Corporate Social Responsibility Committee

Abstract

While CSR and sustainability need to have an important place on the agenda for full board meetings, larger companies typically rely on one or more committees when it comes to allocating specific tasks and tapping into specialized resources and expertise. One approach that is growing in popularity is the creation of public policy/CSR, social and cultural responsibility committees composed of a sub-group of the entire board that is charged with focusing more time and effort on sustainability generally and important topics within sustainability. While other board committees focus on internal controls, financial disclosure and reporting, and the procedures of board and committee activities, CSR committees concentrate on strategies for ensuring that the company is seen as a good “corporate citizen.” A committee of this type is seen as important in light of the downturn in the public’s trust of corporations due to previous accounting scandals and this chapter discusses the scope of the committee’s duties and responsibilities relating to sustainability as well as key procedural details including composition of the committee, meeting procedures, scope of the committee’s duties and responsibilities and evaluation of committee performance.