Integrating sustainability into business operations: Implications from RESPONSE project for business and educators in CEE
"RESPONSE for CEE" - June 6, 2008 - Kiev, Ukraine
The RESPONSE project is, to date, the largest research project on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Europe. This European Commission-supported project ran from 2004 until 2007 and was led by INSEAD in partnership with Bocconi University, Copenhagen Business School, Leon Kozminski Academy and Impact, with the active collaboration of the European Academy of Business in Society (EABIS). The Kiev event will feature presentation of the RESPONSE results in Central and Eastern Europe.
Please find all relevant information about the event, the event background and registrations on the event website: http://www.svb.org.ua/en/response
Cranfield School of Management is offering four new post doctoral Fellowships, and an opportunity to join a leading international business school early in your career. Our investment in these Fellowships contributes to our mission to improve management practice whilst underpinning all our work with rigorous research. The four Fellowships will be awarded to scholars whose research interests lie in important emerging management themes.
In addition to advancing academic research and publication on these topics, the aim of these Fellowships is to enable Fellows to work with senior faculty, often across disciplinary boundaries, to develop and translate knowledge for dissemination in a form that supports managers in accessing latest thinking. Both academic and practitioner orientations are therefore required. The emphasis of these Fellowships is on research with limited teaching/responsibilities.
These Fellowships are offered for two years, during which time fellows will be supported in developing their research through attendance at key conferences and with opportunities to present their work at Cranfield events.
The School seeks high quality applicants and has particular interest in the following themes, although those with other fields of interest may apply:
Future transportation strategy (sustainability and supply chain strategy; physical distribution and network design; how businesses manage their customer channels)
Improving the customer experience (new developments in sales, customer interface, breakthrough value propositions)
Business-to-business collaboration (how do companies select and manage their close business-to-business relationships)
Expatriation and international HRM
Flexible working and performance
Exploring the lack of women in leadership positions
Innovation, knowledge and learning in new product development
Evaluation of new approaches to leadership development
Social entrepreneurship
Fellows will be required to initiate and undertake research projects, collaborate in research with other Cranfield SoM faculty, present research at academic and practitioner events, write for academic publication in listed journals (may be joint papers), collaborate with colleagues in developing materials for practitioner dissemination and undertake a limited teaching and learning portfolio.
The salary will be £37-40k and the terms and conditions of employment are commensurate with Cranfield's standing as a world-class management school.
Application forms and further details are available from the Human Resources Department, Cranfield School of Management, Cranfield, Bedford MK43 0AL, telephone 01234 754330 or email hrsom@cranfield.ac.uk. Alternatively you can visit our website at www.cranfield.ac.uk/hr to download an application form.
When applying please identify which theme you are applying for and quote reference: Z/8013 and identify which stream you wish to apply for.
Closing date for receipt of applications: Friday 13th June 2008, an assessment day will take place on 20th June 2008.
Revised schedule: Call for contributions "Innovative Corporate Social Responsibility"
The schedule for the book "Innovative Corporate Social Responsibility: From risk management to value creation" has been revised.
Editors:
Céline Louche, Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School
Samuel O Idowu, London Metropolitan University Business School
Walter Leal Filho, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences
To be published by Greenleaf Publishing in Fall, 2009.
Description Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has gained recognition and the business community has been developing significant and genuine efforts to contribute to sustainable development. Yet criticisms of CSR in its current form have been apparent, often related to the lack of value that it generates in the enterprise and offering only a partial and short-term response to the full challenge of sustainable development. The time has come to shift the CSR focus away from risk management towards a more progressive and entrepreneurial approach that seeks to create value and identify sustainable opportunities for strategic innovation.
With this book we seek to explore, inspire and support creative, innovative and strategic CSR. As defined by the European Commission (COM 2002/347), CSR is the business contribution to sustainable development. New partners of consumptions and productions are necessary to move towards sustainability requiring in-depth changes where innovation and creativity are key components (Roome, 2006). Innovation means new products, services and technologies and in addition; new organizational and institutional systems, structures and new business models which empower the organization to advance strategically in an ever competitive business world.
Both research and practice show that CSR has mainly been addressed and approached in terms of value protection and risk management, where the main objective has been to protect companies’ existing assets or avoid scandals. Therefore, in many cases where CSR remains at the forefront of business activity, it does not lead to fundamental changes and is not yet integrated as a strategic component where it could create value, generate new ideas and open new opportunities (Grayson, 2004).
‘How do corporate entities shift their attention from risk management to value creation?’ is the key theme of this book. The objective is to explore this theme both, theoretically and empirically as well as through real case studies and experiences.
Contributions The list below is by no means exhaustive, and all contributions relevant to the theme of the book will be considered.
• Strategic CSR
• CSR and strategic capabilities
• CSR and strategic management
• CSR and innovation (technological, organisational, structural and institutional innovation, development of new business models or management practices)
• Innovative CSR
• Corporate social opportunity(ies)
• CSR and value creation
• CSR and (firms) competitiveness
• CSR and stakeholder value creation
• CSR and creativity
• CSR and Global warming
Academic and practitioners papers, theoretical, empirical and case studies are welcome. Papers should be between 5,000 and 8,000 words. Case studies should be between 2,500 and 5,000 words in length.
Schedule The submission deadline for initial expressions of interest in the form of abstracts of approximately 500-700 words is 30 June 2008. Abstracts should be sent as e-mail attachments to the Céline Louche (celine.louche@vlerick.be).
Contributors whose abstracts are considered appropriate for the theme of the book will then be asked to submit full papers by 31 October 2008. Contributors will be informed of the acceptance of their contributions or be invited to submit final revised papers by 16 January 2009. It is intended that the book will be published in Fall 2009.
Main deadlines: • 30 June 2008: Deadline for abstracts (500-700 words)
• 31 July 2008: Notification of acceptance of contributions
• 31 October 2008: Deadline for full contribution (max. 8 000 words)
• 31 November 2008: Reviewers feedback
• 16 January 2009 Final revised contribution
3rd Cambridge Business and Poverty Leadership Programme
The Cambridge Programme for Industry is now inviting applications for the 3rd Business and Poverty Leadership Programme taking place in Cambridge, UK, from the 9th-12th December 2008. The Programme is primarily aimed at senior executives who have group responsibility for business development, product development or CSR, or those who have responsibilities for business units in emerging economies.
The Programme, developed in association with Oxfam GB, UNDP and the WBCSD, offers an outstanding opportunity for leaders from business, NGOs, and government to develop an advanced understanding of how, through its mainstream activities, business can contribute to improving the quality of life of the world's poorest communities.
The Seminar will examine the context of global poverty and why it is increasingly perceived as a business issue. Innovative business models such as 'base-of-the-pyramid' and other approaches will be examined, as well as strategies to minimise the risks associated with working in countries where poverty is widespread. A central theme of the Programme is to consider ways in which corporations can work effectively with donor organisations, host governments and civil society organisations towards eradicating poverty.
Please find more information on the websiteor download directly the brochure.
TALK: Elkington & Visser on The Evolution of CSR & Sustainability
In order to celebrate the publication of "The A to Z of CSR", the University of Cambridge Programme for Industry is hosting an event on "The Evolution of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability", with keynote addresses by John Elkington and Wayne Visser.
"The A to Z of Corporate Social Responsibility" is the world's first comprehensive guide to CSR concepts, codes and organisations. It includes around 400 entries by over 100 leading experts in the various aspects of CSR, from business ethics and human rights to climate change and poverty.
The launch will be held on Friday 23 May, 12.30-14.30 in the Old Library, Pembroke College, Cambridge.
Aspen Institute Survey: MBA students still value challenging career opportunities and compensation, but social issues are registering more, especially among women
In Fall 2007, the Aspen Institute Center for Business Education, a program of the Aspen Institute Business and Society Program (Aspen BSP), went out to 15 business schools to survey MBA students about their attitudes towards the relationship between business and society. This is the third time in the last nine years that Aspen BSP has surveyed MBA students to find out what they are learning and thinking about that relationship.
The most important findings of the surveys are that MBA programs definitely influence the way students think about the role of business and its relationship to society once they become managers and leaders. This recent survey shows some encouraging changes in the way business school curriculum addresses the complex relationship between social issues and business practices and decisions.
Business students in 2007 are thinking more broadly about the primary responsibilities of a company. In addition to citing shareholder maximization and satisfying customer needs, more students are also saying “creating value for the communities in which they operate” is a primary business responsibility.
MBA students are expressing more interest in finding work that offers the potential of making a contribution to society. (26% of respondents in 2007 say this is an important factor in their job selection compared with 15% in 2002.)
That said, business schools and companies have not convinced them that environmental and social responsibility contribute to corporate financial success.
Although more students in 2007 than in 2002 believe it is very likely that they will face values conflicts on the job, the further they progress through their MBA program the less confident they feel that their business school training is preparing them to manage those conflicts.
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