Using CSR As a Key Element for Achieving Competitive Advantage
025-0181 Moral has no seasons: Using CSR as a key element for achieving competitive advantage. Marina Mattera Department of Economics and International Relations Universidad Europea de Madrid, C/Tajo, s/n. 28670-Villaviciosa de Odon-(Madrid) Spain POMS 23rd Annual Conference Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. April 20 to April 23, 2011 Abstract: Firms' new challenges in the 21st century involve innovation and society's request for a more responsible business model. Based on bounded rationality conditions and the important role of externalities, it is analyzed through a case study whether corporate social responsibility strategies are essential for companies to achieve sustainable competitive advantages. Key words: Sustainable Development; Sustainable Management; Corporate Social Responsability; Open Innovation models. 1. Introduction Efforts towards generating sustainable growth and steady benefits have owned its accurate planning to the competitive advantage owned by the company. In several studies, it has been demonstrated that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can improve a firm’s performance by enhancing the prestige and perception from consumers’ perspective (competitive advantage). However, it has also been denoted that solid inter-agents relationships are enhanced when they have consolidated CSR actions between them. New models for conducting business emerge, and together with them new difficulties. Known as “open innovation” (OI) models, the aforementioned collaborations between organizations have also gained a purely international character. This study aims to analyze those new interactions and relationships between firms, which of them succeed and the role corporate social responsibility plays in such a context. Taking into account the complex level of the existing interrelationship between agents and countries where they operate, it becomes difficult to accurately depict the company’s culture, its values, and beliefs; as shown in Figure 1.
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