New CSR Index shows public perception rising of corporate responsibility

One of the largest and most recognized CSR (corporate social responsibility) studies has just been released in conjunction with Boston College and the results are quite encouraging when viewed as a composite. The annual poll compiles overall corporate social responsibility Index for some of the largest companies in the US and measures the results year over year. The study gauges public perceptions of the overall social impact of companies and the results indicate that businesses are perceived as being more socially responsible than a year prior. It speaks to the fact that internal processes in corporations are being refined as well as the message of corporate responsibility being conveyed more effectively.

The index measures three main areas in company performance including the community and the environment, corporate ethics and transparency and workplace practices. Surveyed questions measure the performance based on public knowledge to form an index on a 100 point scale. The net scores to even make the list of the top 50 companies was significantly more difficult this year, with entry-level score of 72.5 out of 100 required to feature on the list of the top 50. This marks an increase of over 4% from the 2009 results. Perhaps even more impressively ordered top 25 companies registered an index score of 75 or above compared with only the top nine a year previously. The scoring process does not modify year to year which infers the competition/evaluation of performance has taken a major step forward in 2010.

More than 7,500 online consumers took part in a comprehensive survey during January and February of this year to create the new CSRI top 50. The top six corporations all managed scores in excess of 80 topped by Johnson & Johnson. The next five companies include Walt Disney Co., Kraft Foods Inc., Microsoft, PepsiCo and Apple. What I find most interesting is that while it is very difficult to find the perfect barometer to measure the true CSR impact of a large corporation and find a way to compare apples with apples, surveys such as this would definitely demonstrate that some companies are doing a better job than others when it comes to communicating with consumers the commitment they demonstrate to CSR. Projects such as the PepsiCo refresh campaign were of such visibility that even consumers who don’t purchase the product were actively aware of the program that Pepsi have been running over the last 10 months. Indeed, each of those six companies maintain a very high profile in terms of advertising and customer interaction in addition to honestly being very large corporations.

I think a wonderful and progressive idea would be for local companies of much smaller size to also be assessed based on an index, it could almost be an extension of the Better Business Bureau approach. We all know about Disney and Pepsi, but what about smaller every day companies we may interact with who perhaps only operate in our region? For example if you were a restaurant owner looking at partnering with a local provider of produce, part of your decision could be based upon a CSR accreditation. Naturally it would take an organization to oversee such an idea but to promote CSR performance for smaller businesses (perhaps break down by annual turnover) and then divide into the type of industry would be a welcome advancement in not only advancing CSR as a concept but leveling the playing field for partner vendors, service users and consumers. It’s already taking place in the hospitality industry for hotels and airlines, but why shouldn’t everyone know which restaurant, hair salon or sports franchise is embracing corporate responsibility most fully? We as a company operate a defined program of corporate responsibility and it’s a focal point of our decisions, I’m sure many other companies want to communicate a similar message.

The index was developed by researchers at the Carroll School of Management Center for Corporate Citizenship in tandem with the Reputation Institute. You can see the full results for 2010 and 2009 via this link provided by Boston College. To learn more about the Reputation Institute please visit their website.