Corporate Social Responsibility (5cr)

Learning outcomes

The student is able to
- analyze environmental, social and economic responsibilities in service business
- develop sustainable practises in organisations

Teaching methods

On-line study unit in Canvas, no lectures.

Teacher in charge: juha.uutela@laurea.fi

Time and location

Starting on Mon. in January 5th and ending on Mon. in March 23rd. Canvas, online.

Learning materials and recommended literature

Given by the lecturer in Canvas

Important dates

Starting on Mon. in January 5th and ending on Mon. in March 23rd.
Individual assignments carried out deadline February 22nd.

Student workload

5 credits

Content and scheduling

There are no contact lessons during this study unit. You will work online, both individually and in teams, and actively participate in online discussions and carry out assignments.

1. Our Earth, individual work

What is biodiversity? How is it influenced by my footprint? What choices do I have?

All our actions have an effect on the environment but what are the main threats the world is facing?

In the first part of our study unit you will explore the environmental challenges the world is facing.


2. Social Responsibility, individual work

Organizations around the world are becoming increasingly aware of the need for socially responsible behavior. A socially responsible organization has a good reputation, is able to attract and retain workers and customers, and is able to maintain its employees' morale and commitment.

ISO 26000 provides guidance for all types of organisations on concepts, terms, definitions, principles, and the core issues of social responsibility. GRI reporting system helps the companies to communicate the impact of business on critical sustainability issues.

3. Economic Responsibility, individual work

Organisations have economic responsibilities to their stakeholders: investors, employees and customers. Profitability is important as well as transparency in giving information about how the organisation is run.

GDP is a widely-used indicator of a nations' economic success. What are the shortcomings of this measure? Is it actually a good indicator of well-being?

What is HDI? What are externalities? You will learn to define these in this third part of the study unit.

4. CSR Report, team work

You will now summarize everything you have learned so far.

In teams you will write a report where you describe the environmental, social and economic responsibilities including circular economy of an organisation of your choice. Find / choose a small- or medium-sized company (SME*), interview a company representative and describe the company’s best practices in the above areas (environmental, social and economic).

Feel free to include photographs showing examples of innovative practices. Your final report length should be about 10 - 12 pages including all the pages in Laurea report template.

Further information

There are no contact lessons during this study unit. You will work online, both individually and in teams, and actively participate in online discussions and carry out assignments.



You will be required to write reports individually and in teams. Please note that all reports are submitted automatically for plagiarism detection. Add the used references in all the reports.

See the schedule for more detailed information.
Evaluation

The study unit will be evaluated based on your individual assignments, active discussion on each topic, team report and learning diary.

1. Our Earth, individual work, 20 p

2. Social Responsibility, individual work, 20 p

3. Economic Responsibility, individual work, 20 p

4. CSR Report, team work (40%), 40 p

All these parts must be completed before the final grade is given. The final grade is lowered by at least 0.5 if any work is submitted late. Please note that active discussion is required during the scheduled individual assignment weeks, six weeks time is reserved to the individual assignments before the CSR report writing can start. Notice: Everyone in the CSR report team has carried out the individual assignments before the report writing can start (four weeks period for the report).

Evaluation scale

H-5

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1-2)

To achieve grade 1 (or pass) student must be able to
- use professional concepts in a consistent manner and demonstrate their familiarity with the knowledge basis
- report and communicate in a professional manner

PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE AND WORKPLACE DEVELOPMENT
To achieve grade 1 (or pass) student must be able to
- act independently taking into account the operating environment
- take responsibility for interaction with customers and/or co-operation partners and for responding to their needs

TEAMWORK, SKILLS, LEADERSHIP, AND RESPONSIBILITY
To achieve grade 1 (or pass) student must be able to
- describe the significance of their actions for successful co-operation
- describe their competence in relation to the learning outcomes

Assessment criteria, good (3-4)

PROFESSIONAL KNOWLEDGE BASIS, INFORMATION SEARCHING AND REPORTING
To achieve grade 3 student must be able to
- critically evaluate information and justify their actions with science-based knowledge

PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE AND WORKPLACE DEVELOPMENT
To achieve grade 3 student must be able to
- propose creative solutions at work
- promote professional co-operation and enhance customer and partner relationships

TEAMWORK, SKILLS, LEADERSHIP, AND RESPONSIBILITY
To achieve grade 3 student must be able to
- act in a manner that promotes the team’s entrepreneurial and responsible approach to work
- describe the development of their competence in relation to the learning outcomes

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

To achieve grade 5 student must be able to
- analyse the acquired information, draw conclusions and combine theoretical knowledge with experiential knowledge

PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE AND WORKPLACE DEVELOPMENT
To achieve grade 5 student must be able to
- evaluate the applicability of produced knowledge, skill or idea to other contexts as well as their impact
- anticipate needs of customers and/or co-operation partners

TEAMWORK, SKILLS, LEADERSHIP, AND RESPONSIBILITY
To achieve grade 5 student must be able to
- evaluate and develop the team’s entrepreneurial and responsible approach to work
- evaluate the possibilities for utilising competence and plan their personal development and development of the team