Ethymology and genesis of the concept “corporate social responsibility”

Abstract

Introduction. Increasing of interest in corporate social responsibility has become currently important in Ukraine only in recent years, at a time when the concept of corporate social responsibility has been developing around the world for several decades. Domestic enterprises rarely use the principles of social responsibility in their activities. The level of familiarity with this topic is insufficient to understand the importance of the issue for business, and most often such a position is argued of financial insolvency.

Purpose. Given the above, it is important to describe the process of origin of the concept of "corporate social responsibility", to understand the reasons for its emergence, as well as to formulate a modern interpretation of the term. This will prove its importance in the light of current trends in the economy as a whole, show the need for implementation and use in all economic entities.

The theoretical basis of the research is the basic principles of management and economics. To carry out scientific searches on the topic were used general scientific methods of cognition, methods of logical analysis, generalization, synthesis.

Results. The article deals with the origin of the concept of "corporate social responsibility", historical preconditions for its emergence. The transformation of understanding of corporate social responsibility from unsystematic activity in the field of charity to more specific realization of it as a component of the overall strategy of enterprise management is observed. The main landmarks in the history of its development and the role of the state in fixing this concept in the consciousness of business are determined.

Various approaches to the definition of CSR are presented. The applicability of the concept for modern companies in the context of matching the trends of business sphere and the needs of society is determined. The importance of CSR for the enterprise and society as a whole in the current conditions of workplace and market relations is formulated.