Effect of CSR on Employee Engagement

Abstract

Smart business leaders believe that an active corporate social responsibility program is an asset when it comes to attracting top talent14 . Many leaders fail to understand that simply instituting a CSR program is not enough to retain the top talent. Today’s conscious employees demand corporate social responsibility programs that give them the opportunity to become personally engaged in making a difference at work. Research conducted by Cone Millennial Cause group, detailed in “The 2020 Workplace” found that 80% of a sample of 1,800 18-25 year olds wanted to work for a company that cares about how it impacts and contributes to society. Employee engagement is a well understood concept. There is agreement that employee engagement entails more than just motivation or performance. Common themes found in most definitions include a commitment to and belief in the organization and its values and a willingness and ability to contribute ‘discretionary effort’ to help the organization succeed. Various drivers of employee engagement have also been identified time and again by the researchers’ fraternity. Nowadays businesses have become more conscious towards their contribution to the society and the environment in which they operate. This paper takes into account Corporate Social Responsibility as a driver of employee engagement in an organization. The researcher attempts to review existing literature on the topic; and with the help of a structured questionnaire assess the relationship between CSR and employee engagement. Statistical tools have been used for analysing the data collected from respondents.Keywords: Employee Engagement, Commitment, Corporate Social Responsibility, Organization