Dissertation
Corporate Social Responsibility in the Coffee Industry
Master Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the Degree Master of Science in International Tourism Management
Submitted to Dr. Ursula Christine Loisch
Antonia Ria Markoulakis
1013003
Vienna, 8th June 2012
AFFIDAVIT
I hereby affirm that this Master‟s Thesis represents my own written work and that I have used no sources and aids other than those indicated. All passages quoted from publications or paraphrased from these sources are properly cited and attributed. The thesis was not submitted in the same or in a substantially similar version, not even partially, to another examination board and was not published elsewhere.
Date
Signature
I
II
ABSTRACT
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a prevalent topic today whether it is in business or in academia. The last 40 years have seen a constant evolution of the concept of CSR and many things have been written about it. Today CSR practices do not constitute a matter of whether to implement it or not, but how to implemented it. The dialogue around CSR has seen a shift from philanthropic practices that aim to improve a company 's corporate image to strategic CSR, which is aligned with a company 's core strategy According to Porter‟s (2006) theory, strategic CSR can lead to an added competitive advantage. When a social dimension is added to the value proposition of a company, making it an inseparable part of the company 's core strategy then the most strategic CSR can occur. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate whether CSR strategies can improve the market performance of a company. The coffee sector was chosen as the field for analysis, as it is known for its numerous ethical issues and direct impact to so many lives. Six well known coffee companies with a combined revenue totaling almost 18 billion € were selected and analyzed. The study was based on a content analysis method, which tried to analyze and identify the CSR
Master Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the Degree Master of Science in International Tourism Management
Submitted to Dr. Ursula Christine Loisch
Antonia Ria Markoulakis
1013003
Vienna, 8th June 2012
AFFIDAVIT
I hereby affirm that this Master‟s Thesis represents my own written work and that I have used no sources and aids other than those indicated. All passages quoted from publications or paraphrased from these sources are properly cited and attributed. The thesis was not submitted in the same or in a substantially similar version, not even partially, to another examination board and was not published elsewhere.
Date
Signature
I
II
ABSTRACT
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a prevalent topic today whether it is in business or in academia. The last 40 years have seen a constant evolution of the concept of CSR and many things have been written about it. Today CSR practices do not constitute a matter of whether to implement it or not, but how to implemented it. The dialogue around CSR has seen a shift from philanthropic practices that aim to improve a company 's corporate image to strategic CSR, which is aligned with a company 's core strategy According to Porter‟s (2006) theory, strategic CSR can lead to an added competitive advantage. When a social dimension is added to the value proposition of a company, making it an inseparable part of the company 's core strategy then the most strategic CSR can occur. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate whether CSR strategies can improve the market performance of a company. The coffee sector was chosen as the field for analysis, as it is known for its numerous ethical issues and direct impact to so many lives. Six well known coffee companies with a combined revenue totaling almost 18 billion € were selected and analyzed. The study was based on a content analysis method, which tried to analyze and identify the CSR
Bibliography: http://www.emeraldinsight.com http://www.winsite.com/authors/sqaki.com+11+porterfiveforces+/1/ - retrieved on: 15 January 2012. http://www.harbott.com/2011/01/29/porters-five-forces-industry-analysis-forkrispy-kreme/ - retrieved on: 17 March 2012. http://www.top100espresso.com/coffee_consumption_statistics_report.html (retrieved on: 5 December 2011. http://www.exxonmobil.com/Corporate/default.aspx - retrieved on: 27 March 2012. http://www.exxonmobil.com/Corporate/community_foundation.aspx - retrieved on: 27 March 2012 106 CSR IN THE COFFEE INDUSRTY 107