Employees’ Participation in a Company’s CSR : How do formal and informal cultural systems affect employees’ participation in a company’s CSR activities

Abstract Purpose: This paper aims to investigate how formal and informal cultural systems within an organization, affect the CSR related actions employees are taking at their workplace on a daily basis. The purpose is to explore how the systemsaffect employees’ participation in a company's CSR. Problem: There is a need for improvements in CSR activities. This improvement could be carried out by creating deeper employee engagement in CRS development and implementation. Gapsbetween externally communicated CSR and internally implemented CSR exists. Researchers have emphasized the importance of culture as a significant factor for successful CSR as well that many organizations are struggling with the integration of sustainability into the cultures and climates. Method:The study is conducted through qualitative research and a case study method. The case study consisted of semi-structured interviews, the sample consisted of seven employees. The research in this thesis was conducted through an inductive approach. Findings: Findings show that the formal cultural systems affected actions related to only one of the CSR aims of the company. The informal cultural systems did not affect employees to take specific actions but rather their mindset. Moreover, findings suggest that employees took CSR related actions without being fully aware of the company’s CSR. The findings also indicated a low awareness of formal documents andidentified factors beyond formal and informal systems that drove and hindered employees to take CSR related actions.