Improving Society as a Business Strategy: A Review From a Strategic Management Perspective

Introduction

The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) began to be discussed in the 1950s, continued to spread in the 1960s, and in the 1980s, with the effect of the changes in the structure of the society, it reached a stage where it dominated the business world and academic literature (Jamali, 2007, p. 3). During this process, there was a paradigm shift towards the social assistance expected from the states at the beginning. This shift has emerged with the questioning of how businesses should approach the needs of society. The questioning of the place of businesses in society over the years has led to new responsibilities in society. Because many different stakeholders of the society have come to expect businesses to produce answers to various problems of the society. This expectation has increased so much over time that businesses have become obliged to perform responsible behaviors in social and environmental issues (Bhattacharyya, 2010, p. 83; Orlitzky et. al., 2011, p. 3).

Today, businesses continue to feel this intense pressure to rebuild public trust in various contexts and remain competitive in the global economy (Jamali, 2007, p. 3). Efforts by businesses to manage these pressures and improve society have been associated with the concept of corporate social responsibility. Carroll (1991) classified these responsibilities as economic, legal, ethical, and voluntary responsibilities. Social responsibility activities are carried out by businesses for various reasons, especially the benefits of voluntary corporate social responsibilities to the business are discussed in various studies (Galbreath, 2009, p. 3-4). In addition to the benefits highlighted by the research, there are also some costs that such responsibilities bring to the business. The effective management of these costs and the ability of businesses to protect the interests of their shareholders while contributing to society has given a strategic meaning to the concept of corporate social responsibility. Studies revealing this relationship have started to create literature called strategic corporate social responsibility.

According to the strategic corporate social responsibility approach, the most important thing for businesses is profit maximization. In other words, businesses should realize social responsibilities in areas where they will benefit (Siegel & Vitaliano 2007, p. 3). Accordingly, opportunity costs should be borne, which will not only benefit society but also provide a competitive advantage to businesses (Yuen & Lim, 2016, p. 50). This strategic view is related to an approach that will provide more rational returns to the business while managing the pressures on businesses. Every expenditure made for corporate social responsibility activities means a cost for the business. As a result of bearing these costs, while creating added value to the society and social environment, on the other hand, strategic results should be obtained that will bring economic gain and competitive advantages to the business. This is possible by evaluating the business strategy and social responsibility activities together and integrating these activities into the business strategy (Bhattacharyya, 2010, p. 83-84). In other words, the CSR strategy should be transformed into a structure that supports the corporate strategy of the businesses (Yu & Liang, 2020, p. 1). Corporate social responsibilities should be used as a strategic value that contributes to the sustainable competitiveness of businesses. In this way, it will also contribute to the corporate sustainability of the businesses (Kim et. al., 2018, p. 1).

At this point, managers should determine strategies for how their businesses can be more socially responsible, ecologically sustainable, and economically competitive. Today, managers should develop skills in integrating social responsibility strategies into their businesses' strategies (Orlitzky et. Al., 2011, p. 3). Therefore, when planning CSR activities, managers should focus on these activities from a strategic perspective (Bhattacharyya, 2010, p. 83-84).