Abstract
Corporate social responsibility strategy and competitive advantage are important issues for the contemporary discussion on corporations in society when taking into account social and environmental impacts. Empirically, we can see that social responsibility strategies are associated with competitive advantages, such as attracting valuable employees as well as enhancing the company image and reputation. This paper presents a theoretical review that demonstrates the association between social strategy and competitive advantage through the formulation of social strategies that influence and are influenced by opportunities, resources, skills, corporation merits, industry structure and stakeholders. Based on the literature and a case study of Carrefour, a model is proposed for competitive advantages stemming from the formulation of social strategies, which are explained based on their elements and adaptation to societal expectations. This article seeks to enrich the discussion on the strategic management of social responsibility and contribute to the literature on Corporate Social Responsibility as well as Strategy and Competitive Advantage.
Highlights
This last item of the specific objectives was included as a result of the literature review, which led the authors to formulate a theoretical framework of corporate social strategy that could be used in practise
Regarding the association between social responsibility, corporate strategy and competitive advantage, the information provided can be used by companies that intend to create competitive advantage
There are many factors that influence this association, such as organisational values, the relationship with stakeholders, the external environment and competitive context, internal resources, the ideologies of top management and community expectations. These factors should be addressed in future empirical studies seeking to understand the influences governing the strategic management of social responsibility
Summary
The perspectives of studies on Corporate Social Responsibility [CSR] are quite diverse and include the study of volunteer work (Almeida, Lins, & Oliveira, 2005; Freitas & Ventura, 2004), corporate citizenship (Hemphill, 2004), the interaction between corporations and the community (Fonseca, Moori, & Alves, 2005; Wanderley, 2005a, 2005b), corporate giving and philanthropy (Amato & Amato, 2007; Bruch & Walter, 2005; Sasse & Trahan, 2007), models of social and environmental management (Abreu, 2001; Pasa, 2004), the institutionalisation of CSR (Ventura, 2005) and the dissemination of information on CSR actions (Dufloth & Bellumat, 2005; Pollach, 2003; Sousa & Wanderley, 2007; Wanderley, Lucian, Farache, & Sousa, 2008). The present work seeks to enrich the discussion on social responsibility and contribute to the existing literature on the associations between CSR, business strategy and competitive advantage. Elaborate a theoretical framework related to the strategic management of social responsibility This last item of the specific objectives was included as a result of the literature review, which led the authors to formulate a theoretical framework of corporate social strategy that could be used in practise. To this end, a case study helped develop the framework, expanding the theoretical and practical justification. José Milton de Sousa Filho, Lilian Soares Outtes Wanderley, Carla Pasa Gómez, Francisca Farache
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