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Chapter 15: Managing Corporate Social Responsibility Globally
Chapter 15
Managing Corporate Social Responsibility
Globally
Learning Objectives
After studying this chapter, students will be able to accomplish the following objectives:
1. Articulate a stakeholder view of the firm.
2. Apply the institution-based and resource-based views to analyze corporate social
responsibility.
3. Identify three ways you can manage corporate social responsibility.
Chapter Overview
Chapter 15, titled Managing Corporate Social Responsibility Globally, opens with an
introduction to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and stakeholders—the people who affect, or
are affected by, a firm’s actions. Having a stakeholder view of a firm means looking at the big
picture and considering factors like global sustainability when making decisions. The chapter
differentiates primary from secondary stakeholders and then discusses the fundamental debate
about whether a firm is merely an economic enterprise or if it has broader social responsibilities.
The institution-based view sheds considerable light on the gradual diffusion of the CSR
movement and the strategic responses of firms. The strategic response framework, first
introduced in Chapter 3, is extended to explore how firms make CSR decisions. From the
perspective of the resource-based view, the VRIO framework can be used to shed considerable
light on CSR. The resource-based view also helps solve a major issue in the CSR debate: the
CSR-economic performance puzzle. Finally, the chapter concludes with three clear implications
for action concerning CSR.
Opening Case Discussion Guide
Foxconn
Until 2010, the vast majority of the end users of Apple iPhones and iPads, Hewlett-Packard
laptops, Amazon Kindles, and Microsoft Xboxes around the world had no clue about the firm
that manufactured their beloved gadgets. The firm is Foxconn, which is headquartered in Taipei,
Taiwan. Starting in 1975 in Taipei with a merger $7,500, Foxconn was founded by Taiwanese
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Chapter 15: Managing Corporate Social Responsibility Globally
entrepreneur Terry Gou, who still serves as its chairman. As Foxconn became a giant, industry
insiders knew and respected it. But outside the industry, Foxconn lived in relative obscurity.
In 2010, Foxconn stumbled into media spotlight, not because of its accomplishments, but
because of a dozen suicides committed by employees in Shenzhen, China, in a span of several
months. The business model was certainly a culprit. Working at Foxconn demands a great deal of
concentration and repetition that breed enormous stress.
Although the media and corporate social responsibility (CSR) gurus criticized Foxconn for
treating workers like machines and exploiting cheap labor, there was no evidence that Foxconn
mistreated or abused employees. Instead, in China, labor watchdogs gave Foxconn credit for
exceeding the norms, by paying workers (relatively) higher salaries, on time, and for overtime.
Foxconn, for its part, promised to beef up CSR. Foxconn recently constructed a huge new factory
in Zhengzhou, Henan province, which is one of the poorest provinces south of Beijing and a
major source of migrant workers. This major undertaking also earned CSR kudos from the
Chinese government, which encouraged more multinationals to invest in inland, underdeveloped
regions such as Henan.
Lesson Plan for Lecture
Brief Outline and Suggested PowerPoint Slides
Learning Objectives PowerPoint Slides
Learning Objectives Overview 2: Learning Objectives
LO1
Articulate a stakeholder view of the firm.
3: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
4: Exhibit 15.1: Stakeholder View of the
Firm
5: Global Sustainability
6–7: Stakeholder Groups
8: Stakeholder View
9–10: Fundamental Debate on CSR – Why
do Firms Exist?
LO2
Apply the institution-based and resource-
based views to analyze corporate social
responsibility.
11: Exhibit 15.2: Institutions, Resources,
and Corporate Social Responsibility
12–14: Institutions and Corporate Social
Responsibility
15: Exhibit 15.3: The U.S. Chemical
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Chapter 15: Managing Corporate Social Responsibility Globally
Industry Responds to Environmental
Pressures
16–18: Resources and Corporate Social
Responsibility
19: CSR-Economic Performance Puzzle
LO3
Identify three ways you can manage
corporate social responsibility.
20: Exhibit 15.4: Implications for Action
Debate 21: Debate: Race to the Bottom versus
Race to the Top
Key Terms 22: Key Terms
Summary 23–24: Summary