MNN3701
NOTES
, CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP
LEARNING UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO CORPORATE
CITIZENSHIP
1. Define corporate citizenship
According to Matten and Crane (2005), Corporate citizenship is the role of the
corporation in administering citizenship rights for the individual.
This definition has two main features:
1. The role of the corporation
the role of the corporation embraces the fact that businesses have the potential
to influence society through their core business activity.
It is grounded in a thorough consideration of the idea of citizenship with a
specific emphasis on the liberal political-economic tradition that characterises
most industrial societies.
2. Administering citizenship rights for individuals
Corporations can influence society through administering citizenship rights for
individuals.
It specifies emphatically that corporate citizenship is not about corporates as
citizens, but rather that it is about the roles that corporates might play in
administering citizenship rights to citizens.
Corporate citizenship embraces the fact that business activity in general (that is
core business activity) has the potential to influence the administering of
citizenship rights enormously.
Citizenship rights can be categorised into three classes:
1. social rights (the right to education, to health care and housing)
2. civil rights (the freedom of speech, thought and religion)
3. political rights (the right to vote)
2. Discuss how corporates can administer citizen rights through their
core business
Corporations can influence society through administering citizenship rights for
individuals.
two factors have led to corporations being in the position of administering
citizenship rights:
1. the process of globalisation
2. the smaller capacity of state governments
, 3. Identify the general economic viewpoint from which corporate
citizenship is addressed in this module
What has been written about Corporate citizenship to date has been framed as a
rebellion against strongly capitalist shareholder focused notions of corporations.
However, our definition of a corporation implies that we do not do this. The
basic premise underlying most of this book is that corporations are indeed
principally engaged in the pursuit of profit for the owners and that any
activities that corporates might undertake under the banner of corporate
citizenship must be consistent with this ultimate goal.
4. Outline the key elements and functions that support the practice of
corporate citizenship in this module
The key elements are:
Our understanding of corporate citizenship as the roles that corporates
might play in administering citizenship rights to citizens
Our understanding of corporations as privately-owned entities ultimately
or principally engaged in the pursuit of profit for the owners.
Chapter 1
1.1 Introduction
Climate change, natural and man- made disasters, pollution, poverty, inequality,
lack of ecosystem respect, rising numbers of endangered species, fast depleting
natural resources, the increasing human population, poor ethical conduct,
human rights abuses, ignorance, greed, irresponsible development and
investments, corruption, tax regulation, corporate scandals and global financial
crises- these are some of the many issues confronting society in general and, in
the context of this book, the business world in particular.
Whilst society, consisting of governments, the business world, non- profit
organisations (NPOs), non-governmental (NGOs) and other collective groups of
citizen has purportedly been moving towards addressing these issues. What then
do corporates need to do to adjust to the changing business landscape and do
they need to adjust the corporate role? Might corporate citizenship be the
answer? What is corporate citizenship? Where does the idea come from?
1.2 Corporate citizenship defined
Matten and Crane’s conceptualization of corporate citizenship and the purpose
of this book in general define it as the role of the corporation in administering
citizenship rights for individuals.
, There are two features of this definition that appeal to us:
# First it is grounded in a thorough consideration of the idea of citizenship with
a specific emphasis on the liberal political-economic tradition that characterises
most industrialised societies and this provides a critical contextual framework
for much of what is considered in this book.
# Secondly it specifies emphatically that corporate citizenship is not about
corporates as citizens but rather that it is about the roles that corporates might
play in administering citizenship rights to citizens. Corporate citizenship
encompasses much more than corporate philanthropy and social investment-
corporate charity if you like which tended to be the focus of earlier
manifestations of corporate citizenship. This scope of citizenship is narrow and
limited however the one that we have chosen embraces the fact that business
activity in general (that is the core business activity) has the potential to
influence the administering of citizenship rights enormously.
Corporate citizenship rights (Following Marshall’s categorization of these,
Matten and Crane describe three different classes of citizenship rights as
characterizing the liberal political-economic tradition:
# Social positive rights
These would include things like the right to education, health care and housing
and they relate to welfare which must be provided.
# Civil or negative rights
They focus on the protection of citizens against intrusions on their freedom so
things like freedom of speech, thought and religion would fall into this category
very importantly the protection of private property rights would typically be a
civil right.
# Political rights
Political rights include all of the rights necessary to allow citizens to participate
in the formulation of public policies and practices by which society is governed.
Things like the right to vote would be included here. As Matten and Crane
argue, historically the administering of these rights has typically been the
responsibility of governments. However for a variety of reasons not least of all
the process of globalization, corporations are increasingly finding the
themselves not only the best placed to administer some of these rights, but also
expected to administer them in exchange for social legitimacy and the licence to
do business.
1.3 Corporations, companies and business
# We view corporations and companies as synonymous and define them in the
capitalist sense as privately owned entities ultimately engaged in the pursuit of
profit for the owners.
NOTES
, CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP
LEARNING UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO CORPORATE
CITIZENSHIP
1. Define corporate citizenship
According to Matten and Crane (2005), Corporate citizenship is the role of the
corporation in administering citizenship rights for the individual.
This definition has two main features:
1. The role of the corporation
the role of the corporation embraces the fact that businesses have the potential
to influence society through their core business activity.
It is grounded in a thorough consideration of the idea of citizenship with a
specific emphasis on the liberal political-economic tradition that characterises
most industrial societies.
2. Administering citizenship rights for individuals
Corporations can influence society through administering citizenship rights for
individuals.
It specifies emphatically that corporate citizenship is not about corporates as
citizens, but rather that it is about the roles that corporates might play in
administering citizenship rights to citizens.
Corporate citizenship embraces the fact that business activity in general (that is
core business activity) has the potential to influence the administering of
citizenship rights enormously.
Citizenship rights can be categorised into three classes:
1. social rights (the right to education, to health care and housing)
2. civil rights (the freedom of speech, thought and religion)
3. political rights (the right to vote)
2. Discuss how corporates can administer citizen rights through their
core business
Corporations can influence society through administering citizenship rights for
individuals.
two factors have led to corporations being in the position of administering
citizenship rights:
1. the process of globalisation
2. the smaller capacity of state governments
, 3. Identify the general economic viewpoint from which corporate
citizenship is addressed in this module
What has been written about Corporate citizenship to date has been framed as a
rebellion against strongly capitalist shareholder focused notions of corporations.
However, our definition of a corporation implies that we do not do this. The
basic premise underlying most of this book is that corporations are indeed
principally engaged in the pursuit of profit for the owners and that any
activities that corporates might undertake under the banner of corporate
citizenship must be consistent with this ultimate goal.
4. Outline the key elements and functions that support the practice of
corporate citizenship in this module
The key elements are:
Our understanding of corporate citizenship as the roles that corporates
might play in administering citizenship rights to citizens
Our understanding of corporations as privately-owned entities ultimately
or principally engaged in the pursuit of profit for the owners.
Chapter 1
1.1 Introduction
Climate change, natural and man- made disasters, pollution, poverty, inequality,
lack of ecosystem respect, rising numbers of endangered species, fast depleting
natural resources, the increasing human population, poor ethical conduct,
human rights abuses, ignorance, greed, irresponsible development and
investments, corruption, tax regulation, corporate scandals and global financial
crises- these are some of the many issues confronting society in general and, in
the context of this book, the business world in particular.
Whilst society, consisting of governments, the business world, non- profit
organisations (NPOs), non-governmental (NGOs) and other collective groups of
citizen has purportedly been moving towards addressing these issues. What then
do corporates need to do to adjust to the changing business landscape and do
they need to adjust the corporate role? Might corporate citizenship be the
answer? What is corporate citizenship? Where does the idea come from?
1.2 Corporate citizenship defined
Matten and Crane’s conceptualization of corporate citizenship and the purpose
of this book in general define it as the role of the corporation in administering
citizenship rights for individuals.
, There are two features of this definition that appeal to us:
# First it is grounded in a thorough consideration of the idea of citizenship with
a specific emphasis on the liberal political-economic tradition that characterises
most industrialised societies and this provides a critical contextual framework
for much of what is considered in this book.
# Secondly it specifies emphatically that corporate citizenship is not about
corporates as citizens but rather that it is about the roles that corporates might
play in administering citizenship rights to citizens. Corporate citizenship
encompasses much more than corporate philanthropy and social investment-
corporate charity if you like which tended to be the focus of earlier
manifestations of corporate citizenship. This scope of citizenship is narrow and
limited however the one that we have chosen embraces the fact that business
activity in general (that is the core business activity) has the potential to
influence the administering of citizenship rights enormously.
Corporate citizenship rights (Following Marshall’s categorization of these,
Matten and Crane describe three different classes of citizenship rights as
characterizing the liberal political-economic tradition:
# Social positive rights
These would include things like the right to education, health care and housing
and they relate to welfare which must be provided.
# Civil or negative rights
They focus on the protection of citizens against intrusions on their freedom so
things like freedom of speech, thought and religion would fall into this category
very importantly the protection of private property rights would typically be a
civil right.
# Political rights
Political rights include all of the rights necessary to allow citizens to participate
in the formulation of public policies and practices by which society is governed.
Things like the right to vote would be included here. As Matten and Crane
argue, historically the administering of these rights has typically been the
responsibility of governments. However for a variety of reasons not least of all
the process of globalization, corporations are increasingly finding the
themselves not only the best placed to administer some of these rights, but also
expected to administer them in exchange for social legitimacy and the licence to
do business.
1.3 Corporations, companies and business
# We view corporations and companies as synonymous and define them in the
capitalist sense as privately owned entities ultimately engaged in the pursuit of
profit for the owners.
