The document discusses how corporate social responsibility began as a concept to address businesses' impacts on society but became more about public relations. It suggests opinion leaders can better drive social responsibility by using their reputation to influence positive changes. Several examples are given of individuals from different fields who successfully raised awareness of social and health issues using their online platforms.
2. CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
No man is an island and neither are businesses. Their
success is measured by the engagement of their clients who
vote with their wallets.
As no relation will thrive if the benefits are only on one side,
enterprises developed in the second half of 20th century a
concept of Corporate Social Responsibility. As defined by
European Commision it is: “the responsibility of enterprises
for their impacts on society”.
THAT’S FOR THE THEORY BUT SOMEHOW…
3. …IT GOT LOST IN TRANSLATION
And CSR became beauty contest with enterprises
developing activities that brought them media applause
instead of concentrating on diminishing the negative effects
of their business activities on their stakeholders and
environment.
This approach in recent years lead to CSR being perceived
as a costly frosting on a rotten cake.
SEEMS IT’S TIME TO CUT OUT THE ‘C’ AND GO…
4. BACK TO BEGINNING!
Enterprises misused CSR to build their reputation while the
new OPINION LEADERS use their reputation to drive
social responsibility.
Which in return builds their reputation. Win win!
HOW CAN IT WORK?
5. REPUTATION: EXPERT
(1ST
MOST TRUSTED)
Experts have the community’s trust which
allows them to influence group’s behaviour and
drive change.
It means that thanks to your position as a
professional you can drive positive changes in
your environment.
REPUTATION: PERSON LIKE ME
(3RD
MOST TRUSTED)
Being perceived as ‘a person like us’ can
reduce distance between a professional and
her surrounding and help her gain trust.
It means that engaging in social activities can
positively drive your career or business
forward.
6. IF YOU DON’T OPEN THE DOOR,
YOU WON’T HAVE A SWIM.
7. While volunteering in help2read Ishay found one thing –
kids that are hungry won’t have strength to study. And by
chance she found a solution:
‘I read a tweet by Kaka, the famous Brazilian and
Real Madrid footballer “feeding 900 hungry children with
the cost of my favorite meal. How many can YOU feed?
#wefeedback” My interest piqued. I clicked on it and am
so very glad I did.’
‘What would you say if I said, you had the power to make
an enormous difference in this world? This is the
message I have been sharing with virtually each and
every new person I meet. Based on the strength of this
message, a group of food bloggers and myself held a
series of meals during the month of August, based very
much on the first one I held.’
‘Our aim was with each meal that 500 kids ( at a cost of
ZAR 1000 or 100 euro) would be fed via the Wefeedback
model, which feeds children at schools in the most
disaster stricken areas around the world. The premise for
our project being, 1 food blogger, 1 meal, 500 kids fed.
After all the meals, we were able to feed 5452 children
and raised $1363 (ZAR 9541)!!’
Learn more: www.foodandthefabulous.com/world-food-
programme
PROBLEM: over 11 million South Africans are ‘food insecure’ [Food Bank SA]
There’s nothing gourmet or haute about hunger. So it
didn’t exist in food blogs when Ishay engaged in
wefeedback program and hosted a series of
international blogging dinners which led her to become
2nd Connector for Bloggers Against Hunger by WFP.
ISHAY GOVENDER-YPMA
FOOD & TRAVEL WRITER (SA)
foodandthefabulous.com
8. PROBLEM: ~3.3 million children under 15 have HIV, 90 % in sub-Saharan Africa [UNICEF]
The teenage twins became partners of Comic Relief to drive attention to NGO’s work to fight HIV: ‘So a few weeks ago Comic Relief which is a charity
here in UK sent us a cheeky e-mail that invited us to fly to South Africa. The plan was to go out and check out some of the awesome projects they were
doing in celebration of their 25th anniversary. So we put together a little film and this was our journey.’
Learn more: http://www.youtube.com/jacksgap
We live in times when everybody discriminates
everybody else. The rules of being cool are very strict,
so what can you do to drive changes? How about
partnering with those who define cool.
JACK & FINN HARRIS
VLOGGERS (UK)
youtube.com/ JacksGap
9. PROBLEM: each year >100 000 dogs & cats are abandoned in Spain [Fundación Affinity]
While most fashion bloggers concentrate on getting ads
or freebies, Malena uses her reach to drive attention to
the problem of abandoned animals:
‘We know that you love dogs and that recently you
collaborated on a campaign launched by SPAP that
promotes adopting animals. Tell us about it!
When I lived in Barcelona one day I decided to visit a
shelter to see if I could help and I became a volunteer.
When I went to live in Madrid I also looked for a shelter
where I could be a volunteer and I joined SPAP in
Madrid. We decided to make a campaign before
Christmas to convince people to adopt instead of buy
animals. Most animals are bought before Christmas as
presents for children but we have to remember that they
are alive and should be taken care of.’
‘The number of animals abandoned in Spain is
horrifying, do you think that the adoptions can reduce
it?
I think that people who are capable of abandoning
animals won’t change. Thanks to promoting such
initiatives each time people are more conscious that we
should adopt.’
Check it: http://blogs.glamour.es/el-blog-de-malena-
costa/category/la-pasion-de-mi-vida-animales/
New bag? Check! Mint nail polish? Check! Doggie on
your arm? Check! Wait… Our fury little friends are not
accessories – who if not a model will tell you best what’s
hot in fashion?
MALENA COSTA
MODEL (ES)
@MalenaCosta7
10. After leaving corporate world to run his own company and
travel around the world looking for best wind Jacek
decided to share his experience:
‘How long did you have to work to “free yourself”
from working in an office? How can we do it?
It’s not about “how much I had to work” but about one’s
priorities, goals and lifestyle. You can have passions and
fulfill yourself even if you’re working in an office. The
problem starts when office and corporation become an
excuse not to do anything (I don’t have enough time for
biking or skiing) and you end up drinking beer in front of
TV after work. It’s like a ‘Groundhog Day”. It’s a road to
nowhere when I look at my friends who are the same age.
This lifestyle is available to anyone, you just have to
reorganize. You can’t look for excuses – it’s not for me,
I’m too old, my life will end up in ruins. It’s about leaving
your comfort zone.’
Learn more: gadzinowski.pl
PROBLEM: 62 % of men and 50 % of women aged 20-74 are overweight [IŻŻ]
It starts with long working hours, then there’s an all night
long party, dinner at in-laws and after a while you look in
the mirror and see a whale. You shrug and say ‘Not my
fault’. But you can trust Jacek to put you straight.
JACEK GADZINOWSKI
ENTREPRENEUR & BLOGGER (PL)
gadzinowski.pl
11. PROBLEM: 2/3 of adults & 1/3 of children in US are overweight or obese [Harvard]
When Martha learned she’s going to have a child she
partnered with fitness club to exercise regularly and
provide information on benefits of pilates:
‘Well, as most of you know, I’m pregnant and there are
some major changes going on with me…not just
wardrobe adjustments but you know, the whole making a
baby process is pretty massive. Your body goes through
changes and one thing I am really trying to be adamant
about is staying healthy and fit during my pregnancy. This
means eating a good (organic) diet, drinking plenty of
water and of course, exercising.’
Learn more: http://princessmartha.com/category/preggo-
talk/
Chances are you’re not a Stepford wife and even less
that you’d like to be one. And as the list of what a mum
should do never ends so seem the numbers of clothes’
sizes in your wardrobe.
MARTHA DOMINGUEZ
FASHION BLOGGER (US)
princessmartha.com
12. PROBLEM: 2/3 of adults & 1/3 of children in US are overweight or obese [Harvard]
‘
Each week Chris starts his newsletter with sharing what
he’s drinking:
‘Pull up a cup of whatever you're drinking. Me? I'm having
a mix of lemon, ginger, and turmeric in hot water. It's
delicious (and some kind of cleansing recipe). What
about you?’
‘My drink at this very moment is a hot cup of water with
some lemon. What's yours?’
I've got a hot cup of Yerba Mate from Samovar Tea in
San Francisco. How about you? Share what you're
drinking by hitting reply and letting me know directly. :) ‘
‘I've got a nice hot cup of black tea merlot from Vintage
Tea Works today. You? ‘
Don’t you feel like having one, too?
Learn more: Newsletters from Chrisbrogan.com
‘Papa don’t preach’ – don’t you feel like singing it
anytime somebody tells you what you should eat and
drink? And how many times you grabbed something just
because someone told you it’s delicious? That’s
because carrots always work better than sticks!
CHRIS BROGAN
CEO OF HUMAN BUSINESS WORKS (US)
chrisbrogan.com
13. Brené Brown was quite well known psychologist till her
speech at TEDx Houston. Till this day her confession
about depression was watched over 9 million times:
‘From your experience, what were the obstacles in
embracing your own vulnerability? When did you
realize that you needed to do it?
Vulnerability is basically uncertainty, risk, and emotional
exposure. I was raised in a “get ‘er done” and “suck it up”
family and culture (very Texan, German-American). The
tenacity and grit part of that upbringing has served me,
but I wasn’t taught how to deal with uncertainty or how to
manage emotional risk. I spent a lot of years trying to
outrun or outsmart vulnerability by making things certain
and definite, black and white, good and bad. My inability
to lean into the discomfort of vulnerability limited the
fullness of those important experiences that are wrought
with uncertainty: Love, belonging, trust, joy, and creativity
to name a few. Learning how to be vulnerable has been a
street fight for me, but it’s been worth it.’
Learn more:
http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.htm
l
PROBLEM: ~121 million people worldwide have some form of depression [WHO]
Did you know that if any woman had Barbie’s
dimensions she’d had to crawl on 4, couldn’t lift anything
and didn’t have half of internal organs? Are you still sure
you want to work on your perfeccionism? Or maybe
you’re ENOUGH?
BRENÉ BROWN
RESEARCHER & STORYTELLER (US)
brenebrown.com
15. CONTACT
I’D LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR
THOUGHTS,
PLEASE GET IN TOUCH:
agata.piekut@gmail.com
agatapiekut.com
linkedin.com/agatapiekut
MORE:
helloreputation.com