Corporate Digital Responsibility: Foundations and Considerations for Its Development

Abstract

Purpose: To propose corporate digital responsibility as a new area of interest for social accountability in the contexts of technologies that are part of the 4.0 industries. Originality/value: In this regard, it was found that there is not enough theoretical and legal foundation that allows different types of organizations to face the implications of the adoption of new technologies. Therefore, essential foundations and considerations are raised for the development of corporate digital responsibility. Design/methodology/approach: The document presents a hermeneutical investigation based on a systemic literature review within the framework of two investigations. The first addressed the relevance of creating a new subject for traditional social responsibility in digital contexts, and the second demonstrated the epistemological need for social responsibility in technologies. Findings: Firstly, the fact that new technologies pose a social risk makes them a subject of social responsibility study. Secondly, the absence of regulations on industry 4.0 and the unpredictability of the advancement of technologies is not a limitation for creating a scenario of corporate digital responsibility. To conclude, the development of social responsibility in digital contexts is possible and necessary. However, we must be attentive to the variables of social risk that may arise with each new technology. Therefore, a constant review of the foundations and bases of corporate digital responsibility is needed.

Corporate Digital Responsibility: A Board of Directors May Encourage the Environmentally Responsible Use of Digital Technology and Data: Empirical Evidence from Italian Publicly Listed Companies

“…Digital technologies increase a firm's productivity and open new horizons while also posing ethical and social problems. The fact that new technologies pose a social risk makes them a subject of study with regard to their social responsibility [17]. Problems arise in situations that clearly involve all of us, given that we are all citizens and consumers.…”

“…The absence of regulations in industry 4.0 and the unpredictability of the advance of technologies are not a limitation to creating a scenario of corporate digital responsibility. The development of social responsibility in digital contexts is possible and necessary [17]. For Wagener, CDR is revealed in the voluntary effort to manage digital resources responsibly with reference to the following arguments of interest [28]:…”

Corporate Responsibility for Digital Innovation: A systematic Review of the Literature

“…Some researchers have already conducted literature reviews on CDR. Londoño-Cardozo & Paz (2021) examined works that appeared up to 2019 addressing the emergence of CDR from CSR. Wallimann-Helmer et al (2021) focus on a related term of "Digital Ethics".…”