Corporate social responsibility has had a pretty easy ride so far. A few free-market thinkers have taken potshots, but even sceptics have generally come round to the view that CSR is a good thing, providing the cost is not too high and risk management is improved. Like motherhood and apple pie, it seems churlish to find fault with something so patently noble. But what if companies are cynically using CSR to conceal undesirable practices?
That is the charge now being made by some in civil society, and it is a far more serious accusation than previous criticism that emanated mainly from free-marketeers who questioned the whole philosophy of CSR. This is not least because it comes from a sector which has helped to define what companies should, and should not, be responsible for. There have been rumblings in the NGO community about CSR’s shortcomings for months now, but it is only in the last few weeks that any have broken cover to mount explicit attacks (see page one). It has to be said that to date these do not amount to much – characterizing CSR as a business ploy could itself be an attention-grabbing ploy – but they are nonetheless noteworthy: are the people who helped position the goalposts now trying to move them?
Behind the rumblings lie frustration and a dilemma. Many activists are frustrated at the failure of governments to heed their calls for regulation. France requires large companies to report, but does not penalize those that fail to do so, while in the UK the operating and financial review will leave companies to decide what information to volunteer. Beyond these crumbs of comfort, there is really nothing for the advocates of a more interventionist approach.
The dilemma is that CSR is forcing NGOs to rethink their strategies. Traditional ways of operating are under threat, with groups in the middle ground often most affected. But this just goes to show how CSR is reshaping the political landscape that companies and civil society inhabit. The critics need to remember that it is possible to criticize and remain engaged.