We have recently seen many attempts by large corporations to show their commitment to social justice through charity work and various volunteer projects. Most of these efforts, however, have been in foreign countries, rather than domestic communities. A new study explores how corporate responsibility relates to local communities.
The study comes from Harvard Business School’s Michael Porter, well-known in the nonprofit sector for his competitive strategy theories. He has been a prominent speaker in opposition of the inefficient uses of corporate social responsibility, acting as an expert in the field.
Porter’s study did not focus solely on the charity/volunteer that is performed by businesses and corporations, but also looked at how business policies affect local communities. This includes the increasing trend of outsourcing jobs.
According to the study, many domestic businesses are currently looking into moving their facilities outside of United States borders. If they succeed in doing so, it would be a huge blow to the American job market.
Businesses moving their operations outside of the United States is one practice that has contributed to loss of domestic jobs. Very few products are made in this country currently, especially when compared to all of those that are assembled internationally.
Of those businesses surveyed, just under 80 percent reported they don’t believe doing right by communities aligns with doing right for the “bottom line.” In business, the “bottom line,” or profits, often take priority over social responsibility, and that appears to be true for the large majority of American businesses.
Many corporations have been talking about giving back to local communities, but they have not actually taken steps to do so. Hopefully the results of this study will put more pressure on business owners and CEOs to start doing right by their neighbors, and the country.