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This report  surveys corporate social responsibility (CSR) professionals in Asia to assess how companies are building their capacity to meet the challenges of sustainable business practices, global economies, environments and societies.

The report finds that:

• while some CSR managers are tackling global challenges and are responsible for creating value for their companies, a large number of CSR managers are managing projects that are in many ways separated from the core focus of the business, mainly by managing philanthropic projects
• the majority of respondents refer to their activities as CSR, but thirty percent describe their activities as sustainability, corporate responsibility (CR) and corporate citizenship
• the majority of companies are relatively conservative in the value they give to CSR implementation
• a third of respondents report that the operational level of the CSR manager is only that of an administrator or junior manager and it is thus unlikely that CSR in these companies is linked to corporate strategy or that these managers are having an impact on the company’s activities
• most CSR managers work in high risk industries rather than across a range of industries, and the key issues are the development of CSR strategy, community investment, health and safety and internal awareness and training
• less than a third of CSR managers address a broader range of issues that are integral to the long term performance of a business including the development of CSR policy, climate change, poverty alleviation, water and broader community health issues
• very few CSR managers address issues related to supply chain, product responsibility, responsible marketing, diversity and biodiversity issues

The report makes several recommendations, including:

• CSR managers must have a clear job specification, which identifies the area that they are responsible for and what the company expects as value for the position
• CSR managers must deliver value to the organisations, which employ them - employer must give the CSR manager access to the Board so that company strategy addresses long-term sustainability issues
• CSR managers must be empowered to work with others in the business to assess key priority areas based on assessment of need and stakeholder expectations
• CSR managers should engage with material social and environmental issues for the company – this includes managing risks and identifying business opportunities related to sustainable development
• CSR managers need continual internal and external support and ongoing guidance and clarity as to what constitutes excellence in their profession

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