March 8, 2006
For Immediate Release
American Society for Quality
Social Responsibility Poll – At a Glance
A new poll conducted by the American Society for Quality (ASQ), www.asq.org the world’s leading authority on quality whose members are experts in standards development, provides a snapshot of how U.S. business leaders currently gauge the importance of social responsibility policies. ASQ conducted the poll in preparation for its launch of a U.S. team to help develop an international social responsibility standard.
Key Findings:
- Ninety-six percent of business leaders feel that having a social responsibility policy is important to the future of the U.S. economy.
- Over 60% of business leaders responded that they do have some formal social responsibility policy in place as part of their corporate strategy, while 40% don’t have any plans to implement a policy. The “Enron Effect” may be at work, as 70% of those companies that in the poll said they implemented a social responsibility policy, did so in 2001 or later – timing that followed the publicity surrounding the Enron scandal.
- Looking at the state of U.S. business overall, 66% of business leaders believe that widespread adoption of social responsibility programs would improve corporate performance, while 22% feel social responsibility programs would not make any difference or would be a waste of time and money.
- When asked about the importance that a social responsibility policy has or would have on their organizations , business leaders ranked the following benefits in terms of highest impact:
- Brand image (67%)
- Employee morale (61%)
- Reduced legal liability (60%)
- Attraction/Retention of employees (52%)
- Increased revenue (37%)
- In recent years, the multitude of corporate scandals has shed light on the need for corporate social responsibility policies. ASQ asked business leaders: How does your organization define social responsibility? The top answers follow:
- Acting in an honest and ethical manner with employees, customers, and the community – locally, nationally, and globally
- Doing the right thing for the right reasons and not for short-term gain
- Open communication
- Integrity
- Ethical behavior
- Business values
One hundred U.S. business leaders were interviewed by telephone and e-mail and responded with the following input. Poll participants included business leaders from Fortune 500 companies as well as ASQ corporate members.
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