Business & Society Special Issue: Corporate Responsibility: Initiatives and Mechanisms - Part 2 September 2014; Vol. 53, No. 5 Part 1 of this special issue series guest edited by Jennifer J. Griffin (The George Washington University) and Aseem Prakash (University of Washington) was published in July 2014. Articles A Conceptualization of How Firms Engage in Corporate Responsibility Based on Country Risk Linda C. Rodríguez, Ivan Montiel, and Téofilo Ozuna This conceptual article looks at corporate responsibility (CR) and country risk claiming that there is a relationship, and then positing the directionality of the relationship. An understanding of this relationship can help firms respond to a variety of pressures from organizations and this knowledge may help firms prevent negative media coverage with the need to “bolt” CR strategies on to existing corporate strategies. When firms have an understanding of how country risk affects them, they can plan entire clusters of CR initiatives to fulfill needs within the operating community. To understand the CR–country risk relationship, the authors build on Matten and Moon’s (2008) distinction between implicit and explicit CR. The first argument is that firms engage in no explicit CR (explicit CR that is voluntary and goes beyond legal requirement) when country risk is very high. As country risk lowers to high, firms engage in explicit CR, which creates little impact to the firm if CR must be withdrawn. The second argument is that as country risk shifts to moderate, firms commence to engage in high levels of explicit CR and low levels of implicit CR. The third argument concludes that when country risk shifts to low or very low, firms will engage in the least amount of explicit CR and the most amount of implicit CR. A set of three propositions develops these arguments. Culturally Embedded Organizational Learning for Global Responsibility Ariane Berthoin Antal and André Sobczak This article proposes a multilevel model of Global Responsibility as a culturally embedded organizational learning process. The model enables an analysis of the way culture influences how responsibilities are defined and distributed in a culture at a given point in time, and how organizations learn to address new responsibilities in new ways when the context changes. The model starts at the organizational level and zooms in on the individual level as well as outward to the local, national, and international levels. The case of a French multinational company subsidiary in Brazil illustrates how the model can be used to show the relative relevance of the different sources of cultural influences on key stages in organizational learning processes. The authors include the arts as an inherent dimension of culture that tends to be overlooked in the management literature, and the case illustrates how the arts can play a role in organizational learning for Global Responsibility. Action Programs for Ethnic Minorities: A Question of Corporate Social Responsibility? Astrid Podsiadlowski and Astrid Reichel With increasing globalization and migration the workplace is becoming more and more culturally diverse. Although cultural diversity is found worldwide, handling of diversity as a corporate social responsibility (CSR) varies depending on national as well as organizational contexts. This article presents cross-national research linking macro level and meso level of analysis to identify national and organizational factors influencing an organization’s implementation of action programs for ethnic minorities. Utilizing techniques of multilevel modelling with 1,865 organizations from 10 countries, the study analyses the influence of normative and economic reasons as well as managerial discretion to act socially responsible. The patterns of influencing factors identified suggest that the main reasons are neither economic nor normative ones. The factors go beyond and represent rather social reasons. This article gives an overview of relevant predictors that increase the likelihood of action programs in organizations. Societal decision makers can find the direct relevance of political decisions and public perceptions on actions taken that address issues of interethnic group relations in organizations. The Influence of Institutional Logics on Corporate Responsibility Toward Employees Michelle Westermann-Behaylo, Shawn L. Berman, and Harry J. Van Buren III Focusing on corporate responsibility (CR) toward employees, this article discusses how multilayered institutional logics affect the relationship between the firm and its employee stakeholders. It considers what constitutes CR toward employees and explores the institutional logics that can shape whether employers treat their employees as merely means to a strategic end or as ends in themselves. Specifically, the article examines market-, state-, professional-, and firm-based institutional logics that influence how employers treat their employees. The conclusion suggests that external institutional logics both enable and constrain firms to adopt a more instrumental relationship with their employees. However, some forms of organizational identity may generate firm-based institutional logics that enable firms to resist these pressures. Suggestions for future research focusing on the institutional and organizational drivers behind understanding CR toward employees are offered.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Sep 2014 07:39:32 +0000
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