CSR and Sustainability

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Running head: CSR AND SUSTAINABILITY
CSR AND SUSTAINABILITY
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Author Note

CSR AND SUSTAINABILITY1
Part 1: Business case rationale
In the present corporate scenarios CSR has become an important functional aspect of
corporate organizations. In the current corporate environment the significance of CSR activities
increases in value as it can guide the sustainability functions of the corporate enterprises.
Corporate social responsibilities are the activities that organizations undertake to establish better
relationships with their communities and the society. These activities previously were seen to be
giving something back to the society in which the various organizations operated. However,
presently the significance of CSR activities have increased manifold due to the increasing focus
on sustainability in the environment of limited resource availability. Companies in today’s
corporate environment are taking part in CSR activities to ensure better sustainability of their
organizations. At the same time CSR activities can ensure all round sustainability. The three
most important sustainability areas that it addresses are economic, social and environmental.
Thus, in light of the present functional areas of CSR it can be said that companies are paying far
more importance to corporate social responsibilities than were provided any time in the past.
The reason behind the improved CSR activities of organizations can be due to the
evolution of CSR over the past decades. Currently the various large organizations are more
focused on exploring the potential for shared sustainable usage of resources. The same focus is
being integrated into the wider scope for CSR to optimize the functional areas in accordance
with sustainability requirements. An important case that can be considered while focusing on
understanding contemporary CSR management of organizations is that of Dannon. Dannon is the
US subsidiary of the larger multinational dairy and health product company Danone. The
company integrates its organizational vision and mission with its CSR approach. The social
responsibility of Danone focuses on three essential areas. These are health and nutrition, people
and nature. Dannon established a newer form of CSR orientation that did not separate the
organizational productivity from CSR. The greater business goals of the company is effectively
integrated with the CSR activities that are done by the organization. In essence, the company
regards the CSR activities as essential for its larger development prospects as a company
(Malik). It is a function that is considered integral to the operations of the company. The
organization actually focuses on providing and promoting healthy food habits among people
dairy products sourced from organic farming techniques. Nutrition and health is a strong CSR
focus of the organization.
Dannon focuses on developing scientific information base for their customers and
employees about diet and nutrition. Another important CSR focus of the company is people. The
organization takes part in both external and internal activities that are focused on reaching out to
the people. Internally the organization has established the ‘Dannon way’ a tool for management
designed to help managers assess employee performance taking into both ethical as well as
productive dimensions. The external initiatives for the consumers encompass education systems
for emphasizing better healthier living standards and strict product safety regulatory standards. In
terms of nature, Dannon focuses on achieving carbon neutrality in as many as five of its brands.
Additionally, another program initiated by the brand is the sensible plants program. In
accordance with the same water consumption is to be reduced by 30% and energy consumption
by 20%. Packaging weights would be reduced by 10%.
Like Dannon the other organizations are also providing innovative outlook on CSR
activities. These activities are not being deemed as separate activities that are good for improving

CSR AND SUSTAINABILITY2
the PR functions of the organization but being integrated into the developmental and operational
vision of the organization. The CSR function of Clorox Company can be taken as another
example. The company in view of tits centennial strategy identified four contemporary global
consumer trends. These were, health and wellness, sustainability, convenience and multicultural
market. The company’s most important initiatives were related to significant research in terms of
customer demand in the presently existing markets. One of the most important findings
suggested that around 15% of the new consumers were focused towards using more sustainable
and healthier product substitutes. The company had a previous product known as the Brita, a
pour through water filtration system. The Brita was repositioned as a product that can provide
taste benefits to the customers. Moreover, the company focused on the fact that the filtration
technique of Brita can actually remove the need for buying plastic mineral water solutions. It is
important to consider that Brita was used as both a strong product and a sustainable product at
the same time. The product was a success in the market. Moving forward Clorox focused more
on improving the existing strategy to create a better and more efficient sustainability outlook for
the organization. The most important part of the promotions that were undertaken by the
organization actually focused on the fact that most of the other products that were available in
the market were chemically enhanced only to provide a temporary solution to the problems faced
by the customers. The strategy was effective in improving the reception of the products that were
manufactured by Clorox (Nidumolu et al.). The company’s strategic marketing helped to
establish a strong framework for the benefit of the organization.
The implications that were derived from the sustainability focus of the organization was
that the healthier products that were created by the organization like poet, mistolin and oyudin
actually contributed towards 21% of its international sales. In essence it can be seen that in case
of both Dannon and Clorox, the sustainability and CSR focused management and marketing
reaped great results for the organizations. Much importantly, it was seen that the companies
engaged with their customers and stakeholders in better and more effective ways. CSR in the
corporate scenarios of today is not limited only to serving a part of the society where the
organization operates. It is rather, the alignment of the important goals and visions of the
organization with its long term CSR activities. More and more companies are inclined towards
integrating their CSR and organizational strategies. This is helping them to reap significant
rewards.
Part 2: Report on Starbucks CSR
Executive Summary
The study has focused on the sustainability value that is being generated through the various
CSR initiatives that had been taken by various organizations. Starbucks has been chosen as the
organization for evaluation of CSR functions. The various aspects of sustainability related to the
corporate sector has been evaluated through the study to generate a deeper understanding of
sustainability in terms of social, environmental and economic value. The study introduces the
aspects that are connected with CSR. Moving forward the social sustainability and
environmental sustainability related factors have been essentially discussed. Lastly, the study has
critiqued on the sustainability report of the Starbucks Company. The implications generated
from the study have pointed towards the growing demand of sustainability marketing and
opportunities that are being created in the sphere of CSR integrated with profitability functions.
Some areas have been identified where Starbucks can improve their CSR value.