Economic Responsibilities of CSR (Revised Annotation 1)

Carroll and Buchholtz (2006) categorized corporate social responsibility (CSR) into economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibilities (see Figure 1). Carroll and Buchholtz’s study of business and society showed that business should be “an economic institution whose orientation is to produce goods and services that society wants and to sell them at fair prices (P.35).” People in the society can be divided into three kinds: investors, employees, and the general public, who are playing the important roles to the economic responsibilities of CSR.

The economic responsibilities in Carroll’s definition are “being profitable.” First, it is about investors, whom I originally do not think of before reading the book, Business &Society. They are closely related to the business, and their major purpose is to gain profit from the successful companies. Therefore, the entrepreneurs’ responsibility to investors is maintaining the regular function of the companies, and making them keep getting the adequate returns on their investments. When investors are not benefited from the business, which they invested heavily in, financial problems will gradually appear in the society. The effect of economy is like dominoes, which associate one with others. That is, if the failure of business causes the collapse of economy, this condition would make the public afraid.

Second, employees are also the important group in the business, who need entrepreneurs’ concern. The company is like a machine, and the employees are like screws, which are requisite in the operation of the machine. The entrepreneurs need employees to work for them, and employees’ living expenses depend on works. When employees are paid good salary, their happiness and satisfaction of life are increased. Furthermore, they would like to devote themselves to works with heart. The entrepreneurs’ responsibility to employees is giving the steady salary which corresponds with their works. If the employees’ lives are stable, they could pursue not only the material comfort but also the spiritual growth, which can make the business and society progress.

Final part is essential population of the society: the general public, who influences business activities a lot. The entrepreneurs’ responsibility to the general public is making the products safe and selling them at the fair prices. According to the recent news, there are some vicious businessmen selling counterfeits. For instance, the products are marked “Made in Taiwan,” but they are actually from China. The prices of goods should be equal to quality. Although the entrepreneurs want to make a profit, they cannot deceive the general public and even sacrifice the people’s health and lives.

In conclusion, the business operation and the society interact with each other. The healthy environment of the society is a decisive element of economic development. Therefore, the entrepreneurs have the responsibility to maintain and protect the resource, which is from the society.

Figure 1: The pyramid of corporate social responsibility

Reference of citation and figure 1:

Buchholtz, A. K. & Carroll, A. B. (2006). Business, society, and stakeholders: Corporate citizenship: social responsibility, responsiveness, and performance. In D. Shaut (Ed.), Business & Society: Ethics and Stakeholder Management, 6th edition (pp. 29-60). Mason, Ohio: South-Western.