One way to distinguish companies that talk about social responsibility from those that live it is to observe what employees do about it. You would expect a pharmaceutical maker such as Novo Nordisk to have a charter full of noble visions and values - which it does. But the company also requires all employees to spend at least one day a year with someone connected to diabetes. A 2003-2004 survey by the Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College, with the US Chamber of Commerce and the Hitachi Foundation, finds firms at different stages in their commitment to citizenship. Most executives acknowledge the importance of social and environmental responsibility to the bottom line (82%), to their companies’ reputations (59%), and to their customers (53%). But when it comes to translating citizenship into meaningful programs and embedding it in the business, firms range from leaders like Novo Nordisk to laggards, with the majority somewhere in between.
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