Corporate social responsibility

In this lesson

1. 0:00 Corporate social responsibility explained
2. 1:04 CSR dimensions and stakeholder impact
3. 2:09 Ben and Jerry's and Tom's case studies
4. 4:38 RBS animal testing scandal scenario
5. 6:33 Analysing profit loss from CSR failure

About this lesson

reputation or, when mishandled, cause significant reputational damage. Through a worked case study, you'll see how to analyse CSR failures and distinguish between legal compliance and genuine ethical responsibility, a key distinction in exam questions. Corporate social responsibility is far broader than a single policy. It encompasses how businesses source resources, manage their carbon footprint, treat employees, and contribute to society. Companies increasingly use strong CSR commitments as a strategic advantage to attract conscious consumers and build loyalty. However, the gap between stated values and actual practice is real—some businesses use CSR as marketing while continuing questionable practices behind the scenes. Understanding this distinction is essential for exam success and real-world business analysis. The worked example of RBS cosmetics illustrates how quickly reputational damage can occur. When the company's animal-testing pledge was contradicted by a media revelation about historic practices, profits fell 10% across all product ranges. The analysis shows you how to identify genuine causes of business impact (bad publicity and loss of competitive advantage) versus assumptions without supporting evidence. This approach—basing judgements strictly on information provided—reflects the rigour expected in case study and objective test questions across ACCA and CIMA qualifications.

Duration: 9m