Corporate Social Responsibility and Its Reporting From a Management Control System Perspective

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a response to stakeholder concerns and signals organisational legitimacy. We propose CSR reporting from a comprehensive and integrated management control system perspective. Reporting parameters start with stated people, planet, and profit goals supported by objectives achieved through legal, ethical/moral, economic, and giving practices. Objectives are measured, assessed, and reported through key performance indicators. These objectives are quantified, sufficiently specific, have a timeline, and identify targeted stakeholder group(s). CSR strategy and its reporting are consistent with organisational mission, values, and strategy. CSR, like most business processes, is a dynamic process occurring over time and adjusting to circumstances sometimes involving trade-offs. CSR reporting ideally reflects this process through providing context and visual depictions of goals, practices, and performance evaluation that demonstrate not only a single period in time, but also trends that may present a more complete picture of an organisation’s CSR performance. CSR reporting parameters are proposed