DEVELOPMENT OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AS A DIRECTION FOR IMPROVING SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES

Background. The relevance of this work is due to the active development of domestic business in the context of the actualization of the sustainable development agenda, as well as the development of the concept of social responsibility in Russia. The purpose of the article is to identify the role of corporate social responsibility as a direction for improving small and medium-sized businesses. Materials and methods. Within the framework of the conducted research, approaches to the study of social responsibility of business were studied both by foreign - E. Sharm, M. Porter, A. Carroll, T. Lee, - and domestic scientists - M.V. Kivarin, E. Grigoryan, I. Yurasov, V. Gorfinkel, N. Rodionova, N. Filimonova, etc., as well as the results of a sociological study using the questionnaire survey method (n = 391), the distribution of respondents was carried out by federal districts in accordance with the proportion of the number of small and medium-sized enterprises of the district in the overall structure small and medium-sized businesses in Russia. Results. The key advantages and possible risks of integrating the principles of corporate social responsibility into the activities of small and medium-sized businesses are identified. The key trends and opportunities that can become a driver in the development of small and medium-sized enterprises operating in conditions of economic tension are analyzed. Conclusions. In the conditions of a narrow radius of trust characteristic of modern Russian society, the integration of corporate social responsibility is a driver of improvement of small and medium-sized businesses.