Social Responsibility

Social responsibility relates to having concern for the welfare of those in the wider society, and the overall environment. It is about working towards a greater good. To both actively and willingly contribute and help within one’s own closer social groups.

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
– Mahatma Gandhi

Higher vs Lower Range Of Social Responsibility

People with higher social responsibility often appear to be more cooperative as they get actively involved in the groups that they are a part of. Contributing to the overall group success, as they care about how well the group functions as a whole.

They are often:

• Responsible and dependable.
• Feeling genuinely concerned about individuals within a group and how well they fit into a group.
• Understand the dynamics within a group or social team and able to communicate more effectively with others in the shared group.
• More committed to helping the group succeed and achieve.
• Able to adapt to changing social situations and follow through on the group projects.

Those who fall in the lower range of social responsibility are less likely to want to integrate themselves within a group and they appear to be less inclined to contribute to the wider society.

They are usually:

• Hesitant to involve themselves in group activities and don’t want to take on roles of responsibility within a group.
• May struggle to follow through on group activities.
• Concerned more with the self rather than the wider group.
• Not necessarily invested in the success of their social circle/ groups.

Affects In The Workplace

I read an article, “The Value of Humanity in the Workplace” by Eric Mosley. It forced me to think about the value of emotional intelligence in the workplace.

There is so much mention of corporate social responsibility, being bantered around these days. Often it is about what the organisation is doing to have a positive impact on the greater community. Are they donating to charity, recycling, employing people with disabilities etc? I think though that social responsibility certainly also should include how the organisation and its leaders, treat and engage with all their staff members.

Those who score higher in social responsibility are more likely to enjoy organizations where they are primarily working within a team. In fact, they are generally well suited to working in large organizations for this reason. For some people it is actually important to work in a group environment. They are likely to:

• Want to contribute to achieving company and organizational goals, whilst lessening any negative impact on society and the environment.
• Be interested in developing and contributing to ideas that can help the organization develop further.
• Feel a sense of achievement from contributing within a team and making group-focused achievements.

Those who score lower in social responsibility are more likely to achieve in roles involving less teamwork.

They could potentially:

• Thrive in lone working environments, especially where individual achievement is recognized, as they may struggle to work cooperatively in teams.
• May not take on the responsibility to help the team function well as a whole.
• May struggle to find their place in a team environment and lower its effectiveness.
• More focused on their own position within the organization and rising to the top. Potentially to the detriment of others in their team.
• They may prefer to act independently and struggle to commit to others.
While we probably agree that having low social responsibility could be seen as a negative, there may be some people that see it as a benefit. Example a salesperson on a commission-based salary. They may feel that it is better to get the sale and move on. No matter what the cost or repercussions. However, in the long run, this will eventually have a negative impact on themselves, the clients and ultimately the organisation.

The client will feel mis-sold and taken advantage of. The organisation gets a bad reputation, and the salesperson will probably be fired. So, whilst on the face of it, the salesperson in this case may think it is better not to care, they actually do themselves a great disservice.

Impact On Leadership

Leaders are usually responsible for the group of people that they lead. Those who score higher in social responsibility, are more likely to encourage their teams to work together productively. Helping their team achieve and to empower them where possible.

Leaders who fall in the lower ranges of social responsibility may struggle to be effective in their leadership roles as they may not take an interest in how well their team is doing, or not have the desire to help them to achieve their best. Example, their focus could be so results-driven, without any thought on how to productively help and support their team to achieve those results. Leading to staff burnout or higher staff turnover. Team members could feel isolated and that they are under appreciated. Especially example, if the leader is low in social responsibility, low in empathy and high in self-actualisation.

Workplace Example

Imagine a team that scores very high social responsibility and the manager scores low in this area. Imagine that they work for a company in the care industry. Whilst the team members will go out their way to help the people that they care for, the manager might be more focussed on the profits. Checking timecards and the amount in resources spent. The staff may feel that there is a disconnect with the manager and them. Doing what they love and feel as a calling. Whilst he is all about the figures and profit margins. Ultimately, this will lead to resentment between the staff and manager.
The same is true if the roles were reversed. The manager scores high in social responsibility, whilst a team member scores very low. The manager may feel that the staff member is only there to get paid but does not really care for the people in their charge.

In this particular example, understanding both the organisations and the staff members values would be vitally important in this type of environment. Ensuring that the right people get hired for the positions they are expected to fill. This is actually true for most businesses, although it sometimes appears to be a dream world to get the values of all the staff member and that of the organisation aligned.

“If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” – John F. Kennedy

Increase Social Responsibility

If you feel that this is an area that you or someone you know may want to work on, then help is at hand.

In order to improve and enhance social responsibility within the workplace, it’s important for team members to take an emotional intelligence assessment to understand where they currently fall on the scale. Social responsibility is an attribute that can be nurtured and increased.

On completion of the emotional intelligence assessment, we will work together to understand where you may sit on each of the subscales of EI. We can then work with you to increase the specific areas that you feel will have the most immediate and positive impact in your life.

The emotional intelligence assessment is done online and followed up with a face-to-face coaching session, which can be done via Zoom or in person.
Working on one’s EI can lead to significant positive results in all areas of life. Not only making one over all happier, but more effective and approachable
It all starts with a simple yet immensely powerful online assessment.

To find out more about how your organization can benefit, contact us today for a no-obligation conversation.