Opinion formers think a company can most effectively demonstrate its commitment to social responsibility by entering into partnerships, a poll suggests.
In a survey of ‘opinion elites’ in ten countries, respondents said they felt a company could show most effectively that it was being socially responsible by involvement in partnerships with non-governmental organizations or local government on social and environmental programmes.
They were also impressed by inclusion in SRI rankings such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and FTSE4Good. The 419 respondents, from Asia Pacific, Europe and North America, were drawn from the ten per cent most ‘active’ citizens in their countries, based on their propensity to digest news, interest in public policy and civic engagement.
APCO Worldwide, the US consultancy that conducted the poll, said most respondents were at a senior level in their organization and drawn from civil society, business and public life. The poll found them divided over whether companies have become more or less socially responsible in recent times, with 49 per cent believing companies had become more responsible and 43 per cent feeling they had become less so.
Although almost all those that saw an improvement thought the change had been modest, those that believed conduct had deteriorated often felt the decline had been dramatic. All together 16 per cent claimed companies had become ‘much less’ responsible in recent years.
APCO said the results revealed a significant level of ‘cynicism’ among opinion formers on whether the efforts made by companies to behave responsibly were bearing fruit.