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. 

Corporate Citizenship Varies by Location

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. 

International Standards for Corporate Citizenship

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

ISO 26000 is defined as the international standard developed to help organizations effectively assess and address social responsibilities that are relevant and significant to their mission and vision; operations and processes; customers, employees, communities, and other stakeholder, and environmental impact.

The ISO 26000 standard provides guidance on:

• Recognizing social responsibility and engaging stakeholders
• Ways to integrate socially responsible behavior into the organization
• The seven key underlying principles of social responsibility:
  • Accountability
  • Transparency
  • Ethical behavior
  • Respect for stakeholder interests
  • Respect for the rule of law
  • Respect for international norms of behavior
  • Respect for human rights
• The seven core subjects and issues pertaining to social responsibility:
  • Organizational governance
  • Human rights
  • Labor practices
  • The environment
  • Fair operating practices
  • Consumer issues
  • Community involvement and development

Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Citizenship

Corporate social responsibility, or simply CSR, concerns the purpose and objectives of private businesses to further or promote societal goals that benefit society at large. Common goals to benefit society include: philanthropy, charity, community development, environment sustainability, etc. 

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

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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.