Date of Conferral

2017

Degree

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.)

School

Business Administration

Advisor

Annie Brown

Abstract

Many Fortune 500 organizations have policies about corporate social responsibility (CSR), but the leaders struggle to implement CSR policies that match corporate stated goals and objectives. The purpose of this case study was to explore whether leaders' CSR strategies matched the goals and objectives of the company. Twenty individuals located in New York, NY, United States, with various management-level positions, and who had experiences with CSR in a Fortune 500 organization with a CSR policy, participated in the current study. The conceptual framework was corporate social responsibility stakeholder theory. Data collection consisted of a semistructured interview with the leaders about CSR, and the company's official documents on CSR. Data were analyzed using constant comparative text analysis to identify themes. Three main themes emerged: a) despite being in leadership positions, some of the participants have a basic knowledge and grasp of CSR but not the full-fledged initiative to go beyond existing CSR practices; (b) CSR programs are scripted and heavily predictable; and (c) leaders implement CSR policies based on individual interpretations of CSR. Business leaders may use the results of the study, along with the documented practices, policies, and experiences of a Fortune 500 company, to enhance programs to ensure CSR adoption and success. The implications for positive social change are significant to Fortune 500 organizations and businesses, because current and future leaders as well as other organizational leaders may use the data to improve their personal CSR interpretations with an organization's CSR-related business processes and policies.

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