, healthy eating initiatives and even basic public funding for public schools. To many eyes, and the lens of history, this may usher in a new era of cowboy capitalism with big companies, unfettered by regulation and encouraged by the presidential bully pulpit, free to go about the business of making money—no matter the consequences to consumers and the commonwealth. While this may please some companies in the short term, the long term consequences might result in just the opposite. And while the new administration promises to reduce "foreign aid" and the social safety net, Stanley S. Litow believes big companies will be motivated to step up their efforts to create jobs, reduce poverty, improve education and health, and address climate change issues — both domestically and around the world. For some leaders in the private sector this is not a matter of public relations or charity. It is integral to their corporate strategy—resulting in creating new markets, reducing risks, attracting and retaining top talent, and generating growth and realizing opportunities. Through case studies (many of which the author spearheaded at IBM), The Challenge for Business and Society provides clear guidance for companies to build their own corporate sustainability and social responsibility plans positively effecting their bottom lines producing real return on their investments. This book will help: • Create an effective corporate social responsibility and sustainability plan • Provide long-term bottom line benefit • Protect and enrich brand value • Recruit and retain top talent Perfect for CEOs, CFOs, Human Resource/Corporate Affairs executives, but also for government and not-for-profit leaders, this book helps you come up with a solid plan for giving back to society, producing real sustainable value.

In recent years, social innovation has experienced a steep career. Numerous national governments and large organisations like the OECD, the European Commission and UNESCO have adopted the term. Social innovation basically means that people adopt new social practices in order to meet social needs in a different or more effective way. Prominent examples of the past are the Red Cross and the social welfare state or, at present, the internet 2.0 transforming our communication and cooperation schemes, requiring new management concepts, even empowering social revolutions. The traditional concept of innovation as successful new technological products needs fundamental rethinking in a society marked by knowledge and services, leading to a new and enriched paradigm of innovation. There is multiple evidence that social innovation will become of growing importance not only concerning social integration, equal opportunities and dealing with the greenhouse effects but also with regard to preserving and expanding the innovative capacity of companies and societies. While political authorities stress the social facets of social innovation, this book also encompasses its societal and systemic dimensions, collecting the scientific expertise of renowned experts and scholars from all over the world. Based on the contributions of the first world-wide science convention on social innovation from September 2011 in Vienna, the book provides an overview of scientific approaches to this still relatively new field. Forewords by Agnès HUBERT (Member of the Bureau of European Policy Advisers (BEPA) of the European Commission) and Antonella Noya (Senior Policy Analyst at OECD, manager of the OECD LEED Forum on Social Innovations)

The world of business is constantly evolving and management education institutions will likely face a number of challenges in keeping up with these changes. While most books focus on the needs of management education institutions, this work addresses the needs of the corporate world in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Featuring an extensive research study spanning 11 countries, it offers a unique perspective on the business challenges and developmental needs of companies in emerging and recently emerged economies, and on the missing links between those needs and management education. Using both company-specific and country-level data, the book provides businesses and educators with rare insights and recommendations on strengthening existing partnerships (or establishing them anew) between management education institutions and the corporate sector in order to make management education relevant for the 21st century. The book argues that ‘relevance’ should take the center-stage of all higher education institutions in order to accomplish their third mission, namely service to society. This is especially important for management education institutions, whose mission is to mold future managers and leaders who can have a significant influence on economic success and the wellbeing of society.

This book provides a combination of case studies and current action research describing how businesses and civil society organizations are working to alleviate poverty in local and global communities. It intends to provide conceptual and research rationales for why management education and management institutions must address the issue of poverty. The book responds to one of the major findings from the research of the PRME Working Group on Poverty that the topic of poverty still lacks a strong business case for management educators and program/institutional administrators. The distinctive features of this book are that it: (1) includes examples of small and medium-sized (SME) businesses; (2) deals with the issue of poverty as a human rights violation; (3) explores the issue of absolute versus relative poverty; (4) deals with leadership challenges in organizations committed to poverty alleviation; and (5) discusses the issues in terms of management education’s responsibility for setting new management, research institutional and intellectual agendas. The first of two books to be produced by the PRME Working Group on Poverty, Socially Responsive Organizations and The Challenge of Poverty aims to provide both researchers and practitioners with the most wide-ranging coverage yet published on how business can be a positive force in alleviating poverty and how management education needs to adapt to this increasingly crucial prerogative.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) often emerges at the boundary of the business enterprise, expressed in changing relations with stakeholders and society. This book explores the theoretical and practical aspects of implementing CSR within organizations. It captures implementation perspectives and unravels consequences of implementing CSR.

Business schools are arguably some of the most influential institutions in contemporary society. The research and education they provide set the standard for how future leaders manage local and global organizations - a responsibility requiring continual discussion, development and challenge. This exciting book explores the role of business schools through 3 key dimensions: - How business school legitimacy has been challenged by the recent economic crisis and corporate scandals; - How schools contribute to shaping and transforming business conduct; and - How institutions, past and present, develop their identities to face the challenges presented by the ongoing globalization process. Combining global perspectives from business school Deans, scholars and stakeholders, this book presents a unique discussion of the current and future challenges facing business schools and their contributions to society.