What is Corporate Social Responsibility?

For many construction businesses, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is becoming a huge focus and rightly so. But what exactly is it?

Corporate Social Responsibility is the focus and responsibility businesses consider to help minimise the negative impact construction projects have on workers, the local community & the environment. CSR also helps to make a positive, beneficial outcome too!

By taking the necessary steps to help reduce the effects that construction operations have on the community, other businesses or investors will more likely want to collaborate & work with companies that are taking accountability for promoting positive practices in society.

In this guide, we’ll discuss why Corporate Social Responsibility within construction is important, how it can be promoted in your business and the benefits that come with it.

Don’t have the time to read the guide? Listen to The Drill ‘Social Responsibility with Charlie Luxton’ where Channel 4 presenter and broadcaster Charlie talks about why being socially responsible is becoming a crucial part of practice for forward thinking businesses.

Why does Corporate Social Responsibility matter on building projects?

When businesses implement CSR core values, they address the needs of everyone who will be affected by construction projects from employees, customers, the local community & suppliers.

CSR is also great for a company’s reputation too as it can boost business’s brand image. Investors and other potential customers would rather choose to work with a business who is making conscious decisions to better society’s welfare than work with one that doesn’t.

Some CSR values are –

• Inclusivity – making sure everyone feels respected and valued, no matter their differences.
• Diversity – inclusion of people from all races, religions, gender & culture.
• Integrity – having strong morals & turning commitments into actions.
• Accountability – taking responsibility for what your business does.
• Fairness – treating everyone the same way.

These values, when executed correctly, show that those in the construction industry are making a commitment to better everything and everyone around them. When things are done right, benefits naturally follow.

The benefits to Corporate Social Responsibility for construction companies.

Once construction companies start taking the necessary steps to be socially responsible, communities will start to see a number of benefits. According to the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) found a number of benefits in ‘The value of good design’ such as -

• There’s growing evidence that hospitals with a good design have a significant positive effect on patients and staff.
• Burglary rates were 50% less than those on other West Yorkshire estates based on a study of 27 housing estates according to ‘Secured by Design’ (SBD) principles. Crime rates had reportedly dropped by between 54% and 67% since the redesign. There were also 42% fewer vehicle crimes.
• A separate study carried out in California found that students progressed 20% faster on maths tests and 26% on reading tests in one year due to having the most natural daylight in their classroom compared to those in the classroom with the least natural light.

These are just some of the many community benefits that comes with being socially responsible. But what happens when companies decide to not include CSR into their framework?

HSS ProService Marketplace can help you stay compliant with social responsibility by giving you access to greener alternatives for power tools and materials for construction projects.

Book a free demo with one of our colleagues to find out more.

What happens when corporate social responsibility isn't considered?

If construction companies decide to not to take CSR seriously, it could mean there’ll be unavoidable social costs and nuisances.

• BRE (The Building Research Establishment) found that it costs the NHS around 1.4bn pounds per year to treat those who are affected by poor housing.
• Constructing Excellence discovered that noise pollution, restricted access to streets and traffic congestion can result from badly managed projects and lack of involvement & transparency.
• They also found that construction worker’s health and safety became at risk when CSR wasn’t considered, which could lead to severe accidents.

Companies risk employee dissatisfaction, lack of confidence from investors and even damaging the business’s reputation all by ignoring corporate social responsibility. Once a construction project is seen in a negative light, customers and the local communities lose their trust in it which could result in difficulties with sales and use of the building.

Including CSR might sound like a difficult task, but it can be included in the construction industry easily with the following steps.

Five ways to incorporate corporate social responsibility into your construction business.

Construction companies can incorporate CSR in numerous ways. Here's five to get you started.

1. Creating internships and work experience programmes – offering interns a chance to learn on the job and progress in their role by working with an experienced employee.
2. Supporting local community groups – hearing their needs and creating a strong relationship.
3. Hiring local labour forces – support the local economy and community.
4. Paying employees the national living wage – legally paying employees the correct minimum wage they’re entitled to.
5. Inclusive and diverse employees – having a workforce that reflects and includes every culture, religion, gender & race.

Leeds City Council is a good example of how to incorporate CSR. They have a local development framework guide that “demonstrates how good design and good physical security can complement the environment and create safe, sustainable communities” where each key objective ensures that the local community is on the forefront of their mind.

Let’s find out why local communities have such a large part to play in corporate social responsibility within construction.

The 'S' in 'ESG'.

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) is a framework that measures a business’s impact on society and each one is as important as the other.

CSR and ESG go hand in hand when it comes to helping construction companies become sustainable and without the ‘S’ (social), positive changes can’t be made in the wider community.

The ‘S’ aspect looks at the responsibility & relationship between a company and its wider community. Each company may have slightly different social principles, but each business has a responsibility to add these strategies into their framework so that everyone involved is positively impacted by them.

We need to be kinder to each other and we need to create more humane environments(….) until we’re kinder to each other, I don’t see how we’re supposed to be kinder to the planet.
- Charlie Luxton

By implementing more of the ‘S’ into the construction industry’s framework and understanding where and how to make different social changes, we being to create a positive cycle. Once that cycle begins to form and we see changes within the wider community, it’ll then force us to see and question how our choices affect the environment too.

Construction companies need to meet the needs of its investors, employees and the local community. It’s important that those who want to invest in the building feel confident that they’ll make a profit, employees feel valued and the community’s needs are at the heart of any development project.

Charlie speaks more about driving change on the social side of the construction industry and why he thinks the ‘S’ in ESG is important.

I also think we need to think about engaging people again with their local house environment. There’s been a lot of houses building around the country and I think a lot of people are unhappy about that. (…) I think they don’t feel any engagement in that process. We have a uniquely low, certainly the lowest rate of self-building in the world. In England, it’s about 5-6%, in Belgium it’s about 90%.

- Charlie Luxton

The UK has a huge development lead sector compared to the rest of the world, meaning companies can miss out the social aspect of ESG by not involving the people that are going to work or live in these future buildings. Involving the local community builds trust. You’ll allow them to put their opinions into what is being built on their doorstep and what they think their community needs. Asking them to complete surveys or holding meetings gives the community a voice and bridges the gap between companies and local people

HSS ProService Marketplace can help your business be more socially responsible by giving your teams access to an ESG dashboard that can track your company’s emissions and discuss your impact in real terms.

Book a free demo and one of our colleagues will be there to show you how.

Being socially responsible in the construction industry.

It’s very clear that being socially responsible in the construction industry has a positive influence on its employees, investors and to the public.

Being socially responsible when building means companies are making the conscious choice to look at the bigger picture to ensure that everyone who is connected to the project is taken into account, whether it be someone who works on the building or someone who lives in the area it’s being built.

That’s why having the correct strategies in place are imperative for making a positive change in society.

One action your business can take is to use a technology solution such as HSS ProService Marketplace. Not only is HSS ProService Marketplace free to access and easy to use, but the system also takes a percentage of what you spend on building materials and puts that money back into the community you’ll be working in

Dani Hodges, the Chief Commercial Officer at HSS ProService Marketplace also spoke on The Drill with Charlie Luxton about the small changes construction businesses can make to change the bigger picture saying, “if we can just start making tangible change at the front end, it’s a start.”

And she couldn’t be more right!

Let us show you how it works.

Book a free demo with a member of our team who will run through how HSS ProService Marketplace can help your construction business be more socially responsible.