ISO 26000 and strategic management processes for corporate sustainability and social responsibility

Publication Type
Journal contribution (peer reviewed)
Authors
Hahn, R.
Year of publication
2013
Published in
Business Strategy and the Environment
Band/Volume
22/7
DOI
10.1002/bse.1751
Page (from - to)
442-455
Abstract

The standard ISO 26000 aims to provide guidance on social responsibility and help all types of organizations contribute to sustainable development. Such guidance is important since there is still no consistent understanding of what corporate sustainability and social responsibility (CSSR) encompass. Many companies lack a strategic approach to CSSR and instead follow unsystematic procedures; thus, formal strategic planning could improve operational efficiency.

Against this background, this article critically examines the contribution of ISO 26000 to the strategic management processes of different types of companies. This allows the potential of ISO 26000 for guiding companies on their path to sustainability to be identified. The analysis shows that the standard is most useful for beginners in CSSR. However, ISO 26000 does not cover the entire range of strategic management processes. Instead, the standard is especially helpful for internal and external analyses and in providing starting points for implementing sustainability strategies. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

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