Page 10 - BKCOB CSI Guide 2015

Strategic CSI Awards 3 2015

Companies’ CSI efforts have tended to project or where competitive benefits are
focus on that process of giving, coupled generated from CSI.
with efforts to gain recognition by
leveraging the social investment as a Trialogue defines strategic CSI as that
marketing exercise. It is, however, possible mutually beneficial space where the
for firms to achieve more substantial project is able to demonstrate positive
developmental impact while also deriving developmental outcomes and impact
competitive advantage from the work as well as substantial business benefit.
of the CSI programme. Trialogue’s CSI This positioning is more readily achieved
positioning matrix shown below can be when the social investment is aligned to
used to locate different projects according the business in some way or another. This
to the level of social and business impact enables the business to draw on its core
derived. competence, which can have positive
spin-offs for the community and the
business.

In 2014, Trialogue launched an annual
Strategic CSI Award recognising
outstanding examples of strategic
CSI in practice. In 2014 Netcare was
judged the winner for support of Sexual
Assault Centres, a national network of
Monitoring and evaluation processes 37 emergency departments which treat
are typically used to provide evidence of victims of sexual violence, most of whom
change derived from project activities. cannot pay for private care. The initiative,
To score well on the social dimension, a which is deeply embedded at Netcare,
project should be able to quantify the leverages the company’s facilities and
number of beneficiaries reached and staff to provide this invaluable community
show how the lives of beneficiaries have service. Involvement of partners such as
been advanced through the intervention. SAPS and other NPOs operating in the
Positive impact occurs when the benefits space have resulted in longer term benefits
are extend beyond the direct project which feed into the policy environment.
beneficiaries or the life-span of the project.
On the corporate benefit dimension, Nick Rockey
projects score well when there is evidence Managing Director
that business stakeholders are influenced Trialegue
positively through association with the

10 | Corporate Social Investment Guide