What Lies Behind the Formation of Corporate Social Responsibility Activities in the Automotive Industry : A Study on the Disclosure Practices at Volvo Cars

• Main Author: Laskar, Tasnim
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Uppsala universitet, Industriell teknik 2020
• Subjects: CSR; corporate social responsibility; automotive industry; Volvo Cars; sustainability reports; Other Engineering and Technologies not elsewhere specified; Övrig annan teknik
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-413920

During the last few decades, the awareness of environmental and social responsibility has expanded within the society. This consciousness has resulted in an increase of requirements and demands set upon companies to conduct a business that is sustainable. The automotive industry is one of many sectors that has increased its commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR). The purpose of this thesis is to explore how CSR activities have been formed within the automotive industry and who are affected by these activities. This is done through conducting a longitudinal case study on Volvo Cars, by using a qualitative content analysis on the company’s sustainability reports from 2015 to 2019. Three dimensions were examined using a modified framework of Carroll’s CSR pyramid: environmental, ethical and philanthropic responsibility. The findings resulted in eight different themes, which were analysed with the stakeholder theory and Porter’s value chain. This study concludes that Volvo Cars’ CSR activities have been integrated into their business strategies and that environmental responsibility is the most reported theme in their sustainability reports. Furthermore, this study shows that the stakeholder that is affected significantly by the performed CSR activities of Volvo Cars is the society.