To cite Milton Friedman's phrase, "the business of business is business" contrasts the changed business environment of today. CSR has apparently helped businesses grow. Corporations have been touting CSR as an integral part of sustainable development. The triple bottom line (TBL) integrating environment, social and economic responsibilities have been focusing on sustainability of corporations, but strategic and financial dynamics of CSR on corporations attempt to build a TBL framework that brings predictability in the workings of CSR and corporate governance. These multi-dimensional and intricate relationships open a new vista for inquiry. Focused study may be undertaken to set a new milestone in the development of CSR in Bangladesh and also provide necessary impetus for local corporations to behave responsibly and other maturing countries to learn from our case.

The understanding and evaluation of Corporate Social Responsibility in various corporate sectors in Bangladesh based on introducing concepts of partnership-brokering services, practices and perceptions, TBL issues, etc. This impact study will add to the body of knowledge, introducing a framework to analyze the significant behaviors of Bangladeshi corporations and find commonalities in decision-processes based on certain internal, national and international parameters.

Global Compact, a UN guided association, requested ‘corporate participants to uphold ten principles relating to human rights, labor, the environment, and non-corrupt business conduct (source:http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com) and received a positive response from 40%. They cited that Global Compact ‘had a good effect on their corporate citizenship, but hard work lies ahead to generate the insights and practical tools needed to implement its principles and to change the world's corporations for the better.’ Global Compact addresses qualitative issues that corporations must adhere to. At IITM, we tinker with global issues and place our footprints in thought leadership areas. We believe efforts at researching the impacts of ‘Global Compact’ and their effect on Bangladeshi organizations and the role of the GOB to build a symbiotic relationship need to be explored.

Today boundaries of trade and commerce cannot be regulated by one nation state and decisions; all tax regimes, flow of resources, funds, cultural orientations, etc. have multi-national flavor cutting historic, geographic boundaries. In this uniquely changed landscape, the corporate behavior manifests differently across countries. With recent global development, CSR has etched a solid potential; more individuals are ultimately developing career in the area of CSR, creating an automatic balancing mechanism to charter the growth of local and multinational corporations in Bangladesh. In future, local organizations will be able to find qualified staff to hire for their departments addressing CSR issues.  

Building CSR within an organization opens opportunities for academic inquiry and practical application, adding trans-boundary issues in managing CSR and may provide impetus for corporations to voluntarily move out of self-serving motifs and build social capital on selfless grounds.