Corporate Social Engagement in South Africa

How can companies address social issues with a strategic framework that creates shared value?

Bachelor Thesis , 2014 , 62 Pages , Grade: 1,0

Business economics - Business Ethics, Corporate Ethics

The best motivational basis for writing an insightful and useful thesis is indisputably personal interest. Therefore, I have chosen this topic, as there are several reasons why I regard this to be an interesting field of research.
Firstly, I myself have developed an interest for the country of South Africa, as I have spent my semester abroad at the DUT in Durban. This results in deeper insight into the society at hand and the people who having to deal with the social problems. As an international business student one consequently questions the way business is done in this country and the means of corporate engagement. Resulting from our Business Ethics class, in which we were given the assignment to write about an ethical issue in a foreign country, I have already acquired knowledge about the ethical landscape in South Africa. I realized that this field is especially difficult and broad regarding the Apartheid stricken country. Discussions and meetings with South African locals in Durban who have a certain insight into the governmental and/or business practices underlying the theory have then further deepened my desire to pursuit further research in this direction.
As to the scientific relevance, corporate engagement still constitutes an immensely important role and even more so in emerging economies. So companies are constantly looking for ways of improving their responsible behavior in society. Companies seldom have the desire to analyze all the concepts available in the pool of corporate social engagement approaches. This thesis is supposed to give companies a guideline on how to successfully integrate one of these concepts and thereby generate social and economic leverage in the environment of a developing economy that is South Africa.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• ENSURANCE
• LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
• LIST OF FIGURES
• INTRODUCTION
• PERSONAL MOTIVATION, RELEVANCE AND HYPOTHESIS
• METHODOLOGY
• LIMITATIONS AND TIMEFRAME
• THIS THESIS IS SUBJECT TO SEVERAL RESTRICTIONS AND LIMITATIONS, WHICH COULD NOT BE AVOIDED, AND INFLUENCE THE OUTCOME AND CHARACTER OF THE RESEARCH.
• THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
• DEVELOPMENT OF CORPORATE ENGAGEMENT
• TERMINOLOGY OF PORTER & KRAMER
• Corporate Philanthropy
• Corporate Philanthropy and Competitive Advantage
• Competitive Advantage and CSR
• Creating Shared Value
• RESEARCH
• SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT
• EXPLANATION OF COMPANY SELECTION
• COMPANY ANALYSIS
• DIAGRAMMATIC OVERVIEW
• BEST PRACTICES
• Nestlé
• Vodacom
• SABMiller
• Coca-Cola
• Anglo American
• Woolworths
• Standard Bank
• BMW
• GlaxoSmithKline
• CONCLUSION
• CRITIQUES
• RECOMMENDATION
• OUTLOOK
• REFERENCES

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte

This bachelor thesis examines the role of corporate social engagement in South Africa, focusing on how companies can strategically address social issues while creating shared value. The study aims to analyze the current landscape of corporate social engagement in South Africa, identify best practices, and explore the potential of a strategic framework that aligns social impact with business objectives.

• The development of corporate engagement and its evolution from philanthropy to shared value creation.
• The theoretical framework of Creating Shared Value (CSV) by Porter & Kramer and its application in the South African context.
• The analysis of best practices in corporate social engagement by leading companies in South Africa.
• The identification of key challenges and opportunities for companies to effectively engage in social issues.
• The development of recommendations for companies to enhance their social engagement strategies and create shared value.

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel

The introduction provides a personal motivation for the research, outlining the relevance of the topic and the hypothesis. It also details the methodology used, including limitations and the timeframe of the research. The theoretical framework section explores the development of corporate engagement, focusing on the terminology of Porter & Kramer, including corporate philanthropy, competitive advantage, and creating shared value. The research section delves into the South African context, explaining the company selection process and providing a comprehensive analysis of selected companies, including a diagrammatic overview and best practices. The conclusion summarizes the findings, critiques the current state of corporate social engagement in South Africa, and provides recommendations for future development.

Schlüsselwörter

The keywords and focus themes of the text include corporate social engagement, shared value creation, South Africa, business strategy, social impact, sustainability, best practices, and corporate social responsibility. The text explores how companies can strategically address social issues in South Africa while creating shared value for both the business and society. It examines the theoretical framework of Creating Shared Value (CSV) and analyzes the best practices of leading companies in South Africa. The text also identifies key challenges and opportunities for companies to effectively engage in social issues and provides recommendations for enhancing their social engagement strategies.

• College: University of Applied Sciences Dortmund
• Course: Business English - Social Engagement
• Grade: 1,0
• Author: John-Patrick Grande (Author)
• Publication Year: 2014
• Pages: 62
• Catalog Number: V284642
• ISBN (eBook): 9783656843320
• ISBN (Book): 9783656843337
• Language: English
• Tags: corporate, social, engagement, south, africa