CSR in India: reections from the banking sector

Sophie Hadeld-Hill

Sophie Hadeld-Hill is based at the Centre for Children and Youth, The University of Northampton, Northampton, UK.

Abstract Purpose This paper aims to explore corporate social responsibility (CSR) within the Indian context, focusing on the banking sector. This is of particular importance at this time given the nancial industrys pivotal role in driving forward Indias growth; this paper contributes to the literature on the operationalisation of CSR within one of the worlds fastest growing economies. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents empirical, on-the-ground qualitative evidence from the Indian nance sector with regard to CSR operations and motivations. Data are based primarily on a series of semi-structured interviews with elite participants; senior ofcials operating in the banking sector. Findings The paper offers insight into four levels of CSR engagement which currently exist in the day-to-day operations of Indian companies. Of signicance to debates on CSR trends and strategies, the paper presents evidence to suggest that western CSR initiatives are inuencing executives in India; ultimately causing a reactive response of an ad-hoc nature. Research limitations/implications While the focus of this paper is the Indian nance industry, the trends within this sector and emerging practice, one must be cautious about making broad generalisations about CSR in India based on the data presented here. Originality/value A focus on responsible project nance and CSR is imperative at this time of major infrastructure growth in Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) economies; indigenous nancial institutions have a crucial role to play in social and economic development. Through a focus on four modes of engagement, which emerged from empirically grounded data collection, this paper highlights multiple forms of commitment and motivation which are often overlooked when reviewing CSR primarily through reporting methods. Keywords India, CSR, Financial institutions, Sustainable, Project nance, BRICs Paper type Research paper

Received 26 November 2012 Revised 26 November 2012 Accepted 26 November 2012 The research was part-funded by Sustainable Finance Limited whereby a travel bursary enabled the eld research to be conducted in India. Thanks go to all the interviewees who participated, the host families and colleagues who commented on earlier drafts of this paper.

he role of the corporate community in social endeavours has received signicant attention in recent years given the business climate within which they now operate; a world where discourses of climate change, poverty and human rights are vigorously discussed and debated (Kolk and van Tulder, 2010). This discourse has been exacerbated by the recent downfall of signicant players in global nance. Ultimately this has brought into question the wider responsibilities of business; their social, ethical and moral duties to the society within which they operate. The ways in which companies engage with this responsibility, or rather their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become widely discussed in the context of companies operating in developed, western economies (Bowen, 1953; Carroll, 1999; Moon, 2005). However, as the focus of this Special Issue alludes, there is a distinct gap in the literature and research on CSR in developing and emerging country contexts; particularly those nations challenging existing global power structures, the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) economies. How do companies in these increasingly inuential countries perceive, engage, operationalise and report on their corporate social strategies? Are the same models of CSR being practiced in these differing environments with alternative modes of governance? What lessons can be learnt from these contexts and

DOI 10.1108/SRJ-11-2012-0145

VOL. 10 NO. 1 2014, pp. 21-37, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1747-1117

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how can we develop new thinking around CSR engagement? These are just some of the broader questions which are being asked in the eld of CSR, stimulated by the increasing inuence of such economies. This paper contributes to the eld through a focus on India. As one of the largest and fastest growing economies in the world, with regional (South Asia) and global interests, this is an important area of investigation. India has a long and varied history of corporate responsibility, a key driver being traditional values and practices (Chahoud et al., 2007; Mohan, 2001; Sood and Arora, 2006); however, this paper shows that Indias emergence as a global player has, to some extent, signied a move towards a western centric adoption of CSR language and practices. This paper reports on this shift, shedding light on CSR from an emerging economy perspective, a timely addition to the CSR literature. As the worlds largest democracy, the second most populous country (1.2 billion) (CIA, 2012) and economically signicant in terms of global growth, it is of immense importance that social, cultural and economic practices within India receive academic attention. Since 1991, when the Indian Government dismantled the Licence of the Raj (regulation), their economic course accelerated. Economists and forecasters predict that by 2035 India will be the third largest economy in the world, after the USA and China (Kaplinsky and Messner, 2008; Wilson and Purushothaman, 2006). Despite the condence which eludes, India is home to one third of the worlds chronically malnourished and the country faces signicant over population, environmental degradation, widespread poverty and corruption (CIA, 2012). Given this land of contrast, corporations are well positioned to make a signicant social contribution. Therefore, the practices, drivers, responsibilities and barriers to CSR in India warrant academic exploration; ultimately adding value to previous CSR considerations. Research into CSR modes of engagement, strategies and reporting has received signicant academic attention, particularly in the elds of business, economics and geography (see for example, Cheung et al., 2010; Carroll and Shabana, 2010; Prieto-Carron et al., 2006). However, much of this research has: transpired from a developed country context (i.e. USA and Europe) or from multi-national companies operating within the developing and emerging economies, thus providing a distinctly euro-centric analysis of CSR reporting and practice and lacks on-the-ground empirical evidence. Kolk and van Tulder (2010), p. 122) cite Egri and Ralston (2008) in saying that research into CSR in developing country contexts is most pressing due to greater poverty, environmental degradation, and institutional governance issues. While research into CSR practices in these environments is emerging, much of the evidence is purely based on company reporting, via web sites and promotional material. Problematically, therefore, there is the underlying assumption that CSR practices are always reported in full, and companies worldwide have the technical know-how and resources to showcase their commitment. Thus the rationale of this paper is to address the knowledge gap which currently exists by focusing on on-the-ground qualitative data collated from India. The primary aim is to investigate modes of CSR engagement amongst Indian nancial corporations to further our knowledge and empirical understanding of responsibility within this context. The paper presents four categories of responsibility which emerged from qualitative interviews with senior management of Indian nancial institutions; these being, pure prot maximisation, pure philanthropy, corporate social engagement and sustainable corporate community engagement. Each of these will be explored in turn. Through a focus on the nance industry we gain insight into current CSR trends and emerging practices. This industry is of particular interest given their pivotal role in driving forward the nations growth and due to the global interest in nancial responsibility a sector in which corporate values have been questioned. The paper is divided into ve sections. The rst, explores both CSR as a discourse and the current literatures emanating from India. Section two, highlights the methods which were utilised in data collection; leading onto section three, exploring modes of engagement. Section four provides a summary and suggests potential areas of future research in the eld.

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Corporate social responsibility an overview

The conviction that the business community has a responsibility broader than that of economic value has been debated for centuries. However, the 1950 s and 1960 s witnessed a surge in its importance, inuence and examination (Carroll and Shabana, 2010). Howard Bowens text Social Responsibilities of the Business Man (1953) was to a large extent a signicant starting point to the debates which have been interrogated in the literature. Bowen argued that large businesses were powerhouses which had actual impact on the lives of citizens (Carroll, 1999); thus he proclaimed their responsibility. Over subsequent decades, denitions of CSR have been moulded and transformed into alternative concepts such as stakeholder theory, business ethics theory, corporate citizenship, corporate governance, social reporting, triple bottom line and more recently CSR 2:0 (Carroll, 1999, Visser, 2008; Donaldson and Pretson, 1995). While businesses, governments, activists and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), may refer to particular denitional constructs, the classication provided by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) (2000) is widely accepted and drawn on; for the purpose of this paper, CSR is:
the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as the local community and society at large (WBCSD, 2000, p. 8).

In the UK and USA, the language of CSR became of increasing importance due to mounting pressure in the 1970 s and 1980 s from anti-capitalist activists concerned with environmental and human right issues. As such, business leaders became increasingly conscious of their responsibilities towards environmental and social issues and readily adopted CSR policies into their business agendas (in varying degrees). In theory therefore, companies who engage with CSR are thought to be voluntarily managing the social, environmental and economic aspects of their business in a responsible manner, to the satisfaction of all stakeholders. Despite this however, there has been a barrage of criticism surrounding the concept and practice, suggesting that it is no more than a corporate branding and selling tool (The Corporate Watch, 2007). Notwithstanding this, many corporations, governments and theorists believe that CSR is a necessary tool for companies operating in a faster, progressively more globalised and competitive world (Holliday et al., 2002). Academic scrutiny has predominantly focused on the CSR practices of corporations originating from, and operating in, developed country contexts (Kolk and van Tulder, 2010). However, as companies from emerging markets increasingly enter the global market place, academic attention is drawn to their practices (Alon et al., 2010; Arevalo and Aravind, 2011; Cheung et al., 2010; Patel and Rayner, 2012; Peters et al., 2011; Planken et al., 2010). In 1999, the WBCSD held a sequence of CSR dialogues in Argentina, Brazil, Thailand, Ghana and the Philippines (Holliday et al., 2002). Over a decade later, CSR is now a term which is being discussed and acted on by many governments and private companies in developing nations, particularly the emerging BRIC economies. The global economic shift and increasing inuence of BRIC nations is going to challenge existing practices and ultimately amplify competition among global corporate players. In these emerging nations it is considered that CSR will almost certainly feature as a competitive tool (CSR Asia, 2010). CSR in the Indian context Despite the relatively recent surge of CSR interest outlined previously, the landscape of corporate social engagement within India is extensive and diverse. Historically this can be identied as four prominent phases. During the period 1850 to 1914, CSR was in the form of donations to temples and social welfare causes, predominantly determined by religious and traditional family values. Supporting industrial and social development was ingrained into how companies did business, very much inuenced by religious orientation (Mohan, 2001). Phase two (1914-1960), is representative of the period of Indias struggle for independence and its post-independence social upheaval. Mahatma Ghandi primarily inuenced this form of CSR, with theories of trusteeship and emphasis on social development (Chahoud et al., 2007). During the third phase (1960-1988), CSR was characterised by legislation, in the form of labour and environmental standards. The fourth and current phase is characterised partly

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by Indias traditional engagement with philanthropy but also, as this paper highlights, the integration of CSR initiatives, inuenced by western practices, into business strategies. It is widely commented that there are four models of CSR which are evident in the operations of Indian corporations: ethical, statist, liberal and stakeholder. In brief, these comprise of: Ethical, championed by Gandhi, focusing very much on a voluntary assurance to social welfare; Statist, campaigned by Jawaharlal Nehru, where the focus shifts to the State to determine legal requirements; Liberal, pursued by Milton Friedman, highlighting the role of private owners; and Stakeholder, championed by Edward Freeman, encouraging the role of stakeholders in the pursuit of corporate responsibility. It is argued that all four of these models have been pursued in the UK since the Industrial Revolution, and similarly all forms are present in India (Sood and Arora, 2006). However, it is important to note that these may not be independent of each other; in India there may be overlaps between two or more of these models being operationalised by Indian rms (Arevalo and Aravind, 2011). Since the beginning of the twenty-rst century, India has emerged as a signicant player in the global economy, with increasing political power on the world stage (Humphrey and Messner, 2006). Notwithstanding the recent global economic downturn, India is experiencing rapid growth (Harrison and Sepulveda, 2011). Given this, Chahoud et al. (2007) argue that Indian businesses need to align their practices to the labour and environmental standards of western consumer markets and comply with international standards. At present, Indian CSR practices take a non-mandatory form; however, there are tax benets for companies engaging with CSR activities. It is evident that the language of CSR is gaining prominence in India, with policies and strategies being developed in a variety of ways. Some companies champion their own CSR departments, while others prefer to distribute the responsibility across the business, but there are also those who work closely with NGOs in an attempt to increase transparency (Hopkins, 2006). However, there is the general feeling that Indian corporations are not going far enough. This has prompted the Indian Government to develop a CSR bill, which would ultimately mandate companies to spend at least 2 per cent of their net prot on CSR causes (relating to any company having a net worth of Rs.500 Crore or turnover of Rs.1,000 Crore or more/or net prot of Rs.5 Crore or more during a scal year). This change in thinking is of great signicance, both in terms of CSR within India, but also the impact this may have for CSR philosophies globally. The Indian Government is on the cusp of introducing a CSR bill; going against the grain in terms of voluntary CSR thinking and practice (Zile, 2012). Ultimately the attempt to mandate CSR is linked to their drive to increase corporate commitment to societal and environmental development; how in practice this will operate is yet to be seen. The debate and deliberations continue at the current time (August 2012). It has been suggested that in order for India to achieve economic growth and mitigate environmental degradation and social upheaval, it must, abandon [its] grow now, clean up later approach to development (Annandale et al., 2005, p. 2). With rapid privatisation of Indias economy, it is clear that in for growth to be sustainable, commitment and the acceptance of responsibility is needed across the board. It is evident that Indian corporations have a longstanding tradition of various forms of commitment to social wellbeing. However, this paper highlights a new trend, in that Indian executives are looking towards the west in terms of their recent (last decade) surge in advertising and promotion of CSR. It is apparent from conducting research in India that there should not be a blanket and uniform CSR approach, particularly one which has originated from a developed country context; the process of doing CSR in terms of contributing to economic development, is highly contextual. Principally, this paper offers insight into CSR commitment from key players operating in the Indian banking sector. More broadly, it contributes to an understanding of current modes of CSR engagement within a BRIC economy, guided by the following research questions: what modes of CSR engagement currently exist in the day-to-day operations of Indian corporations? and what factors inuence CSR adoption and practice within an emerging market context? Through a focus on four modes of engagement, which emerged from empirically grounded, qualitative data collection, the paper highlights multiple forms of

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commitment which are often overlooked when reviewing CSR primarily through reporting methods. Planken et al. (2010, p. 19) recently suggested that Indian corporations [. . .] are pursuing a primarily philanthropic platform focusing on community development projects, this however, is based purely on company reports and web site material, perhaps overlooking the details and complexities of their engagement. By categorising and highlighting multiple forms of CSR, further themes emerged which require investigation. It is important to note that the eld research was conducted in the rst quarter of 2008; at this time India was condent for its future. However, within six months the landscape of nance transformed; major players of the nancial world had fallen and developed nations were experiencing a recession (Altman, 2009). The impact of the recession on CSR strategies is a growing concern; this paper seeks to acknowledge this situation.

Research methods
Corporate Social Responsibility in the Indian banking industry is the focus of this paper; a theme which emerged from a broader programme of research on responsible lending. Historically, banking has been perceived to be relatively environmentally friendly (Jeucken and Bouma, 2001). However, sustainability in recent years has become a key concept within the developed world banking industry, particularly with regard to the project nance sector. Financial institutions are being held to account by a broader range of stakeholders, in terms of the projects they agree to nance as well as their day-to-day corporate responsibility (particularly, due to the media and public scrutiny following the major banking upheaval of 2008). Developed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) (in 2003), the Equator Principles were designed as a voluntary standard to ensure that projects nanced by signatories, adhered to environmentally and socially sound principles. Financial institutions could no longer afford to be funding projects which had signicant environmental and social implications; their corporate reputations were being compromised in the process. The values of responsible project nance chime neatly with the wider CSR agenda. Increasingly, public attitudes and actions are gearing towards more environmental and sustainable processes. Non-government organisations (NGOs) have multiplied and become sophisticated in their approach to monitoring corporate behaviour and the media has played a signicant role in publically disgracing unsustainable or unethical companies and promoting the green way. The research from which this paper stems emerged as Equator banks were increasingly denying funding to development projects (e.g. in India), so non-Equator nancial institutions from emerging Asia were agreeing to nance such infrastructure schemes. It was during this investigation into project nance in India, that the language, practices and motivations of CSR became apparent; Indian companies broader commitment with society and the environment. For the purpose of this paper, the themes relating to CSR have been reported on, for a detailed analysis of the Equator Principles and responsible lending see Hadeld-Hill (2007) and Lazarus (2004). While the focus of this paper is the Indian nance industry, the trends within this sector and emerging practice, we must be cautious about making broad generalisations about CSR in India based on the data presented here. However, given the role of the banking sector (public, private and foreign banks) in the development of the Indian economy (in terms of driving forward the nations growth), an investigation into the CSR motivations and practices of key players is paramount at this time. Second, a focus on CSR within the banking sector is essential given the global interest in nancial responsibility. Stimulated by irresponsible lending and the bonus culture, nancial institutions broader corporate responsibilities are at the forefront of media and academic scrutiny at this time of heightened economic turbulence. Primary data collection was undertaken during a eld visit to India between February and the end of April, 2008. The researcher (author of this paper) conducted a programme of semi-structured interviews with Chief Executive Ofcers (CEOs), Managing Directors and senior level ofcials of Indias nancial institutions (however, due to contacts made in the eld several other industry experts in the energy and manufacturing sectors also participated).

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The participants identied in this paper are considered to be elites. This term is used to describe those who hold positions of power within leading corporations and nancial institutions. Welch et al. (2002) considers elites to have the following characteristics (which hold true to the research participants): usually a male who occupies a senior or middle management position; has functional responsibility in an area which enjoys high status in accordance with corporate values; has considerable industry experience; and possesses a broad network of personal relationships. Of the 52 interviews conducted, 60 per cent (31) of the respondents were considered to be corporate elites, as per the classication provided by Welch et al. (2002). Table I. shows the job titles of all elite research participants. Interviewing the corporate heads of Indian nancial institutions provided an insight into the lending motivations and strategies of key players in the Indian project nance industry and enabled a rich examination into their engagement (or lack of) with CSR. The corporate elite has a major role to play in terms of the researcher being able to get close to corporate worlds (Schoenberger, 1991). Moyser (2006) identies a number of reasons why face-to-face interviews with elites may be of benet to the researcher. First, they hold authority in large rms and organisations, therefore are essential if information regarding societal outlooks and corporate motivations are required. Second, elites are believed to be experts in the eld and quite often serve as gatekeepers, controlling access to valuable data sources. Ultimately, the decisions which are made by nancial institutions to fund major development projects can and are having signicant impacts on the environment and communities both at the local and international scale. It is evident that interviewing the elite or corporate head was vital for gaining an insight into CSR motivations, strategies and future engagement. An analysis of the complex power dynamics which emerged in doing interviews with elites will be explored in a forthcoming paper. Prior to the eld visit, in-depth research into Indias leading nancial institutions was conducted. The institutions (and respective participants) were selected on the basis of their positioning in terms of total assets (largest) and growth in deposits (fastest growing). Institutions were contacted via letter or e-mail and interviews were scheduled either in advance or on-the-ground when in the country (details of further methodological insights will be reviewed in a forthcoming paper). Of Indias ten largest banks (by total assets, identied by Dun & Bradstreet, 2007) eight participated in the research. In addition, of Indias six Table I All elite interviewees (not attributed to company name to maintain anonymity)
Job titles of elite respondents Executive Director Managing Director Chairman and Chief Executive Ofcer Chairman and Managing Director Director Chief Economist Assistant Vice President Associate Vice President Chairman and CEO Managing Director and CEO Executive Vice President Vice President CEO of Foundation Foundation President Senior Manager, Global Resources Vice President, Global Head CS Chief General Manager Senior Country Ofcer Head of Local Credit Analysis Head of Group Marketing Country Head Responsible Banking Chairman Founder (of organisation) Number of respondents with such title 2 1 1 4 2 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

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fastest growing nancial institutions (achieving over 50 per cent growth in deposits from 2006-2007, according to Dun & Bradstreet, 2007) ve agreed to be interviewed. A total of 23 nancial institutions participated in the research and 30 interviews were conducted with Indian bankers (Table II shows the nancial institutions, country of origin and their ownership status). The researcher conducted all interviews, and as the business language in India is English, a translator was not required. Prior to each meeting, internet based research was undertaken with regard to the history of the particular nancial institution, its work ethic, ranking among the Indian banks and potential commitment to CSR and responsible project nance. This pre-interview research was essential to ensure that the researcher appeared condent and knowledgeable. Additionally, six UK based sustainable nance banking conferences were attended during 2006-2008. Networking enabled the researcher to undertake informal interviews with a range of stakeholders in the eld. This process ultimately informed the research and the design of the interview schedule, the format of which followed a guided approach using a series of pre-dened questions (enabling comparisons between organisations and facilitating thematic coding). The interview schedule consisted of: general questions, relating to both global and regional responsible project nance (environmental and social responsibilities) (i.e. At this time in India, do you think sustainability and environmental issues are of importance?); specic questions, to

Table II Financial institutions interviewed (italicised) showing their country of origin and ownership status
Code 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 Organisation UK based foreign corporation International funding organisation Financial Institution Financial services consultancy NGO NGO Funding organisation Energy company Financial Institution Financial Institution Funding organisation NGO Financial services consultancy NGO Credit rating organisation NGO Leading Indian corporation Financial Institution Leading Indian corporation Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution NGO Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution Leading Indian corporation Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution Financial Institution NGO Financial Institution Financial Institution NGO Financial Institution Financial Institution Country of origin Type of nance provider

The Netherlands

Foreign

India India India India

Other Public Public Other

The UK India India India India India India India India France India India India The Netherlands India India The Netherlands India

Foreign Private Private Private Public Public Private Private Public Foreign Private Public Private Foreign Private Private Foreign Public

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tease out the companies approach (prompting examples) (i.e. How does your company consider the social and environmental impacts of projects which are nanced?) and questions to explore their plans for future engagement (both company specic and as an industry) (i.e. Do you think the Equator Principles are translatable to the Indian nancial sector? and What is the role of regulation in sustainable banking?). During the initial interviews, it was apparent that the language of sustainable project nance and CSR are interrelated, thus the interview schedule was altered accordingly; i.e. exploring CSR practice of the wider corporate community, company ethic and attitude to CSR, and specic examples of their commitment and initiatives. To maintain anonymity (which undoubtedly played a key role in gaining access), the names of respondents and the organisations they represent are withheld. The purpose of the research was to gather data and present an industry wide investigation, rather than to name and shame individual organisations. At the outset, it was decided that the interviews would not be recorded, to eliminate risk of the respondent terminating the interview or refrain from talking on certain topics. Detailed notes were taken of direct quotations, body language and general perceptions; immediately after, these were typed up and combined with detailed eld notes. Thematic coding and analysis of interview transcripts took place on return from India and the illustrative quotes presented in this paper are taken from this process. For thematic analysis purposes, the nancial institutions were grouped according to their ownership i.e. public, private, Foreign and other (i.e. public/private companies which nance development) (see Table II).

CSR in India: modes of engagement in the twenty-rst century

Recent literature on CSR predominantly focuses on ways to measure its impact on economic and social development (Bloweld, 2007; Lodge and Wilson, 2006) and more recently from a communication angle, how companies portray and market their corporate commitments (Alon et al., 2010; Planken et al., 2010). However, this form of analysis of company commitment has received criticism from commentators such as Alon et al. (2010) who suggest that there might be dislocation in terms of what is reported and actual CSR activities; in line with much of the corporate greening literature. Thus this paper draws on qualitative data, collated from on-the-ground methodologies, in line with Kolk and van Tulders (2010) call for such research in developing country contexts. This research has extended this knowledge base through a series of qualitative interviews with corporate elites who ultimately make decisions regarding CSR. This section of the paper seeks to build on the four models which are widely cited as being evident in India; ethical, statist, liberal and stakeholder (Sood and Arora, 2006). Drawing out themes based on company attitudes, engagement and future CSR aspirations four categories of responsibility were evident. These range from no voluntary commitment, to pure philanthropy and more sustainable forms of corporate engagement (albeit a blurred distinction between the last two categories) (see Figure 1, for a diagrammatic representation). Similar to the four models (ethical, statist, liberal and stakeholder) which have been present in the Indian (and western) context, where there are dissimilarities in the types of engagement across and between industries, this model presents a similar scenario. While four categories are presented, and distinction can be made quite clearly between the rst two (pure prot maximisation and pure philanthropy), the cut-off between corporate social engagement and sustainable corporate community engagement is less well dened. Indeed, a companys strategy may feature in several categorisations. The interlinked circles are representative of the potential overlap. The paper progresses to explore each of these in turn. While previous research has highlighted the diverse and distinguished history of CSR in India, what is apparent today is that CSR is partly characterised by companies traditional attachment with philanthropy but also CSR practices in the west are inuencing corporate decisions in the Indian context, a signicant nding.

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Figure 1 Categories of CSR engagement (authors own)

Pure prot maximisation A well recited argument for the case against CSR is that made by the American Economist Milton Friedman, arguing that prot maximisation is the sole responsibility of the businessman and social issues should be resolved by the free market system, ultimately falling into the hands of government (Carroll and Shabana, 2010). Friedman (1962, p. 133) persuasively argues that few trends could so thoroughly undermine the very foundations of our free society as the acceptance by corporate ofcials of a social responsibility other than to make as much money as possible for the stockholders. In addition, he questions the judgement of businessmen in deciding what form social responsibility might take; he asks how are they to know what it is? Can self-selected private individuals decide what the social interest is? (p. 134). This argument has been cited in the CSR literature for decades; however, in the developed world hype of CSR conferences, books, web sites and PR material, a corporation openly declaring this Friedman-esque stance is somewhat rare. However, within the Indian context, several interview respondents openly favoured this approach to business (although of the four categories identied, proponents of this attitude were in the minority). The most explicit of this attitude were comments made by the Chairman and CEO of a company nancing Indian infrastructure. In reviewing his companies environmental and social considerations (when providing nance to major infrastructure projects) he proclaimed that,
a company should be responsible to its shareholders and not look at the amount of pollution generated [. . .] leave companies to do what they are supposed to do, that is maximise prots (Respondent: 7b).

He continued,
these things that sound good are things for your day off [. . .] how can you consider these things as serious aspects of business? You should do these things in your private life and not in the company (Respondent: 7b).

The respondent concluded that,

Europe has gone too far, companies are suffering, the economies are suffering, Europe has to get back to the capitalist values [. . .] they have gone too far on the social side (Respondent: 7b).

What then are the consequences of this approach in terms of the impact this has on communities and environments in regions of large scale development? It is concerning that a major infrastructure nance company does not appreciate the importance of environmental sustainability at the scales at which they operate. This company is fuelling the development of Indias infrastructure, a worrying prospect. It is clear that the views of the Chairman and CEO (with regard to social and environmental issues) resonate in the companys lending strategy, i.e. to develop at the expense of the social and natural

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environment. Indian public and private nancial institutions, in theory, will be compliant with existing legal frameworks related to an array of social and environmental obligations (e.g. Environmental Clearance Certicate). However, as highlighted by Prieto-Carron et al. (2006, p. 977) it is the rule rather than the exception that companies do not comply with existing legal frameworks. A further objection to CSR is that the business environment is not equipped to resolve societys ills, echoing Friedmans position. There is a line of argument within the CSR literature that nance and banking executives (as one example) are not equipped with the necessary skills and expertise to make social and environmental decisions (Carroll and Shabana, 2010). This reection was noted within the Indian context; respondents felt that they do not have the skills and knowledge required to enable them to participate in social and environmental causes. In relation to funding large scale development projects one respondent, a Chairman and CEO of a privately funded Indian nancial institution commented on the industrys lack of knowledge regarding environmentally damaging activities:
banks do not have a list of what is environmentally friendly and what is not [. . .] this is the main problem (Respondent: 20).

While the terminology of CSR is widely used among the Indian banks, similar to the confusion which permeates the CSR literature, respondents were unsure about its meaning and impact. Of the nancial entities interviewed, a small minority were not engaging with any form of CSR, on the grounds of the previous; an outright critique of the CSR discourse and lack of expertise in the social arena. Thus, the liberal model of CSR, where corporate responsibility is limited to the shareholders, is reected in the operation of some Indian nancial institutions today. Pure philanthropy As previously alluded, much of the literature surrounding CSR in India suggests that it is deeply rooted in a philanthropic historical context, framed by spiritual and cultural values (Mohan, 2001; Chahoud et al., 2007); thus in line with the ethical Gandhian model (Sood and Arora, 2006). A number of respondents however, suggested that corporate donations and charitable acts are often sporadic and not well executed. A company donating a certain percentage of their annual turnover to a charity is thought in the literature and by interviewees to be inherently unsustainable. As Respondent 2 remarked,
these companies who are purely doing philanthropy but say that they do CSR, is like putting a plaster on a haemorrhage.

During interviews, the majority of Government owned banks condently announced that 40 per cent of their business is a form of CSR. However, underpinning their activity is the regulatory environment which states that all Indian banks (public and private) are required to lend at least 40 per cent of their net credit to the priority sector (e.g. agriculture, small road and water transport operators, housing andeducation). This form of social responsibility is not voluntary, it is governed and regulated, thus it is line with the Nehru statist model whereby legal requirements determine the corporate responsibility. Other public sector participants also used the language and terminology of CSR; however, on further probing they were unable to provide specic details of their CSR programmes, initiatives or strategy. For example, in discussion with Respondent 25 it appeared that the banks CSR (in addition to any priority sector lending) was purely philanthropic, he remarked:
a proportion of the banks prots go towards funding schools, maintaining gardens and nancing tree plantations (Respondent: 25).

Philanthropic giving was a common feature in the CSR strategies of private Indian nancial institutions; the majority described how they set aside a percentage of their prots for CSR activities. However, as previously alluded, there are tax benets for such corporate giving. Thus, many of these companies are engaging in pure philanthropy. The Chairman and CEO of Bank 20 (private) for example, commented that:

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we do not have a foundation or anything like that but we do give donations, we do sponsor activities if we are approached by certain organisations.

Similarly, Bank 36 (private) engages in pure philanthropic giving:

[we] dont have an organised system of giving [. . .] we do support some hospitals in Kerala [. . .] but not on a large scale.

While acts of philanthropy certainly do make positive contributions to worthy causes there is the general consensus that philanthropy does not encourage independence or innovation. Visser (2009: no page) explains: CSR should be about how you make your money [. . .] writing cheques is easy [. . .] running a sustainable and responsible business is hard. However, this paper is in agreement with commentators such as Muthuri et al., 2009 who argue that while, dominant conceptualisations often give less emphasis to philanthropic forms of giving, in a context such as India where there are widespread social and environmental problems, this form of engagement can be essential. One of the dominant themes which emerged from the research was the inuence of western forms of CSR (advertising) on Indian senior management. This was particularly evident in terms of those organisations operating within this pure philanthropy category. Numerous organisations were motivated by the language and hype of western CSR initiatives; allured by glossy CSR brochures and web site reporting. For example, private Bank 31 was attracted by the promotional potential of the CSR language and the subsequent perceived reputational benet. Inuenced by the drive in developed nations, the Head of Group Marketing commented,
we have recognised that CSR has got to be part of our marketing agenda, this is what we have got to pursue (Respondent: 31).

During the course of the interview, the following remarks about potential CSR initiatives were made:we have got a large employee team [. . .] we were thinking of giving employees two weeks off per year to get involved directly.we have a nancial literacy scheme which is in the concept stage [. . .] we are thinking of giving as many of our 20,000 staff as possible, kits, space and time to empower them to talk to all classes of society who earn money but who dont do anything with it. If every person could speak to ten people per week [. . .] we can inuence and support the community we serve.
we are planning on doing micronance intervention at the branch level.

Similarly, the Director of a Financial Services Consultancy (Company 4) is developing ways to jump on the CSR bandwagon:
we will assist with planting trees [. . .] and telling people not to waste water. with our CSR, 70 per cent will focus on social issues and 30 per cent on environmental issues. for our social work we will be working with women and social up-liftment in India [. . .] in India the dowry still exists, we want to spread awareness that the dowry is bad. we also want to spread awareness about child abuse.

The CSR strategies from Bank 31 and Company 4 are ambitious and rather ad-hoc. Numerous references were made to the marketing opportunities such activities would yield and the subsequent brand recognition. A number of other interviewees also commented that their web site would soon be revamped to include their CSR commitments, in line with their international competitors and foreign nancial institutions operating in India. Quotations illustrating this include:
not on our web site? Perhaps we should sort this out (Respondent: 37 Private bank). we are beginning to think about our CSR [. . .] the web site will soon be revamped to include it (Respondent: 13 Financial Services Consultancy).

One has to question what the localised impact of these CSR programmes (arguably ad-hoc and unsustainable) would have on local communities and environments. BRIC economy companies are operating progressively outside their borders, competing in a globalised world; the impact of this on CSR is is an area which remains relatively unexplored. Given the

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direction in which the Indian Government is headed, in terms of mandating CSR spending, this too will undoubtedly have implications for local communities. Indeed, a recent development (August, 2012) in the Parliamentary proposal has stated that companies should focus their spending and CSR activities on the local areas in which they operate. The impact of this should be at the forefront of future research and analysis. Corporate social engagement Primarily, this category of CSR engagement is related to the longstanding families of CSR, those companies who have supported the Gandhian notion of corporate responsibility for decades, well before the popularisation of the term and concept. Kumar (2004) suggests that the core elements of this form of CSR include; community development, whereby companies engage with internal foundations (focusing on programmes such as: health, education and agriculture); environmental management, where environmental standards such as the adoption of ISO14001 have become common place; and workplace, which includes an emphasis on employee well-being (Kumar, 2004). From analysing the interview material there are several examples of Indian corporations engaging with more than just philanthropy. The identifying features of this form of corporate responsibility are those who engage with the core elements outlined by Kumar (2004), but in addition to this, it is those companies who align their own business interests, knowledge and skills to assist with a social cause. For example, the Chairman and Managing Director of public Bank 10 held the opinion that their commitment to society was through purely being a nancial institution, providing the availability of credit. He explained:if I can educate [young] people, then the twenty-rst century will be Indias century . . . education is the key, we have got to give people skills to make them employable. This is why we focus on the student population [. . .] we can provide good educational loans, linking the bank with the student. Education is unaffordable to the poor, lack of funding should not be a problem for these students [. . .] we have got to make our people globally employable.In addition to their focus on students, the Chairman and Managing Director also highlighted their commitment to other minority social groups, collaborating with NGOs to make them bankable. Arguably, this is a public bank funding public, societal interests (through the priority sector lending programme); however, the business-like approach to their corporate responsibility, emanated from the interview material. Undoubtedly, this business agenda will have far greater societal impacts, than the purely philanthropic acts of giving (Visser, 2008). As the Chairman and Managing Director remarked:
CSR is business for us, we dont donate money, the poor requires more dignity [. . .] I would say 90 per cent of our business is related to CSR [. . .] we have to be inclusive and not drive people away, 60 per cent of this country does not have a bank account.

As outlined previously, Kumar (2004) suggests that environmental management is a key feature of a corporations wider societal responsibility. Integrated into this category, therefore, are those institutions engaging with broader societal issues such as mitigating climate change. As the respondent from foreign Bank 30 comments:
We have a green banking policy [. . .] we encourage rain water harvesting. Energy efcient ofces from the Head Quarters to our ofces.

Of the 23 nancial institutions, nine are classied within this category (39 per cent); identifying that they are going a step further than purely philanthropic forms of corporate social responsibility. Sustainable corporate community engagement The fourth category includes those companies, whose senior management actively discussed and provided evidence of a sustainable corporate engagement strategy; ultimately encouraging independence, innovation and development. However, it is important to note that: there is undoubtedly a degree of overlap between corporate social engagement and this fourth category; and a CSR strategy may comprise of multiple elements i.e. they may be simultaneously encouraging sustainability and engaged in philanthropic giving. For example, private Bank 26 operates its CSR agenda through a

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Foundation, whereby various charities receive support (i.e. philanthropic donations for equipment and infrastructure, public health and medical relief). However, elements of their strategy are also of a sustainable nature. As part of the research, one of their recipients was visited, a primary school, encouraging low cost, high-quality child-centred education to underprivileged children of urban Mumbai. Bank 26 funds the training of the teachers and their salaries post-training, which in many respects is a philanthropic form of donation. However, entwined with this seemingly philanthropic form of CSR there is a strong relationship between the CEO of Bank 26s Foundation and the Head of the school. Through the use of contacts and company resources he is encouraging sustainability. As part of his commitment, the CEO arranged for the school librarian to spend time with the qualied librarian at Bank 26, to learn the referencing system. Arguably this is an invaluable sustainable asset both for the school and the individual. While this example is a relatively small portion of the Banks CSR agenda, there is a sustainable mind-set from the Head of the Foundation; utilising the assets of the bank to the benet of others, for both now and in the future. Of the 23 nancial institutions interviewed, it was only Bank 26 that showed and spoke of a sustainable commitment to their CSR programme. However, Company 16 (interviewed as part of the snowballing approach) a domestic rm operating within the manufacturing sector, also showed this commitment. Respondents gave various examples of a sustainable strategy, ranging from engagement with womens self-help groups and the provision of micronance loans to the school bus scheme which runs in the local area. Respondent 16a, commented and repeatedly highlighted that,
it is important for the community to realise that these things are not for free [. . .] it gives them ownership over the project and gives the project sustainability.

In this regard, Muthuri et al. (2009) highlight the risk of excessive engagement and the potential long-term consequence of the community becoming dependant on corporations. Indeed they suggest that in order to facilitate sustainable community development, there needs to be a shift away from short-term approaches to a relationship which is built on values (Muthuri et al., 2009). In sum, they suggest that a relational approach needs to be pursued in order for the corporation to contribute to meaningful and sustainable community development. The domestic rms in India practicing this form of CSR engagement are striving towards such a relational approach. Earlier in the paper, it was mentioned that the research was conducted at a time of relative condence (both in India and the nance sector generally); what then is the impact of the troubling economic situation which has emerged since this period on CSR globally and within emerging economies such as India? With the lack of available credit, widespread job losses, cutbacks and business failures, undoubtedly in many instances, corporate social commitments will be squeezed. Executives have passed comment that during such turbulence, CSR will be well down the agenda. Visser (2008) provides an outline of the various types of CSR initiatives and their likelihood of surviving a recession. He concludes that, irrespective of the fact that those most in need of charity will be the worst hit by the crisis [. . .] philanthropy budgets will be among the rst to be trimmed (Visser, 2008). It is inevitable that there are countless boards of directors and CEOs who jumped on the CSR bandwagon during the good times; not only in the west, but also in countries such as India. Given the shifts in global nance which have emerged since the data collection, a post-interview questionnaire was released (17 December, 2008), asking respondents a series of questions regarding the banking crisis and the potential impact on current and future CSR commitment. From a response rate of 28 per cent, it was evident that condence in the industry had certainly been hit, as the respondent of foreign Bank 39 commented the Indian economy is not immune to this bloody situation. The manager of a Delhi based NGO which collaborates with a number of Indian corporations, noted a decline in philanthropic spending. Current donations had been cut and new clients did not want to commit during a period of uncertainty. It was commented however, that those companies (e.g. Company 16) with ingrained commitments to social objectives, were not considering curtailing their involvement during these hard times.

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Conclusion
Empirical, on-the-ground qualitative evidence from the Indian nance sector has offered insight into: modes of CSR engagement which are currently operational and CSR inuences within an emerging market context. In line with the global economic shift and raised prole of the BRIC nations there is a repositioning in academic attention to corporate practices and responsibilities of rms operating in these regions (hence this Special Issue). This paper contributes to the literature on the operationalisation of CSR within one of the worlds fastest growing economies. Drawing on previous research highlighting Indias traditional engagement with CSR and philanthropy, this paper has offered new insights. From research conducted with CEOs and senior management operating predominantly in the Indian nance sector, this paper suggested four categories of CSR engagement ranging from pure prot maximisation to corporate social engagement and strategies which showed a sustainable commitment to their engagement. It is acknowledged that the boundaries between these modes of engagement may be blurred and some companies may feature in several of the categories. However, conducting qualitative research has enabled detail regarding corporate motivation and day-to-day practices to be analysed. Qualitative research is well placed to explore corporate motivations and practices, going beyond analysing corporate material which is so often interrogated when doing CSR research. What constitutes good corporate citizenship? What does being a responsible corporate entail? How much is it going to cost? What impact will it have? These are questions which are being asked by senior managers worldwide. While historically companies in India have been engaged in forms of CSR (mainly philanthropic), these questions are being raised among those engaged in the nancial sector. Many of the respondents in the public sector, argued that they were already doing CSR in the form of the regulated priority sector lending. Others gave donations on an ad hoc and sporadic basis and some contemplated setting up a CSR strategy purely for marketing purposes. It is most evident that those companies who are effectively making a positive contribution, are those engaging with the local community in a participatory fashion. There is a ne balance between corporate community engagement and issues of power and oppression. For the long term sustainability of community corporate based programmes, particularly in contexts emanating from developing and emerging country contexts, local people need to take ownership. One of the successes of this research was that within a limited period a signicant number of interviews were conducted with elite respondents. The timely nature of the research is indicated by the by the researcher gaining access to senior gures within the Indian banking sector. In terms of limitations there are several. Despite gaining a representative sample of respondents, due to nancial constraints, the period of eld research was limited. In a number of cases, the Headquarters of nancial institutions were not in Delhi or Mumbai. If it were not for cost and time constraints, the researcher could have travelled to other cities, yielding additional interview material. Future research should centre on the specic initiatives and those at the receiving end of corporate programmes i.e. qualitative research assessing impact of initiatives. This research predominantly focused on the nancial sector for the reasons outlined; however, this could also be interpreted as a weakness. Despite this, the method could be replicated for other sectors and industries to build up a broader view of CSR practices and future commitments of Indian corporations. Of importance here, is the qualitative nature of the exploration, moving beyond an analysis of company reports and web site material. Despite the nancial crisis which has reverberated around the globe, the Indian economy and domestic development is on the rise. During this period of economic and infrastructure growth it is imperative for the nancial sector to recognise, assess and mitigate their environmental and social risk and be responsible in their lending. A dominant expression of the respondents was that they are not environmentalists or social experts, they are bankers. It is the responsibility, of the academic community to enter into discussions with large corporations to assist them with their understanding of the impacts they are having on local communities and environments. Of further signicance is the shifting landscape of development nance. Increasingly the BRIC economies are nancing infrastructure

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development in other developing and emerging counties. Undoubtedly, this will challenge existing ideologies of project nance and sustainability; indeed how CSR is played out within these south-to-south contexts is a further area of investigation. Through an investigation into the Indian banking sector and the project nance industry this has enabled a broader investigation into corporate attitudes and responsibilities. CSR within the Indian context is currently on a cusp; with discussions emanating from the State, it looks likely that signicant changes will be made to the nature of CSR. What impact will this have on the current modes of CSR being pursued? How will Indian companies embrace these changes? How will this be structured and governed? What will be the localised impacts of CSR programmes on the poor and marginalised? Will this mandated form of CSR make signicant contributions to development or will initiatives be ad hoc and poorly implemented? A signicant nding from this research is that domestic companies are being inuenced by western CSR promotional material, ultimately encouraging them to jump on the CSR bandwagon. Research exploring the impact of imperialist and reactive CSR programmes on society is of priority, particularly given the new CSR paradigm which is about to be pursued by the Indian corporate community.

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About the author

Sophie Hadeld-Hill is currently a researcher in the Centre for Children and Youth, University of Northampton. She was awarded her PhD in 2010 from the University of Leicester. Her research focused on the greening of leading companies and nancial institutions in India, entitled: The future of responsible lending in India: perceptions of the environment and sustainability. Sophie Hadeld-Hill can be contacted at: sophie.hadeld-hill@northampton.ac.uk

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