Corporate Social Responsibility. How Does it Add Up?

Michael Meltzer

Joining Peter Clayton today to discuss the results of Sirota's survey is Michael Meltzer. Michael is the co-author of a new book from Wharton School Publishing, The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit By Giving Workers What They Want .

Total Picture Radio's coverage of the CRO Conference was made possible by the generous support of Deloitte LLP, recruiting the best, and helping them achieve the most. If you're always asking yourself "what next?" you owe it to yourself to check out Deloitte's challenging career opportunities.

Questions Peter Clayton asked Michael Meltzer

As my good friend Jay Jamrog is fond of saying, what gets measured gets done. How do you measure corporate social responsibility?

As I mentioned in the open, you and and the president of Sirota, Douglas Klein, presented the results of a survey your firm conducted on corporate responsibility.

First, in the survey, how did you define corporate responsibility?
 
What were the results of the survey? Give us some bullet points.

Did any of the findings surprise you?

I’ve heard from many recruiters and HR executives that recent college grads, in particular, are very aware of CR, and take a company’s CSR into consideration when looking at employment opportunities -- does this trend match your survey results? (And, do you think it is a trend?)

You know, Michael, a lot of skeptics of the CSR movement put this idea in the trendy-touchy-feely tree-hugger category that makes no difference to the bottom line, and is nothing but a distraction. What do you tell the skeptics?

What was your impression of the CRO conference - any take-aways you can share with the audience?

Let’s talk about your book -- The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit By Giving Workers What They Want.

The larger the organization, the less likely it is to find enthusiastic employees. Right?

Okay, what are the biggest contributors to running and organization of enthusiastic employees?

One thing that’s come up in a number of interviews I’ve done recently -- the corporate honeymoon is over in about 6 months. That’s about as long as it takes most companies to completely drain any enthusiasm, excitement, and optimism from a new hire. Does this ring true with Sirota’s findings?

About Sirota Surveys
At Sirota, you will find the most dedicated and enthusiastic Organizational Development professionals in the industry today. 58% of our consulting staff holds Ph.D degrees, and the remainder hold Masters' degrees. As a professional services firm, the quality and efforts of our staff determine our success or failure with our clients. This is not surprising, given the business we are in. Our confidence is based not just on more than 30 years of experience, but on the feedback from our existing clients. The commitment we display has generated strong and sustained relationships with many successful organizations in both the public and private sectors. Sirota is at the forefront of research in Organizational Development and Occupational Psychology. In February, 2005, Wharton School Publishing released the results of 30+ years of leading research in this field: The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit By Giving Workers What They Want. 

Michael Irwin Meltzer, Chief Executive Officer
Michael Meltzer joined Sirota in 2001 on a full-time basis, after having represented the Company for over 20 years, first as an associate, and then as a partner in a New York City law firm. He became the Chief Operating Officer in 2004 and was later named CEO in January, 2007. Michael is the co-author of a new book from Wharton School Publishing, The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit By Giving Workers What They Want.

Resources:
The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies Profit By Giving Workers What They Want
Sirota Surveys
Deloitte's Career Portal
CRO

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