Corporate Social Responsibility and CSR Audit: challenges in CSR Audit Practices
Kaur, Inderjeet (2025)
2025
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https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025052616444
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025052616444
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Abstract
This thesis considers the central position of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in making ethical and sustainable business practice feasible and acknowledging shortcomings of current CSR reporting schemes. Irrespective of the popular implementation of guidance like the Global Reporting Initiative and ISO 26000, the lack of enforceable regulatory requirements and third-party assurance protocols has led to selective disclosure and manipulation of CSR reports. This undermines stakeholder trust and inhibits the measurement of actual corporate responsibility. The research is driven by increased stakeholder demands for transparency and accountability, as well as the observed misuse of CSR as a Public Relation strategy rather than as an indicator of
authentic corporate ethics. Based on the ethical audit framework proposed by scholars such as Morimoto et al. (2005), the thesis proposes a better, more structured CSR audit model incorporating third-party independent assessment, managerial ethics, risk assessment, and stakeholder interaction. The model aims to bridge the gap between current CSR disclosure and actual impact so that firms disclose but also behave responsibly. The study makes a relevant contribution to the topic since it answers the pressing call for a workable, holistic, and enforceable CSR audit system.
This thesis considers the central position of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in making ethical and sustainable business practice feasible and acknowledging shortcomings of current CSR reporting schemes. Irrespective of the popular implementation of guidance like the Global Reporting Initiative and ISO 26000, the lack of enforceable regulatory requirements and third-party assurance protocols has led to selective disclosure and manipulation of CSR reports. This undermines stakeholder trust and inhibits the measurement of actual corporate responsibility. The research is driven by increased stakeholder demands for transparency and accountability, as well as the observed misuse of CSR as a Public Relation strategy rather than as an indicator of
authentic corporate ethics. Based on the ethical audit framework proposed by scholars such as Morimoto et al. (2005), the thesis proposes a better, more structured CSR audit model incorporating third-party independent assessment, managerial ethics, risk assessment, and stakeholder interaction. The model aims to bridge the gap between current CSR disclosure and actual impact so that firms disclose but also behave responsibly. The study makes a relevant contribution to the topic since it answers the pressing call for a workable, holistic, and enforceable CSR audit system.