Most people would agree all organizations have certain responsibilities to the stakeholders. In this case, employees, customers, suppliers, owners, and the community are stakeholders. Providing a safe, clean place to work is generally considered an obligation. Some expected obligations include paying taxes and following all laws. But other benefits, such as offering to pay employees up to 3 days per year in which the employee participates in a charitable fundraising event for cancer research, may be seen as generous by some, and not appropriate by others.

Organizational structure and culture may influence the organization's level and scope of CSR. So, managers of human resources, marketing, sales, and an organization's executives must decide how to best participate in CSR. They may ask themselves, "What are the social obligations?" For example, do they include responsive activities and organizational responsibilities? How far should an organization go? What is fair to all?

• What do you consider to be the top 3 benefits to CSR?
• How does Microsoft organization you are familiar with implement CSR initiatives?