Blog 5 - Water.org & Pepsico - CSR Reporting to Stakeholders

COMM 4849-001

Blog 5

Vannessa Sutter-Smith

Dr. Ronald Strand

I believe the PepsiCo organization did an exceptional job of reporting on their community investment and corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. After a simple google search and a browse through the PepsiCo’s organizations website – it was easy to locate the company’s 2014 report discussing their impact and generous contributions made by the PepsiCo organization to Water.org.

 

I think this example is an exceptional instance of great reporting to stakeholders – the information regarding the corporate social responsibility program between PepsiCo and Water.org was easy to find and is extremely informative down to the last detail. Including funding information, the reasoning for the funding and why the initiatives are moral for the stakeholders of PepsiCo. They explain “PepsiCo remains steadfastly dedicated to building a profitable and sustainable 21st century corporation — one that is a good investment for our shareholders, a good environment for our employees, a good citizen in our communities and a good steward of our planets resources.”

PepsiCo reiterates several times why their funding went towards the Water.org organization, explaining that “Water is the fuel to allow our business, and the communities across the world of which we are a part, to flourish. We owe it to ourselves and to future generations to be responsible stewards of this limited resource.” This example is great because it allows for the organization to encourage continuous support from their stakeholders – the imagery, storytelling and detailed reporting in regard to the initiatives associated with Water.org all appear to continuously encourage the support of stakeholders to help sustain the environment and help those around the world.

According to Noam (2013) it is extremely important for companies to engage in CSR activities and to effectively report on these instances to their shareholders. He explains “Companies today are being called upon by their shareholders and other stakeholders to not only boost the bottom line, but also to help address some of the country’s most challenging problems, including those concerning economic development and the environment.”

PepsiCo continues to go onto explain that the organization is dedicated to investing in sustainable social change through various enterprises with numerous water partners. However, they also take the opportunity to explain why Water.org is different than that of other organizations and why PepsiCo has taken the directive to dedicate resources to this particular organization. PepsiCo explicates that, “Water.org created WaterCredit. Expanded in India in 2008 with help from a $4.1 million grant from the PepsiCo Foundation, WaterCredit works with select microlending organizations to provide families the opportunity to finance the water or sanitation soloutions they need most.”

Another important reason that this type of reporting to stakeholders should be done is because “The CSR report due to the typical breadth of information most relevant to stakeholders’ interests, can be a key component of a company’s stakeholder engagement strategy. The CSR report is also a medium for transparency (which often improves a company’s reputation with certain stakeholders, particularly shareholders, employees, suppliers and communities within which the company operates) and may be used as an effective outreach tool as part of an ongoing shareholder relations campaign.”