Internal CSR communication sucks

Helping business to
serve shareholders AND society
SIMULTANEOUSLY
Let’s be honest:
Internal CSR Communication Sucks!
-by Wayne Dunn
www.csrtraininginstitute.com/knowledge-centre

CSR Mumbley Gook communications need to stop. Until
us CSR Professionals get better at internal communications and
engagement we will stay in an irrelevant sandbox away from core
business activities and decisions.
CEOs, because of the broad and diverse constituents they deal with,
generally get the relevance of CSR.
Too often the Finance, Operations, Engineering, Production and other
functions don’t get it. They may make the right noises (because it is
expected of them) but at a fundamental level they don’t get the core
relevance of CSR to their role and their career.
Part of the reason they don’t get it is because the CSR Pros (myself
included) can’t or won’t spend the time making focused internal
business cases.
The “What’s in it for me?” case must be developed and
communicated across the entire organization.
Let’s be honest:
It is the CSR team’s
responsibility to
help EVERY leader
and their team
understand the
relevance of CSR for
their role and work.

Let’s be honest:
Page 02
There is a strong What’s in it for me? for Finance, Operations,
Engineering, Production, R & D and other areas of the business.
If they don’t know it then it is up to the CSR team to develop and
communicate it so they can hear it.
Until they do, CSR will remain an outsider to the
inside of the business.
CSR is important for Shareholders AND for all functions and
divisions inside a company.
It is CSR’s responsibility to help those functions and divisions
to understand why.
If they don’t, then the CSR team has failed.
If CSR is on the outside
looking in at company
operations then the
CSR team has to take
the lead to change
that. By making it
clearly understood
how and why CSR is
directly relevant to
the organization’s
Departments and Units,
Leaders and Workers.

Some thoughts on how to do this are in Engaging Internal Stakeholders
in our CSR Knowledge Centre. But don’t expect all the answers there.
They aren’t.
Many of the answers are in your experience and insights. Look there
for the stories and the business case that can help your colleagues to
understand the importance of CSR for all functions and departments
in your organization.
Remember, if you are not creating value with CSR then you will have
a tough time to communicate value. But, when you do create value
with CSR, be sure to communicate it.
Not communicate in a Socialwash sort of way, but it a way that can
be heard and accepted.
No jargon. Plain language. If you can’t communicate it in plain language you probably
don’t understand the value proposition clearly. Go back and work on it until you do.
Let’s be honest:

When we get the internal CSR communications right not only will
our work be easier and our external CSR projects work better and
have more societal impact. Our company and our shareholders will
capture more value too.
When business value is aligned with societal
value and everyone clearly understands the
alignment there is a powerful force at work
Let’s be honest:
There is a simple answer to
What’s in it for me. Keep
working until you find it.
When we can clearly communicate the value to internal
constituencies we can move forward in alignment, with
CSR as a core part of the overall business value creation
team

Below are some recent articles and publications on Corporate Social
Responsibility and stakeholder engagement that you may find interesting.
CSR SWOT
discover risk, value and more
Eleven strategies
for maximizing value from CSR
CSR in Budget Crunch Times
12 strategies for success
Multi-sector CSR Partnerships
Natural Partnerships – Unnatu-
ral Partners
From Pariah to Exemplar
Applying the 6 best practices
Engaging Internal Stakeholders
Seven proven strategies
CSR Communications
Eleven mistakes to avoid
Stakeholder Engagement
Six best practices
Creating a CSR Program
in eight self-serving steps
CSR Metrics:
You can’t measure temperature
with a speedometer
Stakeholder Engagement
Five common mistakes
CSR Value Continuum
A unique perspective on Shared
Value
Smarter CSR Budgets
8 steps to connect budget to
value
28 Expert tips
On stakeholder engagement
Don’t be an Altruistic Angel
Be transparent about what’s in it
for you
13 Mistakes that prevent & destroy
Multi-sector CSR partnerships
NHL Sustainability Report
Good but incomplete.
Four Strategies for
Local Content Success

Professor Dunn brings a practical and realistic approach to CSR, blending theory and
practice to develop realistic models and approaches to address real-world challenges
Dr. Ellis Armstrong
Former CFO, BP Exploration
…coherent, thoughtful, stimulating and insightful… state of the art! The network of
participants from the public, private and civil society sectors was incredible, some of
the leading experts in the field.
Kojo Busia, Ph. D.
Snr. Mineral Sector Governance Advisor
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa/UNECA
…pragmatic blend of theory and practice, very applicable to helping organizations
meet real-world challenges.
Frank McShane
Manager, Corporate Responsibility Policy and Ethics, Talisman Energy
… readily available to provide support to organizations like Amref that are seeking
partnerships, and looking to bring about positive change in a collaborative and concrete
way. Wayne and the CSR Training Institute helped us to identify and connect with
potential partners and are always available. The training, the expertise, the network
and the overall support are world-class.
Onome Ako
Director of Strategic Partnerships, Amref Health Africa
“The program enhanced the CSR knowledge and strategic skills of our Kosmos Energy
Ghana team, and offered the participants a platform for networking with professionals
from other organizations across Africa and Ghana.”
Reg Manhas
Sr VP Kosmos Energy
Very much helpful Wayne; some of the tips and questions you gave will be an extremely
helpful guide in the process of developing a CSR Strategy for my company.
Emmanuel Aubynn
Regional Social Responsibility Manager, Newmont Africa
The CSR Program was excellent. A key aspect of my work is to encourage and support
private sector development that contributes to Ghana’s overall socio-economic
growth. The learning that I and my staff take away from attending this program will
help us immensely with this responsibility. I highly recommend this program.
Hon. Rashid Pelpuo (MP)
Minister of State for Private Sector Development and Public Private Partnerships
(Ghana)
New and exciting insights into the theory and practice of CSR… great faculty and
participants, very diversified. An excellent learning experience, very practical and
useful. I’m very happy I was able to participate in it.
Hon InusahFuseini (MP)
Minister of Lands and Natural Resources (Ghana)
WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT OUR WORK

Should Business Serve
Helping business to serve society and
shareholders, SIMULTANEOUSLY.
Should Business Serve
WAYNE DUNN, PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER
SHAREHOLDERS?
SOCIETY?
IT SHOULD SERVE BOTH.
Wayne Dunn is President & Founder of the CSR Training Institute and
Professor of Practice in CSR at McGill. He’s a Stanford Sloan Fellow
with a M.Sc. in Management from Stanford Business School.
He is a veteran of 20+ years of award winning global CSR and
sustainability work spanning the globe and covering many industries
and sectors including extensive work with Indigenous Peoples in
Canada and globally. His work has won major international awards
and has been used extensively as ‘best-practice’ by industry and
academia.
He’s also worked oil rigs, prospecting, diamond drilling, logging,
commercial fishing, heavy equipment operator, truck driver and
underwater logging, done a couple of start-ups and too many other
things to mention.
Wayne’s career includes big successes, and spectacular failures. He
hopes he’s learned equally from both.
www.csrtraininginstitute.com

Internal CSR communication sucks

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Internal CSR communication sucks