Building a New Institutional Infrastructure for Corporate Responsibility

Abstract

Executive Overview This paper describes an emerging institutional infrastructure around corporate responsibility that has resulted in the evolution of initiatives such as the Global Reporting Initiative, the social investment movement, and related efforts that place more emphasis on corporate responsibility, accountability, transparency, and sustainability. Using a framework that roughly classifies initiatives into state/government, market/economic, and civil society categories, the paper illustrates the rapid evolution of new infrastructure that is pressuring companies to be more responsible.