Issues of sustainable development and socially responsible business currently have been discussed a lot. Nevertheless there are no many evidences about causal relationships between social responsibility and profit. But it appears that companies begin to have strong stimuli to pursue social responsibility as a driver of value added in monetary terms. In this context, cause - related marketing obtains higher importance and can be employed for directing activities of profit seeking companies towards socially responsible activity. The presented paper is devoted to analyze Cause-Related Marketing (CRM). Numerous authors have tried to define Cause-Related Marketing concept to realize its field and to differentiate it from others terms. However, there is still no general agreement about the definition, content and scope of CRM, especially in countries such as Spain, where there is a higher conceptual confusion accentuated by translation errors. In this sense, the main objective of this paper is to review and complete the conceptual framework where the theoretical development of CRM is based.
The present article is to examine benefits of social capital for innovation capabilities in the modern business world. First of all, the concept of social capital and its role are defined referring to a set of scientists’ interpretations on social capital and economic/ social development. This chapter allows an ingenious acknowledgement of the added-value of social capital to companies. The main patterns of innovation capabilities are revealed, followed by the methodology and research results presented. The paper emphasizes social capital as a driving factor for organizations while conducting innovations. In line with such elements of social capital as trust, social networks and norms that emerge as the driving factors within the literature review, the research, based on the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) methodology, mainly focuses on three elements of social capital: trust, norms and networks in Lithuanian companies. The research question: how such social capital elements as trust, norms and networks help organizations to innovate sustainably.
This paper is an attempt to review the European debate between proponents of the voluntary and the obligatory case for CSR in the middle of the economic crisis that we are living. Starting by the analysis of the current European government-led initiatives to foster CSR among companies we move to the analysis of two specific national government-led initiatives in the EU area, Spain and Poland. Finally, the paper focuses on the comparison of both cases, as an example of the disparities between national policies in Europe. The lack of a regulatory European framework for CSR could explain the misbalance between country initiatives.
The paper presents research which investigates the implications of national culture and organizational culture in the Lithuanian and Russian SMEs. While much of the attention has been given to organizational culture in large companies, little research has been focused on organizational and national culture in SMEs. The research is based on the main ideas of Hofstede’s framework of seven cultural dimensions and Denison’s cultural model, which measures culture in organizations with four major traits, such as involvement, consistency, adaptability, and mission. The quantitative research is based on responses to a questionnaire embracing various aspects of national and organizational culture. The authors of the research have elaborated proposals for further research.