HR
practitioners have a crucial role to play in embedding a responsible approach
to business, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
(CIPD).
The CIPD report,
Corporate Social Responsibility and HR’s Role, claims that effective
implementation of HR policies on employee consultation, diversity, fair
treatment and work-life balance are fundamental to projecting the image of a
responsible employer.
HR departments
are responsible for many of the key systems and processes, including
recruitment, training and communications, on which effective delivery of
corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives depends, the research finds.
The
report’s author, CIPD head of employee relations Mike Emmott, said organisations
that want to foster CSR should start by getting their relationship with employees
right.Â
"Otherwise
it is most unlikely that the organisation will be able to convincingly
discharge its obligations to the wider community," he said. "In our
view, CSR minus HR equals PR."
A recent
survey by Business in the Community, in partnership with the CIPD and the
Future Work Institute, found that employees see a clear connection between
responsible business practice and a positive impact on the bottom line.
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However, it
found that only 45 per cent of staff believed that the corporate values that
helped attract them to their employer are ever actually implemented.
By Michael
Millar
