CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSBILITY 1

Corporate Social Responsibility in Recruitment Practices

By

Christian George F. Acevedo

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Corporate Social Responsibility in Recruitment Practices

Businesses today are expected to look beyond self-interest and recognize that they belong

to a larger group, or society, that expects responsible participation. Thus, if any group, society, or

institution is to function, there must be a delicate interplay between rights (such as what people

should expect) and responsibilities (what people are expected to contribute) for the common

good. The adage no man is an island best applies to the relational and integrative nature of

society. Although businesses are not human beings, they plan develop goals, allocate resources,

and act and behave purposefully. Thus, society grants them both benefits and responsibilities.

Social responsibility is defined as the adoption by a business of a strategic focus for

fulfilling the economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities expected of it by its

stakeholders. This definition encompasses a wide range of objectives and activities including

both historical views of business and perceptions that have emerged in the last decades.

Mullerat (2010) explains that CSR helps in building the reputation as a responsible

business and as a good corporate citizen. With regards to employees a corporation with a good

CSR standard can more easily recruit employees. Employees also generally stay longer, reducing

the cost and disruption of recruitment and retraining. They are also better motivated and more

productive. Employees are increasingly looking beyond paychecks and benefits and seeking out

employers whose philosophies and operating practices match their own values. Some analyses

have shown that three out of five employees report that they want to work for a company whose

values are consistent with their own. Studies and rankings on best companies to work with are

increasingly proliferating.
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CSR: Making Jobs CSR: Attracting New Talents

The role of recruitment is to attract and encourage possible pools of talents in the

organization without the need to spend so much and yet guarantee that only the best candidates

are hired for the company. According to Adetunji and Ogbunna (2014), recruitment determines

present and future requirements of the organization in line with its personnel planning and job

analysis needs. Furthermore, recruitment ensures the success rate of selection process by

minimizing if not eliminating the possibilities of tapping an overqualified job applicant.

Studies reveal that a companys CSR activities significantly affect the manner on which it

attracts and retains human resources. Research endeavors put emphasis on the effects of

corporate social responsibility on performance indices such as profit, sales, and share value,

among others (Turban and Greening, 2000). In an earlier study of Turban and Greening (1996)

using the Social Identity and Signalling theories corporate social performance (related to CSR), it

was found that CSR positively correlates to the reputation of the organization, thus, helping

boost its attractiveness to possible employees. The researchers note that CSR offers an edge

regarding competitive advantage in attracting applicants. Another study of Greening and Turban

in 2000 further explains that CSR leaders to organizational attractiveness relationship. In this

study, they underscored that would-be job applicants prefer to work in socially responsible

businesses than establishments with poor or do not undertake social responsibility at all (Turban

& Greening, 2000).

A study by Backhaus, Stoner and Heiner (2002) looked into the perceptions of job

seekers with regards to the importance of CSR and its impact of CSR dimensions on

organizational attractiveness. With signaling theory and social identity theory as the anchor, the
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authors concluded that there are differences in the impact of CSR data on the ratings of employer

attractiveness. The authors also noted that environment, community relations, and diversity

dimensions have are highly considered on the attractiveness ratings.

Another study in 2003 supported the notion that socially responsible firms are at a better

position in attracting the competitive employees. Among the 800 MBA students across North

American and European schools who joined in the study 94 percent of them are willing to work

on a lower salary if the company is friendly and the employees care much about the welfare of

the employees (Weber, 2010).

In a 2011 survey, Evans and Davis found that perceived corporate citizenship had a

greater impact on attracting those individuals especially if they already have prior knowledge or

education regarding CSR. Those who also know better other-regarding value orientation also

find it interesting to work in firms with excellent CSR.

Jones, Willness, and Madeys 2014 study hypothesized that business firms with

outstanding CSR attracts more jobseekers. Their research posits the three factors: job seekers feel

proud job seekers anticipated pride from being affiliated with the organization, their perceived

value fit with the organization, and their expectations about how the organization treats its

employees.

The researchers anchored their study on signaling theory (Rynes, 1991). CSR sends

signals to job seekers that inform their perceptions and expectations about the organization, and

it is through these signal-based mechanisms that CSP can ultimately influence job seekers

attraction to the organization.

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In another study by Catano and Hines (2015), the influence of corporate social

responsibility in attracting millennial job applicants was also determined. The researchers found

that CSR information helps boost an organizations attractiveness for potential job applicants.

Slaughter and Greguras (2009) believe that the personal values and beliefs of applicants

weigh heavily on their choice of employers. A CSR policy per se may not be enough to attract

employees. Thus, sufficient recruitment information plus the CSR policy will greatly help job

applicants based decide whether or not the company values fit theirs or not (Jones, Willness and

Maley, 2009; Gully, et al., 2013). Individual values have an important role to play in attracting

labor skills.

CSR and Employee Commitment

Attracting applications and getting their commitment to work and stay in a company

stems from the belief that their future is tied to that of the organization. Thus they are willing to

make personal sacrifices for the organization. Hershey Foods is an example of a business that

historically drew substantial benefits from its long-lasting commitment to social responsibility.

Every year, Hershey employees receive a booklet entitled Key Corporate Policies, which

describes the valuesfairness, integrity, honesty, respectat the heart of the companys way of

doing business. Employees are asked to sign the booklet and are made aware of procedures for

reporting concerning proper conduct or policies in the workplace. These efforts help employees

understand the importance of developing and maintaining respectful relationships with both

colleagues and customers. Because they support the idea that customers should receive full value

for their money, employees are also committed to delivering the highest quality standards

possible.
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When employees fail to the provide value for their employees, loyalty and commitment

suffer. A survey by Walker Information Global Network discovered that employee loyalty is at

its all-time low. Only one of every three employees is loyal to their organization. Since an

employee will spend more time at work than on anything else, it is the obligation of the

organization to provide commitment to goodwill and respect to their employees. This results to

increased employee loyalty and support towards the achievements of the companys goals.

CSR and Employee Relations

One of the reasons why more and more younger generation employees are interested to

join companies with excellent CSR is because most organizations are keen to establishing long-

term relationships with stakeholders, especially employees. Job hunters are easily attracted to

employers that provide fair treatment, excellent compensation and benefits and assistance in

balancing work and family obligations. Raytheon developed a computer program called

SilentRunner that can detect patterns of data activity that may reflect employee fraud, insider

trading, espionage or other unauthorized activities. Critics however questioned whether the use

of such software contributes to an environment of trust and commitment. Research has shown

that committed and satisfied employees are more productive, serve customers better, and are less

likely to leave their employers. These benefits are important to successful business performance,

but organizations must be proactive in their human resource programs if they are to receive them.

According to a 2014 survey by Nielsen, 67% of respondents prefer to work for a socially

responsible company, and, according to a recent survey by Deloitte, 50% of millennials want to

work for a company with ethical practices.

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Companies that champion social initiatives also improve their employer brand, and ultimately

their ability to recruit employees.

The Bottom Line: Recruiting and Retaining the Best Employees Results to Profits

Social responsibility is positively associated with return on investments, return on assets,

and sales growth (Maignan, Ferrell and Hult, 1999). There is no way for a business to claim it is

socially responsible and develop an ethical organization culture unless it has achieved financial

performance in terms of profits (Ferrell, Thorn, Ferrell, 2012). Any organization that has the

financial and human resource no matter how limited the personnel may be has the capacity to

promote its own set of social responsibility along with serving their customers, valuing their

employees, and establishing trust with the public.

Various studies directly correlate social responsibility and financial performance. Indeed,

a company with strong efforts and results in social responsibility is generally not penalized by

market forces, including the intention of consumers to purchase the firms products.

Conclusion

It could never be denied that CSR increases the attractiveness of any organization. With a

reputable organization follows the right quality of job seekers who are looking for employment.

There is, therefore a need for firms to strategize and implement CSR initiatives that would be

consistent on hiring and retaining efficient and effective human resources with the right

qualifications and beliefs that would ensure the growth of the business. A business CSR

activities should also highlight environment, community relations, employee relations, diversity,

and product issues (Backhaus, Stoner and Heiner,

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2002). Researchers found that employers are more responsive to these compared to other CSR

dimensions. Lastly, companies should realize that CSR should be considered a business strategy

that would attract more clients and investors and not just as a mere obligation to be fulfilled. This

will ensure the institutionalization of the CSR programs.

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References

Backhaus, K. B., Stone, B. A., & Heiner, K. (2002). Exploring the relationship between

corporate social performance and employer attractiveness. Business & Society, 41, 292

318.

Catano, V. M., & Morrow Hines, H. (2015, December 14). The Influence of Corporate Social

Responsibility, Psychologically Healthy Workplaces, and Individual Values in Attracting

Millennial Job Applicants. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science/Revue canadienne

des sciences du comportement.

Ferrell, O.C., Thorne, D.M., Ferrell L. (2012). Social Responsbility and Business, Fourth edition.

Andover: Cengage Learning.

Jones, D. A., Willness, C. R., & Madey, S. (2014). Why are job seekers attracted by corporate

social performance? Experimental and field tests of three signal-based mechanisms.

Academy of Management Journal, 57, 383 404.

Maignan, I., O.C., Ferrell, G.Thomas Hult (1999). "Corporate Citizenship, Antecedents and

Business Benefits." Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 24: 4, 455-469.

Mullerat, R. (2010). International Corporate Social Responsibility: The Role of Corporations in

the Economic Order of 21st Century. Alphen aan den Rijn: Wolters Kluwer.

Rynes, S. L., & Cable, D. M. (2003). Recruitment research in the 21st century. In W. C. Borman,

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organizational psychology (pp. 5576).

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Rynes, S. L., Bretz, R. D., Jr., & Gerhart, B. (1991). The importance of recruitment in job choice:

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Slaughter, J. E., & Greguras, G. J. (2009). Initial attraction to organizations: The influence of

trait inferences. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 17, 118.

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Weber, G (2011) The Recruitment Payoff of Social Responsibility,

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