Abstract
This study uses the structure–conduct–performance analytical framework in industrial organization theory to analyze Chinese startups’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) assuming normalization after the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, we take the external impact of the pandemic on startups during the pandemic as a starting point for analyzing the changes in the structure of startups and their CSR performance. We find a positive correlation between the pandemic and the performance of startups. We propose that the CSR of startups is not simply altruism but must involve an “altruistic and self-interested” mechanism. Therefore, this study proposes that during the pandemic, startups need to rebuild their CSR model. Furthermore, the company’s “economic man” and “social man” are interdependent; economic, ethical, and legal responsibilities are parallel and charitable responsibilities remain the highest pursuit amid the pandemic. The social responsibility of startups as the COVID-19 pandemic normalizes is a strategic choice.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had an unprecedented “butterfly effect” on the international order, national economies, all walks of life, and individual lives
Based on an analysis of the pressure that startups face in fulfilling their social responsibilities, the status quo of startups’ social responsibility, and the behavioral responses of startups, this study conducts a standardized and three-dimensional analysis of the social responsibility phenomenon of startups during the normalization phase of the COVID-19 pandemic
At the beginning of the pandemic, of the 6422 small and mediumsized enterprises and startups in China, more than 70% took the initiative to produce and save: 47.24% were striving for part of the construction; 32.73% of enterprises planned to ramp up publicity and marketing; and 29.1% of enterprises were speeding up the transformation to online and digital transformation
Summary
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had an unprecedented “butterfly effect” on the international order, national economies, all walks of life, and individual lives. Whether passively driven by external pressure or an active strategic choice for internal transformation, the social responsibility it assumes has become a new mission for the times and an inevitable historical choice for the startup to develop in the context of the pandemic. During this period of pandemic normalization, prevention and control regulations will be strictly observed and the human population will be able to return to a pre-outbreak way of life.
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