ISO: Social Responsibility & Benefits of Following ISO 26000
ISO 26000
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has established an International Standard presenting guidelines for social responsibility (SR) named ISO 26000 or ISO SR. ISO 26000 gives guidance on how businesses can operate in a socially responsible manner. It means operating businesses in an ethical and transparent way that contributes for betterment of society.
ISO 26000 gives guidance rather than requirements, so that it cannot be certified the business who implement the guideline unlike some other ISO standards. ISO 26000 provides social responsibility guidance for all types of organizations, like big corporations, SMEs, NGOs and different government agencies. Since the world moves towards transparency, organizations and stakeholders become increasingly aware of the need for socially and environmentally responsible behavior. ISO SR is a time-demanding and relevant guideline to help organizations understand what SR is and what they need to do to operate in a socially accountable way.
The benefits of following ISO 26000
By following the international standard on social responsibility, any organization can optimize its process, management systems and activities related to social responsibility and contribute to the society for sustainable development
It provides organizations many positive outcomes such as:
• Get competitive advantage over companies that have not been followed the standard and then unable to prove the extent of their socially responsible behaviors.
• Enhance its reputation over others.
• Improve relationships with stakeholders who will be viewed the company optimistically as a result of its dedication to behave in a socially responsible way.
• Increase employees morale and the ability to draw attention and keep qualified professionals
• improved perceptions of the organization within the financial community
If an organization demonstrates its commitment to the society or behave in a socially responsible way will surely get support from the stakeholders. So, it’s articulated, extensive benefits would get by company if and only if they behave socially responsible manner.
