5 Reasons for Getting CSR in Your Workplace in Asia

ADB’s Armenia Resident Mission staff and their families plant trees near the North-South Road Corridor, an ADB-financed project.
ADB’s Armenia Resident Mission staff and their families plant trees near the North-South Road Corridor, an ADB-financed project.

By Natasha Davis

CSR brings so many benefits to the bottom line of a business and organization that is no longer an issue for debate in Asia, where the tipping point has been reached.

Is corporate social responsibility (CSR) just a buzz word? A passing fad? Is it here to stay?

CSR is responsible business, taking into account the effect on the environment, society, and having self-regulation as a key component of the business model.

For guidance on CSR, the International Organization for Standardization’s ISO 26000 is a good reference document for businesses and organizations on working in an ethical and transparent way with concern for the environment and society, while the United Nations Global Compact has 10 universally accepted principles for business that focus around human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption.

In fact, CSR brings so many benefits to the bottom line of a business and organization that is no longer an issue for debate. The tipping point has been reached in Asia, and here are five reasons (in reverse order of importance) to promote CSR in your workplace.

5. Gets staff engaged. Staff want connectivity with each other, and the best way to achieve this is through having a common goal and activities. These activities transcend work groups and silos and allow a commitment across groups, bringing together technical staff with marketing staff and finance staff and solicitors. All staff can be engaged in this common purpose.

4. Reduces your company’s expenses. When staff are engaged in CSR, they will think twice before throwing out paper not used on both sides. They will come up with ways to sell the companies trash, and recycle other waste. They will be conscious of the water they consume when washing their hands. The contribution to the bottom line will come quickly.

3. Gives perspective to work-life balance. Happiness is achieved through experiences, and not the collection of possessions. CSR activities give staff more experiences, a better perspective of the reason we enjoy having work, and how this fits into the equation of the family and extended family.

2. New ideas and new products that meet the needs of millennials. Members of the Millennium Generation want goods and services that simplify their lives. The most successful products out there have mastered this. CSR is about simplification while doing good work, so it’s a business perspective that is attuned with the wants of our younger generations.

1. You do your part for Mother Nature. Global surface temperatures from 1884 to 2014 show over the last 134 years, the ten warmest years have been experienced since 2000 – with the exception of 1998.  So far 2015 is the warmest year on record.CSR is about doing your part as a business and organization—and you as active member of society–on issues such as slowing this rise in temperature, and maybe even starting a downward trend. If you agree that CSR is part of your agenda, then drop a line here.