A case study of Starbucks

1. Gaining sustainable competitive advantages
through CSR engagement and communication
A case study of Starbucks
Tine
Grarup
January
27th
2012
Corporate
Communica7on
Exam
MARSTER
of
ARTS
in
CORPRATE
COMMUNICATION

2. Agenda
The
Findings
CSR
Cri/cism
Gaps
in
the
corporate
brand
Starbucks:
Green
or
Greenwashing?
Ques/ons
and
Comments
Why
have
a
Unified
Corporate
Brand?
Transparency
How
to
overcome
CSR
Challenges

3. The Findings
• CSR:
a
valuable
and
central
element
of
corporate
strategy
• First
mover
advantage
▫ Capitaliza7on
on
compe77ve
asymmetries
▫ Mission
central,
corpora7on-­‐specific
and
stakeholder
visible
CSR
engagement
• Stakeholder
management
and
communica7on
▫ Reputa7onal
benefits
▫ Behavioral
commitment
• Unique
corporate
brand
-­‐>
sustainable
compe77ve
advantage

4. CSR Criticism
• CSR
is
misused
as
a
marke7ng
ploy
▫ Is
Greenwashing
now
CSR
washing?
• Abuse
of
power
through
CSR
• CSR
favors
the
interest
of
business
over
the
righVul
concerns,
demands
and
expecta7ons
of
wider
society
• Are
companies
using
CSR
to
hide
unsavory
business
ac7vi7es?
“There
is
one
and
only
one
social
responsibility
of
business
–
to
use
its
resources
and
engage
in
ac7vi7es
designed
to
increase
its
profits”
Friedman,
1970

5. Gaps in the Corporate Brand
Starbucks: Green or Greenwashed?
Vision
Image
Culture
Ø
Stakeholder
awareness
Ø
Effec/ve
communica/on
of
vision

6. Why have a Unified Corporate Brand?
• To
integrate
the
corpora7on’s
stakeholders
• Internal
commitment
and
iden7fica7on
with
the
CSR
agenda
• Give
customers
a
sense
of
community
–
brand
iden7fica7on
allows
for
premium
pricing
• Corporate
brands
create
common
grounds
• No
ma[er
the
product,
the
corporate
logo
will
aspire
corporate
values

7. CSR scandals
Ø Nike
accused
for
using
sweatshops
(1990’s
)
Ø BP’s
oil
spill
in
the
Gulf
of
Mexico
(2010)
Ø MaOel
using
lead
poisoning
paint
in
their
toys
(2007)

8. Transparency
Ques/oning
Transparency…
• The
double-­‐sided
nature
of
transparency
• Are
stakeholders
really
interested
in
more
informa7on?
• Corpora7ons
are
(re)defining
boundaries
of
transparency
• Is
transparency
simply
a
simula7on
of
openness?
• Transparency
–
now
a
tool
of
power
“You
cannot
stop
people
talking
about
you,
but
you
can
show
a
willingness
to
be
open
an
honest”

9. How to overcome CSR Challenges
Is
it
socially
responsible
to
influence
behavior?
• Corpora7ons
take
advantage
of
consumer
trends
and
a_tudes.
However…
• Consumers
want
to
be
a
part
of
the
solu7on
not
the
problem.
The
corporate
idenCty
is
not
worth
much
without
a
favorable
image
Think
twice
Be
aware
of
context
Tell
a
true
story
Keep
CSR
central