This document discusses how corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs can be used to recruit, engage, and retain employees. It recommends assessing current CSR programs, measuring employee awareness, interest, and knowledge of CSR through surveys, and using various communication methods to share how CSR is embedded in the organization's strategies and operations. The goal is to help employees understand their role in CSR and how to get involved, in order to build a highly engaged workforce and reap the benefits of CSR for attracting and retaining talent.

1. Recruit, Engage, Retain Through
Social Responsibility
JOHN CHRISTOPHER PH.D. AND
MICHELLE BERNHART
HR FLORIDA CONFERENCE & EXPO
AUGUST 29 – SEPTEMBER 1

2. CSR - What & Why?
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
 Focuses on the
environmental and
social „bottom line‟
 Puts these on par with
financial performance
metrics
 Promotes triple bottom
line concept of success

3. CSR - What & Why?
Value of Triple Bottom Line Definition of Success
 Employee-organization
relationship is center
stage
 HR managers have a
new process to build
engagement
 CSR is a strong driver of
recruitment and
retention

4. CSR - What & Why?
CSR - Strong Driver of Attraction and Engagement
 50% of consumers view
employee treatment as
central to CSR
 64% of Millennials report
employer CSR activities
increase their loyalty
 90% of employees would
choose an employer
perceived as more socially
responsible

5. CSR - What & Why?
CSR - Strong Driver of Attraction and Engagement
 Meta-analysis of 50
studies found CSR
social components,
including treatment of
employees, significantly
affected financial
performance measures

6. CSR Measurement Program - Overview
Baseline Data Perception Data Strategic Data
ID Current CSR Activities Assess Employee Attitudes Build CSR Info & Strategy
 Review existing  Surveys CSR program  Link CSR data to
publications, reports, awareness, interest, engagement measures
and documentation and understanding to enhance employee
 Interview CSR leaders  Reputation surveys to retention
& stakeholders ID firm CSR strengths  Evaluate CSR program
1) Confirm published and weaknesses for ROI in recruitment
report data  Compare and contrast and retention
2) Gage employee survey data against  Continue developing
participation rates CSR activity to build CSR knowledge - data
3) Explore benefits and programs reinforcing  Identify executive level
value of CSR Activities values and identity info needs via interview

7. CSR Measurement Program - Tools
Employee Awareness Instruments
 Goal: Identify current CSR  Disclosure Reviews: Content
activities. Contrast employee analysis of reporting,
awareness against interest shareholder letters, and
relevant documentation
 Purpose: Establish baseline  CSR Awareness Surveys: Have
information in organization you ever seen, read, or heard
anything about … program?
 CSR Interest Surveys: Would
 Rationale: A broad set CSR
activities can exist in many you like … programs to be
different parts of the org offered at your company?

8. CSR Measurement Program
Employee
Instruments
Understanding
 Goal: Identify employee CSR  Activity Reviews: CSR leader
comprehension, perceived interviews on program value
benefits and info needs and benefit
 CSR Attitude Surveys:
 Purpose: Assess benefits and  How knowledgeable are
value of CSR to employees employees on specific CSR
and organization programs?
 What is employee
understanding and beliefs for
 Rationale: Provides evidence CSR in general?
to build the case to employees  Do employees believe CSR
and management contributes to company success?

9. CSR Measurement Program
Employee
Instruments
Involvement
 Goal: Identify employee  Activity Reviews: Data mining
participation rates and on participation rates across
commitment levels CSR programs
 CSR Commitment Surveys:
 Purpose: Compare and What are employee levels of
contrast employee satisfaction and commitment to
perceptions against company CSR programs?
CSR performance  CSR Reputation Surveys: What
are employee and applicant
 Rationale: Identify
views of company reputation on
improvement opportunities key CSR dimensions?
where gaps exist

10. CSR Measurement Program
Organizational
Instruments
Knowledge
 Goal: Build decision making  CSR Impact Data: Link CSR
data sets for continued understanding and
strategy development involvement data to
engagement and ROI measures
 Purpose: Link basic CSR data  Knowledge Management Audit
to broader business  Identify executive level
performance data information needs
 Identify employee CSR training
and organizational development
 Rationale: Identify and
opportunities
develop strategic actions for
 Support CSR and HR strategy
improving attraction and development
engagement

11. A Shifting Recruiting, Retention Landscape
Non-financial
Pay, benefits,
rewards (meaning,
advancement purpose)
“They want good pay and
good bosses, too, but
beyond that they want to
find meaning
in what they do.”
- Lancaster and Stillman
Craig Kielburger,
founder – Free the Children

12. A Shifting Landscape
89.8% likely to leave job 14% to 25% less salary

13. Benefits of CSR Communications
CSR communications help recruit new employees and keep
existing employees engaged.
Demonstrate the Raise awareness about Enhance
human side of the important career- engagement of
organization building opportunities existing employees
Improve morale, Increase trust in the Support the
strengthen teams organization organization‟s core
values
Improve morale, Lower recruiting costs
strengthen teams

14. What Should Employees Know About CSR?
 What the organization is doing with CSR
 Their own role in supporting CSR
 Ways to become involved
 Opportunities for leadership and growth through
CSR activities, including but not limited to
volunteering
 Their role in communicating CSR

15. Key CSR Communication Goals
Awareness Understanding Knowledge Involvement
Foster culture of Equip employees Ensure employees Help employees
personal with the understand how understand their
accountability for knowledge to and why CSR is role in CSR and
CSR among all achieve CSR embedded in overall how to be
employee groups objectives Help strategies, involved
employees operations and
understand their understand its
role in CSR and implementation in
how to be involved the organization
Proprietary & Confidential

16. Types of Communication Vehicles
Traditional Emerging
 Town halls  CEO or CRO blog
 Newsletters  Collaborative
 Intranet sites workspaces, portals
 Posters  CSR or Green teams
 E-mails  Social networking
 Twitter/Yammer
 Career websites
 Facebook
 Ethics, diversity
 JustMeans.com
training

17. Cultivating CSR Awareness
Goal Communication Practices
 Publication/ announcement of CSR
 Foster culture of policy and approach
Intranet/internet site pages
personal 
 Stories in newsletter
accountability for  Mentions in annual report, town halls
CSR among all  Announcements from CEO, other
internal CSR champions
employee groups  Recruiting materials
 Posters
 Screen savers
 Meetings, brown bags, presentations,
net meetings
 Inclusion in employee survey
 Give-aways

18. Fostering Employee Understanding
Goal Communication Practices
 More detailed webinars
 Equip employees
 Online training
with the  More in-depth podcasts, videos,
understanding of print materials
CSR to help achieve  CSR community of practice
 Identification/ visibility of
objectives internal sustainability leaders
and champions
 Summary of CSR feedback and
actions taken from employee
survey

19. Sharing Organizational Knowledge
Goals Communication Practices
 Interviews, articles that outline
 Ensure employees
business case for CSR and
understand how answer common employee
and why CSR is questions: “What‟s in it for me?
How do I get involved? Why are
embedded in overall we doing this?”
strategies,  Publication of and meetings
operations about strategic plan (Intranet,
print or PDF overview)
 Make sure they  Interviews with CEO, “green
know the business team” office or facility leaders,
others on Intranet
case

20. Encouraging Employee Involvement
Goals Communication Practices
 Focus groups, surveys, opportunity to
 Help employees provide input to CSR strategies,
organizational goals
understand their  Volunteer, philanthropy programs
role in CSR and how  Ample feedback opportunities
Facility/office “greening” and
to be involved 
leadership roles
Facility/office CSR contests
 Motivate them to 
 Employee profiles in newsletter, online
contribute  Intranet-based employee blogs
 CSR performance reporting from
offices/facilities to central system
 Social media presence (Facebook,
Twitter, Just Means.com, etc.)

21. The Most Important Communications Tool
Face-to-face communication
with managers

22. Recruit, Engage, Retain with CSR
Summary: Four components to utilizing CSR to
recruit, engage, and retain employees
Assess Current CSR
Programs
Assess CSR Awareness, Communicate with
Interest, Knowledge Organizational Values
Build a Highly Engaged
Workforce

23. Suggestions for Further Reading
 Bhattacharya, C.B., Sen, S., & Korschun, D. (2008) Using Corporate Social
Responsibility to Win the War for Talent. MIT Sloan Management Review. 49(2).
 Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship, NetImpact, et al. (2008)
Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Communications: Who’s Listening?
Who’s Leading? What Matters Most?
 Colbert, B. A., & Kurucz, E. (2007) Three Conceptions of Triple Bottom Line
Business Sustainability and the Role for HRM. HR. Human Resource Planning
30(1).
 IBM Global Business Services (2009) Attaining Sustainable Growth through
Corporate Social Responsibility
 IBM Global Business Services (2008) The Enterprise of the Future: Global CEO
Study
 Nair, Chandran (2009) A new role for human resources. Ethical Corporation.
www.ethicalcorp.com/content.asp?ContentID=6559&newsletter=24
 Orliztsky, M., Schmidt, F.L., & Rynes, S.L. (2009) Corporate Social and Financial
Performance: A Meta Analysis. Organization Studies 24(3).
 Ragan Research (2009). Assessing Your Department’s Effectiveness in
Communicating CSR.