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Cross-Sector Alliance Learning and Effectiveness of Voluntary Codes of Corporate Social Responsibility

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2015

Bindu Arya  and
Jane E. Salk
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Abstract

Firms and industries increasingly subscribe to voluntary codes of conduct. These self-regulatory governance systems can be effective in establishing a more sustainable and inclusive global economy. However, these codes can also be largely symbolic, reactive measures to quell public criticism. Cross-sector alliances (between for-profit and nonprofit actors) present a learning platform for infusing participants with greater incentives to be socially responsible. They can provide multinationals new capabilities that allow them to more closely ally social responsibility with economic performance. This paper examines learning facilitators in cross-sector alliances that enrich corporate understanding of stakeholder concerns. It suggests that these organizational learning experiments can translate into globally responsible practices and processes that improve the content and effectiveness of voluntary corporate codes.

Type
Special Forum
Information
Business Ethics Quarterly , Volume 16 , Issue 2 , April 2006 , pp. 211 - 234
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Business Ethics 2006

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