More than 200 guests came together to listen to the inaugural speeches. Organizers expected to host 400 visitors during the day. So what was the event all about?The CSR Marketplace aims at showcasing 25 companies and their efforts to engage in social responsibility projects. At the end of the day, a prize was going to be given to the most enterprising contestant. The meeting was still in progress when this column was written; I shall report back to our readers after a roundtable discussion with 15 businesspeople from Iran, scheduled to take place today, in another column.
KSSD President Serdar Dinler stressed the fact that his organization is actively involved in promoting social, environmental and other civil society aspects of CSR. Professor Deniz Bayrakdar, the vice president of Kadir Has University, underlined the fact that 66 projects involving students were carried out recently and that her university is the first Turkish educational institution to actually teach about CSR.
CSR Europe Chairwoman Lettemieke Mulder spoke about a similar event that took place in Brussels in 2005 and how important today’s gathering is for further developing a proactive and stakeholder-oriented Turkish business culture. She said she hopes to facilitate the integration of CSR into the day-to-day running of as many companies as possible. She further stated that CSR is no luxury, but brings advantages to those businesses that engage in it. One aspect is winning over new consumers, another benefit the development of new and “greener” products.
After Mrs. Mulder, Thomas Dodd, European Commission CSR policy officer, mentioned the sensitive issue of child labor and how relevant it is to make companies change their supply chain strategies. He stressed that, ultimately, costs involved in tolerating child labor are higher when compared with not allowing this very questionable practice. A cost-benefit analysis similar to an impact analysis seems to work in favor of convincing more entrepreneurs “to go CSR.”
Richard Howitt, a member of the European Parliament who is actively involved in supporting Turkey’s EU accession, then underlined his perspective about the fact that although there is no direct link between Turkey harmonizing its legal system in line with the EU acquis communautaire, engaging in CSR is a vital instrument for Turkish business to adapt itself to changing norms and standards as found in Europe and elsewhere, economic crisis or not.
Finally, Professor Gaye Erbatur, a Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy in the Turkish Parliament, stressed the fact that social engagement dates back to the Ottoman era and that the newly founded Turkish Republic then continued to establish “social” values with regards to its company culture. She said today much needs to be done with regard to the rights of women and young girls, just two issues taken from a much more comprehensive list.
CSR projects on display during the marketplace event include a wide range of initiatives. I was able to speak with a number of company representatives. Ideas for enhancing CSR in Turkey include “teaching the teachers” in cooperation with Turkey’s Ministry of Education, arranging visits and going to schools and universities to create more awareness about how to prevent traffic accidents, giving support to young women in rural areas and donating olive tree saplings to farmers. With the winner still unannounced by the time I sent in my column, I do not wish to unfairly feature any one of the 25 contestants but to simply express my surprise about the quality and range of CSR projects currently under way in Turkey.
CSR can become part of a company’s competitive advantage if implemented correctly. Consumers in Europe and beyond need to rebuild trust in banks and other businesses, particularly in light of the most recent financial meltdown. Involving stakeholders who are ultimately your own (future) clients may be just the ticket. One word of caution though: Evaluating CSR purely from a “making more money” dimension would be misleading. I hope KSSD’s CSR Marketplace in İstanbul creates awareness in two fields: I hope Turkish business leaders engage more proactively in CSR -- not as a public relations tool but because it has become a necessity -- and second, I hope consumers exercise their right to choose enterprises that actually do so.
