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November 2007
The 2007 State of Corporate Citizenship won't be out until next month, but the discussion about it is already heating up.
In hopes that the survey's findings will be fodder for discussion, this year a new element has been added to its release: the Corporate Citizen '07 blog.
The blog's founders hope that it will provide a large readership with a rich discussion of the future of business in America. They say that businesses of all sizes will find something relevant to their context. Likewise, students, consumers, policy makers, and grant makers will find plenty of content to kick around, chew on, dispute, discuss, and apply.
As contributor Doug Sabo – who is also a corporate responsibility blogger for his company, McAfee – said in one of his recent entries: "One of the most powerful benefits of the blogosphere is the opportunity to create community – to interact, dialogue and connect with peers, both strangers and longtime acquaintances. There's a terrific line-up of fellow contributors representing a mix of perspectives, but the real value will come from the dialogue and community-building in the comments."
Jointly sponsored by the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship, the Hitachi Foundation, and Net Impact, the collaborative blog will use the findings of the 2007 State of Corporate Citizenship survey to spark a conversation on its lessons, how those lessons might be applied in the "real" world, and grapple with the implications for businesses and communities.
Mark Popovich from The Hitachi Foundation wrote recently that while CSR was once viewed as "an optional 'add on' it is now generally recognized as a necessity by business leaders across all firm sizes, sectors, and regions of the country in the U.S." Despite that view, Mark previews the finding in this year's report that real-world actions fall far short of business' positive attitudes towards corporate citizenship by saying that "the gap between attitudes and action seems sure to be fodder for a spirited discussion."
Conducted every two years by The Center with the support of The Hitachi Foundation, the State of Corporate Citizenship survey presents a complete picture of what American business is doing in the name of corporate citizenship, and the attitudes of business leaders toward the role of business in society.
The third biennial survey, which will be released in December, shows constant and growing management support for a broad array of corporate citizenship concepts. But it also reveals key gaps between the aspirations and actions of business executives.
The blog has contributors from a range of backgrounds and industries. Three are from The Center: Peggy Connolly, Communications Director; Vesela Veleva, Research Manager, and; Senior Research Fellow Phil Mirvis, an organizational psychologist who has authored eight books. Other bloggers include Barbara Dyer, president & CEO of The Hitachi Foundation; James Farrar, vice president of Corporate Citizenship at SAP; Liz Maw, Executive Director of Net Impact; Mark Popovich, a senior program officer with the Hitachi Foundation; Douglas Sabo, director of worldwide corporate responsibility for McAfee, Inc., and; Anthony Shapella, a financial analyst in the reinsurance business of Towers Perrin.
At the end of it all, the bloggers hope this will be a "community learning" document created by those who use the site, and will form the basis of a broader online CSR social networking effort.
So here's your invitation: Join the discussion at http://www.corporatecitizen07.com.
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