Where's your CSR focus - and where should it be? - SmartBrief

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Where’s your CSR focus — and where should it be?

1 min read

By Jennifer Hicks 05/26/16

Management

SmartPulse — our weekly nonscientific reader poll in SmartBrief on Sustainability — tracks feedback from more than 17,000 CSR leaders. We run the poll question each Wednesday in our e-newsletter. We have several CSR experts provide their analysis of the polls — this week, it’s my turn.

Last week we asked: Corporate social responsibility involves earning a profit while caring for people and the planet. Which of these parts of CSR does your company focus on?

  • The profit side, 54.29%
  • The people side, 37.14%
  • The planet side, 8.57%

Without a profit, there would be no company — assuming you work for a for-profit company. So, focusing on profit — which more than half of you says your company does — is good because it aids viability. But focusing on profit alone — and ignoring the benefits that accrue when people and planet are part of the strategy, or the cost savings that can be realized when you do an energy retrofit or take steps to reduce emissions, or the customer loyalty that follows — is rather short-sighted and could lead to missed opportunities. Looking instead at all three elements could help build your brand, your profits and your reputation.