Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a much bandied term. Everyone wants to do it and it features high on people’s list but not sure how many of them (except for the big boys understand the term). On a personal level, I do as much as I can and from a company standpoint too, I do what I can to support local initiatives.
What has been interesting is a project that I am personally involved in. Along with a friend and a few others, I am hoping to trek to Everest Base Camp at the Easter holidays this year. The project has been ongoing for some time and we are using this opportunity to raise funds for two charities – one for a local UAE East Coast charity – Fujairah Welfare Association and the other is for a small orphanage in Nepal. Both worthy causes and one where a small amount can go a long way to making people’s lives a bit better.
Apart from the shameless plug for my charities, the main reason for writing this is to highlight the opportunity it presented for some companies to gain publicity and mindshare for a very small fee in a community which is still small enough that most people know each other. There were opportunities for providing prizes, some cash support, and an opportunity for branding at events with a focused (albeit small) audience of potential customers.
Happily, quite a few saw the advantages and were happy to help.
Now there are a whole group of people on the East Coast (that are in the most part overshadowed by the Emirates like Dubai and Abu Dhabi) that have learnt about companies like Imation and Benq that they would never have learnt otherwise.
