Drivers of corporate community involvement and challenges in measuring its impact
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study is to explore drivers of corporate community involvement (CCI) initiatives and the challenges faced by companies in measuring the social impact of their initiatives in Australia.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with various corporate social responsibility (CSR) or CCI managers from Australian companies and their not-for-profit (NFP) partners. The final sample consists of 27 managers from a mix of industries.
Findings
The study shows that stakeholder's salience may have an impact on CCI activities, especially in the area of measurements and reporting activities. Moreover, while some companies have attempted to measure the social impact of their initiatives, a large number of companies have not. This is all the more surprising given the recent focus in marketing on accountability and measurement. The results show three challenges: lack of interest, lack of resources and lack of consensus. Subsequently, the authors offer some research propositions to underline these challenges.
Originality/value
This study focuses on CCI which is one of the most visible parts of corporate social responsibility (CSR). It draws on interviews with various managers in charge of companies' CSR or CCI.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Received 2 October 2012 Revised 6 February 2013 Accepted 19 February 2013
Citation
I. Arli, D. and Cadeaux, J. (2014), "Drivers of corporate community involvement and challenges in measuring its impact", Social Responsibility Journal, Vol. 10 No. 1, pp. 161-183. https://doi.org/10.1108/SRJ-10-2012-0116
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited