What is Corporate Citizenship?

Corporate citizenship refers to the set of activities or responsibilities of an organization that help them make a positive contribution to society in general. Corporate citizenship also refers to standards that an organization puts in place to meet corporate social responsibility. 

In every country, there are certain responsibilities that are expected from businesses and organizations as a way of contributing to the development of a society. 

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has outlined a set of standards that will aid the implementation of corporate social responsibility by companies.

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Development of Corporate Citizenship

There are five developmental stages through which businesses and organizations attain corporate citizenship, they are:

• Elementary stage: This is the basic stage where an organization begins to carry out certain projects tailored to corporate social responsibility. The elementary stage starts with compliance to the ISO standards and other occupational health safety standards.
• Engagement stage: This is the phase in which the company develops conscious policies that mandate the involvement of its employees in activities that contribute positively to the community.
• Innovative Stage: At this stage, a company devises creative means to implement corporate social responsibility. This is in a way to make them recognized and stand out among others.
• Integrated Stage: This is when a company has fully blended with activities and processes involved in corporate social responsibility.
• Transforming stage: This is the stage an organization has fully grasp what corporate citizenship entails, the standards and processes involved.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a major pathway to attaining corporate citizenship. 

 CSR is a self-regulating business model that keeps a company significant in society and improve their recognition.