How do you report CSR collaboratively?

Apart from ensuring that the reporting is accurate, the key issue is to demonstrate impact that has made a meaningful contribution beyond marketing and credits to the business. CSR needs to take the view that business can be a driver of sustainable change at grassroots level and the voice of communities and other recipients are key in ensuring that the reporting is measuring true performance.

CSR reporting should be approached not just as a something but as a strategic dialogue. We must view it as a medium to engage stakeholders in meaningful conversations about our social and environmental impact. We should evaluate our report against our goals, framework and stakeholder feedback.

Initial steps will be to define scope of work, KPIs & Indicators, goals and even the perspective plan (3 -5years) will be key. (2) Define the stakeholders and map their contribution & engagement level (c) mapping base-line data and (d) defining Log-Frame is critical. Log-frame will help in determining various resources and budget planning. It will further help in articulating “theory of change” for initiative. With this one can also identify the risk elements, attributing factors too. Upon defining the above factors, the program implementation shall be driven.

CSR is not about Philanthropy/ donation, similarly Philanthropy/ Donation is not CSR. Let's have a clear idea and an inclusive approach to drive growth.

I have found that among those actions that can end up impairing corporate morale is the step of publishing your CSR report without at least circulating it within the organization first. Has anyone had to contend with materiality issues (or concerned GCs) in such a way that they were prohibited from taking this step? Since employees are such a key stakeholder, do most companies offer up this opportunity for employees to at least read it first? I haven't encountered this obstacle but am wondering if others have.

Key stakeholder groups will be (1) Internal (2) external. Internal stakeholders are CSR Council and the company board, Legal and Compliance offices, Government Affairs & Public Policy team, internal auditors among others. External stakeholders will be NGO partners, beneficiaries, local /federal governments, regulatory organisations, external auditor, etc. The CSR reporting should be created considering these stakeholders & requirement. There is also mandatory disclosures of CSR initiative. The CSR reports are created after impact measurement and sometime external agency also prepare the audit report.

You may show your dedication to transparency and accountability by including stakeholders in your reporting process. You can use techniques like surveys to collect feedback, interviews and focus groups to learn more, workshops and webinars to spark debate, and online tools to spread the word and reach more people. You may just learn more about your stakeholders concerns and expectations, and can take the necessary steps to ease their worries and strengthen your bonds with them. By working together, you can make your CSR reporting a more reliable indicator of your company's influence and more effective catalyst for change.

Ideally, CSR reporting should be approached as a strategic dialogue, not just a document. We must view it as a channel to engage stakeholders in meaningful conversations about our social and environmental impact. Only then can goals truly be defined and measured. The moment corporations utilize stakeholders' pov along with theirs, goal-setting and reporting becomes easier.

Also impact study can help, to build firm understanding on the intervention Midterm evaluation can also help in revamping if some gaps are identified

Actually, I don't think that survey conducted among stakeholders can always be helpful for their engagement. They often answer without commitment to questions asked in survey. The online platforms could be better solution for qualitative approach.

One thing I've observed is that internal collaboration in sustainability becomes easier when sustainability is already part of corporate culture instead of being treated as a mere obligation. Get everyone and every department involved. Carry everybody along and the results will be immense!

Primary contributor to CSR report is CSR team. Key external collaborators are partner NGOs, external assessment agency, etc. While internally, finance office, CSR council, legal team or company secretary etc will be key contributor / collaborator. It’s crucial to keep the CSR council involved into reporting / documentation or disclosures. It’s important to define the communication cadence or governance structure for transparency and authenticity.

Crucial point here is to ensure that leadership team is championing and represented on internal collaborations. When leadership are part of the internal team this engagement is much higher and it becomes and is recognised as a part of the company culture, considered in all areas of business and organically grown.

CSR falls under the sustainability department where ESG is adopted as the approach and reporting . We follow the GRI standards in reporting and issue it with certification. Accordingly, the collaboration, internally and externally starts from the planning where materiality calculations is done internally and through stakeholders engagement, reporting from each department to the sustainability department on achievements and challenges is done quarterly, end of the year the sustainability report is issued, made public through a press release with media follow up. Performance per each pillar of the ESG is measured annually and developmental / remedial plans are incorporated in the next year action plan and the 3- year strategy

In my opinion buy in of all internal stakeholders is very important which enables success of any CSR intervention, also if we go like that we can ensure better collaboration

This is very crucial point. in fact, in India, Ministry of Corporate affairs (MCA) has defined several reporting & documenting framework. There is also a annual planning tool as well. Companies also follow GRI or other stock exchange based disclosures tools as well. It’s important to adhere to and adopt one standard of reporting. The companies which are listed in stock exchange have to make even further disclosures. Companies also provide CSR reporting disclosure in the “integrated reporting”. Such integrated report is even audited by the auditor. Therefore reporting standard and guidelines need to be complied with with utmost diligence.

Agree that every business leader likes to know how they are doing compared to others. But caution to be rigorous about materiality and what is important for your business and community. Then what are your medium and long term goals. Collaboration and adjusting or setting up systems to capture data and impact measurement will be easier. Don’t waste your colleagues time chasing data that doesn’t matter - be comfortable in what you don’t monitor and why. Over time you can expand your efforts with the goodwill created from shared progress example - we focused on waste, energy and construction/renovation process.

The frameworks are there to help you and to improve comparability and quality of sustainability reporting in general. All hands should be on deck and no corporation should be left behind. Remember UN sustainable development goal 17? Do not see them as mere obligations but as extensions of your corporation's commitment to being vocal and intentional about sustainability.

Agree with the channels mentioned for disseminating and sharing the reprint in various formats. 1. Companies upload the report on their website2. Use infographics to post the key findings of reprint on social media. 3. publish case study through video stories and document on various social media channels. 4. Internal and external newsletter 5. Integrated report is very important reporting format - it’s and audited reprint and also “assured” by third party in many cases. Companies do publish on their website, on Linkedin and other prominent social media platform. Executive also share key highlight in annual meetings, investor, analyst and media meetings among others.

In using the appropriate channels, try to cater to the needs of all stakeholders. Some will prefer videos over texts and others will appreciate the visual details of Infographics. Be creative and direct!

I agree that using all the platforms available are really important in delivering your message. On a corporate level your reports should be available on your websites to provide detailed information on your initiatives. Additionally, social media channels can be best utilised for day to day updates and prompts, taking into consideration language, tone of voice and the engagement you are looking for to suit the audience in question. There is also a place for face to face activities, local authorities and institutions are actively seeking participation from businesses in the locality as part of wider governance. This is also a great way to meet like minded individuals and collaboration to further enhance your own and community CSR programs.

There is always scope for improvement when it comes to reporting and improving internal processes to capture data and information. Stakeholder engagement and feedback both internal and external is important and helps create a more holistic report.

To report CSR collaboratively: 1. Identify stakeholders. 2. Communicate objectives. 3. Collect relevant data. 4. Engage stakeholders through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. 5. Analyze and synthesize data to identify key findings. 6. Review and validate the report with stakeholders. 7. Publish and distribute the final report to all stakeholders.