Patterns of Corporate Social Responsibility in the Philippines: A Case Study of Japanese Companies Operating in the Philippines

Abstract

In the past decades, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been continuously transforming. Although in many countries it remains a voluntary activity, there are significant differences among companies in terms of how they report or implement their CSR. The aim of this thesis is to better understand the CSR situation of ten Japanese companies operating in the Philippines while at the same time to contribute to the limited amount of literature on CSR in developing countries. For this research, both qualitative and quantitative research methods have been used. This study attempts to determine how companies define or perceive CSR and how they incorporate factors like human rights, labor rights, CSR reporting, internal formal policies, supply chain relation, international standards or environmental CSR in their company’s CSR. The results show that the implementation of CSR is very much dependent on the company’s size, big companies have a multi-stakeholder approach while small companies focus more on philanthropy. The CSR in the Philippines is characterized by volunteerism which is also reflected at the employee level. International environmental-related standards and certifications are more popular than any other standards that promote CSR. The challenge for the companies is to incorporate a human rights-based approach when implementing CSR and at the same time to promote their CSR policies within their entire organization.