Corporate Social Responsibility: Stakeholders, Strategy and Practice

Study Board of Market and Management Anthropology, Economics, Mathematics-Economics, Environmental and Resource Management

Teaching language: English
EKA: B530000302
Censorship: Second examiner: None
Grading: 7-point grading scale
Offered in: Esbjerg
Offered in: Autumn
Level: Master

Course ID: B530000301
ECTS value: 7.5

Date of Approval: 12-03-2024


Duration: 1 quarter

Course ID

B530000301

Course Title

Corporate Social Responsibility: Stakeholders, Strategy and Practice

Teaching language

English

ECTS value

7.5

Responsible study board

Study Board of Market and Management Anthropology, Economics, Mathematics-Economics, Environmental and Resource Management

Date of Approval

12-03-2024

Course Responsible

Name Email Department
Knud Sinding ksi@sam.sdu.dk Institut for Erhverv og Bæredygtighed

Offered in

Esbjerg

Level

Master

Offered in

Autumn

Duration

1 quarter

Recommended prerequisites

Bachelor Degree.

Aim and purpose

Corporations and other organizations want to be responsible and attentive to stakeholders. They may wish to navigate the challenges posed by market and non-market forces alike. They may want to be able to pursue, or claim they are pursuing, goals formulated by the United Nations under the heading of the Sustainable Development Goals.

By following this course students obtain knowledge about theoretical models about corporate social responsibility and stakeholder management. Students acquire skills in applying business analytical tools related to CSR, including underlying strategic considerations, as well as the identifying and managing stakeholders, all for pursuing business goals.

The course explicitly focuses on:
  • Imparting knowledge about the rationale for firms to be responsible and for engaging stakeholders.
  • Developing skills in applying theoretical ideas and conceptual models to real problems.
  • Qualifying students for analyzing complex real world issues and for proposing solutions.
  • Transformation of businesses into more responsible organisations.

Content

This course may be divided into four main areas.

  1. The first area concerns the idea of responsibility for operating a business for motives of profit or for ethical or altruistic reasons.

  2. The second area is about identifying, describing and assessing the stakeholders important to the pursuit of organisation goals.

  3. The third area is about the context in which action towards stakeholders is taken. This includes both market transactions and non-market actions, as well as the boundary area between the two.

  4. The fourth area of the course concentrates on increasingly practical topics such as stakeholder influence strategies and the need for practitioners to be able to document a relationship between efforts at stakeholder management and the outcome of such efforts.

Description of outcome - Knowledge

The student can explain the constructs, theories, models and methods used in the field of Corporate Responsibility. 

Description of outcome - Skills

The student can apply the models and theories and methods of the course to analyze corporate responsibility problems and challenges. Additionally, students can use these models, theories and methods to identify relevant decision options.

Description of outcome - Competences

Students can develop decision potions, identify critical challenges and develop appropriate intervention strategies. This includes ability in the identification of stakeholders and their claims, in the evaluation of what social responsibility expectations may be and assessing their economic implications, as well as knowledge of how practically useful stakeholder management programs and social responsibility strategies can be developed and implemented.

Literature

The reference text used in this course is:
Corporate Social Strategy: Stakeholder Engagement and Competitive Advantage by Bryan Husted and David Allen, Cambridge University Press, 2010, ISBN0521197643, 9780521197649

Other textbooks, as well as articles and reports may be used in the curriculum.

Teaching Method

Lectures, case discussions and visits to and from stakeholders. Lectuers are designed to convey main points; Case discussions are designed to let students develop, present and oppose different points of view. Visits to and/or from stakeholders are intended to demonstrate real life issues facing stakeholders.

Workload

Scheduled teaching (second quarter): 30 hours

Workload: Based on the total number of points, the total workload for this course is estimated to be around 202,5 hours of work in total.
30 hours are lectures, some 60 hours are examination-related and the remainder is allocated for preparation for class. These numbers are only rough estimated and variations may occur.
This corresponds to an average weekly workload of 10 hours during the semester, including the exam. 

Examination regulations

Exam

Name

Exam

Timing

Exam: January
Reexam: February 

Tests

Exam

Name

Exam

Form of examination

Project report

Censorship

Second examiner: None

Grading

7-point grading scale

Identification

Student Identification Card - Date of birth

Language

English

Duration

During the quarter.

Length

The paper must be max. 40,000 characters incl spaces.
Please read the General guidelines for written assignments.  

Examination aids

All examination aids are permitted.

Assignment handin

Via Digital Exam.

ECTS value

7.5

Additional information

Individual report based on approved case topic.

Regarding reexam in the same exam tern: 
If the exam is failed, the student must write a new report. 

EKA

B530000302

Transitional rules

Used examination attempts in the former identical course will be transferred.
Courses that are identical with former courses that are passed according to applied rules cannot be retaken.

Courses offered

Offer period Offer type Profile Education Semester
Fall 2024 Optional Cultural Sociology, valid from September 1st, 2021 - 2024 (last intake 2024) MSc in Cultural Sociology - 2023 | Master of Science (MSc) in Cultural Sociology | Esbjerg
Fall 2024 Optional Environmental and Resource Management (ERM), Esbjerg (2022-2023) MSc in Environmental and Resource Management - 2023 | Master of Science (MSc) in Environmental and Resource Management | Esbjerg
Fall 2024 Optional Sports and Event Mangement - Esbjerg (for students enrolled before February 1st 2025) MSc in Economics and Business Administration | Master of Science (Msc) in Economics and Business Administration | Esbjerg, Slagelse, Odense, Kolding
Fall 2024 Optional Sports and Event Mangement - Esbjerg (for students enrolled before September 1st 2024) MSc in Economics and Business Administration | Master of Science (Msc) in Economics and Business Administration | Esbjerg, Slagelse, Odense, Kolding
Fall 2024 Optional Marketing, Social Media, and Digitalization - Esbjerg (for students enrolled before September 1st 2024) MSc in Economics and Business Administration | Master of Science (Msc) in Economics and Business Administration | Esbjerg, Slagelse, Odense, Kolding
Fall 2024 Optional Marketing, Social Media, and Digitalization - Esbjerg (for students enrolled before February 1st 2025) MSc in Economics and Business Administration | Master of Science (Msc) in Economics and Business Administration | Esbjerg, Slagelse, Odense, Kolding
Fall 2024 Mandatory Sustainability Management - Esbjerg (Study start from February 1st 2025) MSc in Economics and Business Administration | Master of Science (Msc) in Economics and Business Administration | Esbjerg, Slagelse, Odense, Kolding 2
Fall 2024 Mandatory Sustainability Management - Esbjerg (Study start from September 1st 2024) MSc in Economics and Business Administration | Master of Science (Msc) in Economics and Business Administration | Esbjerg, Slagelse, Odense, Kolding 1
Fall 2024 Exchange students

Teachers

Name Email Department City
Knud Sinding ksi@sam.sdu.dk Institut for Erhverv og Bæredygtighed Esbjerg

URL for Skemaplan