Five Stages of STAGE 1: STAGE 2: Corporate Social Responsibility ONE- OFF SUSTAINABILITY PROJECTS AS PART OF THE BRAND’S INITIATIVES "Many busi- One-off CSR projects are ever-present: from random 90% Many brands have sustainability initiatives, as evidenced by nesses pursue CSR activities donations, to haphazard Instagram posts about philanthropic 90+10M the “Corporate Social Responsibility” breadcrumb on the that can best be termed pet events, these projects are easy to spot. These projects tend to Nearly 90% bottom of their homepage. These efforts tend to come to life projects, as they of the world’s reflect the per- reflect the personal interests of senior leaders vs. the ethos biggest through a CSR or sustainability department that produces sonal interests companies are of individual se- of the brand. While initiatives like these are potentially reporting on their annual sustainability performance reports. However, the few nior executives. sustainability While these admirable, they are not connected to the core of the business performance, people running these engagements generally operate mostly activities may using metrics be presented established by with much noise and therefore have difficulty making an impact for the business the GRI.(10) (The autonomously and have limited exposure to influencing other and fanfare, they Global Reporting usually offer or the planet due to their inconsistent presence and lack of deep Initiative, departments throughout the business. While their remit is minimal benefits established in to either connection within the organization . October 2016) to report on the varied CSR initiatives in which the brand business or society."(09) ―World embarks, their overall presence in the organization is limited ―McKinsey Economic Forum 2009 2019. and certainly not central to the brand’s core. 18 19