The standand approach to finance is often the sad antithesis of corporate social responsibility. Most Finance managers have a perception of CSR as simply a cost center and not a revenue generator.Cohen provides an explanation of how there is a basis for the financial function to be a contributor to, and not just a calculator of a company’s CSR program.

Many companies are turning to Corporate Social Responsibility as a strategy to win back the trust of their stakeholders and customers. It won’t work. Why? Because you don’t become trustworthy by asking people to trust you even more. Corporate social responsibility requires trust.

Voting has begun for the Third Annual CR Reporting Awards (CRRA‘10), the only independent global annual awards for corporate responsibility (CR) reporting. The jury consists of an online CR community of 28,500. The deadline to submit your vote is: January 29, 2010.

There is a serious lack of trust among consumers these days. Citizens of every country are eying large national and multi-national corporations with a narrowed, suspicious gaze. Questions are being asked. Answers demanded. With taxpayers around the world bailing out stupendous failures in the financial, housing, and insurance sectors, there is more than a lack of consumer confidence affecting the market. Frankly, we’re over it. We just don’t trust big business anymore. This is actually nothing new. But the uniform opinion of distrust, leveraged by the social media tools of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Ning sites, and blogging seems to have brought us to a tipping point.

As consumer expectations rise and trust in corporations decline, the need for ethical business practices is greater than ever. Yet in a recession, companies seeking to cut costs will likely postpone important CSR initiatives or cut spending in favor of core business initiatives. But it doesn’t have to be either-or. Companies that consider social and environmental initiatives as potential innovation platforms and brand builders — not expenses — will come out ahead.

Are you a recent graduate discovering how difficult the current market is, unemployed, worried you might soon lose your job or just feel that your career seems stuck in place? Are you thinking that now may be the best time to re-tool your career? Going for a green MBA, now, while the job market is stagnant may be a smart move; both for recent graduates, currently unemployed (or underemployed) professionals as well as for those who want to forge a path into a career in corporate sustainability. But what is a Green MBA, why is it important and what schools are offering them? These are the questions this post delves into.

What are the “greenest” brands in the U.S.? Until we can define “green,” there’s no meaningful way to answer that question. Of course, that doesn’t stop people from having, and expressing, opinions.

Guest Post by Elaine Cohen, Joint CEO of BeyondBusiness Ltd
The purpose of a CSR report is to build trust. By operating transparently and responding openly to stakeholder concerns and aspirations, through a “fair and balanced” presentation of the material issues relating to your organization’s sustainability and corporate responsibility efforts, you build trust. Trust, so that [...]

I’m lucky, I found my vocation. But CR is becoming much more mainstream and now appeals to a wider group as a potential career. I receive emailed CV/resumes every day and aim to reply to all of them – I did say ‘aim’ – one of CR reporting’s most useful qualifications. Feel free to chase me. Opportunities are expanding in major companies, business organizations, NGOs and think tanks, socially responsible investors, academia, regulators and political parties and consultancies (us). But does CR offer the many interested graduates and mid-life changers prospects of a fulfilling and rewarding career? Here’s a test of your aptitude for the majority of CR positions available today…