CSR as the Foundation for Responsible Business Management – Good Practices in the Area of Organizational Governance

Abstract

The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) undertaken in the paper is an extremely important element of management in modern enterprises. It has been gaining increasing recognition all over the world. Also in Poland, entrepreneurs are increasingly interested in conducting business oriented not only towards economic effects but also broadly understood social interests and ecology. Nowadays, responsible business management is long-term operations, leading to finding the solutions which are beneficial both for the enterprise and its employees, local community, cooperation partners, investors and other stakeholders. The application of CSR principles allows enterprises to conduct their business activity in compliance with the principles of sustainable development, which is significant for the future of the whole world. One of the issues of the concept of CSR is the issue of organizational governance. As a key element of CSR, it has an impact on proper functioning of other areas and provides correct and persistent implementation of the principles of social responsibility. The objective of the paper is to present the issues of social responsibility, particularly taking into account organizational governance and an attempt to analyze good practices implemented in this area in enterprises operating in Poland. The paper reviews the activities undertaken for the implementation and development of CSR in enterprises and the definition of organizational governance. The analysis of good practices introduced in enterprises in the area of organizational governance in 2011-2017 was carried out, divided into five categories (reporting, ethics, management, dialogue with stakeholders and compliance). The benefits, which were gained by enterprises due to the implementation of good practices, were also indicated. The presented analysis can become an inspiration for the application of the presented practices by enterprises planning to undertake activities under CSR.