Title: Corporate social responsibility strategies in the light of the financial crisis: the case of Milan-based global companies

Authors: Angela Evans; Dionisia Tzavara

Addresses: Brightholme Property Company Ltd., 11th Floor The Plaza 100, Old Hal, Liverpool L3 9QJ, UK. ' Department of Economics, University of Peloponnese, Thesi Sehi, Proin Pedio Volis, Tripoli 27100, Greece

Abstract: The current financial crisis has led companies to revise their strategies and cut costs across all functions. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a costly engagement and there has been strong speculation that companies will forget their CSR engagements in the light of the crisis. We aim to investigate whether CSR will continue to be seen as a feasible and sustainable choice, or whether it will be sacrificed in light of the crisis. We conduct a survey on Milan-based companies operating on a global scale. We find that while there is evidence of some cut-backs on CSR, CSR strategies of organisations in Milan have not been dramatically scarified due to the crisis.

Keywords: CSR; corporate social responsibility; financial crisis; cost cutting; sustainable business; Italy; Milan; sustainability.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2012.045795

European Journal of International Management, 2012 Vol.6 No.2, pp.154 - 174

Published online: 22 Nov 2014 *

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