Corporate social responsibility enactment in banking
A case study of subtle discursive negotiation of power
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/jalpp.32061Keywords:
critical discourse analysis, CSR non-communication, employee– customer dialogue, legitimation, power, sustainabilityAbstract
This paper studies the relationship between implicit and explicit corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication via discourse focused on limiting power inequality in situations that usually constitute a natural power struggle at Merkur, a small Danish values-based bank focused on the value of ‘sustainability’. My primary focus is on ways in which participants represent various power positions, and how these positions are negotiated discursively. Data stem from three sources: internal meetings between employees, an employee–customer meeting and email correspondence. The analytical approach is critical discourse analysis (CDA), with a focus on strategies of legitimation. Based on the findings, I argue that implicit CSR communication – or in this case, the enactment of values by attempting to lessen power inequalities in employee–customer relations – is preferable to explicit CSR, which is more usually adopted as a branding tool by businesses, but which can come across as boastful and insincere.
References
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Thomsen, E. H. (2014) Employee stakeholders’ role in ensuring alignment between employee and organizational branding. In R. Cancino and L. Holmgreen (eds) Stakeholders in Action, 175–202. Aalborg: Aalborg University Press.
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Bendapudi, N. and Bendapudi, V. (2005) Creating the living brand. Harvard Business Review 82 (5): 124–128.
Carroll, A. B. and Shabana, K. M. (2010) The business case for corporate social responsibility: A review of concepts, research and practice. International Journal of Management Reviews 12 (1): 85–105. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00275.x
Chaudhri, V. (2014) Corporate social responsibility and the communication imperative: Perspectives from CSR managers. Journal of Business Communications 53 (4): 419–442. https://doi.org/10.1177/2329488414525469
Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M. and Thyssen, O. (2011) The polyphony of corporate social responsibility: Deconstructing accountability and transparency in the context of identity and hypocrisy. In G. Cheney, S. May and D. Munshi (eds) (2011) The Handbook of Communication Ethics, 457–474. London: Taylor & Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203890400.ch27
Christensen, L. T., Morsing, M. and Thyssen, O. (2013) CSR as aspirational talk. Organization 20 (3): 372–393. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508413478310
Coombs, W. T. and Holladay, S. J. (2011) Managing Corporate Social Responsibility: A Communication Approach. Chichester, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
Crane, A. and Glozer, S. (2016) Researching corporate social responsibility communication: Themes, opportunities and challenges. Journal of Management Studies 53 (7): 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.12196
Crane, A., Matten, D. and Moon, J. (2004) Stakeholders as citizens? Rethinking rights, participation and democracy. Journal of Business Ethics 53 (1–2): 107–122. https://doi.org/10.1023/b:busi.0000039403.96150.b6
Du, S., Bhattacharya, C. B. and Sen, S. (2010) Maximizing business returns to corporate social responsibility (CSR): The role of CSR communication. International Journal of Management Reviews 12 (1): 8–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2009.00276.x
European Commission (2011) New EU definition on CSR mirrors Enterprise 2020 aspirations. Available online: http://www.csreurope.org/new-eu-definition-csr-mirrors-enterprise-2020-aspirations
Fairclough, N. (2015) Language and Power. London: Routledge.
Fombrun, C. and Shanley, M. (1990) What’s in a name? Reputation building and corporate strategy. Academy of Management Journal 33 (2): 233–258. https://doi.org/10.5465/256324
Gatti, L. and Seele, P. (2014) Evidence for the prevalence of the sustainability concept in European corporate responsibility reporting. Sustainability Science 9 (1): 89–102. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-013-0233-5
Hikkerova, L. and Bortolloti, J. (2014) Finance Ethique et RSE: Le Cas de Trois Banques. Working Papers 2014-165. Paris: Department of Research, IPAG Business School. https://doi.org/10.3917/g2000.306.0079
Høvring, C. M. (2017) Caught in a communicative catch-22? Translating the notion of CSR as shared value creation in a Danish CSR frontrunner. Business Ethics: A European Review 26: 369–381. https://doi.org/10.1111/beer.12160
Løgstrup, K. E. (1997) The Ethical Demand. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.
Matten, D. and Moon, J. 2008. ‘Implicit’ and ‘explicit’ CSR: A conceptual framework for a comparative understanding of corporate social responsibility. Academy of Management Review 33 (2): 404–424. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2008.31193458
Morsing, M., Schultz, M. and Nielsen, K. (2008) The ‘Catch 22’ of communicating CSR: Findings from a Danish study. Journal of Marketing Communications 14 (2): 97–111. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527260701856608
Pérez, A. and del Bosque, I. R. (2014) Customer CSR expectations in the banking industry. International Journal of Bank Marketing 32 (3): 223–244. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijbm-09-2013-0095
Pomering, A. and Dolnicar, S. (2009) Customer expectations of CSR, perceived service quality and brand effect in Thai retail banking. Journal of Business Ethics 85 (2): 285–301. https://doi.org/10.1108/02652320910988302
San-Jose, L., Retolaza, J. L. and Gutierrez-Goiria, J. (2011) Are ethical banks different? A comparative analysis using the radical affinity index. Journal of Business Ethics 100 (1): 151–173. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-011-0774-4
Scharf, E. R. and Fernandes, J. (2013) The advertising of corporate social responsibility in a Brazilian bank. International Journal of Bank Marketing 31 (1): 24–37. https://doi.org/10.1108/02652321311292038
Schmeltz, L. (2012) Consumer-oriented CSR communication: Focusing on ability or morality? Corporate Communications: An International Journal 17 (1): 29–49. https://doi.org/10.1108/13563281211196344
Schons, L. and Steinmeier, M. (2016). Walk the talk? How symbolic and substantive corporate social responsibility actions affect firm performance depending on stakeholder proximity. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management 23: 358–372. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1381
Thomsen, E. H. (2014) Employee stakeholders’ role in ensuring alignment between employee and organizational branding. In R. Cancino and L. Holmgreen (eds) Stakeholders in Action, 175–202. Aalborg: Aalborg University Press.
Van Leeuwen, T. (2008) Discourse and Practice: New Tools for Critical Discourse Analysis. New York: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0047404509990686
Yin, R. K. (2013) Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Published
2019-07-09
Issue
Section
Articles
License
Equinox Publishing Ltd.
How to Cite
Thomsen, E. H. (2019). Corporate social responsibility enactment in banking: A case study of subtle discursive negotiation of power. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice, 12(2), 187-211. https://doi.org/10.1558/jalpp.32061
