CSR FAQ

What is the definition of CSR?

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) refers to the integration of social and environmental concerns into the various economic activities of companies.

Every company that practises CSR has a positive impact on society, while contributing to sustainable development and respect for the environment. This ethical and transparent behavior is reflected in the decisions made by organizations, in their commercial activities and in their relations with stakeholders…

As a genuine source of added value and a lever for economic success, more and more companies are defining their strategy with CSR in mind.

ISO 26000
defines CSR as : “An organization’s responsibility for the impact of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, reflected in ethical and transparent behavior that – contributes to sustainable development, including the health and well-being of society; – takes into account the expectations of stakeholders; respects applicable laws and is consistent with international standards of behavior; and is integrated throughout the organization and implemented in its relationships “*.

*Reference note

How to implement CSR in your company?

To implement a CSR approach in your company, it is essential to think in stages:

• Carry out an audit and diagnosis of the company’s situation, to target the different needs, challenges, opportunities, existing measures… A benchmark of your competitors’ CSR approaches is also a good idea.
• Identify and map the company’s various stakeholders. You can then involve them in your corporate social responsibility strategy. At this stage, it is useful to appoint a CSR Director to oversee the strategy.
• Define clear and precise CSR objectives, which must be linked to each stakeholder.

These first three steps will help you frame the development of your CSR strategy. The next step is to use a common reference framework such as ISO 26000, which defines commitments and the implementation of a concrete action plan. Once you have initiated your CSR approach, you can :

• Train employees to create a culture of commitment.
• Make public commitments and perpetuate the CSR approach by prioritizing actions with a ROI. For example, reducing paper printing, changing light bulbs to low-energy bulbs, developing telecommuting to limit employee travel and CO2 emissions, improving waste sorting, developing local roots, promoting diversity and disability, working on the company’s raison d’être, and developing responsible purchasing, …
• 
  Non-financial reporting
  to measure, monitor and communicate your results transparently. For companies with fewer than 500 employees and sales of €100 million, this monitoring is not mandatory. We do, however, recommend that you create one, to highlight the efforts of each stakeholder and track the effectiveness of your CSR approach!

You can also consult our file on developing a CSR approach.

Is the Pacte Act a CSR law?

The Action Plan for Business Growth and Transformation… Have you heard of it?

The PACTE Act
is a finance law passed in 2019. It targets small and medium-sized businesses and the self-employed. The aim is simple: to enable these companies to innovate, transform themselves, create jobs… To put these VSEs and SMEs back at the heart of economic activity in France.

Among the dozens of measures voted, we find :

• Simplified procedures to encourage business growth
• More attractive employee savings schemes for small and medium-sized businesses (exemption from social security contributions, new calculation of the employee profit-sharing threshold, etc.).
• A strengthening of corporate social responsibility (CSR), with social and environmental issues added to the definition of a company. Companies are encouraged to reflect on their “raison d’être” and include it in their articles of association. The company’s purpose and its contribution to society enable it to obtain the status of a company with a mission, if the measures of social interest and consideration of social and environmental issues defined in the PACTE law are complied with.

The PACTE Act is therefore not primarily a CSR law. However, it incorporates a CSR approach that values social and environmental benefits. Although this law is not mandatory and is voluntary, it does help to raise awareness of CSR initiatives and contribute to the common good.

What is non-financial reporting?

Do you remember the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report? The latter is now replaced by a declaration of extra-financial performance, known as extra-financial reporting.

Non-financial reporting is a strategic management tool. It presents the company’s CSR actions and results.

It is also a communication tool: it provides transparency and visibility to all stakeholders on the social and environmental consequences of the company’s activities.

For many years, reporting was exclusively financial. Today, extra-financial consequences (social, societal and environmental) are becoming increasingly important. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the UN are proof of this: many companies are building extra-financial reporting that contributes to one or more of the 17 SDGs.

When drafting the extra-financial report, a list of relevant information in 3 areas is expected: social, environmental and societal. To detail the content of non-financial reporting, companies can rely on national standards such as ISO 26000.

Non-financial reporting is mandatory for large companies
listed and unlisted companies (SA, SARL, Sociétés en commandite par actions). However, any company, whatever its size, status or sector, can voluntarily set up a non-financial reporting system.

What is the 2030 Agenda?

The Agenda 2030 is an action plan built around 5 pillars: the planet, people, peace, prosperity and partnerships.

Adopted in September 2015 by the 193 UN member states, this Agenda 2030 is a genuine sustainable development program to transform the world by 2030.

The Agenda 2030 sets
17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
to realize the vision and mission of this program. This 29-page document is based on three dimensions: economic, social and environmental. For example, strengthening world peace, eradicating poverty and preserving the planet are central concerns.

The 2030 Agenda is universal and applies to all countries. In France, the SDGs are shared by all stakeholders and citizens in the signatory countries. We can only achieve our objectives by first identifying the key areas for progress in France. To achieve this, a roadmap has been drawn up, detailing the issues at stake, France’s implementation of sustainable development and the concrete levers for action that will commit French players over the long term.

What are the 17 SDGs?

17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
were defined and adopted by the UN in September 2015. Detailed in the Agenda 2030, these objectives are broken down into 169 targets to be achieved by 2030.

They provide a roadmap to a better, more sustainable future. These objectives have environmental, social and economic dimensions. They’re all interconnected, and everyone needs to be reached, leaving no one behind.

The 17 sustainable development goals are :

1. Eradicating poverty
2. Combating hunger by guaranteeing food security and sustainable agriculture
3. Enabling healthy living and promoting well-being for all
4. Guaranteeing access to quality education
5. Achieving gender equality
6. Ensuring access to safe water and sanitation
7. Providing access to clean, affordable energy
8. Ensuring access to decent jobs and sustainable economic growth
9. Building resilient infrastructures and promoting innovation and sustainable industrialization
10. Reducing inequalities within and between countries
11. Ensuring sustainable cities and communities
12. Enabling responsible and sustainable consumption and production
13. Combating climate change
14. Sustainable protection and conservation of aquatic life
15. Sustainably preserving and restoring life on earth
16. Ensuring peace, justice and effective, accountable and inclusive institutions
17. Engage in partnerships to achieve objectives

What CSR actions can you take to contribute to one or more of the SDGs?

Every company can implement sustainable actions through a corporate social responsibility strategy. The CSR practices to be deployed can contribute to one or more of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

For example, a company can…

• Contribute to MDG 5 “Gender equality
  by promoting a policy of equal opportunities for men and women
  for example, in access to management positions.
• Contribute to MDG n°3 “Good health and well-being” by implementing telecommuting to limit the risk of spreading a virus such as COVID-19 and enable employees to work remotely while preserving their health.
• Contribute to SDG n°12 “Responsible consumption and production” by reducing waste production and recycling as much as possible.
• Contribute to MDG 16 “Peace, justice and effective institutions” by
  by fighting corruption
  in all its forms, for example by following the best practices of the ISO 37 001 standard.

To better understand the challenges of the SDGs in relation to a company’s activity and CSR approach, AFNOR Certification has defined recommendations within the
Engagé RSE label
. The Engagé RSE label enables us to adopt the right reflexes, which in turn contribute to the MDGs.

How do ISO 26000 and the SDGs fit together?

ISO 26000 is the only international standard that defines the broad guidelines of CSR.
. With ISO 26000, every organization articulates its CSR approach around 7 central questions.
These 7 central questions were drawn up by 450 experts from 99 countries and 42 international organizations, in line with the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the conventions of the International Labour Organization.
With its universal character, its vision of the social responsibility of organizations, the framework defined for adopting CSR behavior… ISO 26000 refers very precisely to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It even shares over 450 recommendations for being a socially responsible company!

A company can contribute to the SDGs through its CSR strategy and actions. If actions follow the recommendations of ISO 26000, the company necessarily contributes to one or more of the SDGs.

Articulating your CSR approach around ISO 26000 means being “ODD-compatible”! Find out for yourself by downloading our white paper ”
Label Engagé RSE: how can a CSR approach contribute to the SDGs?
“

How does the Engagé RSE label help you measure your contribution to the SDGs?

The Engagé RSE label developed by AFNOR Certification
covers the key principles and issues of ISO 26000. This label takes the vision and maturity of the organization’s CSR strategy as a starting point, and implements best practices and areas for improvement.

The model will seek to understand how the CSR approach is implemented, how it is deployed in terms of human resources and processes (production and consumption), and finally how it guarantees local roots.

The Engagé RSE model is made up of evaluation criteria
that enable a cross-functional approach to CSR: each company can ask to be assessed, to measure its contribution to the 17 SDGs.

Based on the ISO 26000 standard, this label is structured around sustainable development objectives: it contributes to their achievement!