A new study by the Center for Creative Leadership shows that the more committed a company is to its corporate social responsibility initiatives, the more engaged and committed their employees are likely to be to the company. The report, “Employee Perceptions of Corporate Social Responsibility: The Implications for Your Organization,” used data from The 2008-2009 World Leadership Study, which sampled the opinions of 2,215 workers around the globe. The report made 3 broad findings:

1. A company’s CSR programs are directly linked to an employee’s commitment to an employer. This finding is consistent among job functions and age groups, but is truer of women than of men. The higher an employee rates the organization’s commitment to CSR, the more committed the employee is to the company.

2. The recession did not change employee attitudes. During the recession, employee attitudes regarding their company’s CSR activities did not change, and the majority of employees still felt that their employers were acting responsibly in their communities.

3. CSR Programs are not a panacea for employee retention. While employee perception of your CSR programs are important, they are not a replacement for basic job satisfaction.

Reprinted with permission from Sustainable Life Media