Business Report: Analysis of CSR Activities for Primark's Success

This report provides a detailed analysis of a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project focused on Primark. It begins with an introduction outlining the importance of CSR in achieving competitive advantage and enhancing brand image. Task 1 defines the aims and objectives of the CSR project, emphasizing the evaluation of CSR's impact and advantages. Task 2 describes the preparation of a project management plan, including scope, quality, cost, time, and risk considerations. It also includes the production of a work breakdown structure and Gantt chart for effective project management. Task 3 delves into the application of quantitative and qualitative research methods, the use of appropriate tools and techniques for data analysis, and provides recommendations based on the research findings. The report concludes with a self-performance evaluation and a reflection on the value of the research, referencing key literature and including an appendix. The report highlights the importance of ethical business practices and sustainability in achieving long-term business success, emphasizing the significance of CSR activities in Primark's operations.

MANAGING SUCCESSFUL
BUSINESSES

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
1.1 Aims and objectives:.............................................................................................................1
P2 Preparation of project management plan...............................................................................2
P3 Production of work breakdown structure and Gantt chart.....................................................3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................5
P4 Application of quantitative and qualitative research method................................................5
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................6
P5 Use of appropriate tools and techniques in analysis of research...........................................6
P6 Recommendations in relation to research and analysis of data...........................................11
P7 Self performance and value of research...............................................................................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................14
Appendix:.......................................................................................................................................15

INTRODUCTION
Corporate social responsibilities are the most effective activities in the business in order
to get the competitive advantage over the other rivals. Now, this also cited that the CSR activities
are able to assist the firm to enhance the brand image in front of public. This also seen that the
business cannot survive alone, it has to take the community along in order to get the pre-set
targets in the business (Mathur, Mathur and Kenyon, 2012). This is also stimulate other
companies to comply CSR norms in order to get the sound brand image. This is one of the major
factor in the business for making business successful. With the help of CSR norms, the business
can get the competitive advantage and sustainability which is most imperative tool in the
business.
TASK 1.
1.1
Aims – To identify the importance of Corporate social responsibility to an organisation
Objective
 To evaluate the impact of CSR activities
 To ascertain the advantages of CSR activities in order to earn the competitive advantage
in industry
 To determine ways through which CSR activities can be implemented at the work plays
Overview
This is an imperative methods to assess the baseline of the project and it also wants to
know about what project wants from the individuals or persons who are covered in a specific
project. Whole professional authorities assist in providing suggestions or guidelines thereafter
they could provides aids in the initial stage of the project management plan.
Aims and objectives are the ultimate goal which organisation want to attain. These are required
to be determined the means that will use to attain those ends, frame a plan and invent a strategy.
Many of the firms have general or entire aims which they could break down into some particular
projects or objectives. With the help of aims and objectives, the primary company will make the
purpose or direction. This assist to provides a structure to frame a plan (Keller, Parameswaran
and Jacob, 2011). With the help of plan, Primark company could frame a specific targets and
monitors the firm towards attaining the objectives. The cited company is doing a project on the
1

basis of CSR activities. These types of activities are explained as a commitment done by the
company in order to do operations in an ethical manner. There are different project aims and
objectives that is required by the organisation for efficient implementation of a project. There are
different projects aims and objectives which is required by the company for the better
implementation.
As Primark is operating in working under the retail clothing sector in order to make the
operations their business under their targeted company. There are certain things which have to be
considered in an effective manner while forming aims of CSR project.
Project aims:
This is the project which is aiming to get sustainable objectives under the business that
are closely concerned to the profits and market share. Such project is concentrating on few
fundamental improvements in their CSR and search out the new areas under which CSR
activities could generate. Many of the firms are implementing CSR activities to enhance the
business operations. Aim of such project is to attain their objectives of them by implementing
CSR activities. This first and foremost aim of Primark is to complete the requirements of
customers and satiate so many standards that are framed by different regulations. These are also
need to conduct ethical activities so that the consumers will not get injured as they will take
effect of social and economic surroundings into consideration (Kaplan, Norton and Rugelsjoen,
2010). Primark also need to make sure that the products which they are providing satiate the
consumer's standard.
Objectives of project:
 The main object will be in relation to maintaining the environment so that its adverse
impacts can be reduced.
 CSR activities are required to be performed so that project can be improved and by this
society will also be benefited.
 The mission and vision of the company will be achieved by maintaining effective
relationship with those who are representing the society and this will be done by
providing services in the local community.
2

 In order to make business a success, the main aspect that should be taken care off is the
employees as they are the one by whose potential work will be performed in the effective
manner. For this it will be required that proper and safe environment is provided to them.
P2 Preparation of project management plan.
Plan is the foremost thing that is required to be considered before the implementation of
any plan. This is because then only the objectives that have been set will be achieved. In the plan
all the aspects that should be noticed will be included and they are cost, quality, etc. In order to
implement the CSR activities a plan is prepared in which all these factors will be included.
 Scope: This is the main aspect as in this it will be identified that what all are the needs
and demands of the consumers in the changing environment (Jeston and Nelis, 2014).
Gantt chart, work break structure, small scale research against the project objectives,
assessment of data through implementing tools recommendations for the organisation, are
the region under which such project will work. Hence, it is imperative for the project
developer about entire pre-set areas will be included under this., that could assist to have
effective outcomes in small scale research. Then they will be provided the clothes
according to their taste and requirement. The main aim of the company is to include new
products in its range so that higher level of satisfaction can be provided to them. All the
information in relation to the new launch that is made by the company will be provided to
the customers through various means such as advertisement or websites. The research has
wide scope since it will cover all the related aspects to the CSR activities for which data
will be collected using primary ad secondary sources.
 Quality: In the clothing sector, it is highly required that quality should be maintained as
consumers have become very much protective in this respect and want the best quality
clothes. For this it will be required that proper control system is established by which
regular monitoring can be made in the production process. Also quality standards should
be established that are to be met and by this best quality can be provided. To ensure the
quality of research it is important that appropriate time is given to researcher so that all
the relevant information can be made available.
 Cost: In any business there will be various cost that will be incurred and for this it will be
needed that proper research is conducted so that it can be identified that which type of
customers are present and how much are they willing to spend (Gremyr, Löfberg and
3

Witell, 2010). In this various cost such as research cost, technical cost and other cost will
be made and it is needed that they are maintained at specified level that will be mentioned
in the plan. It is estimated that finance will be required to conduct the research which has
to be made available so that process of conducting effective research can be completed.
 Time: Whenever any project is undertaken it is necessary that a time limit is specified in
that regard so that it can be completed on time. The activities that will be done in relation
to CSR will be provided for a period of and year and if the result will be found to be
satisfactory then the time period will be increased. To gather all the information it is
necessary that researcher is provided with sufficient time so that he does not miss out on
important information.
 Risk: In any project there are many risks which are involved and it is needed that they are
identified and then measures should be taken in this respect. This will be done so that risk
can be reduced to an acceptable level. Though the data is available in immense quantity
on net choosing the right source may effect the quality of research which will further
increase the risk of wrong conclusions.
P3 Production of work breakdown structure and Gantt chart.
In any project there are various tasks that will be required to be undertaken and it will be
possible for the company to manage them in effective and efficient manner if they are divided
among different persons. For this work breakdown structure will be used. By this the total work
will be divided among various persons and they will be able to know the responsibility that is
required to be fulfilled by them. By this it will be ensured that the work is performed with full
efficiency and this will be more useful in the businesses in which the system that is used is
complex (Okpara, and Idowu, 2013).
With the help of this structure primark will be able to formulate the plan according to
which CSR activities will be carried out (Goksoy, Ozsoy and Vayvay, 2012). In order to conduct
the survey about the needs of the customers the work will be divided into parts by which the
suitability of the products will be evaluated. There are various objectives and targets that are set
and are required to be achieved and for this it is important that a layout is created which will be
helpful in this process. Then the production process will be undertaken for which the material
needed will be purchased and that will be installed so that all the work can be started. At last the
testing will be performed in the product will be required to be tested.
4

The time that will be taken in the completion of the project will be analysed with the help
of a tool known as Gantt chart. With the help of this the dates at which the work is required to be
started and completed will be specified by which management of time will be made possible.
The work that has been done and that is required to be done will be represented with the use of
horizontal alignment. In this the actual time and the time has been fixed will be represented in
relation to all the tasks that will be performed. A sample of this has been presented below by
which Primark will be able to complete the project on timely basis.
5

TASK 2
P4 Application of quantitative and qualitative research method.
For the purpose of achieving growth and success and also to gather the understanding
regarding tools that will be used in the process of investigation, it will be required to conduct the
small scale research. There are many methods that are used and with the help of them it is
performed in the systematic manner by which the merits and demerits of different methods will
be explained.
Qualitative research is the method in which the aspects that are related to the quality of
the project that is undertaken are taken into consideration (Giesen and et.al., 2010). The quality
of the CSR project together with the findings that whether the project will prove to be useful for
the company or not will also be determined with the help of this. Recording of data from
6

different sources will be done which is available on net and various books which shows the
significance of CSR activities for organisation
Quantitative research is conducted in which the aspects related to the figures will be
analysed and various questions will be analysed by specification of the objectives that are to be
achieved. for the conduction of research a methodology will be used in which various steps will
have to be undertaken such as research technique or philosophy and data analysis, etc. and some
of them are described below. In the given research report data will be collected with the help of
questionnaire in which different questions related to the subject matter will be asked from the
employees and others which will help in gaining the information.
Data Analysis: In this the data that has been collected with the help of the research by using
various measures will be analysed. This is one of the most important step as by this the results
will be determined that will be further used in decision making process.
Research philosophy: In the process of collecting, analysing and examining it will be required
that the findings various scholars will be included and that will be research philosophy
(Edmonds, 2011). In order to evaluate the research objectives a philosophy will be used which is
known as positivism.
Research techniques: In order to collect the relevant data there are various techniques that can be
used by the company. The main techniques that will be used are quantitative and qualitative by
which the process of data collection and interpretation will be carried out in the most effective
manner.
Ethical consideration: In any research that will be conducted it is required that certain norms and
values should be followed and they are known as ethics. By this proper behaviour is maintained
so that all the respondents will feel nice and will cooperate with the company in the research
proposal.
Sampling method: This is the method in which sample that is selected for the collection of data is
taken on the random basis. By this it will not be needed to check the whole population as only a
set will be taken from all which will represent the whole crowd. The sample will be chosen in
such manner the people with different taste are included (Sosna and et. al., 2010).
A questionnaire is being designed and distributed among the employees as they know the impact
and importance of CSR activities for organisation.
Name:
7

Gender:
Age:
Q1. Are the competitive advantages and CSR activities related in any manner ?
a) Yes
b) No
Q2. Which is the main problem that is to be dealt by the company ?
a) Changing Demands of consumers
b) Health and Hygiene problems
c) Worker's and customer's protection
Q3. CSR activities are very important for the company. Do you believe in this ?
a) Strongly
b) Average
c) Not believe
Q4. From where is the information in relation CSR collected ?
a) Internet
b) Television
c) Any other source
Q5. How is the protection of environment done ?
a) By waste recycling
b) By using energy in judicious manner
c) By packaging in sustainable manner
TASK 3
P5 Use of appropriate tools and techniques in analysis of research.
In order to gather the relevant information in relation to some particular task, a systematic
investigation will be required to be done and that is known as research (Eckerson, 2010). The
information that will be collected will be telling regarding various objectives that are made in
respect of research. Setting of goals and targets will be needed to done initially in the process of
planning. In order to implement the plan it will be required that the gap that is existing should be
identified which will be done with the help of it. Questionnaire is one of the method in which a
8

set of questions is prepared that will be answered by the respondent so that their views can be
identified and a sample in this respect is provided below by which the survey will be conducted.
All the information will be collected and that will be used for the purpose of analysation. The
gap that will be present will be identified with the help of this.
Theme 1: Relation of competitive advantages and CSR activities
Yes No
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Column B
From this it can be interpreted that out of total 15 respondents 12 gave their answer in yes which
shows that they believe that relationship exists.
Theme 2: Problem to dealt by the company
9

Changing Demands of consumers
Health and Hygiene problems
Worker's and customer's protection
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Column B
The main problem that will be required to be dealt by the company is health and hygiene which
is face by 8 persons out of total 15.
Theme 3: CSR activities is important for the organisation
Strongly Average Not believe
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Column B
Out of total 15 member 10 members strongly believe that CSR activities are very important for
an organisation and 2 believe that it is average important.
Theme 4:Collection of CSR related information
10

Internet Television Any other source
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Column B
From this it can be ascertained that most of the information is collected from the internet and
then comes the television.
Theme 5: Protection of environment by using various measures
By waste recycling
By using energy in judicious manner
By packaging in sustainable manner
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Column B
The protection of environment requires various measures should be undertaken and most of that
is done by using energy in the judicious manner.
11

P6 Recommendations in relation to research and analysis of data.
Social and ethical environment will be taken into consideration in the implementation of
activities that are related to CSR. In this responsibility of the company is established in various
areas which will include society, customers, environment, community and stakeholders (Du,
Bhattacharya and Sen, 2010). These all are the ones that will be affected by the policies that are
made in relation to CSR so they will be considered by the company. It will be required the the
relation among company and customers should be maintained at good level so that what is the
view of the customers towards the company will be identified. It can be either positive or
negative. By the use of it ethics will be required to be followed and the recommendation sin
relation to this are:
 the main function of the company is the production and in that there are various
environmental issues that will be arising so the main focus should be provided to it.
Expenditure should be made by the company in this regard. For this waste will be
required to be recycled.
 Society will be affected greatly by the activities that are undertaken by the company and
customers will have to bear its effect. So it will be required that they should be provided
with the services that will give them the maximum satisfaction.
 It is very important that involvement of the employees in the decision making process
should be ensured (Crawford and Nahmias, 2010). It will be required that such
employees should be recruited who will be supportive to the management so by this the
management will be able to make decisions that will be approved and accepted by all.
 In the generation of the revenue the main part is the customers who will be contributing
to it. The products and services that are provided by the company are availed by them and
due to this only income is generated. By this the wealth of the company will be
maximised and for this it is needed that quality of the products should be maintained so
that they can be retained in the long run.
P7 Self performance and value of research.
In any project there are various factors that are required to be analysed and for that a
research is carried out in which systematic investigation will be done about the resources and
material that will be used so that results can be found. With the help of the information that will
12

be gathered by using this research, the knowledge level will be increased. The approaches and
methods that are to applied are understood in better manner with the help of this report.
By this also the information is gained in relation to CSR and how they will help the
company. I have also got to know that there are various policies that will be required to be
complied with in this whole process (Crane and Matten, 2016). By this it will be possible to take
the advantage over the competition that is present. the safety of the customers will be ensured
with the use of it. There are certain limitation also that will be present like it will be needed that
the work should be completed on the timely basis and for that Gantt chart is used.
CONCLUSION
From the above mentioned report it can be concluded that it is very important that in
order to manage the business in a successful manner various activities should be performed. By
this the growth will be achieved. For this the relationship among the customers and company are
required to be maintained. For the maintenance of the reputation it will be needed that best
quality products are provided to the customers by which their satisfaction will be increased.
13

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Crane, A and Matten, D., 2016. Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and
sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press.
Crawford, L and Nahmias, A.H., 2010. Competencies for managing change. International
journal of project management, 28.(4). pp.405-412.
Du, S., Bhattacharya, C.B. and Sen, S., 2010. Maximizing business returns to corporate social
responsibility (CSR): The role of CSR communication. International Journal of
Management Reviews. 12(1). pp.8-19.
Eckerson, W.W., 2010. Performance dashboards: measuring, monitoring, and managing your
business. John Wiley & Sons.
Edmonds, J., 2011. Managing successful change. Industrial and commercial training. 43(6).
pp.349-353.
Giesen, E. and et.al., 2010. When and how to innovate your business model. Strategy &
Leadership. 38(4). pp.17-26.
Goksoy, A., Ozsoy, B and Vayvay, O., 2012. Business process reengineering: strategic tool for
managing organizational change an application in a multinational company.
International Journal of Business and Management. 7(2). p.89.
Gremyr, I., Löfberg, N and Witell, L., 2010. Service innovations in manufacturing firms.
Managing Service Quality: An International Journal. 20(2). pp.161-175.
Jeston, J and Nelis, J., 2014. Business process management. Routledge.
Kaplan, R.S., Norton, D.P and Rugelsjoen, B., 2010. Managing alliances with the balanced
scorecard. Harvard Business Review. 88(1). pp.114-120.
Keller, K.L., Parameswaran, M.G and Jacob, I., 2011. Strategic brand management: Building,
measuring, and managing brand equity. Pearson Education India.
Mathur, S.S., Mathur, S. and Kenyon, A., 2012. Creating value: successful business strategies.
Routledge.
Okpara, J.O. and Idowu, S.O., 2013. Corporate Social Responsibility. Springer Berlin
Heidelberg.
Sosna, M., and et. al., 2010. Business model innovation through trial-and-error learning: The
Naturhouse case. Long range planning. 43(2). pp.383-407.
Online
What is corporate social responsibility? 2017. [Online]. Available
through:<http://www.ed.ac.uk/careers/your-future/options/occupations/csr/what-is-csr>.
[Accessed on 5th July 2017].
14

Appendix:
15

16

17