Corporations Have Social Responsibility — and You Do Too
A personal examination of what Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) looks like in the tech and social impact space — and its room for improvement.
By Soo Song
“What is social responsibility?”
In one of our first lectures in a business ethics course, the professor launched our discussion with this very question. People threw out a few answers, mainly vague ideas about giving back to the community and being mindful of resources we use.
And then he turned the question on its head and asked,
“What is your social responsibility?”
I think a lot of students were caught off-guard — myself included. How often do you fully consider your own obligations to the community beyond what’s relevant to your personal bubble of wants and needs? The point was this: being more mindful of social responsibilities means first identifying or crystallizing what your personal roles are and how your gifts fit into the picture of contributing to this world.
CSR is challenging to pinpoint because its breadth and depth really vary based on who undertakes it. Some firms have vague mission statements that describe “impact,” “service,” and “community” — but what are the real actions they are taking to provide these things?
People are so divided on the idea that making a difference is only genuine if it involves profit in some way — or none at all.
I’ve seen the whole spectrum: people who get super excited whenever they hear about CSR, others who are wary and cynical about corporations and whatever progress they speak of, and many in between — like the students in my class who vaguely described “giving back” as the socially responsible strategy.
Keeping all this in mind, I believe CSR is:
the intentional actions/programs of a company to “make a positive impact” on the greater community — ideally in a capacity that aligns with its core competencies and vision.
This area is not inherently flawed, but whether CSR is effectively addressing peoples’ needs can seem unclear.
So, how does social responsibility apply to tech?
CSR, in tech especially, is expanding at an accelerated pace. According to a study by Nielsen, “Fifty-six percent of global online consumers across 60 countries say they are willing to pay more for products and services provided by companies that are committed to positive social and environmental impact.”
This may be due to the fact that tech companies are extremely peer-motivated in regards to innovation. Companies recognize the importance of addressing issues quickly in order to stay relevant, especially since people are so connected and responsive online.
For one, diversity in tech became a hot issue in a very short amount of time because of the vocal individuals who demanded greater representation. It became a problem the industry frankly couldn’t ignore — and now, almost every tech company has a diversity hiring initiative. The industry has demonstrated the potential to quickly prioritize key issues, when needed.
But there is still so much room for improvement.
The Stanford Social Innovation Review talks about how CSR strategy programs in tech have evolved considerably from where they were just a few years ago, but they are still relatively young compared to those in other industries and have yet to scale their funding and reach effectively. A lot of technology professionals are wrestling with what it means to give back and what that looks like. In the next few years, it’s going to be interesting to see all the ways that tech can be used to solve the social issues we currently face.
Thankfully, the people in CSR want to be there.
Two years ago, I interned at Adobe as a Corporate Responsibility Social Strategy Intern (you can see what I experienced here! Thanks Julia.) My summer was nothing short of amazing, and I have to attribute most of this to my phenomenal team.
While CSR is pretty high impact, it’s definitely not a field where you feel the impact directly on a daily basis. You can’t compare your experiences to ones like Peace Corps, where the experiences you gain are tied to specific individuals and come straight from the field.
There were moments I found myself distinctly frustrated by this. I would be working on the storytelling and messaging of a project, but not necessarily seeing a specific picture of how my work would affect people. When you don’t have such a picture painted for you, it can be a challenge to feel fulfilled in the mundane, or the day-to-day.
But this is where the people came in. Let’s be honest: CSR is not going to be the most lucrative field, and it’s still relatively small in relative opportunities and scale.
I was surrounded by individuals who cared, and it really showed. They wanted to be here.
But how can tech “transform” social good?
Across different community issues, there is a similar theme: a lack of resources. People in the nonprofit sector have some incredible dreams. They just don’t necessarily have the bandwidth and financial manpower to implement them.
I used to limit social good to the areas it’s typically confined to (i.e. environment, education, empowerment) and didn’t see how technology could potentially play a crucial role in that. But I learned that technology help fills this resource gap that so many social vehicles in our community struggle with.
It’d be wrong to say that the future of creating social impact lies solely in lines of code and technological innovation. Why?
If you’re totally disconnected from the hearts and stories of the people you’re serving, there’s always going to be something missing.
But I think there’s massive potential in how organizations like Blueprint use their skills and resources to aid the community in finding and filling their own.
I don’t know exactly how I’ll pursue social impact in the future. What I know for now, though, is that I’m captivated by stories. I want more people to know the impactful stories of others — and to tell their own! This is just one of mine.
Soo Song is a senior studying Business Administration and Linguistics at UC Berkeley. Soo is currently a Project Mentor for Blueprint.
