Corporate Social Responsibility is the New Black: Organizations Engagement With Stakeholder Demands

Abstract

This dissertation interrogates the escalating imperatives for corporate social responsibility and the communicative responses orchestrated by organizations to these exigencies. Employing an analytical framework that amalgamates discourse analysis with institutional theory, the study elucidates the pivotal roles of coercive, mimetic, and normative mechanisms as fundamental forces of institutional isomorphism that profoundly shape organizational adaptations to corporate social responsibility demands.
The investigation reveals that in response to both statutory mandates and market dynamics, organizations are not merely adopting corporate social responsibility practices more extensively, but are also strategically leveraging these practices to enhance their legitimacy and sustain stakeholder trust. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced in industries subjected to rigorous public oversight, where enterprises endeavor to align their operational modalities with societal values, notwithstanding the intrinsic challenges posed by their core business activities.
A meticulous examination within this thesis evaluates the ambivalent nature of these communication strategies. Although these strategies are instrumental in ameliorating public perceptions and fortifying relationships with stakeholders, they concurrently harbor the potential to engender merely superficial modifications—alterations that predominantly serve image management rather than effectuating substantive changes in corporate behavior. Paramount to this discussion is the analysis of the utilization of communication strategies, alongside propositions for prospective methodologies to integrate corporate social responsibility more effectively into organizational structures.
In summation, this study proffers a nuanced perspective on the intricate interplay between organizational communication strategies and societal expectations of corporate social responsibility. It furnishes critical insights into the strategic maneuvers that organizations deploy to navigate these challenges, with the aim of fostering a more sustainable and ethically responsible business milieu.