Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) (B): Building the Disaster Resource Network

Case A offers an overview and Case B explores specific aspects of a major Indian construction firm which seeks to use corporate social responsibility as a strategic tool in its quest for rapid growth at home and abroad. Source materials include on-site interviews of the firm’s executives, line managers and workers in Delhi, Mumbai and Lavasa, as well as corporate reports, scholarly articles, and domestic and international press articles.

How can corporate social responsibility contribute to the profitability of a firm? More than 60 years after the concept of CSR first emerged, examples remain sparse and it has been frequently cited as a defensive strategy to protect a firm’s reputation or license to operate (Vogel, 2005). On the positive side, it is claimed that CSR strengthens a firm’s ability to compete for and retain superior talent (McElhaney, 2009). Porter and Kramer (2011) argue that CSR can create “shared value” through reconceiving products and markets and by redefining productivity in the value chain. The HCC case suggests significant nuances and new additions to these known/projected benefits.