Corporate social responsibility: concepts and practice

CSR Responsibility

Some of the references have the words "accessed on ..." which is an indication that the reference is an online one, but there is no webpage associated with it, and hence I would be grateful if I can have the full

Some of the references used has a general website, such as

"http://www.proquest.com," but when you go there it is a membership website and not anybody can access it. So my request is what is the possibility of the writer getting me the full link or a PDF or jpg file of the document used, and if there is cost incurred just inform before how much it will cost me to obtain these files.

would be grateful if I can have to enlarge the paper. This can be done by more explanation of the model described on page 3 "Table 1: Proposed IFI CSR

Maturity Model."

If I can have another page added at the extra cost of $18.00. These 300

words + the 400 requested earlier should take the word count in the paper to around 2700 or at least not less than 2500 words. Again more explanation of the model + more general explanation using the papers I sent. It is very important for the writer to use some of the papers I sent him earlier to enlarge the paper.

To do this, I would be grateful if the paper can be with me before 23/4/09.

If there is any difficulty in any of my request or require more clarification, please inform me ASAP.

Thank you again for your help and support.

NOTE: I have added in at least 700 words for you, thank you! The new test is shown in italic bolded font

Research Proposal:

Corporate Social Responsibility Practices of Islamic Banks

Introduction

Assessing and measuring the contribution of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs of Islamic Financial Institutions (IFI) and their long-term effects on emerging growth businesses is the intent of this research proposal. The investment approaches used IFI to create and sustain CSR-based outreach programs to emerging and entrepreneurial businesses including reliance on Mudarabah for financing and Profit-and-Loss sharing arrangements for small businesses are the basis of this research. The objectives of this research are to evaluate the effectiveness of CSR programs by IFIs to determine their long-term contribution to the creation and formation of new businesses. The role of CSR programs as a form of venture capital including microlending and microfinancing (Djojosugito, 113, 114), in addition to measuring the viability of the profit-and-loss sharing (PLS) scheme longitudinally in terms of its contributory or detrimental roles in the formation of new businesses. The methodology of this study concentrates on interviewing entrepreneurs of small IFI-based firms and the accumulated performance of microlending and microfinancing programs over time. The distribution of type of business, its product or service orientation, the role of IFIs in providing the necessary guidance for creating a successful going concern are also to be analyzed. The practice of capital asset allocation in the creation of new businesses through CSR-based programs including Bai' al-Inah as a means to invest in new plant & equipment, facilities and supplies that would be a capitalized expense from a cost accounting standpoint is also discussed. These results will then be extrapolated across the regions of the world where IFIs operate and then global results of the results of CSR programs assessed. CSR is seen as one of the catalysts of the growth if Islamic banking (Khan, Bhatti, et.al) and an insight gained from this study will evaluate that finding from previous empirical studies of the topic.

Aims and Objectives

The following are the aims and objectives of the proposed research study. Underscoring each of these aims and objectives is the assessment of whether CSR program are actually attaining the desired results or not. This will be determined by interviewing IFI managers to determine their initial goals for Mudarabah-based programs, micro-lending and CSR-based outreach programs in the Islamic nations with low per capita incomes. While IFI-based CSR programs have been critically praised for the contributions to communities and in fact entire regions of nations (Maali, Casson, Napier, 266) they have not intensively been studied purely from their translations of small businesses into going concerns capable of uplifting an entire region based on economic growth. CSR programs are meant to create sustainability while staying consistent with the ethico-legal dimension (Rosly, 31) of the IFI operating principles. The balancing of purely social contribution to the ability to have CSR programs serve as the catalyst of new venture creation and the enrichment of entire regions is the paradox on which this research is to be based. As a result, the following are the key aims and objectives, each specifically defined to provide a clearer glimpse into the paradox of purely using CSR as a means to fuel social change or to accomplish both through the creation of new enterprises that have the ability to deliver a higher standard of living to many more than those just underwritten with the initial investment. This study seeks to measure the long-term gains of CSR programs both from a social as well as new venture perspective. While measuring the total number of lives enriched socially, spiritually and through a standard of living increases due to microfinancing and microlending programs leading to more job creation is not possible given the scope of this study, the long-term growth just of the businesses and social programs financed is. Measuring relative growth of these firms over time and then assigning a relative measure of performance to them, in effect indexing their growth by the extent of CSR support then are given, will lead to the creation of a IFI CSR Maturity Model which is shown in Figure 1.

Table 1: Proposed IFI CSR Maturity Model

The proposed model will show over time the effects of CSR programs on new venture growth and the attainment of specific social responsibility goals over time. CSR's programs dual roles will be measured in the proposed IFI CSR Maturity Model.

Analyzing the Proposed IFI CSR Maturity Model

At the highest levels of maturity, which would be considered best practices in the context of this proposed model, is the level of orchestrating functions across a federation of banks that are necessary for creating intercommunity maturity. On the CSR and microfinance contribution to growth side of the proposed model the ability to define data sharing and funding across financial institutions defined maturity levels of the proposed model. This in turn defines multi-tier, multi-funding visibility and collaboration. From the research completed for this proposal, few Islamic lending institutions have attained this level of transparency with each member of their lending chain; rather the majorities are in the Anticipating phase of the IFI CSR Maturity Model, choosing to focus on a select group of financial institutions that are a significantly high level of orders are fulfilled with the assistance of, and where collaboration is more likely to be instantaneous due to the high level of trust achieved.

Many lending institutions occupying the second highest layer, collaborating, are using portals including Intranet platforms for maximizing information sharing and co-sharing of financial data and CSR best practices that can deliver much value to emerging businesses. Collaborative lending strategies, as they are defined from the research cited in this proposal, are marked by reliance on a high level of cross-lender collaboration as well. While many may see the concept of cross-lender collaboration being improbable and even avoidable in the development of a competitive lending environment, in fact those lending practices that have reached best practices level of performance specifically have this attribute.

The next level of the model, Orchestrating level of performance, the step above that is that the entire lending network becomes a "learning network. Anticipating, the second highest level in the maturity model, is where the majority of lenders are today, which is to say "every lender or financial institution for themselves." The focus on making a strong correlation between making information flow optimized vs. striking a collaborative focus with other Islamic financial vendors throughout the industry's financial services value chain. This level of the maturity model is a transitory one and is focused more on either small, incremental gains from the first level, which is Reacting.

In the Reacting layer of this proposed IFI CSR Maturity Model, the majority of departments within a lending institution have decidedly "every department for itself" approach to process maturity and have information flow that is purely dependent on personal productivity applications only. These include Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, and others, and in short the development of longer-range projects and programs is non-existent in this level of the IFI CSR Maturity Model. At this level of the model, lending institutions focus first and foremost on tactical wins at the expense of global victories. This mindset in turn creates an isolated approach to lending programs and CSR initiatives. The isolation that exists at the Reacting layer of this maturity model has implications on the solvency of financial institutions as well, as the need for transparency across financial services value chains is critical if key compliance and audit criteria are to be met, and businesses allowed continuing trading globally.

In an era of terrorism and turbulence in global markets the greater the level of shared risk and transparency, the greater the likelihood financial institutions will be more resilient in the face of greater challenges of operation. This is a critical point that must be kept in mind in the context of the IFI CSR Maturity Model, as globalization forces a higher level of inter-process and cross-functional coordination throughout a value chain. The IFI CSR Maturity Model also brings up the critical point of the best defense against uncertainty is a strong offense that seeks higher levels of performance through greater synchronization of both financial services value chain data and greater levels of cross-financial services provider coordination.

IFI CSR Maturity Model Assumptions

The following are the key assumptions regarding the definition of the IFI CSR Maturity Model:

1. The end result for lenders and financial institutions are pursuing higher levels of maturity on the model's layers translates into greater levels of agility and synchronization with customer demands as well. It could be said that the greater the level of Orchestrating a lending organization can do with its financial partners, the higher the level of market agility in will have in responding to its customers. .

2. The greater the level of systems and processes integration across lenders and between Islamic banks and their intermediaries, the greater the level of collaboration and orchestration. Inherent in the migration of lenders from the Anticipating level of this model to Collaborating and Orchestrating is the corresponding maturity in the shared approaches to managing risk -- namely the adoption of a shared ethical foundation. This is a critical point to keep in mind when evaluating the IFI CSR Maturity Model, that the development of entirely new levels of risk sharing through a common ethical foundational bond is critical to seeing this model as actionable.

In summary, the aims and objectives of this research study are to quantify the long-term effects of CSR programs specifically in the areas of intercommunity maturity and measuring the combined contributory effects of CST and microfinance initiatives to new venture growth. Comparing the relative growth an maturity of these two initiatives over time will in turn serve as the theoretical foundation of the Proposed IFR CSR Maturity Model.

The Rationale for the Research

The factors that support this specific logic and rationale center on the paradigm of Islamic banking as being egalitarian and more focused on the ethics of financing new venture growth vs. treating the actual financing transaction as a means to generate profits (Choudhury, Hussain, et.al). Quantifying the long-term effects of investment in the form of IFI-based CSR, microfinancing and microlending as defined by the contractual agreements made (Siddiqui, 681, 682) is the basis of defining sampling frame. In conjunction with this approach to constructing the research there is also the available of social disclosures by IFIs as well (Abdeldayem, 351, 351). The long-term effects of microlending and microfinance (Hasan, et.al) are also included in the proposed research to measure their combined effects with CSR programs on the extent to which new ventures integrate themselves into their communities. This will be measured through an analysis of supply chains, partner agreements and the reliance on CSR initiatives as a means to create entirely new means of production and service. In summary, the rationale is to first isolate the effectiveness or return on investment in CSR programs by IFI, and then measure their combined effects on new venture growth in conjunction with microfinancing and microlending.

Literature Review

In assessing if CSR programs actually deliver value the precepts of Islamic banking must first be assessed, in addition to an analysis of the effects of additional strategies including microfinancing and microlending as well. The underlying concepts of CSR programs being to altruistically benefit a surrounding community to an IFI have not specifically been measured relative to their contribution to new venture growth. Rather, the enriching of a given community is seen as consistent with the majority of theories of how the Network Effect influences the spread of goodwill that is seen to emanate from effectively planned CSR and microfinancing programs (Dusuki, et.al). Further research by Dusuki in his paper Does Corporate Social Responsibility Pay off? An Empirical Examination of Stakeholder Perspectives indicates that respondents see the IFIs as being the primary providers of CSR program over time, even over and above those offered by municipalities. Taking into the account that Dusuki completed this study in Malaysia and given their high level of socialization of medicine and social programs, this is surprising. One of the most significant findings from the Dusuki study is the degree of agreement is that 51.6% of respondents see IFIs being primarily responsible for CSR programs for their local communities given their high level of commitment to the values of Shari'ah. Respondents to the Dusuki study cited also see IFIs as having a much more significant role to play in the development of communities overall as well. Most noteworthy from the Dusuki study is the precedence it sets for the study of interest. Dusuki found that CSR and new venture growth are mutually exclusive, yet have a supportive effect on each other. One could infer from the study completed by Dusuki that the expectations of CSR support for the local Islamic community is so strong that IFIs must at least make the effort to address them to stay in good standing in their communities. Like the Network Effect, this Pygmalion Effect requires additional research to completely ascertain the community effects on this aspect of how IFIs make decisions regarding CSR investments. Yet there is a definite cyclical relationship in the socio-economic aspects of how IFIs are incented and induced to create and launch CSR programs. From Dusuki's research it is apparent that when CSR and microfinancing programs are combined the accumulative effects on the surrounding community in general, and the specific organizations receiving support, are successful. This research effort plans to quantify to the extent these efforts are successful in sustainable new venture creation that aligns with the core values of IFIs.