Running head: THE REWARDS OF BEING SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE

The Rewards of Being Socially Responsible

Delita Katrina McLaughlin
GR501 Organizational Behavior
International College of the Cayman Islands (ICCI)
Dr. David Marshall
December 15, 2016

Abstract

THE REWARDS OF BEING SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE

This paper will investigate the rewards of companies that are socially responsible. Recently,
more companies have been practicing, implementing or incorporating corporate social
responsibility as part of their business model. A brief review will be made on challenges (if any)
of being or depending on a company who acts socially responsible. Topic exploration will be
made on how social responsibility relates to organizational behavior perspective. Research will
be completed through the use of internet, research databases, and interviews with professionals
(who either work for profit or non-profit organizations) from the Cayman Islands and from San
Francisco. After thorough investigations, results determined that there are many rewards for the
company, employees, environment and consumers. The more socially responsible companies
become the more positive impact they will have on business and society on a whole.

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Introduction
Social Responsibility (SR) or what is more recently known as and called Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR) became more topical in the 1950's. This was the time when CSR
was taken more seriously than ever because of the movements that were being made for the
rights of women, rights of consumers, the civil rights; and the need to protect the environment
because of how the success of the demands of movements would affect the environment over
time. The expectations of people began to increase in the business world, such as those who held
shares in companies, who believed that there is more to it than businesses abiding by the law and
making a profit; but instead should give back to the communities that sustain them in order for
the community to accept them. (Carroll, 2015). While there may be many different definitions
for CSR, Corporate Social Responsibility is defined as; taking into consideration the activities of
an organization towards or for society in terms of its moral, ethical, and philanthropic
responsibilities (Buchholtz & Carroll, 2012).
This topic was chosen in order to take a closer look at the benefits of being socially
responsible and to better understand how those benefits affect and/or influence the organization.
The essence of this topic could be beneficial to companies who do not act socially responsible
and who may not fully understand why it is necessary for them to be and act socially responsible;
as this could enhance employee and company performance. Benefits of being socially
responsible include: being able to create positive changes in the community, gain new customers
or more sales (Muir, 2015), a rise in customer retention, and increased and improved
relationships with customers, suppliers and connected groups. Additional benefits include: an
increase in employee job satisfaction and morale, being able to attract top talent and investors,

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financial benefits of saving on high costs of operation of the business (and possibly more
revenue), encourage innovation to have and maintain a competitive edge, promote the image /
branding of the business (good standing within the community) and to obtain positive media
attention for acting socially responsible (Slack, Corlett and Morris, 2014). Notwithstanding all
of these great benefits, focus will only be made on: the influence CSR has on employees, on the
attraction of investors and customers, and overall, on creating a good corporate image/ reputation
in the community (Chitakornkijsil, 2012). Should any challenges on the topic present
themselves during this research, they will briefly be reviewed. However, it is more likely that
the benefits will outweigh the challenges, due to companies being able to make a difference in
their societies and brandishing their name because of it. Therefore, more recently, social
responsibility is considered to be comparable to venture capital (Park, Song, Choe, and Baik,
2015).
On November 8-13, 2016, a group of 20 students from the International College of the
Cayman Islands travelled to San Francisco, California for a Technology, Business and Society
Seminar. There we had the honor of being guests and listening to presentations at very
interesting and unique companies such as The Bay Area Council Economic Institute,
RocketSpace, the University of San Francisco's School of Business, Chain, FinTech, Google, and
SB Architects; and we volunteered at a non-profit organization called Project Open Hand (POH).
The experience and information gained from the seminar on the related topic will be reviewed.
An application of how the topic relates to Organizational Behaviour will also be discussed,
followed by the limitations of this study to being completed to the highest potential. Discussions
will be presented on the San Francisco seminar trip/experience and how it relates to the topic.
Finally, the paper will end with a summary and conclusion of the findings on the topic.

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Literature Review
Boulouta and Pitelis, (2013) conducted a research on the potential national benefits of
CSR from a macro level. The authors are postulating that CSR creates a national
competitiveness with the outcome being beneficial to the company, the employees, the
stakeholders and the societies within their nations. This can potentially provide a domino effect
for other nations to compete, by adopting CSR themselves (Boulouta and Pitelis, 2103). CSR is
a world-wide headline that companies are captioning, to ensure that they act responsibly for the
betterment of the community, their employees, stakeholders, consumers and the environment
around them, as there are global issues such as the public's interests, poor quality of life and
standards of living, and human rights issues that can be addressed by CSR. Businesses are
becoming more reliant on the CSR concept, as the issues of society surrounding them, threaten
their survival in the economy. This requires the companies to work in the society and build it up
in order to maintain their positive reputation and trustworthiness with the people of society. This
is because they require a positive environment that enables them to invest and do business
(Bansal, 2013). According to Carroll, (2015), businesses that are socially responsible, do not
pose any challenges in doing so, instead it actually improves profits within the company (Carroll,
2015).
The rewards/benefits of being socially responsible which will be focused on and
discussed in this literature review are as follows; and are encompassed under Corporate Social
Responsibility:
Influence on Employees:

THE REWARDS OF BEING SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE

Of recent years, employees are considered stakeholders. This perception allows them to
be more involved in the organization and be a part of the decision making process within the
organization. Their input on ideas, decisions and shared information is deemed valuable by the
company. Therefore, employees will feel valued and a part of the organization, which increases
the chances of having a high level of satisfaction on the job; which then leads to commitment to
the company (Barakat, Isabella, Boaventura, and Mazzon, 2016). From a recruitment
perspective, companies can benefit from CSR by attracting very qualified individuals, who may
also have the best interest of society at heart. Therefore, those individuals would be attracted to
such an organization and become committed to the organization, its CSR initiatives, and
therefore make a great fit into the company (Slack, Corlett, and Morris, 2015). Hildebrand, Sen,
and Bhattacharya, (2011) concurs with this as their article shows that when companies that act
socially responsible recruit, they tend to be a magnet for the highly qualified individuals
(Hildebrand, et al., 2011). Slack et al. (2015) also pointed out that because of diversity and
different values/ sets of beliefs; there will be individuals who may not want to be associated
and/or involved with the social initiatives of the company. This behavior from employees could
be due to the lack of communication, and lack of clear plans set both from a strategic perspective
for the company and for the employee's individual goal settings. Socially responsible initiatives
of the company may not be fully supported or encouraged by the culture of the company.
Therefore, increased chances of employees not becoming committed to the societal initiatives of
the organization are possible. It could be because they might have a disconnect and not see
rewards or the impacts of acting socially responsible (whether economically, socially or
financially) as beneficial. Therefore, in order for companies to achieve the goal of gaining
employee trust, job satisfaction, and commitment; companies have to make sure they engage

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their employees, communicate with them, and enhance their company's identification so that
employees can become emotionally and socially connected to their company. The acceptance of
this social exchange between the employees and their company could be exemplified when
employees volunteer or work along with their colleagues outside of the job; which could possibly
increase self improvements and team work, and result in a productive workforce and increased
company performance (Slack et al., 2015).
Gond, El-Akremi, Igalens, and Swaen, ( n.d.) also support that if companies treat their
employees unfairly, this could provoke employees to be upset as their usual customs or
principles, and values are not respected or are dishonored. As a result, employees' behavior
standards may become unscrupulous and deteriorate towards the company. Therefore,
companies have to ensure equal opportunities and treatment, provide a positive working
environment that is supportive but yet respectfully informative of the policies and expectations
of how employees should conduct themselves; in order to achieve goals for high employee and
company performance. The company's outlook and management of their actions can make the
difference in the social exchange of employees by being able to retain employees, allowing the
company to be more efficient; and improve the quality of their products or services and increase
performance (Gond, et al., n.d.).
Attract Investors & Consumers
Hildebrand, Sen, and Bhattacharya, (2011), support the earlier findings of Bansal, (2013)
mentioned in the review of literature which states that companies are finally beginning to
understand the importance being socially responsible as this supports the best interest of all
stakeholders involved. More companies are learning to accept that stakeholders are not just the

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persons that have made financial contributions to the company, but stakeholders are all persons
that have any interest at all in the business, such as the; employees, consumers, government, the
society/community, and the environment. As those groups of people is who will have the most
impact on the company's abilities to deal with what society expects of them as well as to set the
projected identity of the organization (Hildebrand, et al., 2011).
Companies that act responsibly should be keeping their stakeholders involved in the
operations of the business at all times. When companies can display their CSR values, practice
and maintain them, it attracts the interest of investors and customers that share the same values
because persons want to be associated with companies that are not just concerned about financial
benefits regardless of what harm it causes stakeholders, business, its employees and society.
Instead they are more interested in the companies that are very intact with legal compliance, care
for their employees and their communities that sustain them. As a result of these main focuses,
the financial benefits will fall in place once, those other areas are being fulfilled Mason, and
Simmons, 2014).
Good Corporate Image and Brand Identity
Consumers may think towards the concept of the socially responsible brands of products
the company produces, differently from the concept of the company being a socially responsible
company. Nonetheless, socially responsible companies tend to have a good standing with
members of the community and their customers. Then this becomes a marketing tool for the
company, by having their company name and brands positively exposed and recognized by
society; which in turn could financially be rewarding (Grohmann and Bodur, 2015). Another
point of view from a study conducted by The Natural Marketing Institute. This study indicated

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that over sixty eight million American people, who purchase products and services, do so based
on their values for the environment and society. If products and services are environmentally
friendly, those buyers would spend up to an extra twenty percent on the products or services
being offered. This consumer behavior has positively impacted those businesses that act socially
responsible, in that seventy-two percent of those companies do better than others in the industry,
and this then attracts investors. From these statistics, one can determine that the consumer
behavior is influenced a great deal, based on their values (Nass, 2014). Hildebrand, et al., (2011),
also support this in their article indicating that customers will spend more or purchase products
that are pricier just because the company is socially responsible (Hildebrand, et al., 2011).
Therefore, a clear understanding of all of this is that the image of a company, pose an interacting
effect amongst corporations that are socially responsible and a buyer's intent to purchase
products and services (Huang, Yen, Liu, and Huang, 2014).
Organizational Behavior Topic Exploration
This section of the paper will discuss how Corporate Social Responsibility relates to or
influences organizational behavior. First, it is important as a human resource manager, to be able
to get employees on board and accept socially responsible initiatives within the company (Gond,
et al., n.d.). As Farcane and Bureana, (2015) give an account of the times gone by for the CSR's
notion; they make mention of contributors to the development of CSR, like C. Frederick, who
was of the opinion that executives must see to it that the setup of initiatives to benefit the
economy should meet what the community expects them to do. He also indicated that executives
who are socially responsible must have the desire, or want to be in a spot in the community to be
able to support their community's economy interest and their personnel team. Farcane and
Bureana, (2015) also reviewed different explanations of CSR, and indicated that good

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management of companies who act responsible, concentrate on their dealers, associates, their
staff, communities and their country, instead of concentrating on a financial surplus (Farcane and
Bureana, 2015).
From an Organizational Behavior perspective; prior to companies venturing into CSR and
becoming successful in business (through being a socially responsible organization); companies
have to ensure that their normal functions of human resources are in order, to allow their
employees to fit in, feel accepted and to feel valued (Smith, and Langford, 2011). It is very
important to understand as a human resource manager, that employees are mostly motivated and
are satisfied with their jobs when their inner needs have been fulfilled. When management
encourage a social environment for their employees in and off the job; employees are able to
work closely with their colleagues and build relationships (with others outside of the job also), it
provides a channel that leads to job and personal satisfaction, regardless of how innovative the
work culture is. Being able to build relationships in the workplace and feel a part of the
organization; is not only exciting, but it is also very rewarding to most employees, which could
influence their performance (Robbins and Judge, 2014).
According to Buchholtz and Carroll, (2012), not only do businesses have a responsibility
for the society, but they also have different components a business responsibility which consists
of four components of social responsibility, which is set out in a pyramid format includes:
Economic Responsibilities - provide products and services that consumers would like and
need at an affordable cost and considered as valuable by society and where businesses are
required to be profitable and have good returns for shareholders (Buchholtz and Carroll, 2012).

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Legal Responsibilities - Where businesses are responsible for obeying the law and
following policies. They are required by the society to be ethical (Buchholtz and Carroll, 2012).
Ethical Responsibilities - businesses are expected to act ethically even-though they have
to abide by the laws - they are compelled to do the right thing (act morally), be reasonable and
just (Buchholtz and Carroll, 2012).
Philanthropic Responsibilities - businesses it is expected and wanted by society for them
to give back to the community to enhancement it and offer support to different groups or causes
(Buchholtz and Carroll, 2012).
The San Francisco Experience
As mentioned previously in the introduction, a group of 20 International College of the
Cayman Islands (ICCI) students, travelled to San Francisco, California in the United States of
America, to attend a Technology, Business and Society Seminar, held from November 8-13,
2016. This seminar was taken as the course called Organizational Behavior. It is my opinion
that this historical iconic state of San Francisco is a twenty-first century revolutionized,
technologically inclined State and by far was an ideal location to conduct such a seminar. The
seminar exposed us (the students) to many diverse social and work cultures, new technologies,
and opportunities to be informed through presentations from some of the finest professionals of
the most reputable and unique companies in the world. These companies included Google, SB
Architects, The Bay Area Council Economic Institute, RocketSpace, Chain, FinTech, the
University of San Francisco and even provided the honor to volunteer at Project Open Hand
(POH) (a non-profit organization that provides nutritious meals to the elderly and critically ill (E.
Steinbach, personal communication, November, 12, 2016).

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On November 12th 2016, the International College of the Cayman Islands' students on the
San Francisco seminar, volunteered at Project Open Hand (POH). We were greeted by Elliot
Steinbach, the Volunteer Coordinator for Project Open Hand. He presented us with details on the
operations of the organization. Project Open Hand is a non-profit organization that was started in
1985 during the HIV/AIDS epidemic, by Ruth Brinker when she began to provide home cooked
meals for her friends who were critically ill. Today, POH serves approximately twenty five
hundred nutritious meals a day, to the critically ill and the elderly. Project Open Hand operates
on an annual budget of approximately $10.8 million or $800,000 monthly and receives sixty
percent of their revenues from private donations from different companies, corporations and
individuals that work for those companies. These donations cover expenses for employee
salaries, materials for packaging foods and food items/supplies. Thirty percent revenue is from
grants received from the Government and ten percent comes from rent that they charge their
tenants as they own the building that they are situated in (E. Steinbach, personal communication,
November, 12, 2016).
I had the privilege to interview Mr. Steinbach on November 18th 2016 (see Appendix A);
to find out in more depth about what role corporate social responsibility plays in POH's
organization. So why interview a non-profit company on the topic of social responsibility? I
believe that this is an ideal channel to have feedback and gain insight on their views as the
receiving side (non-profit organization), along with the information/feedback gained from the
interviews done with the giving side (for profit company) of the benefits of being socially
responsible. From the interview with Mr. Steinbach, it was indicated that it is really very
important that companies and individuals act socially responsible with POH, in order for them to
be able to operate and provide the services needed for the community (E. Steinbach, personal

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communication, November 18, 2016). After volunteering, packaging food and labeling them,
everyone was exhausted. However, the tiredness was offset with the rewarding feelings of
gratitude to be able to help someone in need. The pain was worth it. This experience has made
me more passionate about giving back to my community. This passion is the same as those who
work for non-profit organizations like POH. It offsets the fact that their salaries are not
compatible or on par with for profit organizations (E. Steinbach, personal communication,
November 18, 2016).
During the San Francisco seminar, our group had the distinct pleasure to visit Google, a
company that fosters innovation. Google also acts socially responsible and gives back to their
community by focusing on issues that have meaning and can make it a better place to live. For
example, they provide internet access to more rural areas that do not have internet so that
everyone is able to have access to information. They do this through an innovative instrument
called the "LOON" (which is a huge balloon type instrument) sent way up into the atmosphere
and later deflated to land in the areas that do not have internet access (J. DeMike, personal
communication, November 10, 2016). Google also considers creating innovation that is
beneficial to people and the environment: like the "self-driving cars" to contribute to less traffic
on the road and less pollution (J. DeMike, personal communication, November 10, 2016). I
believe Google is a fine example of the importance of technology and its use in organizations
and how they are able to create and foster such an innovative culture to recruit top talent in order
to be successful (J. DeMike, personal communication, November 10, 2016).
Other organizations, such as the Bay Area Council Economic Institute (BACEI), in San
Francisco, are also socially responsible within their communities. BACEI is an organization that

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consists of reviewing factors that drive or threaten the economy in the near future, in San
Francisco. They issue their opinions, suggestions and speak on behalf of companies in their
membership business association, led by chief executive officers and which has around 300
companies in various industries. This Council would advise these businesses on what their
position will look like in a three to five year span and equip them with the information and
guidance they need in order to remain in the business. (S. Randolph, personal communication,
November 09, 2016). Inclusive of the phenomenal work that they do, BACEI also gives back to
its community. Part of their work is also to provide recommendations to the government. For
example, they recommend Government offers companies (who are also encouraged by BACEI to
turn their business into a more environmentally safe one) incentives if they take on a "Go-Green"
approach for their business or make the effort to change their business to a more environmentally
friendly type business (S. Randolph, personal communication, November 09, 2016). Another
way in which they are socially responsible is a program that they have which is "The Boys &
Men of Colour". This initiative is to assist young colored boys and men with the basic needs of
clothing, ties, and interview training to help prepare them and expose them to the business
opportunities in San Francisco (S. Randolph, personal communication, November 09, 2016).
Seeing the positive and motivating business environments and the cultures of different
organizations we visited, rationalized the reason behind why employees' positive attitudes and
behaviors were displayed, and why organizational behaviors can impact their decisions to act
that way.
Application of the Learning
An interview was done with Mrs. Judy Ebanks, the Human Resource Manager of Island
Heritage Insurance Company in the Cayman Islands (J. Ebanks, personal communication,

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December 9, 2016). According to Island Heritage's website, "Island Heritage is the leading
provider of Motor, Home and Commercial insurance throughout the Caribbean." ("About Us |
Island Heritage Insurance | The Cayman Islands", 2012). Their stakeholders are their Board of
Directors, their employees, and their customers/community. Island Heritage has corporate social
responsibility incorporated into their mission statement and maintains philanthropic culture and
values within their organization. Their initiatives include the roundabout they adopted for
beautification enhancements of the community, and where each year they conduct a Charity
Drive and donate $30,000 to a different Charity each year. Their focus is also made towards the
youth by sponsoring various sport teams. Mrs. Ebanks' answers to the questions asked in the
interview (see Appendix B) regarding the benefits of being a socially responsible company were
very similar to the suggested rewards found in the literature review and that of other research
results. For example, she confirmed that employees' morale and job satisfaction are boosted by
volunteering (one day a week at Meals on Wheels) and taking part in the annual Charity Drive.
She indicated that these acts of being socially responsible support their good standings within the
community and that the company is well known within the community because of this and which
also acts a great marketing tool for the company. Financial improvements have also been made
as persons in the community want to be associated with a company that supports their
community. Only one minor challenge was mentioned, that would affect Island Heritage's
employees' engagement in volunteering, which was: the workload of the employees can
sometimes make it difficult for them to attend their volunteer time at Meals on Wheels.
However, this would entail coordination and good planning to ensure coverage for that employee
to allow them to volunteer (J. Ebanks, personal communications, December 8, 2016).

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Big Brothers, Big Sisters (BBBS) is also a company that was researched. A non-profit
organization in the Cayman Islands that provides mentoring services to children ages six to
eighteen years old. An interview (see Appendix C) was held with Ms. Angela Sealey, the
Programme Coordinator (A. Sealey, personal communication, November 30, 2016). Like Project
Open Hand, it is very important for BBBS for companies to act socially responsible as 100% of
their funding comes from donations. However, despite the need to have volunteers, there are
stipulations/regulations in place that make it difficult for individuals to volunteer, but none the
less, they carefully select volunteers to help achieve their purpose to deliver mentoring services
to the youth of the Cayman Islands (A. Sealey, personal communication, November 30, 2016).
I presently work for a non-profit organization where donations are also received, both inkind and financially and where persons can volunteer their services and time to the organization.
I sometimes get a chance to interact with some of the volunteers and often hear of how selfrewarded and motivated they feel to give back to their community. After volunteering in San
Francisco at Project Open Hand, the interviews conducted with professionals from both profit
and non-profit organizations, and researching and learning of the many different rewards of
being socially responsible; I think it is important that businesses take care of the environment
and their communities, but do so ethically. I also believe that the environment and community
are two major factors that sustain their business. It does not matter how big or small the task is,
or how much money is donated, because once people/ customers see that a business cares about
them, the well-being of the environment and the community, they will always support/have an
interest in the business.

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The exposure opportunities received to experience other social and workplace cultures,
being able to volunteer for a non-profit organization in San Francisco, as well as receiving the
information gained from both local and overseas companies that relate to corporate social
responsibility; the importance and the need to be socially responsible is very evident and
definitely rewarding. To me, it is a cycle; that what effort is put into giving back to the
community, is worth the benefits received from a business, economic, and social perspective and
is what keeps these three components alive. The rewards/ benefits of being socially responsible
clearly exceed the challenges or negatives. The benefits include: an increase in staff morale,
employee satisfaction, employee commitment, customer satisfaction, shareholder satisfaction,
attracts investors and improves the overall image and brand of the organization. All of these in
return will boost company productivity and performance.
I conclude stating that this seminar was a very great experience and has exposed me to
many different cultures and work cultures outside of my work environment and on a whole, my
country. This has allowed me to see from an Organizational Behavior perspective, how diversity,
culture, work cultures/ environments and corporate social responsibility play a role in the success
of businesses. This seminar has allowed me to learn about new technologies and how they will
affect our lives and the way we do business. Being able to travel back to the Cayman Islands and
tell others about what I learned and what I experienced, is also enlightening, to know that I can
share such knowledge and make others aware of the different technologies that are going to
impact their lives, as well as, the different work cultures that exist in successful businesses in San
Francisco and that businesses in the Cayman Islands can learn and adopt. Like Pavitt, (2012), I
agree that it is important that other people and businesses learn of or become familiar with, the
advancements of new technologies and the ways in which people communicate, as these improve

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and increase on a daily basis. This increases the ease of access and provides a means for news to
travel quickly, to spread the good or bad news of a company's actions which could be the
epitome of companies' success or failure (Pavitt, 2012). Also knowing the inner peace and selfsatisfaction gained from assisting a nonprofit organization in another country, made me realize
that I needed to start at home a long time ago. Therefore, a goal of mine is to begin volunteering
after I have completed my studies, as I feel this will enhance my intrinsic values and allow me to
become a more confident individual within the society. Based on the different benefits learned
from this researched topic on the rewards of being socially responsible, it has motivated me to
transfer this knowledge gained to my workplace. It would improve and promote the
philanthropic principle within the company and its employees. To give back to companies and
volunteers within the community who contribute to our non-profit organization, in turn could
improve our services or outputs even more. This means that I would add to my professional
qualifications, by being the person responsible to take on this rewarding initiative. I share the
same belief as Project Open Hand's Volunteer Coordinator, Elliot Steinbach, when he commented
on being socially responsible: It should start from an early age, and be encouraged in all schools
and universities, prior to persons becoming employed and being or feeling obligated to act
socially responsible. Simply because if people are exposed from a young age, it would be a
more natural instinct or trait to give back or have a philanthropic attitude (E. Steinbach, personal
communication, November 18, 2016).
Limitations
The San Francisco seminar really made me realize that the advancement of technology is
rapidly increasing. I was exposed to many other cultures and workplace environments and
cultures and feel that I gained a wealth of information. Therefore, it cannot be noted that I did

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not gain all of what I needed to from this trip. However, there was a challenge with not being
able to interview the Project Open Hand's Volunteer Coordinator, Mr. Elliot Steinbach, whilst
there in San Francisco, due to his tight schedule. Despite this, he was kind enough to allow the
interview process to take place over the phone. Therefore, I considered this as an
accomplishment due to having alternative channels to conduct the interview. At Project Open
Hand, I felt that the time we spent volunteering was a great experience; however, I wanted to
volunteer in different sections of the organization, to get a feel for what each section was like, as
well as have more interaction with their clients, as this would have made it an even more
personal experience. Despite not getting to do that, it never made it less gratifying and it was a
very humbling experience for me. So much so, that it motivated me to decide that once I have
completed my studies, I will volunteer more often to help others in my community.
I would consider a limitation for this paper would be that the original person that I had
intended to Interview became unavailable. Therefore, I was referred to someone else, whom I
emailed the questions for the interview to, instead of being able to have a live interview.
Unfortunately, this was beyond my control as the General Manager of Island Heritage Insurance
Company had to travel off Island. In the future, developing the interview questions from an
earlier time would have placed me at an advantage. However, this was resolved by reaching out
to a longer standing person in that same organization who gladly assisted me with the interview
questions both electronically and over the phone.
Regrettably, Meals on Wheels (a non-profit organization that is similar to Project Open
Hand, in San Francisco), was unable to do an interview with me. This may be a very busy time
for the Coordinator of that program, who, as a result, has not had a chance to reach out to me.

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With a response from this organization, I would have been able to achieve a greater comparison
to POH in San Francisco. I would plan ahead of the proposed topic deadline date to select a
topic and wrap my thoughts around the topic, to know with whom or how I will conduct my
research, so that I can reach out earlier to the persons I select for interviewing.
Summary and Conclusion
In conclusion, I think that the research conducted for this paper and my personal
experience, has provided proof that there are rewards of being socially responsible and they
consist of employee motivation and job satisfaction that could boost their performance and
increase their productivity. It can also allow businesses to increase their bottom line and
heightened company image (branding). As a result, I believe this could possibly decrease
company expenses on things such as marketing/advertising, due to being able to simply attract
outside investors because of being socially responsible. I believe that as the literature proves,
that in today's society, the role of businesses is not only to sustain their profits, but to also offer
jobs to people in their communities, and produce affordable products and services that are
needed and wanted by their consumers.
Businesses have to ensure that they pay close attention to the long term effect of the
society and their business by enforcing and embracing philanthropic values and practices in their
business if they want to be supported or remain successful in the industry. Businesses also have
to give back to the development of the economy and social progress in their communities. This is
an important role to play in order to link together the many diverse cultures within the company,
and instrumental for companies to be aware of the values and the concerns of the society, while
they make sure that they comply with all of the legal regulations (laws) of the society (Buchholtz

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& Carroll, 2012, pg.36). Based on the challenges (which like the benefits all somehow seem to
be inter-related) that presented themselves in the literature review, while discussing the benefits
of CSR and the proper way to address them, it was realized that they can all be prevented by
these socially responsible companies. These companies can prevent them through the use of
proper structure and management. Proper structure could consist of clear policies and
procedures, expectations of standards, and clear strategic and professional objectives for the
company and employee, respectively. While it was shown that proper management could consist
of excellent communication skills, ensuring that the work cultures and work environments are
positive and supportive, management also needs to ensure that employees are motivated and
involved as much as possible in the organization.
While it is necessary to pay close attention to and recognize companies that act socially
responsible, it is also very crucial to understand the impact they have on companies that rely on
them to be socially responsible. I say this because while those major companies are acting
socially responsible and helping the community, the organizations depending on these companies
are also impacting the communities, and therefore both are contributing to making the society a
better place to live. Again, I say, this course was a real eye opener for me to the many different
ways organizational behavior is impacted no matter if it is through diversity, workplace cultures/
environments, the importance of values, technological advancement and its use, or to simply give
back to others in society, organizational behavior can determine the success or failure of an
organization.

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accountid=158672Appendices
Appendix A
Interview Questions for Elliot Steinbach of Project Open Hand
1. What is the name of your Organization? What is the purpose of your Organization?
What is your title?
Project Open Hand. To provide nutritious meals to persons who are chronically ill and the
seniors of the community. Volunteer Coordinator.
2. How important is it for your Organization for other companies to be socially
responsible? Why?
This is a great question. It is extremely important. 60% of our funding is through private
donations which include corporations, companies and individuals associated with / work for
companies. When companies have a culture of social responsibility or social philanthropy built
into their model, it provides us with volunteers and enable us to serve our clients to a weird
capacity because it is offsetting costs that we would have to pay our employees. Also, if
organizations are responsible, it usually correlates to financial contributions or in-kind donations
or pro bono service that better enable us to serve our clients. For example, a well known

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company, "Sales Force" is an organization, we would partner with very strongly and part of their
Salesforce.org provides us with dozens of volunteers each month. They do matching grants with
a match of $75 per volunteer per day which correlates to thousands of dollars a month. But not
only an example like Salesforce, if they have that culture and they identify with our mission and
who we serve, it provides us with the resources to serve our clients better. So we really rely on
that as our essential tool for serving more of the chronically ill and our senior neighbors.
3. How much money does it cost to operate POH? How much of your income are
donations?
Our operating budget is close to $11million, like $10.8mil. That's our budget. Every month it
costs $800,000 to operate Project Open Hand. That includes all of our costs: our employees, the
materials, the packaging for foods, the food, electricity bills etc.
Having a diversified funding structure is important. We do get 30% of our funding is through
Government grants. 60% through private and 10% is through rent; we own the building so we
are able to charge rent to our tenants so that provides a steady flow of income coming in.
W9- financial audit is online that you can take a look at also.
4. Do the employees volunteer from companies that are socially responsible for your
organization? If yes, are you provided with any feedback from those employees or the
employers on the affect/impact it has on them?
Definitely. Any company that provides volunteers is at least somewhat socially responsible or at
least is making an effort, and I think it is a spectrum that some companies do it better than others.

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But some companies have a better giving model better than others. I have gotten a lot of
feedback from a lot of companies and individual employees that are inspired by the work that we
do, and we have had volunteer groups from different companies that come again, which I think
implies that they enjoy it. We create reoccurring schedules so I think we have had a lot of
positive impact. I think my role is to be an ambassador of source for Project Open Hand and
keep people coming back. So definitely it is an important piece and we have had some really
good feedback.
5. Are you able to inform me of who your major corporations are that are socially
responsible?
Avon is one of our biggest supporters. They have a very strong space in the breast cancer world.
They donate a lot of money.
Ghirardelli (the chocolate company), Macy's, Wells Fargo, Salesforce,
We have a lot of local tech companies in the area will volunteer and also not corporate groups
like the Universities around country will come and volunteer
- A lot of High school groups will volunteer
- A collective bunch of groups and different companies.
6. What are some of the challenges of being a non-profit organization?
I think most non-profits; it's hard to compete in terms of salaries for their employees compared to
the for-profit world. That's across the board - However, there are more incentives for people that

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do the work that we do. So that's a challenge especially in an area like San Francisco (one of the
most expensive cities in the world to live) That is a challenge for non-profit organizations to
compete with the for profit companies.
Challenges more specific to our organization would be when: we receive donations or grants
from a specific company or a specific individual, but it would be earmarked toward a certain
population, whether it is the diabetic population or whether it is HIV/AIDS, so we have to
diversify our spending structure to be able to serve all of our clients (10 different diagnoses). So
trying to keep track of that is a challenge.
7. How easy is it for companies to be a part of what you do? (For example: are there
restrictions/stipulations/regulations in place?)
For corporate engagement there are no restrictions. Individuals have to be 15 and over, and dress
codes (due to working with food and in the kitchen that is a requirement for POH) that are not
much of a barrier. We have regular volunteers who commit to 6 month or so (as per our request).
For those individuals, we require a negative Tuberculosis Test so that is a barrier for individual
volunteers to volunteer with us. What we have been seeing a trend is that more folks are
volunteering more through their company rather than individually, as that corporate culture of
philanthropy has expanded. For us it's about how we can change model to accommodate the
different trends. But it's really easy for a corporation to come and set up a different volunteer
shift but there is really a barrier for individuals with the Tuberculosis test as that tend to turn
people away sometimes. A lot of time people don't necessarily want to commit to 6 or 4 months
of volunteering, they would rather the "one-off" time to volunteer, which we don't for volunteers
just simply because it would be too difficult.

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8. Has there been an increase in companies volunteering and donating over the past few
years?
Yes. Definitely, I would say between last fiscal year and this fiscal year there was a close to 30%
increase in corporate volunteering in just one year.
9. Do you have any other input that may contribute to my research?
Personally, I think it giving back to your community is a responsibility and not just an obligation.
I think it needs to start from a young age as a child before people get to their jobs. Community
service, courses in elementary schools and in high school, that's where it needs to start and then
it, needs to grow from there. It is not something you can do once and pat yourself on your back.
I think not everyone is given an equal hand and using your privilege and resources to help others
(for me) I'd consider it an obligation. So reinforcing that mentality at a young age and we are
seeing that this generation is giving more and companies are giving more. So if the trend
continues, and if the millennial keep up the good work, I see a lot of promise.

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Appendix B
Interview Questions for Island Heritage
1.

What is your name and title? How long have you been employed with the company?

Mrs. Judy Ebanks, Human Resources Manager, 20 years.

2.

Who are the Primary and Secondary Stakeholders of Island Heritage?

Island Heritage is owned by BF&M, a prominent Bermuda insurance group with over 100 years
of operating history.
We have a Board of Directors - with a Chairman and 5 Directors
Our Employees & Our Customers /Community
3. How does being socially responsible help those stakeholders?
Boosts employees' morale and they feel proud to work and say they work for Island Heritage, as
people know the big initiative at the Island Heritage roundabout - the Charity Drive, which helps
our standing in the community. People easily recognize the company and it boosts our business
because customers want to deal with a company that is community minded.
4. Is Island Heritage a Socially Responsible company? If so, how and how does Island
Heritage implement CSR? (Especially for the local community and the environment?)
Yes. Island Heritage has a strong commitment to the Cayman Islands and this is shown by the
purchase of Atlantic Star House in 2013, the community involvement:
Adoption of the Island Heritage Roundabout

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Annual Charity Drive supports numerous charities on Island each year gives CI$30,000 to a
different charity
Focus on youth sponsorship of various sports teams football, junior squash, basketball,
cricket, touch rugby.
5. Does your mission statement or Value Statement incorporates CSR?
Yes.
6. What does Island Heritage do to engage its employees to be CSR?
Meals on Wheels - is done once per week where staff volunteer on a Wednesday.
Volunteer on the Roundabout during the Charity Drive.
7. How has being socially responsible impacted the business and your employees?
Benefits = enhancing the youth through sponsorships
8. Why should you communicate about CSR?
Enhances the Youth's live and the betterment of the community and boosts employee morale.
9. How do you measure the benefits of being socially responsible?
Satisfaction that we gain and it could be financially measured too- because it
is also advertising our name, which brings in more business from the
publicity of our company being involved in the community.
10. What are some of the challenges of social responsibility?

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Challenge would be balancing employee work load and the time to volunteer
e.g. Meals on wheels - we have to coordinate and make sure that staff is
available to do it and that sometimes is a challenge.
11. Do you have any other information on Corporate Social Responsibility?

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE

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Appendix C
Interview Questions from Angela Sealey of Big Brothers, Big Sisters
1. What is your name and the name of your Organization? What is the purpose of your
Organization? What is your title?
Angela Sealey--Big Brothers Big Sisters Purpose- to deliver mentoring services to children ages
6yrs-18yrs Title-Programme Director
2. How important is it, for your Organization, for other companies to be socially
responsible? Why?
Important - it builds our brand and create a positive name for the organization
3. How much money does it cost to operate your organization? How much of your income
are donations?
100% of income is from donations Operation cost--100,000
4. Do the employees volunteer from companies that are socially responsible for your
organization? If yes, are you provided with any feedback from those employees or the
employers on the affect/impact it has on them?
NO
5. Are you able to inform me of who your major corporations are that are socially
responsible?
KPMG Dart CUC Intertrust MUFFG Maples Trust

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6. What are some of the challenges of being a non-profit organization?

Finding the money to accomplish our mission. Getting the word out about the organization and
what we do
7. How easy is it for companies to be a part of what you do? (For example: are there
restrictions/stipulations/regulations in place?)
Not easy there are stipulations and regulations in place which the international body has over
sight
8. Has there been an increase in companies volunteering and donating over the past few
years?
NO
9. Do you have any other input that may contribute to my research?
Our organization does not operate to build wealth or revenue for the benefit of the directors.