We know that CSR is a strategic focus for many organizations. However, for a CSR strategy is truly effective, it is essential that it is aligned not only with the company's objectives but above all with the expectations of those who are the first concerned: the employees.
Now, our recent Barometer shows a gap between the perception of employees and the CSR actions implemented by companies. Indeed, 65% of employees indicate that they are totally or partially unaware of what CSR is. Which shows a real need for clarification, training, and above all involvement.
So how can we adjust our strategy for better communication, active consultation and co-construction of CSR initiatives? How can we build a more participatory and impactful strategy?
Barometer produced by Beeshake & Act For Now, orchestrated by the Department of Studies Cospirit Group
CSR strategy and employee expectations: what is their perception of CSR?
A vague and poorly understood concept: 65% of employees are unaware of CSR
The observation is there! For many employees, CSR remains a vast, theoretical concept that is difficult to apply on a daily basis. This perception therefore creates a gap between the actions carried out by the company and their understanding by employees, thereby reducing the impact and adherence to CSR initiatives.
Companies often invest massively in external communication in order to promote their CSR strategy to their customers, partners, investors, etc. Often, to the detriment of internal stakeholders, leaving employees on the sidelines of the initiatives implemented. This lack of dissemination of information then creates a barrier between the CSR strategy and those who could be its main ambassadors.
A clear lack of information: 55% feel poorly informed
In addition to a general lack of understanding of the concept of CSR, The Barometer highlights a lack of information among employees regarding the initiatives implemented by their company. This figure is extremely revealing. Employees want to understand not only what CSR is, but also how these initiatives impact their profession. For them, it is important to know the reasons why the company is committed, how it is committed and how the initiatives implemented are strategic.
It is therefore about create a real acculturation with a contextualization of CSR for each employee, explaining how it influences their work environment and how it can transform the way of working. This is also what will allow employees to perceive initiatives, not as constraints, but as opportunities to contribute to positive transformation.
Discover the Barometer in full
3 steps to align CSR strategy and employee expectations
In order to bridge the gap between the company's CSR strategy and employee expectations, we recommend following a structured 3-step approach: “Awareness/Acculturation”, “Consultation” “Co-construction”. And for this methodology to be successful, the use of a CSR platform can be particularly effective. Indeed, it facilitates awareness by providing clear and accessible information on CSR. It allows for effective consultation. by collecting employee feedback. Finally, it encourages the co-construction of CSR initiatives by promoting the sharing of ideas, good practices and innovative projects.
1. CSR strategy and employee expectations: Raise awareness and acculturate to CSR
Goal : Build a common foundation of understanding and commitment around CSR in order to enable each employee to understand the issues, the objectives, to feel concerned and to act accordingly.
Share internal and external CSR news
With a CSR platform, you facilitate the continuous sharing of information : company news, CSR monitoring, expert opinions, etc. By keeping employees constantly informed, you maintain a lasting interest in CSR actions, thus avoiding them being perceived as one-off or secondary steps. You also ensure that your employees understand the objectives of your CSR approach, detailing concepts that might seem vague or too complex to them.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Invite CSR experts to hold a webinar (once a month for example) to discuss current issues and answer questions from employees). You provide a professional perspective and clarify complex aspects of CSR.
- Publish monthly reports which may include the CSR actions of the month, details on a particular concept, future objectives, etc. You thus keep employees informed and engaged.
Encourage skills development on CSR topics
An effective lever for raising awareness: acculturation and learning paths. They include information pages, videos and quizzes tailored to the needs of your employees. Thanks to the CSR platform, you have the possibility to create personalized and certified coursesThe results obtained give you a good overview of employees' understanding of key topics. This allows you to adjust the CSR strategy in order to make it evolve according to the real needs of your employees.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Create conditioned routes where employees can only move up a level if they have successfully completed the previous path. You ensure that each employee has acquired the necessary knowledge before moving on to more complex concepts.
- Include practical cases and simulations specific to your business. Employees can thus apply CSR concepts to concrete situations. You then facilitate a better understanding and direct integration into their daily professional lives.
Challenge your employees
Organize internal awareness campaigns in the form of quizzes, debates or challenges around CSR themes. These campaigns allow you to engage teams in a fun and interactive way, while assessing their level of knowledge. They promote a collective dynamic, making CSR progressively more accessible and integrated into the corporate culture.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Launch thematic challenges around specific CSR themes, such as waste reduction or energy saving, You focus attention on a specific theme in order to stimulate the interest of your employees and ensure continuous learning.
- Organize internal debate sessions or round tables. Specific topics can be addressed, which allows us to assess the understanding and level of commitment of employees on specific themes.
[Read also: The Beeshake method for engaging employees in CSR]
2. Consult your colleagues by encouraging feedback
Goal : Actively involve employees in defining the company's CSR priorities. This consultation phase becomes an interactive and collaborative process that promotes a better understanding of employee expectations.
Survey and question your employees
Thanks to the CSR platform, you create and publish surveys among your employees in order to: to collect their opinions on strategic issues. What do they consider to be the priority issues of the CSR approach? Do they prefer to implement this or that action? So many questions that allow us to situate their perception of the CSR strategy, their expectations and their understanding.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Conduct annual surveys to assess employees' CSR priorities and adjust the strategy based on changes in their expectations and concerns. For example, identify new topics of interest or areas requiring more attention each year.
- Conduct regular pulse surveys, for example quarterly. They allow you to have a quick and frequent overview of employees' perceptions and expectations. They can be brief and targeted on specific topics such as their satisfaction with recent initiatives.
Conduct internal surveys
Surveys allow you to collect more detailed and qualitative feedback on various aspects of the CSR strategy. Unlike surveys, which aim to be more quantitative and structured, internal surveys are often more detailed and include open-ended questions that allow employees to express themselves more freely.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Launch a detailed investigation on strategic topics (once a month for example). For example, on the impact of a new environmental policy. Ask open-ended, probing questions to understand perceived implications, specific concerns or suggestions for improvement.
- Explore employee engagement and participation levels in CSR initiatives. You then analyze specific aspects such as barriers to engagement, support or training needs.
3. Co-construct CSR initiatives with employees
Goal : Actively involve employees who thus become key players in the CSR strategy in proposing initiatives.
Encourage the proposal of CSR initiatives on an ongoing basis
Employees have a real need to be more involved in CSR initiatives implemented to serve the company. On the CSR platform, a dedicated space allows your employees to propose ideas, best practices and innovative CSR projects. Rather than only being in top-down decisions, employees participate fully in the construction of the CSR strategyThey create their project team, which can be multidisciplinary, allowing collaboration between different departments and hierarchical levels. THEcollective intelligence then starts moving. Each contribution thus enriches the process, promoting the emergence of more innovative and suitable solutions.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Use the support feature where each employee can vote for the CSR projects that they consider to be a priority. This ensures that the initiatives selected reflect the majority concerns.
- Establish a recognition system for employees whose ideas are adopted. For example, symbolic rewards or mentions at internal events.
Mobilize collective intelligence through CSR highlights
Highlights, such as hackathon, calls for ideas or challenges mobilize the collective intelligence of employees on specific CSR themes, over a limited period. On the one hand, the intensive and collaborative nature of these key moments, encourage creativity and innovation. On the other hand, the temporary format creates peaks in engagement that fit perfectly into a long-term approach. They also help focus teams' energies and creativity on common goals by strengthening collaboration.
💡 Examples of good practices
- Use survey results to define topics for CSR hackathons or workshopsFor example, if employees have expressed an interest in reducing their carbon footprint, create a special time dedicated to this topic.
- After each highlight, Use internal surveys to gather participant feedback and adjust future events based on feedback received.
Did you know that you can carry out our Barometer within your company to take the pulse of your employees and find out their perceptions and expectations regarding your CSR strategy?
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