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NARRATIVE ACTIVITY COMPLETION REPORT1
ACTIVITY FACTS Name of Platform Growth & Employment Platform
South Partner Institution
University of Ghana
Activity name
WP3 Corporate social responsibility practices of a multinational
enterprise (MNE) in the agri-food sector of a developing country
Main responsible resource
person(s) for activity from
South partner institution2
Professor Robert Hinson, University of Ghana Business School,
Ghana
Main responsible resource
person(s) for activity from
Danish university3
Professor Klaus Grunert
Klaus Grunert spent 1½ working months on this assignment
as part of AU share of the funding.
Workplace of Danish resource
person(s)
Aarhus University
Start and end of
implementation (dd/mm/yy)
02.01.2013 -31.07.2013
ACTIVITY DESCRIPTION Brief description of planned
activity4
Purpose Apart from the need for MNEs to show
global commitment to CSR, the varied
perceptions and understanding of CSR across
countries seem to call for context specific
CSR engagements. This situation thus raises
the question of whether CSR efforts of
MNEs are localized or globalized. This
question underscored the need to examine
the extent to which local CSR policies and
activities of an MNE within a developing
country are related to the overall or global
CSR policy of the MNE
Content Study aimed at understanding CSR practices
and its effects on stakeholders of an MNE in
a developing country.
Contribution to
research capacity
building
Improve the capacity of the partners in both
south and north in the use of qualitative
techniques in conducting empirical
1 Must be filled and submitted to Platform Secretariat no later than 2 weeks upon completion of activity.
2 All responsible parties must sign Activity Completion Report before submission.
3 All responsible parties must sign Activity Completion Report before submission.
4 Use LFA (and/or Monitoring Matrix) as a point of departure, where relevant
investigations within the field of
management and organizational
development.
A Master of Philosophy Student was able to
start a Master of Philosophy thesis on MNEs
CSR Practices in Ghana’s Agri-Food Sector,
as a result of being drafted to work as a
research assistant on the project.
Established innovative cooperation UG-AU
with potential for further development under
BSU2 and/or other funding schemes.
Indicators 1. Completing of the data collection and
analysis
2. Completion of a working paper
3. Writing a paper for a conference
4. Submission of paper to referred
international journal
Other relevant
details/comments
Journal Article from project has been
submitted for publication consideration to
the British Food Journal
Number of participants Target Writing working papers and journal articles
Conducting stakeholder workshop
Results (include
i) title of
research
proposal and
targeted funding
source for jointly
written and
submitted/to be
submitted for
external funding;
ii) title of
manuscripts
prepared/
submitted to
journals, reports
etc.)
Conference Paper
“Corporate responsibility of multinational
companies in the agri-food sector: a case
study on strategic role, implementation
and effects on stakeholders in a
developing country”
Published in the Refereed Conference
Proceedings of the Social Business
Conference held from 30-31 May 2013,
at AnadoluUniversity, Turkey
Scientific publication
“Corporate social responsibility practices
of a multinational enterprise in the agri-
food sector of a developing country”
Submitted to British Food Journal
Describe/explain deviations
from planned activity (timing,
number of participants, content
of activity, venue, etc.)
We have been able to conduct a 1st stakeholder workshop on our
key findings with the members of the CSR Foundation in Ghana
and will conduct a final workshop to further validate our
empirical findings.
Main lessons learned (list 3-5
issues)
1. Data collection in Ghana can be a cumbersome affair and good
timing is necessary to get good data for a qualitative
investigation.
2. Cooperation UG/Dep of Marketing and AU/Dep of Business
Administration/MAPP has good potential for further
development
3. Multi-country/multi-level CSR is a topic that is
underresearched and attracts wide interest.
Suggestions for follow up
activities
We plan to conduct related studies on corporate social
responsibility and sustainability in Ghana looking at how these
practices impact on poverty alleviation and business growth.
Activity Completion Report submitted by:
NAME CONTACT DETAILS5 SIGNATURE
ROBERT HINSON
KLAUS G. GRUNERT [email protected]
Phone +45 87165007
Date of Signature: 02-09-2013
Where relevant please enclose:
a) Publications produced by the activity
5 Minimum e-mail address and phone number for all signatories.
51
AbstractWe present a case study of the CSR activities of a mul-tinational enterprise in the agri-food sector in a devel-oping economy - Ghana. In spite of the considerable interest into CSR in recent years and a steady stream of research, studies on CSR activities in developing countries remain rare. Drawing on the stakeholder framework proposed by Maignan and Ferrell (2004) and supported by the implementation framework by Maignan, Ferrell and Ferrell (2005), qualitative inter-views with twelve key informants from the case study company and with identified stakeholders of the case company are carried out. The data are subjected to a thematic analysis and clustering of findings. Field work is currently underway and analysis will be finished at the time of the conference.
BackgroundMultinational enterprises (MNEs) play major roles in developing countries as partners in the growth and development of the economy, through foreign direct investments, by contributing directly and indirectly to employment generation efforts, and by their ove-rall impact on the development of key sectors of the economy, like the agri-food sector. It is therefore not surprising that the policies and actions of multinati-onal enterprises are under scrutiny from various sta-keholders, raising issues about the corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies of MNEs.
CSR has been gaining momentum during the past decade and is seen to be increasingly high on board-room agendas (Chen 2011, Hinson et al 2009; Jones
et al, 2005). This increase in concern about CSR has been necessitated by the increasing pressure on cor-porations from governments, activists, the media, and other quarters in relation to the growing focus on sustainable environments and socially responsib-le actions (Navare, 2010). Additionally, the increa-sing numbers of highly publicized corporate social performance rankings have caused CSR to emerge as a priority for business leaders (Porter & Kramer, 2006). Reactions to this increased pressures from the business community have, however, been mi-xed. According to McWilliams and Siegel (2001), many managers have responded by devoting addi-tional resources to promote CSR. Ofori and Hinson (2007) assert that social responsibility has become a major component of strategy formulation for bu-siness. Other managers have, however, advanced a less positive view of social responsibility. They esc-hew attempts to satisfy demand for CSR, because they believe that such efforts are inconsistent with profit maximization and the interests of sharehol-ders, whom they perceive to be the most important stakeholders (McWilliams & Siegel, 2001).
Pressures have been especially strong on MNEs (Holt, Quelch, & Taylor, 2004). For example, in developing countries, they are expected to provide community development programs and assistance to their host communities (Amaewhule, 1997). Moreover, as MNEs operate in a range of different countries, they can be viewed as adopting double standards, by de-monstrating contradictory commitments to CSR in
Corporate Responsibility of Multinational Companies in the Agri-Food Sector: A Case Study on Strategic Role, Implementation and Effects
on StakeHolders in A Developing Country
Klaus G. Grunert1 - Robert E. Hinson2
1 Aarhus University MAPP Centre for Research on Customer Relations in the Food Sector, [email protected] (Contact Person)2 University of Ghana Business School
Social Business@Anadolu
52
Corporate Responsibility of Multinational Companies in the Agri-Food Sector: A Case Study on Strategic Role, Implementation and Effects on StakeHolders in A Developing Country
different countries (Torres et al., 2012). The cultural differences and societal idiosyncrasies existing in dif-ferent countries, and the resulting differences in sta-keholder views on what constitutes appropriate CSR practices, make the formulation of CSR policies for MNEs an especially complex managerial task (Ofori & Hinson, 2007, Maignan & Ferrell, 2004). MNEs can choose from a wide range of activities as part of their CSR, including corporate philanthropy, cause-related marketing, minority support programs, socially res-ponsible employment and manufacturing practices, developing non-animal testing procedures, recycling, abating pollution, supporting local businesses, and embodying products with social attributes or charac-teristics (Bhattacharya & Sen, 2004; Macwilliams and Siegel, 2001; Sen & Bhattacharya, 2001). The wide array of choices and the fact that these choices have been proven to vary in their effectiveness across in-dustry and stakeholder groups (Hillenbrand & Mo-ney, 2007; Bhattacharya & Sen, 2004; Sen & Bhattac-harya, 2001) creates a need for multinational firms to strike a balance between the characteristics of the various publics making the demands and the type of CSR activities they employ.
In spite of the obvious importance of MNE’s CSR practices in developing countries, it is an under-re-searched topic, both in terms of the managerial chal-lenges posed and in terms of effects on stakeholder groups in the host country. Evidence from developing countries has been restricted to a narrow understan-ding of CSR as philanthropic and development ori-ented initiatives (Ofori & Hinson ,2007; Eweje, 2007; Frynas, 2005), and not the broader definition of CSR which incorporates ethical, social and environmen-tally friendly activities in all operations of firms, and which characterizes research on CSR in developed countries. The lack of research goes especially for stu-dies focusing on the agri-food sector, where previous research has focused mainly on the retailing sector (e.g., Jones, Comfort & Hiller, 2007a, b) and on de-veloped countries (e.g., Andersen & Skjoett-Larsen, 2009; Spence & Bourlakis, 2009). The agri-food sec-tor is, according to Hartmann (2011), particularly prone to a large number of requests by governments, NGOs and activists, due to the sectors dependence on natural resources and effects on the environment, its linkage to sector-specific societal concerns like animal welfare, and to ethical issues in procurement in relation to power abuse and unfair practices espe-cially in the developing countries.
ObjectiveOn the background described above, the objective of this paper is to present an in-depth case study of CSR policies, activities and stakeholder percepti-ons of an agri-food MNE in a developing economy, with the aim of generating preliminary insights and hypotheses guiding further research on CSR activi-ties and their effects on stakeholders in developing economies.
The specific aims of the case study are
• To map out CSR activities of a MNE operating in the agri-food sector in a developing economy context
• To investigate the relationship of local CSR acti-vities to overall CSR and overall company stra-tegy of the company
• To map out the various stakeholders of the MNE
• To investigate stakeholder perceptions of CSR and the impact of CSR actions on stakeholder actions
MethodologyA case study methodology is employed. According to Yin (2003), case study research is appropriate in gain-ing a detailed understating of a phenomenon within its setting and can involve studying single or multiple cases at various levels of analysis. The case study is particularly valuable for this study since it comfort-ably accommodates multiple methods of data collec-tion (Bloor and Wood, 2006) that are important for the varied conditions of data collection envisaged in this study.
The primary source of information is interviews with decision-makers in organizations, which is a typical interrogative method in case research (Miles & Hu-berman, 1994). Twelve interviews are carried out with people from the case study company and with iden-tified stakeholders of the case company. Following Spence and Bourlakis (2009), interviews are recor-ded, transcribed and analyzed to present the perspec-tives of the stakeholders and of the company. Given the exploratory nature of the research and to achieve the specified research objectives, a thematic analy-sis and clustering of findings is being used (Spence
53
Social Business @ Anadolu International Conference, 30-31 May, 2013
& Bourlakis, 2009; Ofori & Hinson, 2007). Overall, the stakeholder framework proposed by Maignan and Ferrell (2004), supported by the implementation framework by Maignan, Ferrell and Ferrell (2005) are employed as the conceptual anchor of the study and form the basis of data collection and analysis.
Unilever Ghana, a subsidiary of the multinational company Unilever PLC, has been selected as a case company. The company is a leading manufacturer of fast moving consumer goods and is one of Ghana’s leading corporate citizens. Apart from a mission that is rooted in the understanding of people’s needs and aspirations, Unilever has gone a step further in de-fining CSR through sustainable living as a driver of corporate activities, which makes it attractive as a case to study. Unilever’s Chief Marketing & Commu-nications Officer, Keith Weed, states:
We live in a rapidly changing world. One where populations are growing, water is becoming inc-reasingly scarce, and where food security is a gro-wing issue. Unilever is committed to addressing the unmet social needs that our business can play a unique role in helping to solve. This is especially true in developing and emerging markets where we have deep roots.
Unilever has adopted a Sustainable Living Plan that outlines the company’s goal to grow the business whi-le reducing environmental footprint and increasing the positive contribution which they make to society. They have also established, together with a number of key partners, Unilever Foundation dedicated to imp-roving quality of life through the provision of hygi-ene, sanitation, access to clean drinking water, basic nutrition and enhancing self-esteem.
Field work for the study is currently underway, and results will be ready for presentation at the Social Bu-siness is Good Business conference.
Expected ResultsThis study is an investigation into existing CSR prac-tices of a major MNE in Ghana, of the way in which stakeholders perceive these practices, and how they affect their behaviour. The study will provide insights into prevalent CSR practices, into relationships bet-ween local CSR practices and overall company stra-tegy, and into the possibility of shared grounds of
interest among stakeholders. It will also provide the first evidence on how stakeholders are affected by the CSR practices. Given the importance of MNE’s conduct in the agri-food sector in a developing eco-nomy, the results will not only be of interest in their own right for both scholars and decision-makers, but will also pave the ground for a larger study map-ping the role of CSR in the agri-food sector in deve-loping economies.
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Andersen, M., & Skjoett-Larsen, T., (2009). Corpo-rate Social Responsibility in Global Supply Chains. Supply Chain Management: An International Jour-nal, 14(2), 75-86.
Bhattacharya, C.B., & Sen, S. (2004). Doing Better At Doing Good: When, Why And How Consumers Respond To Corporate Social Initiatives. California Management Review, 47, 9-25.
Bloor, M., & Wood, F. (2006). Keywords in Qualita-tive Methods: a Vocabulary of Research Concepts. London: Sage.
Chen, C.H. (2011). The Major Components Of Cor-porate Social Responsibility. Journal Of Global Re-sponsibility, 2, 85-99.
Eweje, G. (2007). Multinational Oil Companies’ CSR Initiatives in Nigeria: The Scepticism of Stakehold-ers in Host Communities. Managerial Law, 49, 218-235.
Frynas, J.G. (2005). The False Developmental Prom-ise Of Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence From Multinational Oil Companies. International Affairs, 81, 581-598.
Hartmann, M. (2011). Corporate Social Responsibility in the Food Sector. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 38, 297-324.
Hillenbrand, K., & Money, K. (2007). Corporate Re-sponsibility and Corporate Reputation: Two Sepa-rate Concepts or Two Sides of the Same Coin? Cor-porate Reputation Review, 10, 261-277.
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Corporate Responsibility of Multinational Companies in the Agri-Food Sector: A Case Study on Strategic Role, Implementation and Effects on StakeHolders in A Developing Country
Hinson, R., Boateng, R., & Madichie, N. (2010). Cor-porate Social Responsibility Activity Reportage on Bank Websites in Ghana. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 28(7).
Holt, D.B., Quelch, J.A., & Taylor, E.L. (2004). How Global Brands Compete. Harvard Business Review, 82(9), 68-75.
Jones, P., Comfort, D., & Hillier, D. (2007a). Marketing And Corporate Social Responsibility Within Food Stores. British Food Journal, 109, 582-593.
Jones, P., Comfort, D., & Hillier, D. (2007b). What’s In Store? Retail Marketing And Corporate Social Re-sponsibility, Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 25, 17-30.
Maignan, I., & Ferrell, O.C. (2004). Corporate So-cial Responsibility and Marketing: An Integrative Framework. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 32, 3-19.
Maignan, I., Ferrell, O.C., & Ferrell, L. (2005). A Stake-holder Model For Implementing Social Responsi-bility In Marketing. European Journal of Marketing, 39, 956-977.
McWilliams, A., Siegel, D., & Wright, P.M. (2006). Corporate Social Responsibility: Strategic Implica-tions. Journal of Management Studies, 43, 1-18.
Miles, M.B., & Huberman, A.M. (1994). Qualitative Data Analysis: An Expanded Sourcebook (2nd Ed.). London: Sage Publications.
Navare, J. (2010). Corporate Social Responsibility: Risk Managing For Value Creation in the Hous-ing Sector in the UK. In C. Louche, S.O. Idowu & L.W. Filho (Eds.), Innovative CSR from Risk Man-agement to Value Creation (pp. 220-240). Sheffield: Greenleaf Publishing Ltd.
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Sen, S., & Bhattacharya, C.B. (2001). Does Doing Good Always Lead To Doing Better? Consumer Reactions To Corporate Social Responsibility. Jour-nal of Marketing Research, 38, 225-243.
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Torres, A., Bijmolt, T.H.A., Tribó, J.A., & Verhoef, P. (2012). Generating Global Brand Equity Through Corporate Social Responsibility To Key Stakehold-ers. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 29, 13-24.
Yin, R.K. (2003).Case study research: Design and meth-ods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
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Corporate social responsibility practices of a multinational
enterprise in the agri-food sector of a developing country
Journal: British Food Journal
Manuscript ID: BFJ-08-2013-0206
Manuscript Type: Case Study
Keywords: CSR, agri-business, multinational , Unilever, Stakeholders, Unilever
British Food Journal
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Corporate social responsibility practices of a multinational
enterprise in the agri-food sector of a developing country
Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can be seen as actions taken by a firm to satisfy its stakeholders
by going beyond what is dictated only by the legal and regulatory environment within which the firm
operates. CSR has been gaining momentum during the past decade and is seen to be increasingly
high on boardroom agendas (Chen 2011, Hinson et al 2010). This increase in concern on CSR has
been necessitated by the increasing pressure on corporations from governments, activists, the media
and other quarters in relation to the growing focus on sustainable environments and socially
responsible actions (Navare, 2010). Additionally, the increasing numbers of highly publicized
corporate social performance rankings have caused CSR to emerge as a priority for business leaders
(Porter and Kramer, 2006). Reactions to these increased pressures from the business community
have, however, been mixed. According to McWilliams and Siegel (2001), many managers have
responded by devoting additional resources to promote CSR. Additionally, Ofori and Hinson (2007)
assert that in certain firms, social responsibility has become a major component of strategy
formulation for business. Other managers have, however, advanced a less positive view of social
responsibility. They eschew attempts to satisfy demand for CSR, because they believe that such
efforts are inconsistent with profit maximization and the interests of shareholders, whom they
perceive to be the most important stakeholders (McWilliams and Siegel, 2001). Despite the
McWilliams and Siegel (2001) assertion, however, it is increasingly clear that corporations face
mounting pressure from activists, the media and governments to be socially responsible. This
pressure is even more pronounced on multinational companies, especially those basing part of their
activities in developing countries (Amaewhule, 1997 in Eweje, 2007).
Multinational enterprises (MNEs) play major roles in developing countries as partners in the growth
and development of the economy, through foreign direct investments, by contributing directly and
indirectly to employment generation efforts, and by their overall impact on the development of key
sectors of the economy, like the agri-food sector. This therefore makes the policies and actions of
multinational enterprises of particular interest to various stakeholders of these economies. Pressures
have been especially strong on MNEs (Holt et al., 2004). In developing countries, they are expected
to provide community development programs and assistance to their host communities
(Amaewhule, 1997). Moreover, as MNEs operate in a range of different countries, they can be
viewed as adopting double standards by demonstrating contradictory commitments to CSR in
different countries (Torres et al. 2012). The cultural differences and societal idiosyncrasies existing in
different countries, and the resulting differences in stakeholder views on what constitutes
appropriate CSR practices, make the formulation of CSR policies for MNEs an especially complex
managerial task (Ofori and Hinson, 2007, Maignan and Ferrell, 2004).
MNE scan choose from a wide range of activities as part of their CSR, including corporate
philanthropy, cause-related marketing, minority support programs, socially responsible employment
and manufacturing practices, developing non-animal testing procedures, recycling, abating pollution,
supporting local businesses, and embodying products with social attributes or characteristics
(Bhattacharya and Sen, 2004; McWilliams and Siegel, 2001; Sen and Bhattacharya, 2001). The wide
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array of choices and the fact that these choices have been proven to vary in their effectiveness
across industry and stakeholder groups in engendering stakeholder rewards or satisfaction
(Hillenbrand and Money, 2007; Bhattacharya and Sen, 2004; Sen and Bhattacharya, 2001) creates the
need for multinational firms to strike a balance between the characteristics of the various publics
making the demands and the type of CSR activities they employ.
In Nigeria, for example, MNEs - particularly oil companies - are engaged in the provision of education,
scholarships, clinics and roads, whereas MNEs in South Africa deal with issues such as the provision
of drugs for HIV/AIDS patients. MNEs in Namibia are involved in the provision of medication and
vaccination for malaria (Eweje, 2006). In some other economies, for example Italy, Malaysia and
Singapore, company policies on bribery and corruption are deemed desirable CSR practices (Welford,
2005). In Ghana, CSR generally takes the form of sponsorship of events (Ndzibah, 2009), the
provision of schools, clinics, boreholes and electricity to deprived communities, as well as the
sponsorship of beauty pageants, and sporting activities, just to name a few (AllAfrica, 2012).
In spite of the obvious importance and complexities involved in MNE’s CSR practices , it is an under
researched topic both in terms of the managerial challenges posed and in terms of effects on
stakeholder groups in the host country. This assertion is especially true in the developing countries’
context. Evidence from developing countries has been restricted to a narrow understanding of CSR as
philanthropic and development oriented initiatives (Ofori and Hinson, 2007; Eweje, 2007; Frynas,
2005). It has also been argued that the majority of MNEs fail to “walk the talk” in their global supply
chains (Andersen and Skjoett-Larsen, 2009). Additionally, apart from the need for MNEs to show
global commitment to CSR, the varied perceptions and understanding of CSR across countries seem
to call for context specific CSR engagements. This situation thus raises questions of whether CSR
efforts of MNEs are localized or globalized. This underscores the need to examine the extent to
which local CSR policies and activities of an MNE within a developing country are related to the
overall or global CSR policy of the MNE.
The aim of the paper is therefore to contribute to the understanding of CSR practices and its effects
on stakeholders of an MNE in a developing country. The paper is set out as follows: after this first
section on MNEs and CSR, the second section dwells on CSR research in the agri-food industry. The
third section highlights the conceptual framework adopted for the study, and the fourth features a
profile of Unilever, the case company. The fifth is the study methodology, whilst the sixth features a
presentation and discussion of the study findings, and the seventh showcases our conclusions and
recommendations.
CSR Research in the agri-food Industry
Although businesses in all industries have been affected by the increasing societal demand for CSR,
Hartmann (2011) asserts that large firms in the agri-food sector are particularly prone to a large
number of requests by governments, NGOs and activists. This is as a result of the sector’s immense
dependence on natural resources and considerable effect on the environment, and the sector’s
linkage to several societal concerns including animal welfare, power abuse and unfair practices;
especially in developing countries.
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CSR research in the agri-food sector has primarily focused on the nature and dimensions of CSR
employed by firms in communication and positioning (Jones et al, 2005; Jones et al, 2007(a); Jones et
al, 2007(b); Anselmsson and Johansson, 2007). Jones et al (2005) found that food retailers
considered CSR as an integral element of their core business, with each food retailer adopting
individual approaches to CSR, especially in relation to the nature and extent of reporting.
Additionally, Jones et al (2007), in two different studies (a , b), found that CSR communication and
positioning to consumers by food retailers in the UK concerned support for local food producers, fair-
trade, fitness, healthy living, healthy eating, organic produce, sustainability, employment policies,
charitable giving, and support for local communities. In investigating the impact of various CSR
dimensions used in positioning of grocery brands, Anselmsson and Johansson (2007) concluded that
product responsibility has the greatest impact on overall CSR image, whereas environmental
responsibility, perhaps the most commonly used CSR dimension, was recognized to exert least
impact on both overall CSR image and purchase intentions. Other CSR research investigations in the
agri-food sector have focused on practices and evolution of CSR in supply chains (Andersen and
Skjoett-Larsen, 2009; Spence and Bourlakis, 2009).
The aforementioned studies have largely focused on large food retail companies, especially in the UK
and other developed countries. Research focussing on food businesses in developing economy
contexts has been fairly parsimonious from developing economy contexts. Additionally it would
seem that addressing CSR issues in the agri-food sector, would require a comprehensive stakeholder
analysis (Hartmann, 2011 citing Piacentini et al., 2000 and Heikkurinen and Forsman-Hugg, 2011).This
study therefore relies on a stakeholder approach to investigate CSR practices by firms in the agri-
food industry in a developing country context by conducting an in-depth case study of CSR policies,
activities and stakeholder perceptions of an agri-food MNE in a developing economy.
Conceptual Framework
In analysing CSR practices of an agri-food MNE in a developing country, we adopt a stakeholder
approach. Although prominent CSR conceptualizations have viewed CSR as an obligation to society,
the abstract nature of society as a concept has led to arguments that, although businesses in general
are accountable toward society, an individual business can be deemed responsible only toward the
definable agents with whom it interacts (Maignan and Ferrell 2004; Donaldson and Preston, 1995).
These agents are described as stakeholders.
Stakeholders refer to individuals or groups that can directly or indirectly affect, or be affected by
activities a firm undertakes towards the achievement of its objectives (Freeman, 1984). Stakeholders
can be classified as either primary or secondary. Primary stakeholders are those whose continued
participation is essential for business survival; they consist of employees, customers, investors,
suppliers, and shareholders. Secondary stakeholders, on the other hand, are not usually engaged in
transactions with the focal organization and are not essential for its survival (Maignan et al, 2005).
However, as Idowu et al. (2010) argue, these secondary stakeholders can adversely affect an
organization through negative publicity. They include the media, trade associations, non-
governmental organizations and other interest groups.
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Stakeholders, over the past years, have actively demanded increased social responsibility in form of
CSR from businesses. Positive business response to these requests is evidently in the interest of
companies, since these stakeholders provide both tangible and intangible resources that are critical
to the firm’s long-term success (Freeman, 1984, Mitchell et al, 1997). Therefore, far from being a
luxury, CSR has become vital to securing continued support, desired identification and reputation
among the various stakeholders (Maignan et al, 2005). Stakeholder approaches to CSR research have
therefore focussed on stakeholders’ response to the CSR initiatives of firms (Hillenbrand and Money,
2007). Other related studies have also investigated the response of customers to CSR activities (Sen
et al, 2006), employees (Albinger and Freeman, 2000; Sen et al, 2006; Turban and Greening, 1997)
and investor responses (Sen et al, 2006; Cheah et al, 2011) to various CSR activities of firms. Results
from the aforementioned studies have indicated that stakeholders respond both positively and
negatively to CSR activities undertaken by firms. Other studies have also indicated that stakeholders’
perception of appropriate CSR practice as well as the adoption and regulation of CSR activities vary
across stakeholder groups, countries and culture (Freeman 1987; Hillenbrand and Money, 2007;
Bhattacharya and Sen, 2004; Sen and Bhattacharya, 2001). These conclusions from CSR-stakeholder
research have implications for MNEs; some of which will be discussed next.
MNEs operate within different countries and cultural dispositions. Additionally, they are faced with
the various stakeholders groups, stakeholder perceptions as well as varying levels of adoption and
regulation of CSR activities that exist in the various countries they operate in. The resultant cultural
differences and societal idiosyncrasies existing in different countries, and differences in stakeholder
views, make the formulation of CSR policies by MNEs an especially complex managerial task (Ofori
and Hinson, 2007; Maignan and Ferrell, 2004).To successfully implement CSR across the various
countries they operate in, MNE’s must be able to acquire knowledge of the differences among
stakeholders’ views and demands through stakeholder engagement (Coombs and Holladay, 2012)
and integrate these views and demands into the formulation and implementation of CSR.
Frameworks for stakeholder approaches to CSR have been proposed by certain scholars (e.g. Spiller,
2000; Maignan and Ferrell, 2004; Maignan et al, 2005; Jamali, 2008), and these can be especially
useful within the context of MNEs in the agri-food sector who could be particularly prone to CSR
demands from various stakeholders.
In light of the centrality of stakeholders in the design, development and deployment of CSR activities
by MNEs, this study builds on the step-by-step approach for implementing CSR proposed by Maignan
et al. (2005) to investigate the policy, practices and implementation of CSR of a major MNE in the
agri-food sector of Ghana. The Maignan et al. framework (Figure 1) consists of eight steps through
which the management of a firm can implement CSR using a stakeholder model: Discovering
organizational norms and values, Identifying stakeholders, Identifying stakeholder issues, Assessing
the meaning of CSR, Auditing current practices, Implementing CSR initiatives, Promoting CSR, and
Gaining stakeholder feedback. The model does not specifically address the issues related to the
development and implementation of CSR in a MNE, where development and implementation of CSR
policies needs to take place at different levels, and where ensuring compatibility among those levels
forms an additional management task. As our aim in this paper is to present a case study of a
particular MNE, we do not use the model as a normative model, but rather view the eight steps in
the model as a delineation of different aspects that the formulation and implementation of CSR
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policies will involve. In order to be able to use this model as a tool to guide the collection and analysis
of data, we condense the eight steps into four substantive areas that we will use for structuring data
collection and analysis. These four areas will be commented on below.
Figure 1 here
Organizational Norms and Values
The first step in implementing stakeholder oriented CSR is to define organizational norms and values
(Maignan et al. 2005). These give an indication of the types of CSR initiatives an organization would
engage in, which groups of stakeholders and which peculiar issues an organization would deem
important. While we expect that the definition and evolution of norms and values in MNEs is a
corporate matter, we acknowledge that norms and values, even when formulated centrally by
corporate headquarters, can develop into different directions in different regional branches.
According to Maignan et al. (2005) organizational values and norms can be found in mission and
vision statements, and organizational documents such as codes of conduct, annual reports and
through in-depth interviews with management. We extend this step by employing content analysis to
compare and contrast norms and values of the focal firm in the host country to the firm’s global
norms and values using content analysis of corporate documents.
Stakeholders and Stakeholder Issues
According to Maignan et al (2005), the business needs a list of stakeholder communities, a rough
assessment of their perspective and common power, and an understanding the nature of the main
issues of concern to the identified stakeholders. According to Mitchell et al (1997), stakeholder
identification and salience is based on stakeholders possessing one of the following attributes:
power, legitimacy, and urgency. Stakeholder groups the MNE regards as relevant have an influence
on the CSR issues of importance to the firm. For a MNE, stakeholders can be identified at national,
regional and global levels. Increasingly, however, certain stakeholders, especially NGOs, have
demonstrated their ability to influence CSR activities of MNEs across national borders (Coombs and
Holladay, 2012). Stakeholders can be identified through managerial surveys or interviews and a
content analysis of mission and vision statements and other organizational documents (Maignan and
Ferrell, 2004). In our study we attempt to identify both local and global stakeholders that influence
local and global commitment to CSR in the MNE.
There may be instances where various stakeholder issues may conflict with each other, and such
conflicts can occur not only among different groups of stakeholders, but also between stakeholders
at the national, regional and global levels. Stakeholder views can be held up against the
organizational norms and values (Maignan et al. 2005). Interviews with relevant stakeholders and
content analysis of documents published by relevant stakeholders are sources of identifying the
issues of importance to them (Maignan and Ferrell, 2004; Maignan et al. 2005).This study will seek to
differentiate between the issues raised by local and international stakeholders that influence the CSR
activities of the MNE in order to ascertain to what extent the global and local CSR policies and
practices of the MNE are informed by international and local stakeholders.
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Defining, Implementing and Promoting CSR
In the model proposed by Maignan et al. (2005), the definition of CSR should clarify (1) The
motivation underpinning the firm’s commitment to CSR and (2) The stakeholders and issues that are
perceived as priority by the organization. For a MNE, this can be a complex matter, as the firm’s CSR
has to be defined at global, regional and national levels, ensuring that regional and national CSR,
while adapted to local stakeholder issues, is still aligned with the global CSR policy. A firm’s definition
of CSR can in principle be discovered through content analysis of corporate documents and the
mission and vision statements of the focal organization, but we should note that for a globally
operating MNE this may be a rather demanding task. This study will assess definition and
implementation of CSR of the focal firm on both the global, regional and national levels and also
compare these meanings so as to investigate the extent to which they are related or not.
Implementation includes the financial and organizational arrangements made and the allocation of
responsibility for implementation to an individual or a committee in charge of overseeing all CSR
efforts. In a MNE, this will also involve the distribution of responsibilities for selected CSR issues
across the organizational levels and the establishment of a governance structure ensuring
compatibility of CSR throughout the organization. We employ managerial surveys to understand
implementation matters. Promoting CSR deals with providing information to stakeholders so as to
secure increased support for firms’ CSR activities. This step is important because communication of
CSR has been found to bridge the gap between CSR and increased stakeholder reward including
positive product evaluation and increased employer attractiveness (Sen et al. 2006).
Auditing and Gaining Stakeholder Feedback
Auditing seeks to answer the questions (1) what does the organization already have in place to
address important stakeholder issues?, and (2) Which practices need improvement? In this step the
firm can employ social auditing to assess on-going CSR practices and to identify modifications needed
to better address stakeholder issues. For a MNE, this will include the detection of possible
incompatibilities of CSR practices at different levels. This can be done through a review of
organizational CSR activities, expenditure on CSR, feedback from stakeholders on organization’s
performance or through a standardize audit that will factor in CSR activities of other MNEs. This
needs to be accompanied by obtaining stakeholder feedback. Stakeholder assessment of the firm
and its practices can be obtained through satisfaction or reputation surveys.
As noted above, the model suggested by Maignan et al., (2005) is a normative model and hence not
necessarily descriptive of the process by which CSR policies are formulated and implemented in a
particular firm. More specifically, a CSR policy may in practice not always be built on an explicit
analysis of stakeholder issues. By using this model as a guideline in our empirical research, we hope
to obtain insight into the extent to which a stakeholder orientation is employed in the focal
company. The study achieves this by employing the concepts of the framework to compare the local
and global CSR policies of the firm and effect of focal firms CSR on the firm’s stakeholders.
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Context of the Study
Unilever Ghana, a subsidiary of the multinational company Unilever PLC, was selected as the case
company. The company is a leading manufacturer of fast moving consumer goods and is one of
Ghana’s leading corporate citizens. Unilever Ghana manufactures and markets three broad
categories of products under Foods and Beverages, Home Care and Personal Care categories. The
Company’s leading brands include Blue Band margarine, Lipton, Royco, Annapurna Salt, Omo, Key
Soap, Pepsodent, Close-Up tooth paste, Lux Soap, Geisha Soap, and Sunlight. Unilever is the largest
seller of packed tea with the Lipton brand leading the Foods and Beverages category. They are the
category leader in margarine in the country with their Blue band brand. In savoury, Royco brand is a
household name (www.unileverghana.com).
On the global level, Unilever PLC’s Lipton brand is one of the world’s greatest refreshment brands.
It’s the world’s best-selling tea brand, has been established for more than 100 years, and is available
in more than 100 countries (Unilever PLC, 2013). As a multinational business with hundred year old
brands in 100 countries, Unilever definitely served as an interesting case study in trying to
understand their CSR dispositions in a developing economy context. Apart from a mission that is
rooted in the understanding of people’s needs and aspirations, Unilever has also defined CSR
through sustainable living as a driver of corporate activities, which made it attractive as a case to
study. Unilever’s Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Keith Weed, states:
“We live in a rapidly changing world. One where populations are growing, water is becoming
increasingly scarce, and where food security is a growing issue. Unilever is committed to addressing
the unmet social needs that our business can play a unique role in helping to solve. This is especially
true in developing and emerging markets where we have deep roots,” (www.unilever.com)
Unilever has adopted a Sustainable Living Plan that outlines the company’s goal to grow the business
while reducing environmental footprint and increasing the positive contribution which they make to
society. They have also established, together with a number of key partners, Unilever Foundation
dedicated to improving quality of life through the provision of hygiene, sanitation, access to clean
drinking water, basic nutrition and enhancing self-esteem.
Methodology
The research employed a case study methodology to facilitate an in-depth exploration. According to
Yin (2003), case study research is appropriate in gaining a detailed understating of a phenomenon
within a setting and can involve studying single or multiple cases and numerous levels of analyses.
The case study is particularly valuable for this study, since it comfortably accommodates multiple
methods of data collection (Bloor and Wood, 2006) that may be needed to achieve valid insights.
Information was primarily collected through interviews with some decision-makers in Unilever Ghana
Limited in March 2013. This is typical of the interrogative method in case research (Miles and
Huberman, 1994). Members of management, especially those directly involved in CSR policy and
implementation, were interviewed using interview guides to identify the policies, strategies,
practices and stakeholders of the company. Four interviews were conducted with managers in the
areas of brand management, project management and corporate affairs.
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Following Lamberti and Lettieri (2008), secondary information was also garnered from the Unilever
website, annual reports and other documents of the focal company and triangulated with the direct
interviews. This was done to reduce selectivity and reporting bias and to enhance research reliability.
In-depth interviews were held with head of corporate affairs, the project manager, brand manager
close-up and brand manager Lifebuoy and Lux.
Following Spence and Bourlakis (2009), interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed to
present the perspectives of the management of the company. Given the exploratory nature of the
research, a thematic analysis was used to unearth important issues raised by the various groups of
individuals that were interviewed (Spence and Bourlakis, 2009; Ofori and Hinson, 2007). Overall, the
step-by-step stakeholder framework for implementing CSR proposed by Maignan et al. (2005) was
employed throughout the research as a basis for data collection and analysis.
However, since the Maignan et al. (2005) framework was developed in a Western context and since
this study is based in a developing economy context, we conducted a preliminary assessment of the
properties and meaning underpinning the typology via face-to-face long interviews with a
convenience sample of twenty two executives from multinational enterprises in Ghana. These
executives came from an executive MBA class in a leading business school in Ghana. We found that
all the steps in the Maignan et al (2005) framework were found applicable and relevant in
understanding CSR issues of a MNE operating in Ghana. This approach is similar to Si and Bruton’s
(2005), who conducted fifty face-to-face interviews in China with foreign and local international joint
ventures in a pilot study prior to adopting a framework for their main research.
With regard to the main study, we take inspiration from Goodwin et al. (1997), and assessed the
validity of our findings by sending a summary of our findings to all the managers interviewed for their
comments and suggestions, and these were incorporated into the final manuscript. We also invited
two academics (one based in a developing country and the other in a developed country) with
expertise in qualitative research and the subject area to critically review and make comments on the
paper. Thirdly, a former Corporate Affairs Head of Unilever Ghana Limited and an editor of the CSR
Watch (a quarterly magazine of the CSR Foundation, Ghana) critically reviewed and made
suggestions on the findings of the paper.
Presentation and Discussion of Findings
Organizational Norms and Values
Unilever PLC at the global level has a mission and vision that is inherently CSR oriented, with
corporate policies clearly indicating responsibility especially to consumers and communities in which
Unilever operates. Unilever PLC has a global view of CSR that is established and covered in the
Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP), which gives considerable recognition to global challenges
such as climate change and environmental sustainability, improving health and well-being, enhancing
livelihood and the possible effect on the company’s operations.
Unilever Ghana, on the other hand, displays CSR through its value that seeks to create a better
future, help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and services that are
good for consumers. The company seeks to achieve this by developing new ways of doing business,
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introducing quality and innovative products that will reduce their environmental impact on the
community and enhance the life of people, especially women and children.
It therefore seems that the embodiment of CSR in the corporate values of Unilever PLC is mirrored by
Unilever Ghana, but that the implementation in Ghana is more tightly linked to specific brands and
products, whereas the corporate CSR is formulated in more generic terms.
As seen on the Unilever Ghana website;
“As our business grows, so do our responsibilities. We recognize that global challenges such as
climate change concern us all. Considering the wider impact of our actions is embedded in our values
and is a fundamental part of who we are.” (www.unileverghana.com).
“The company has indeed managed its commitment to its social obligations with the same attention
and professionalism that it has applied to its business activities.” (www.unileverghana.com).
The CSR policies of Unilever Ghana are developed by Unilever PLC and cascaded down to the various
subsidiaries of which Ghana, Nigeria and some other African countries belong to the Unilever’s
Central Africa Region:
“Unilever Ghana is in Central Africa. So what we are doing in Central Africa as Corporate Social
Responsibility will be similar across all countries in Central Africa’’
Apart from input received from Unilever PLC’s CSR, Unilever Ghana has a standard occupational
health and safety policy, product quality policy, and environmental care policy, which upholds CSR
standards and implementation. These policies look at Unilever Ghana being committed to the
prevention of occupational hazards and illness, compliance to all applicable legislation and internal
Unilever standards and continual improvement on health and safety at work performance. It is also
committed to meeting the needs of customers and consumers in an environmentally sound and
suitable manner, through continuous improvement in environmental performance in all business
activities, committed to protecting reputation and driving profitable growth through the rigorous
application of Quality Management Standards that set the standards for the design, production and
delivery of quality products to the consumer. Unilever Ghana, by adapting these policies, therefore
has values and a culture that makes CSR a part of the whole company. This especially evident in the
statement;
“Here it is not like it is only a certain group of people who take care of the CSR. We are all encouraged
to do some CSR in our own little ways like saving energy, conserving water, and we get like a lot
weekly, monthly updates on how to save water and how to save energy’’. – Brands manager, Close
Up.
It therefore seems that CSR at the level of Unilever Ghana is much more tightly linked to day-to-day
business operations and the way in which their brands and products affect the lives of people, as
compared to the corporate CSR policies which seem to take point of departure in major societal
issues.
Stakeholders and stakeholder issues
Globally, stakeholders could include shareholders, investors, employees, customers, business
partners, competitors, governments, regulators, NGOs and communities (WBCSD, 2000). Unilever
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PLC CSR policies take a targeted approach, which focuses on critical issues bothering the society.
According to the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP), this approach greatly assists in the proper
identification of stakeholders (Unilever, 2013) which includes key constituencies such as key
consumer groups, communities, suppliers and industry regulators. Grounded on this critical
approach, the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP) is developed.
The three thematic areas adopted by Unilever PLC in its USLP -improving health and well-being,
reducing environmental impact and enhancing livelihoods - reveal customers, communities and
suppliers as main targets of their CSR programs. Consumers are the highest priority when it comes to
Unilever PLC’s CSR activities. This assertion is well articulated in the statement:
“Our first priority is to our consumers – then customers, employees, suppliers and communities. When
we fulfil our responsibilities to them, we believe that our shareholders will be rewarded”
(www.unilever.com)
Unilever Ghana addresses these stakeholders in their policies and operations, with consumers
possibly being still more central than at the corporate level, in line with the product and brand focus
identified above. Unilever Ghana has, for example, developed the Product Quality Policy, which
enjoins all employees to be responsible for the quality of Unilever products at all levels of operations
from design through sales to the disposal of Unilever products, a policy with a clear consumer focus.
Other policies include the Occupational Health and Safety Policy related to employees, and
Environmental Care Policy aimed at environmentally sound operations. As gathered in the interview
with management, the main focus of Unilever Ghana’s CSR has been consumers, especially children.
“Because our vitality mission is rooted in the intimate understanding of people’s needs and
aspirations, it inspires new ways to reach consumers with quality products that care for their families
and help them get more out of life. To achieve this aim, we maintain the highest standards of
corporate behaviour towards our employees, consumers, customers, shareholders and indeed our
operating environment.”(www.unileverghana.com).
“I will take children (as key stakeholders) because most of the brands’ CSR activities are targeted at
them…lifebuoy, pepsodent, and blue band all target children”. - Brand Manager (Lifebuoy and Lux).
“For lifebuoy, it (the target) is between the ages of six to twelve……. it is also probably more because
they are early at that age and kids within that age range are more open to behavioural change”
Unilever Ghana has embarked on programs such as the lifebuoy hand wash, Pepsodent twice brush
campaign, giving training and working capital in the form of product for women to begin trade
among others. Unilever Ghana indicates an adaptation of the global strategies to the needs of local
stakeholders;
“In Africa probably they will identify a need which will be different from a need in Europe. So the
African countries will have similar needs. So for instance, perhaps maybe in the UK, hand washing is
not really an issue because there is no issue of cholera, diarrhoea and other diseases but in Africa, it
runs across’’. It is very likely that we have an issue of cholera in Ghana, and the same kind in Nigeria
for instance. We adapt it to our country but most of the time it is across the region’’.
Defining, implementing and promoting CSR
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According to the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan progress report, Unilever’s CSR on the whole
borders on working to ‘’create a better future every day, with brands and services that help people
feel good, look good and get more out of life’’ (www.unilever.com). Unilever PLC adopts a strategic
posture towards CSR and sees engagement in CSR as a means of ensuring sustainability of their
business, managing reputation of the business and promoting the growth of the business while
contributing to solving societal problems that may be caused by or directly or indirectly affect its
business.
Unilever PLC has adopted three thematic areas for its CSR plan which is covered in its Unilever
Sustainable Living Plan (USLP): improve health and well-being, reduce environmental impact and
enhance the livelihoods of people across their value chain. Unilever CSR activities are not treated
separately from this core activity but are largely embedded into the business operations of the
company.
This was reiterated by the Chief Marketing & Communications Officer.
“We live in a rapidly changing world. One where populations are growing, water is becoming
increasingly scarce, and where food security is a growing issue. Unilever is committed to addressing
the unmet social needs that our business can play a unique role in helping to solve’’
Under health and well-being, Unilever is dedicated to improving quality of life through the provision
of hygiene, sanitation, access to clean drinking water, basic nutrition and enhancing self-esteem. By
2020, the company has estimated they would have helped more than a billion people to improve
their hygiene habits and would bring safe drinking water to 500 million people. This will help reduce
the incidence of diseases like diarrhoea. According to an online USLP progress report published in
April 2013, Unilever had helped 224 million people by the end of 2012 (www.unilever.com). As noted
by the Group CEO:
“Scaling up to reach 1 billion people cost-effectively with hygiene programs that make hand washing
a habit remains a challenge. Equally, we are finding that helping people to use less hot water and
energy when washing, showering and doing the laundry is challenging. We continue to experiment
with ways to tackle this, such as detergents which perform well in shorter wash cycles, and dry
shampoo which might encourage people to wash their hair with hot water less often”
Unilever PLC believe that businesses that address both the direct concerns of citizens and the needs
of the environment will prosper over the long term and therefore needed to build new business
models that enable responsible, equitable growth that is decoupled from environmental impact .
To achieve this Unilever PLC set clear goals to cut the environmental imprint on their products, help
more than 1 billion people take action to improve their health and well-being, to source 100% of
their agricultural raw materials sustainably and to enhance the livelihoods of people across their
value chain. The implementation of these goals are overseen by the Corporate responsibility
committee (formerly the Corporate Responsibility and Reputation Committee)
In reducing environmental impact, the second core area of Unilever PLC’s CSR activities, the focus
has been on making sure greenhouse gases, water and waste impacts per consumer use are reduced.
Climate change, extreme weather patterns, and water scarcity, all of which are global issues that
affect agriculture and people everywhere and especially in the developing countries, are therefore
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clear focuses of Unilever PLC’s activities. Unilever’s sustainability plan is geared towards enhancing
these focus areas to the benefit of the environment. By the USLP Unilever has reduced its
greenhouse gas impact per consumer by 6% since 2010, their water impact per consumer use has
remained broadly unchanged since 2010 and their waste impact per consumer use has reduced by
around 7% since 2010 (www.unilever.com).
In the third category of Unilever thematic areas, enhancing livelihoods, Unilever has trained around
450,000 smallholder farmers, 36% of agricultural raw materials are sustainably sourced by the end of
2012; and 48,000 small–scale distributors have been trained by the end 2012.
Unilever Ghana has adopted and customized the corporate CSR policy that is spelt out by the USLP.
Unilever Ghana is motivated by the need to “give back to society” through the pursue of a CSR
agenda customized based on input from Unilever PLC, with initiatives targeted at the health and
safety, women empowerment and environmental well-being of their operating environment. As
indicated by the Project manager of Unilever Ghana.
‘’…it was more or less contributing towards the well-being of the environment or contributing toward
the well-being of the people or should I say end users of our product, we get a lot from them so it’s a
form of giving back to society.”
This is also reiterated on the Unilever Ghana website.
“Our corporate purpose states that to succeed requires ‘the highest standards of corporate behaviour
towards everyone we work with, the communities we touch, and the environment on which we have
an impact’…."
“Conducting our operations with integrity and with respect for the many people organizations and
environments our business touches has always been at the heart of our corporate responsibility.”
Although the community as a whole is a major stakeholder in Unilever Ghana’s definition of CSR,
children and women are the primary beneficiaries of the CSR initiatives and hence the most
prominent stakeholders targeted by Unilever. As indicated the brands Manager for Close up;
“…most of our activities are based in schools, we have a mothers’ program that we have in churches
and clinics but about 90% is based in schools’’.
Unilever Ghana as part of the health and hygiene program, has invested considerably in making hand
washing a habit. The challenge extends further in the implementation of the Lifebuoy hand wash and
Pepsodent day and night brush program with trust issue between the kids and the hygiene
ambassadors.
As stated by the brands manager for Close Up ‘’… most of our activities are based in schools,….we
have the Schools Health and Education programmes (SHEP) coordinators for Lifebuoy. They are the
ones who co-ordinate with everything that has to do with school staff…..’’
As another example, Unilever Ghana, under the livelihood enhancing theme, has introduced the
female empowerment programme in a sector of the country and hopes to make it national:
‘’We initiated a project where we set-up under privileged women to start buying and selling our
products, that was last year 2012 between March and June. What we did was we put up some seed
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money in the form of product and then we gave them some products and when they sold them, they
got money and started buying and selling from us and we also gave them basic training in buying and
selling so that was our contribution. It was some sort of a pilot programme at Aburi, but I know this
year they will be rolled out as a national programme.’’
In spite of the fact that Unilever CSR policies are cascaded from Unilever PLC down to Unilever
regional groupings, Unilever Ghana’s CSR is largely related to brand based CSR activities, clearly
revealing the underlining business motives of Unilever Ghana’s CSR activities. This is in line with
Kuada and Hinson (2012), Ofori and Hinson (2007) and Hamann et al. (2005), who all argue that
foreign firms consider anticipated economic gain and shareholder wealth maximization as important
objectives for their CSR initiatives, and that CSR is seen as a deliberate strategies to strengthen their
corporate images, while local Ghanaian firms focus a lot more on moral and ethical considerations in
their CSR decisions.
According to the Project Manager, Unilever Ghana’s CSR activities are related to customer
development and are implemented at both the corporate level and brand level. However, the
implementation of these CSR activities is not totally designated to any individual or committee like
Unilever PLC.
“…every employee of Unilever is a foot soldier of CSR for the business’’
The Project manager also reiterated that Unilever Ghana does not have a CSR unit.
‘’But we don’t have a CSR unit in the business.’’
The Project Manager further stated that the corporate affairs department sometimes collaborates
with the brands in implementing certain brand base activities
‘’What happens is that, especially for the brand based activities, you find that they collaborate with
our corporate affairs department…’’
But most importantly the corporate affairs department basically deals with non-brand base CSR or
internal CSR.
‘’…almost every department was asked to adapt an area in the factory and they were to plant trees to
decorate the place so we had clear cut rules as to the usage of electricity. These are all CSR activities,
these activities are not sponsored by brands; these activities are championed by corporate affairs’’
According to the brands manager for Lifebuoy and Lux, though the brand base CSR activity is
cascaded down from Unilever PLC and come with their own budget set by Unilever PLC, the
campaign’s implementation and its targets are set by the regions (Unilever Ghana) under the
supervision of that particular brand’s manager.
Unilever PLC acknowledges the importance of communicating with stakeholders. In creating
awareness and to show that stakeholder’s issues are being addressed, Unilever PLC organises press
conferences, press releases, speeches and interviews. Pages are allotted on the company’s websites
for these features all in the bid to communicate their CSR activates to the public.
‘’Our website is our principal means of reporting’’ – CEO Unilever
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Unilever has also set the corporate responsibility committee. The committee has as one of its core
responsibility to ensure that appropriate communications policies are in place and are working
effectively to build and protect Unilever’s reputation internally and externally.
The Committee ensures that information about their CSR activities are available on Unilever’s
external website and publish its progress review in their Annual Report.
Unilever PLC also communicates their initiatives to their stakeholders through their USLP progress
reports, annual and account report and a web page dedicated to CSR activities.
Both Unilever PLC and Unilever Ghana use the website to communicate to its stakeholders. The
website has pages designated to each activity of Unilever. Stakeholders and stakeholders’ issues are
found on the website of Unilever. Annual and Progress report are issued also in the bid to inform
stakeholders.
Auditing and gaining stakeholder feedback
Unilever PLC’s 10 year sustainable plan; the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP), articulates
Unilever PLC’s CSR activities and as such is an important source of indicators for the measure of
performance in their CSR activities. It sets out to place their CSR activities side by side with the
company’s growth so the company does not lose focus on its environmental impact as they grow.
‘’…. we set out the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP), our blueprint for achieving our vision to
double the size of the business whilst reducing our environmental footprint and increasing our
positive social impact’’.
Unilever Ghana audits its performance in CSR activities according to the Unilever PLC standards and
additionally does spot checks and reviews. Additionally they also collaborate with other stakeholders
such as NGO’s in their evaluation of CSR activities. As stated by the brands manager for Lifebuoy and
Lux:
‘’Basically, we have a target and a target reach and certain non-negotiable, certain things that has to
be done. We do spot checks, weekly and monthly reviews as well. These are internal mechanisms and
there is an external agency marketing communications agency for Pepsodent and Blue Band. There is
also the Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor; an NGO who monitors and does spot checks as
well’’.
The Brands manager for Close Up affirms that certain practices need improvement and that some of
such improvement is already underway. She noted:
‘’We recruited and trained hygiene ambassadors who went in there to trained the kids but we
realized that they had probably thirty minutes per day with them whilst the teacher has the whole
day to influence these kids and the kids have developed some kind of trust in the teachers overtime
whereas these hygiene ambassadors are complete strangers to these kids so the teachers have more
influence in imparting the message that we are trying to get across to them than the hygiene
ambassadors. So that is why this year we are training the teachers directly for them to go back and
cascade our message to the kids’’.
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‘’Another thing that we have done this year as well is that before we go in there, we have the pre-
study of the schools or the children. We have the baseline study of their knowledge on hand washing,
how often they wash their hands with the help of the NGO’’
In reducing environmental impact, one of the core areas of Unilever PLC’s CSR activities, the focus
has been on making sure greenhouse gases, water and waste impacts per consumer use are reduced.
Unilever has reduced its greenhouse gas impact per consumer by 6% since 2010 and their waste
impact per consumer use has reduced by around 7% since 2010 (Unilever PLC, 2013).
According to Maignan et al (2005), promotion of CSR must not be limited to the creation of
awareness or communication, but to establish bonds with stakeholders and invite them to
participate in their CSR initiatives. To this effect Unilever has the enhancement of livelihood as one of
the thematic areas of USLP. Unilever embarks upon this by investing in farmers, entrepreneurs, and
through their women empowerment program.
Through Unilever Ventures, we are investing in early and mid-stage companies with new technologies
and compelling business models that are of strategic relevance to Unilever. Sustainable business is a
key factor in this mix (www.unilever.com)
Through our supply partnerships we have helped to train 450,000 tea farmers in sustainable
practices, around 150,000 more than in 2011. Over 300,000 of them have achieved Rainforest
Alliance certification, the majority of who are smallholders in Kenya. Elsewhere we have supported
cocoa farmers to gain Rainforest Alliance certification in West Africa. (www.unilever.com)
‘’ We initiated a project where we set-up under privileged women to start buying and selling …. we
gave them basic training in buying and selling and put up some seed money in the form of product...
and when they sold them, they now had capital to continue trading with us ‘’ – Brands manager
Close-Up
Unilever PLC CEO “Partnerships are key to unlocking these solutions”
‘’…..NGOs who are helping us to address real issues, suppliers who are bringing us solutions for
sustainable living, and our customers with whom we share an ambition to reach consumers at scale’’.
Unilever seeks partners’ endorsement in seeking solutions for global transformational issues like
climate change, food security and poverty alleviation.
‘’This is why we are working with organizations and initiatives such as the Consumer Goods Forum,
the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the World Economic Forum, the Tropical
Forest Alliance 2020, Refrigerants, Naturally!, the Global Green Growth Forum and the UN’s Zero
Hunger Challenge and Scaling Up Nutrition initiatives’’
Gaining feedback is one of Unilever’s ways of assessing the performance of its CSR activities. This is
seen through the satisfaction level of stakeholders and Unilever’s global reputation.
Unilever Ghana moves a step forward to train people as coordinators or ambassadors to implement
their CSR programs. These trainees also train others or carry out Unilever’s messages to
stakeholders. Therefore Unilever relies on personal or one-on-one form of communication in getting
feedback.
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“..... for schools, we have the Schools Health and Education programmes (SHEP) coordinators for
lifebuoy. They are the ones who co-ordinate with everything that has to do with school staff and so
we deal with them and the teachers’’
‘’We recruited them from third party. We trained the hygiene ambassadors and they went in there
and trained the kids…..’’
Unilever Ghana also obtains feedback through questions and answers and rewards system.
Additional to obtaining feedback, Unilever Ghana has spot visits where they ask the kids question
and give them rewards. Questions are based on the key message the Kids got from the week’s
lesson. Souvenirs or token are given to them as a reward to motivate them.
‘’….. afterwards, we have a post study on the same schools that we went to, we go back there and
then ask few questions, interview some kids, find out their attitude towards hand washing( the
Program) and how often they practice it. This gives us an idea of the impact that the program had.’’
The project manager at Unilever Ghana also stated that the company generates feedback through
reports its brands managers generate.
‘’Definitely, at the end of the day a report has to be produced and then it has to be properly
interrogated because the idea is not to spend money but the idea is to meet needs .”
Conclusions and Recommendations
This paper employed the Maignan et al (2005) step by step framework to analyse the CSR
engagements of a multinational agri-food company, Unilever, from a stakeholder perspective. The
study specifically investigated the policies, practices and implementation of Unilever Ghana’s CSR
programme and how it is linked to Unilever PLC’s CSR. Drawing on managerial interviews and content
analysis of websites and organizational documents, the study undertook a comparative analysis
aimed at investigating the relationship between Unilever Ghana’s CSR engagements and that of the
parent company, Unilever PLC.
The research found similarities between the policies, practices and implementation of CSR of
Unilever Ghana and the parent company. This indicates that the CSR strategies of Unilever Ghana
were adaptations of Unilever PLC’s CSR strategy.
“The global team sets the aim…. and it is cascaded down to the various regions”- brands Manager
Close-up
CSR is clearly embedded in the business model adopted by Unilever PLC as evident in the norms and
values of the firm, and this is mirrored in the operations of Unilever Ghana. Though the results of
interviews with management of Unilever Ghana seem to communicate that their CSR actions as a
way of “giving back to society”, the largely brand based and highly integrated CSR activity presents
their CSR engagements as the more pragmatic and strategic orientation of CSR adopted by Unilever
PLC. To them, their business model is designed to deliver sustainable growth making sustainability
integral to how they do business. As indicated in the statements below;
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‘’The USLP is at the heart of Unilever’s vision to double the size of its business while reducing its
environmental footprint and increasing its positive social impact ‘’ - Sir Malcolm Rifkind - Chairman of
the Corporate Responsibility Committee (www.unilever.com).
This was further reiterated by the project manager Unilever Ghana;
‘’every employee of Unilever is a foot-soldier of CSR’’
“Our Brush Day and Night oral health campaign, which encourages parents and children to adopt
good brushing habits, reached 49 million people and has helped our toothpaste brand grow by 22%
since 2008.” (www.unilever.com).
CSR to Unilever is therefore not a mere channel of “giving back to society”, but a way of doing
business that sustains both the business and its operating environment in consistency with
stakeholder expectations. This approach to CSR is consistent with recommendations by Mass and
Boons (2010), who argue that the first condition for strategic CSR is that CSR needs to become
integrated into the strategy of the firm.
Unilever PLC has an effective view of the trends and developments in global CSR and has adopted
strategies that address a wide range of international stakeholder issues like improving nutrition,
reducing greenhouse gases and improving quality of life through the provision of hygiene, sanitation,
access to clean drinking water, basic nutrition and enhancing self-esteem. The USLP progress report
published in April 2013 revealed that Unilever had helped 224 million people by the end of 2012
(www.unilever.com).
In reducing environmental impact, Unilever PLC’s CSR activities have focused on making sure
greenhouse gases, water and waste impacts per consumer use has been reduced. Unilever has
reduced its greenhouse gas impact per consumer by 6% since 2010 and their waste impact per
consumer use has reduced by around 7% since 2010 (www.unilever.com).
This has earned them the sector leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes for the 14th
consecutive year and being listed as the world’s fifth most desired company to work for by LinkedIn
(Unilever, 2013). The CSR practices of Unilever PLC consist of improving health and well-being (health
and hygiene, improving nutrition), reducing environmental impact (greenhouse gases, water, and
waste) and enhancing livelihoods (sustainable sourcing and better livelihood),while other less
emphasized CSR dispositions have included ethical and legal business and reporting.
The activities of Unilever Ghana are highly influenced by the CSR focus of Unilever PLC. The CSR
policies are designed by Unilever PLC and cascaded down to the Central African Region, of which
Unilever Ghana is part. Though this strategy provides a platform for a well-coordinated global
strategy that is adapted for each regional context, there is little evidence of dialogue between
Unilever Ghana and its locally identified stakeholders in the design or adaptation of CSR strategies.
Additionally, although Unilever PLC’s integration of international stakeholder issues allows for the
fulfilment of certain issues that might affect local stakeholders in Ghana, stakeholder dialogue at the
local level will be important in prioritizing global issues that are of local significance. An increase in
local stakeholder dialogue in the adaptation of the global CSR strategy of Unilever will transform
Unilever’s CSR strategy into a more transnational approach, which according to Coombs and Holladay
(2010) is considered to be the most effective strategy for MNEs.
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Stakeholders addressed by Unilever PLC’s CSR activities have included consumers, customers,
employees, suppliers and communities while Unilever Ghana addresses stakeholders that include
consumers, employees and communities. Like Unilever PLC, Unilever Ghana prioritizes consumers in
the implementation of its CSR activities. Children and women have especially been a focus of
Unilever Ghana’s CSR activities through practices focused on health and hygiene as well as women
empowerment and livelihood enhancement. This current study has focused on the Unilever side of
corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy design and implementation and future studies might
concentrate more on ascertaining more deeply stakeholder perspectives on CSR initiatives of
Unilever Ghana Limited. Be that as it may, it will be safe to conclude this study by stating that,
clearly, Unilever Ghana seems to be engaging in what could be referred to as “pragmatic CSR”,
where a majority of their CSR activities do not seem to be directly motivated by goodness for
goodness’ sake, but rather, CSR activations are intentionally geared towards enhancing customer
experiences of the Unilever corporate and product brands. In short, the Unilever “pragmatic CSR”
approach emphasizes community engagement that reaches into the brand experience of their key
customers and the communities they reside in.
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Figure 1: A step-by-step approach for implementing CSR
Source: Maignan et al (2005).
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