Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment evaluating Sainsbury UK’s Organisational Performance

Question

Assessment 1: Project Outline

You should choose your own project topic(we have already discussed on topic) and then briefly write a problem statement followed by aim, objectives, sources of secondary data and a brief methodology of the project.

Assessment Criteria

1. A statement of the problem, research aim and objectives
2. A brief methodology (Provide details about what type of methodology you will choose such as quantitative or qualitative or mixed methodology)
3. Sources of secondary data, data presentation and analysis methods(Clearly identify secondary data source(s) and data that require for your research; also identify the methods and tools that you will use to analyse the collected data.)
4. Accurate referencing, use of correct English and logical sequences between sentences and paragraphs

Answer

Problem Statement
This Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment evaluates the importance to identify whether the effects of the incorporation of CSR traditions in the business has been able to ensure a proper management structure for the organizational head and their employees at the same time. It is clear that in the contemporary world, the competitive advantage is no longer restricted to providing the best quality products but also in positioning itself as an organisation that contributes equally to the societal development. However, corporate social responsibility involves capital investment, process modification, and implementation of sustainable measures. While sustainable measures ensure socially responsible approach based on Economic, Social and Environment, it is essential to evaluate the implication towards enhancing the performance of the retail organisation. Hence, in this scenario, it becomes imperative to identify the implication of sustainable measures through corporate social responsibility towards organisational performance.

Research Aims and Objectives
This Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment Formulates an appropriate research aim and objectives reflects the aspirations of a research project and helps in identifying the expectations of the project at the same time as well (Harris et al., 2015). These help in addressing the long-term outcomes of the project. The aim of this research is to analyze the effects of CSR on the organizational performance of Sainsbury and the way it allows them to maintain their competitive advantage in the retail industry.

The objectives of this study are as follows:

• To understand the contribution of the UK retail sector in their economy
• To identify the preliminary CSR agendas that were incorporated by the retail organizations
• To understand the extent of the involvement of sustainable measures and CSR in their business operations and organizational development of Sainsbury
• To analyze the organizational performance of Sainsbury since the implementation of CSR traditions
• To evaluate the organization’s ability to provide their employees with job satisfaction and their customers with quality products

Research Questions
The Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment question can be defined as an answerable inquiry regarding a rising issue or concern. It is considered as one of the primary initial stage of a research project. According to Pratt (2015), research questions focuses on the field of study and helps in determining an appropriate methodology that could be used to determine the answers. The research questions for this project are as follows:

• Is the retail sector one of the prominent contributors in the development of UK’s economy?
• Is the retail sector one of the prominent contributors in the development of UK’s economy?
• What are the key objectives of the CSR traditions applied by Sainsbury in their business operations?
• Has the organizational development of Sainsbury encountered growth since the implementation of CSR commitments?
• Is the organization able to provide the employees and the customers with definite amount of satisfaction regarding job and products?

Research Rationale
In the words of Ary et al., (2018), research rationale plays an integral role in identifying some of the key reasons of conducting a research allows an in depth analysis of the subject that has been chosen for the project. This Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) assignment focuses on the types of business self-regulation that needs to be addressed by every prominent organization to ensure that they are able to comply with the affirmative needs of the society. With the rising environmental issues around the world, it is important that the retail organizations are able to address the environmental issues by incorporating the use of sustainable framework in their organization. These issues can be abolished with the help of the incorporation of CSR strategies.

Conceptual Framework

Sources of Secondary Data

As cited in the table above, it can be said that the journals and the articles used would allow in the proper mechanisms of the CSR activities in an organization. The secondary data used for this study ensures that the knowledge behind interviewing the employees of Sainsbury would be hosted as a clear perception of the researcher. After collecting all the viable data for the Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment, it is important that the perspective of generating raw hand data for the better understanding of the subject. ?

Methodology
For conducting the study properly and generate viable results for the project, the researcher has proposed the use of positivism philosophy and descriptive purpose. In the words of Hughes & Sharrock (2016), positivism philosophy can be defined as a philosophical theory that states certain amount of knowledge based on the natural occurrence of the events, their properties and relations (McNabb, 2015). The researcher has proposed the use of descriptive purpose because it will significantly allow in the accurate description of the situations that has been chosen as a field of study. Positivism philosophy do not make accurate predictions neither they determine cause and effect of the magnitude of the situation (Singh, 2015).

• Data Collection Methods: Here, the use of primary data collection methods has been encouraged because it will allow the researcher to gain first hand data for the research. The first hand data are considered true to its nature and the accuracy of the data is considered strong (Walliman, 2017).
• Survey: The researcher will be conducting a survey on 150 employees working in Sainsbury to understand the effects of CSR. The use of quantitative survey has been encouraged.

The employees working in the organization can properly define the intensity of the situation that is prevailing in the organization. The data generated from the survey of 150 employees, the researcher aims to use the quantitative analysis to use appropriate statistical tools for the derivation of accurate results from the project. The Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment researcher has proposed the use of primary data collection method because it will allow him/her to generate raw data, which has less chances of being manipulated by external sources (Mills et al., 2015).

• Sampling Method: To determine the right amount of population for the survey, the researcher has proposed the use of probability sampling method.

The use of this sampling method ensures that the sample population chosen is unbiased and are chosen at random. This type of sampling provides all of the population with an equal opportunity to participate in the research conducted by the researcher (Nardi, 2018). This type of sampling technique complements the use of primary data collection methods.

If the Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment researcher is able to abide by the ethical standards that are necessary to protect the sentiments of the individuals initiating their participation in the survey, then it can be said that the data has not been manipulated (LaRossa & Bennett, 2018). At the same time, it is also important to ensure that the data used is not misinterpreted to achieve the desired Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment result.

Project Schedule and Timescale
Budget and Activities

Timescale

Reference List
Ary, D., Jacobs, L. C., Irvine, C. K. S., & Walker, D. (2018). Introduction to research in education. Cengage Learning.

Harris, R., Perkins, E., Holt, R., Brown, S., Garner, J., Mosedale, S., ... & Farrier, A. (2015). Aims, objectives and research questions.

Hooker, N. H., & Monteiro, D. M. S. (2013, March). UK Food Retailer sustainability strategies: Competitive or cooperative. In Paper to be presented at Labels on Sustainability: An Issue for Consumers, Producers, Policy Makers, and NGOs EAAE 134th Seminar Paris, France, March (pp. 21-22).

Hughes, J. A., & Sharrock, W. W. (2016). The philosophy of social research. Routledge.

LaRossa, R., & Bennett, L. A. (2018). Ethical dilemmas in qualitative family research. In The psychosocial interior of the family (pp. 139-156). Routledge.

Martinuzzi, A., Kudlak, R., Faber, C., & Wiman, A. (2011). CSR activities and impacts of the retail sector. Research Institute for Managing Sustainability (RIMAS). Working Papers, (4).

McNabb, D. E. (2015). Research methods in public administration and nonprofit management. Routledge.

Mills, J. A., Teplitsky, C., Arroyo, B., Charmantier, A., Becker, P. H., Birkhead, T. R., ... & Bushuev, A. (2015). Archiving primary data: solutions for long-term studies. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 30(10), 581-589.

Nardi, P. M. (2018). Doing survey research: A guide to quantitative methods. Routledge.

Pratt, M. G. (2015). Crafting and Selecting Research Questions and Contexts in Qualitative Research. Handbook of Qualitative Organizational Research: Innovative Pathways and Methods, 177.

Singh, K. D. (2015). Creating your own qualitative research approach: Selecting, integrating and operationalizing philosophy, methodology and methods. Vision, 19(2), 132-146.

Walliman, N. (2017). Research methods: The basics. Routledge