Browsing by Subject "CSR"

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    Open Access
    Evaluating the influence of corporate social responsibility on brand reputation in the mining industry: a case study of Exxaro's Grootegeluk mine
    (2021) Mashego, Sendra Dimakatso; Madinga, Nkosivile; Chigada, Joel
    Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is now playing an imperative role in South Africa and globally, especially in the mining sector. This industry is expected to make profits while contributing towards a better society. Despite the industry‘s significant contribution to the economy, it also has a negative impact socially and environmentally. Over the past decades the mining sector has been seen as not mindful of its immediate stakeholders. Communities in close proximity to mines do not trust mining companies due to perceptions that mining companies fail to consider the environment within which they operate. Communities are often left with the impression that mines have simply degraded the environment without contributing to sustainable local development such as such as poverty, health, infrastructure, education and unemployment. The reputation of mining companies thus has declined, resulting in economic losses. Mining companies still interpret CSR as an environmental stewardship rather than a model for improving alignment with its stakeholders, as well as enhancing and building brand reputation. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of CSR on the mining industry's brand reputation. The study links the CSR efforts of Exxaro‘s Grootegeluk Mine and their ability to enhance the mine‘s reputation in areas of operation. Exxaro is among the top five coal producers in South Africa. The Grootegeluk Coal Mine is an open cast coal mine in Lephalale, Limpopo. A quantitative research methodology was applied using a face to face structured self-administered questionnaire to collect primary data from a sample of 330 participants. Descriptive statistical analysis was conducted with a view to condense the sample composition. The non-probability sampling was deemed appropriate for this study, particularly, the simple random sampling. Regression analysis was deemed suitable to for this study. The collected data was analysed using SPSS version 26.0. Research results have shown that CSR has a favourable association with brand reputation. The study found that community members are more aware of the mine‘s economic responsibility in relation to other dimensions of CSR. This finding implies that the community is more in-tune with aspects that have a direct bearing on their livelihood and are more inclined to seek opportunities and initiatives that improve their overall standard of living. Overall, the findings show that organisations that invest in socially responsible behaviour have higher levels of perceived reputation among the society. Philanthropic initiatives should be developed with the involvement of community members to ensure that their real needs will be determined. Poorly developed community projects do not benefit the mine or the community. The mines should look into sourcing the majority of its staff from the local community. In addition, mining organizations should look into aggressively training local community members who do not possess the required skills necessary for employment within the mining sector. Furthermore, communities should be made aware of all CSR initiatives which are relevant to them through community engagement initiatives because this action will lead to attitude and behaviour changes towards the mine. Previous studies have focused mainly on how CSR initiatives contribute to brand value, customer satisfaction, brand attitude, customer retention, and customer loyalty, and on the relationship between CSR and organization performance. This study highlights the importance of CSR measures on organizational reputation and advises policymakers, the mining industry and scholars.
  • Thumbnail Image
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    Open Access
    Evaluating the influence of corporate social responsibility on brand reputation in the mining industry: a case study of Exxaro's Grootegeluk mine
    (2021) Mashego, Sendra Dimakatso; Madinga, Nkosivile; Chigada, Joel
    Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is now playing an imperative role in South Africa and globally, especially in the mining sector. This industry is expected to make profits while contributing towards a better society. Despite the industry‘s significant contribution to the economy, it also has a negative impact socially and environmentally. Over the past decades the mining sector has been seen as not mindful of its immediate stakeholders. Communities in close proximity to mines do not trust mining companies due to perceptions that mining companies fail to consider the environment within which they operate. Communities are often left with the impression that mines have simply degraded the environment without contributing to sustainable local development such as such as poverty, health, infrastructure, education and unemployment. The reputation of mining companies thus has declined, resulting in economic losses. Mining companies still interpret CSR as an environmental stewardship rather than a model for improving alignment with its stakeholders, as well as enhancing and building brand reputation. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of CSR on the mining industry's brand reputation. The study links the CSR efforts of Exxaro‘s Grootegeluk Mine and their ability to enhance the mine‘s reputation in areas of operation. Exxaro is among the top five coal producers in South Africa. The Grootegeluk Coal Mine is an open cast coal mine in Lephalale, Limpopo. A quantitative research methodology was applied using a face to face structured self-administered questionnaire to collect primary data from a sample of 330 participants. Descriptive statistical analysis was conducted with a view to condense the sample composition. The non-probability sampling was deemed appropriate for this study, particularly, the simple random sampling. Regression analysis was deemed suitable to for this study. The collected data was analysed using SPSS version 26.0. Research results have shown that CSR has a favourable association with brand reputation. The study found that community members are more aware of the mine‘s economic responsibility in relation to other dimensions of CSR. This finding implies that the community is more in-tune with aspects that have a direct bearing on their livelihood and are more inclined to seek opportunities and initiatives that improve their overall standard of living. Overall, the findings show that organisations that invest in socially responsible behaviour have higher levels of perceived reputation among the society. Philanthropic initiatives should be developed with the involvement of community members to ensure that their real needs will be determined. Poorly developed community projects do not benefit the mine or the community. The mines should look into sourcing the majority of its staff from the local community. In addition, mining organizations should look into aggressively training local community members who do not possess the required skills necessary for employment within the mining sector. Furthermore, communities should be made aware of all CSR initiatives which are relevant to them through community engagement initiatives because this action will lead to attitude and behaviour changes towards the mine. Previous studies have focused mainly on how CSR initiatives contribute to brand value, customer satisfaction, brand attitude, customer retention, and customer loyalty, and on the relationship between CSR and organization performance. This study highlights the importance of CSR measures on organizational reputation and advises policymakers, the mining industry and scholars.
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    Open Access
    Exploring the social innovation orientation of corporate social responsibility practitioners
    (2014) Wilson,UnaTessSade; Nilsson, Warren
    The purpose of this study was to conduct a qualitative examination which explored the Social Innovation Orientation (SIO) of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practitioners as part of a broader contribution towards developing an augmenting and or an alternative mechanism to address the challenges faced by CSR practitioners and companies in fulfilling societal expectations in developing countries. The study sought to answer the question: In what ways are CSR practitioners building an SIO? The study also aimed to answer questions on whether any profound change or challenge was posed by CSR practitioners to the current systems through basic routines, authority flows, beliefs and resources (Westley and Antadze, 2010). The status of CSR advancement by companies was also explored. These questions were answered in the context of a developing country, more specifically South Africa. In order to set a relevant contextual background, the literature review covered two main broad variables, CSR and social innovation, as well as a detailed description of an SIO through four facets, namely: social experimentation, collaboration and inclusivity, scale mind-set, and institutional impact. The sample comprised CSR practitioners who met the sampling criteria. Information was gathered from these CSR practitioners using a semi-structured interview protocol. An analysis of the data gathered led to the description of the patterns which emerged, which presented across a continuum both narratively and graphically those CSR practitioners who were making the strides on the SIO continuum and those that were not. The study found that even with the CSR practitioners' strong desire to be viewed as delivering results, they needed to manage the expectations of stakeholders, particularly within their own companies, regarding what success was and what it was not. It was discovered that being more deliberate contributes to the building of an SIO. Through a focus on not repeating past mistakes while still working together with stakeholders in a manner which is proactive instead of defensive, CSR practitioners could be building an SIO. The results showed that fostering a participatory and inclusive environment from an early stage was beneficial in the development of an SIO. Another discovery was that the size of an intervention was of less importance than the significance of its potential impact. Practical contributions are proposed for companies and CSR practitioners as a result of this research, some of which are: a support approach to existing mechanisms, a component to be used in recruitment and performance appraisal, and a view to understanding social innovation and what it can mean for the company-centric perspective. Overall, the study revealed that CSR practitioners are building an SIO. Social experimentation, and collaboration and inclusivity were found to be more prevalent than the scale mind-set and institutional impact. SIOs were not void of the latter elements. These two elements should not be discarded. Whilst the SIO elements have been positioned as non-linear, it was revealed that some categorical features and linearity did exist.