What Is Social Responsibility?
The social responsibility of entrepreneurs or companies can be defined as the actions that benefit society. Businesses should not only be profitable, but also contribute to the welfare of society. As an entrepreneur, your decisions should take into account the social, ethical and environmental aspects. If a business harms the society or environment in any way, then they are considered socially irresponsible. Actions like adopting sustainable practices to reduce carbon footprint, supporting social causes, employing local people and treating your employees well are some ways of demonstrating social responsibility. Entrepreneurs should positively impact society.
Why Is Social Responsibility Important?
Consumers like those brands that share their values and care about society. Social responsibility impacts the profits of the company in the long term. Here are some reasons that make organisation’s social responsibility a critical aspect:
- Public perception of socially conscious businesses is favourable. Customers find their goods and services to be quite popular. It improves the business’s reputation.
- This gives the business an advantage over rivals and sets it apart from them which makes bringing in clients and investors easier.
- It promotes attracting and hiring devoted clients and staff. A company with a positive culture is more likely to attract employees.
- It facilitates the expansion of companies into new markets.
- A company’s efficiency and productivity might rise when it provides jobs for the local community.
- In addition to providing value to stakeholders, it aids in adapting to the shifting demands and expectations of society and the environment.
Types Of Social Responsibility
There are four types of social responsibility that an entrepreneur should take into account. These are:
Environmental Responsibility
When businesses want to carry out their operations in an environmentally friendly way, they focus on cutting their carbon footprint. Companies take the initiative to reduce pollution, plastic waste and water contamination. They focus on using sustainable resources like recycled materials, water, paper and digital communications. Many companies also take initiatives to clean the environment, like planting trees, recycling waste and funding environmental research.
Ethical Responsibility
Businesses are ethically responsible for taking good care of the employees, customers and community. They should provide a safe and respectable environment to the employees. Transparency in work and fair wages are important for employees. Businesses should not make fake promises to their customers. They should deliver accurate and quality products and services as promised. Companies should not negatively affect the surrounding community by using their resources unethically.
Charitable Responsibility
Some companies have core values of improving the world around them. They allocate some of their profits to charitable purposes. Some companies donate to organisations working toward those social causes to which they want to contribute and strongly support. Others contribute by donating their own goods, such as a tech company donating old laptops and computers to schools.
Legal Responsibility
Every business is required to abide by the laws of the government and society. They need to ensure the safety and protection of the community. Businesses are responsible for adhering to the regulations placed by the government to protect people and the economy. They have to pay corporate taxes to ensure they receive protection from the government. They cannot do anything that can endanger the lives of people or engage in any illegal behaviour.
Responsibility Of Entrepreneurs Towards Local Community
Every entrepreneurial business should make an effort to improve the condition of the surrounding areas and people. These are their responsibilities towards the local community:
- Employment opportunity: Entrepreneurs should create job possibilities in the communities where their businesses are located and running. Employment possibilities will improve the lives of the people in the area. The local community will benefit as a result of this.
- Saving environment: Entrepreneurs should ensure that if they have a manufacturing unit, then it should be far away from residential areas. Water treatment plants should be installed to clean the water that is discharged from the manufacturing. Make plans to reduce solid waste and smoke as well.
- Improve public utilities: Entrepreneurs can contribute towards the betterment of the local community by providing public utilities. They can help in opening a school, hospitals, or libraries for the local people and their children.
- Improve standards of living: Entrepreneurs should make an effort to raise people’s living conditions. They can provide scholarships to employees’ children or jobs to disabled people.
- Infrastructural development: Entrepreneurial activities provide the way for local infrastructure development. Roads, transportation, and communication networks emerge as a result of the business’s demand for infrastructure.
Responsibility Of Entrepreneurs Towards World Society
Globalisation has turned the world into one society. The impact of entrepreneurial endeavours on international society is gradually becoming apparent. These are some of the responsibilities towards world society.
- Following rules: Entrepreneurs are responsible for following the international trade rules of the countries they are doing business with. They should not engage in any illicit commercial operations.
- Avoid unfair competition: Businesses should try to avoid unfair competition with the markets of other countries. They should not do any such thing that can affect the local businessman or the market.
- Honest business: Entrepreneurs should be honest when dealing with foreign businesses. They should provide standardised commodities at fair prices. Any type of cheating should be avoided. It tarnishes the image of the company. The payment process should be timely and transparent.
- Development of countries: Entrepreneurs can establish their businesses in underdeveloped countries. It not only helps them to get cheap labour but also helps in the economic development of that country.
- Increase cooperation and peace: Trade between two countries leads to mutual cooperation and decreases tensions. Entrepreneurs are accountable for expanding their business with diverse countries in order for world peace to flourish.
How To Define Social Responsibility Vision?
Entrepreneurs should develop a social responsibility vision based on their values, passions, and goals. It should be easily understandable and effectively communicated to the teams, customers, partners and investors. Entrepreneurs should define their own core values and beliefs in order to develop this vision. Then determine how important those societal issues are to the target market. They must now determine the impact they want to have on society, and around it, they can create a realistic vision for social responsibility. It can be done through the product or services or operations of the company.
Examples Of Social Responsibility Of Entrepreneurs
Here are a few examples of the social responsibility of entrepreneurs:
- Environmental protection: Companies organise environmental protection drives with the employees. Every year they plant trees with the help of some non-profitable organisations and donate them to take care of these plants.
- Reducing waste and energy consumption: Some companies make changes in their policies to minimise waste. They minimise paper waste, switch to energy-saving lights, recycle the water used, asking employees to work remotely.
- Volunteering: Some companies are giving employees time off for volunteering. They go to schools to educate children.
- Labour policies: Businesses are focused on improving the working conditions and work-life balance of the employees. They provide new parents with paid leave, holiday time, and a friendly office environment to help them recharge their batteries.
Entrepreneurs have the responsibility to improve the well-being of the society. They should go beyond their corporate social responsibility and address the social issues of the community in which they work. With their innovative thinking, they are capable of resolving a wide range of social concerns. This will benefit society while also assisting businesses in developing closer ties with consumers, employees, and other stakeholders. It can result in long-term corporate benefits and increased revenue.
