CSR activities and green controlling – elements of sustainable business

The realities of today’s marketplace have made it increasingly difficult for companies to shine amidst a tightly packed competition. At the same time, more conscious consumers, also pay more attention to the circular aspects themselves, such as the impact of companies’ activities on the environment or society, moving away from offerings that, apart from the real product, are unable to fully function responsibly in the business world. Therefore, nowadays, the concept of CSR has become an indispensable element in stabilizing the market, which can ensure harmony between businesses, society and the environment through thoughtful actions.

CSR, a step towards sustainable business

The abbreviation CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) in the exact translation means corporate social responsibility. However, it is worth noting that it is impossible to define such a vast issue unambiguously. Many definitions of CSR capture the essence of the concept with greater or lesser detail.

Looking for an answer to the question of what Corporate Social Responsibility is, one can see strong connections with various practices of rational corporate management, providing a real turn towards sustainable business, whose goal is not only to generate profits and benefits but also to take responsibility for issues related to the environment and society.

As a result, CSR activity also incorporates into the company’s management process such aspects as professional ethics, the interests of particular social groups, including minorities, environmental pollution, climate change, relations with stakeholders and the company’s environment, investment in human resources, environmental protection in the broadest sense, or attention to the transparency of its practices.

One of the most strategic features of corporate social responsibility is that it is long-lasting and indefinite. CSR must not take the form of a one-time action that, more than strengthening the symbiosis between the company and its environment, is designed to attract new customers. Only genuine concern for the environment, society, its needs and problems, manifested in a responsible strategy implemented at various levels of management, is capable of bringing genuine environmental, social and business benefits resulting from a significant increase in customer loyalty to a brand that operates consciously and transparently in the market.

Corporate social responsibility – basic tools

The multitude of goals resulting from following the idea of CSR nowadays makes it possible to distinguish various tools to facilitate the start of responsible actions in particular areas. Below are some of the most popular ones:

• Ecological activities – all actions, and investments minimizing the negative effects of running companies that adversely affect the environment. Aiming to minimize the likelihood of such situations most often involves promoting environmental education of employees and customers, responsible management of raw materials, segregation of waste or looking for environmentally beneficial innovations.
• Employee programs and employee volunteering – undertaking various initiatives leading to the development of employees and their particular professional competencies, such as organizing training or integration programs. At the same time, involving employees in various forms of volunteering makes it possible to strengthen their attachment to the company, pursuing more pro-social goals.
• Social campaigns and charity events – one of the easiest ways to influence the attitudes and behaviors of audience groups, making them aware of how to pivot in the market sustainably. The creation by companies of special budgets for this purpose, often combined with their existing market and media positioning, additionally provides an opportunity to strengthen the image of the brand itself.

CSR in practice – examples

CSR activity continues to gain popularity. Today, many both small and larger companies in a wide variety of industries see the potential for a turn toward more sustainable activities that, while benefiting the company’s environment, can bring real benefits to the company itself. We present well-known brands that have recently moved particularly close to the CSR concept.

• Empik – organizing collections, such as the popular “Shopping from the Heart” campaign for the benefit of the needy, enabling the completion of school kits for the charges of the SOS Children’s Villages Association. In addition, the bookstore chain is coming out with an eco-delivery option, which gives customers a chance to order their products home without unnecessary packaging, reducing the use of cardboard boxes, and ultimately saving trees.
• Burger King – the brand is betting on promoting preventive examinations among men as part of the Movember campaign. The company is also taking conscious steps in its core business. In 2021, it created the Keep It Real Meals campaign, which led to the removal of 120 artificial products from the menu available to customers.
• Shell – starting in 2020, the company aims to offset CO2 emissions by investing in carbon credits verified by certified auditors. Under their Accelerate to Zero program, Shell aims to become a net-zero emissions business by 2050.
• Starbucks – an employee education subsidy program that has been in place since 2014 and is based on paying for college tuition at Arizona State University for those employed at the coffee shop for at least 20 hours a week.
• Rossmann – in 2017, the brand became a signatory to the Diversity Charter, committing to promote, ensure and create diversity in the work environment. Thus, the effective elimination of any kind of discrimination or bullying has become a key aspect.
• Microsoft – the company is constantly striving to increase the security level of its software, processing trillions of security signals. In 2022, some 5 million people were trained in digital skills thanks to Microsoft’s initiative. In addition, the company is committed to helping rural communities around the world by providing them with free access to the Internet.

CSR vs. green controlling

Every business, to some extent, owes its functioning to the environment, from which it draws all the necessary resources and energy. Thanks to these natural resources, companies supply products to the market, but unfortunately, in doing so, they often generate negative effects in the form of various types of pollution or waste. This leads to unfavorable changes in the natural environment, which ultimately also affects humans themselves and their quality of life.

The growing importance of this problem has made it increasingly vocal about introducing sustainable activities that assume the integrity of the economy, environment and society and enable environmentally friendly management of activities. One of the tools helping to minimize the negative effects of broadly defined economic activity is green controlling which improves response to disturbing environmental changes by optimizing the way key processes are managed.

Among the main tasks of green controlling is the creation of compatibility between individual economic relations and designated environmental requirements. The basis, therefore, is the conscientious coordination of environmental activities leading to an increased ability to respond correctly to various types of environmental risks. As a result, enterprises that decide to apply ecological control gain a chance to better adapt to dynamic changes in business standards.

The modern development of green controlling can be linked both to the occurring increase in environmental costs and the tightening of international regulations in this area. For many companies, it is crucial to reduce the level of consumption of various natural resources, introduce renewable energy or minimize the generated pollution, which becomes easier with the help of green controlling.

In line with the main ideas of controlling in its broadest sense, its greener version also focuses on coordinating management processes across the enterprise. The comprehensive structure of this tool leads to the distinction of such stages as planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation or adjustment aimed at making the necessary changes that will ultimately enable the achievement of previously set goals.

The introduction of green controlling is associated with three groups of benefits – reducing costs, improving stakeholder relations and increasing market opportunities. The increase in popularity of more responsible activities observed today can be linked to the ever-increasing general awareness of the company’s stakeholders. The very process of managing a company following the concept of sustainable development requires the support of a green controller, who, striving to build business value, will be able to effectively use the environmental and social potential.

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