CSOs and business partnerships: strategies for interaction

Abstract

Cross-sectoral partnerships have increasingly been promoted as a solution to environmental and social problems. This presupposes participation of civil society organizations (CSOs). The article probes whether the partnership idea is prevailing among CSOs. The purpose of the study is to explore what underlies CSOs' approaches to interaction with business.The study finds that, based on their background and tactics for business interaction, CSOs can be divided into Preservers, Protesters, Modifiers and Scrutinizers. Among these, solely the Preservers have a strategy of engaging in partnerships with business. The Protesters, Modifiers and Scrutinizers, on the other hand, take on a strategy of independence. This finding indicates that corporations that seek to successfully partner with CSOs should be wary that such collaboration is not in line with the strategy of all CSOs, and that for the same reasons the prevailing partnership promotion might be problematic.

Turning Farmers into Business Partners through Value Co-Creation Projects. Insights from the Coffee Supply Chain

“…As an activity that takes place between economic and social actors [14], value co-creation involves more complex mechanisms of cooperation and collaboration among stakeholders and an equitable spreading of responsibilities. Scholars have suggested that one powerful means of value co-creation is represented by joint cross-sector partnering [9,34], which could include various stakeholder groups, including suppliers, NGOs, business partners, allies, universities, and customers, working together to co-produce value [17,35,36]. Involving a plurality of stakeholder groups with different interests, responsibilities, and backgrounds and aligning them to the same goals to co-create value entails considering differences in power, vulnerability, capabilities, skills, and knowledge [2,6].…”

“…Collaborations between NGOs and businesses are widely seen as being crucial to decrease vulnerability and to meet economic, social, and environmental objectives throughout the supply chain, thus increasing supply chain resilience [35,36]. This situation is particularly valid in the coffee context, where issues such as climate change and market instability caused by information asymmetries can only be faced through a common strategy [16].…”

Trickle Effects of Cross-Sector Social Partnerships

“…Ählström and Sjöström, 2005;Seitanidi and Crane, 2008). Factors have been identified that could drive and improve cross-sector interactions, such as alignment of better fit between the collaborating organizations' missions and values, emotional bonds between managers from both sectors, clarity with regard to mutual expectations about the contributions of each, and involvement of employees at all organizational levels (Austin, 2000;Berger et al, 2004).…”

Mewujudkan REDD+: strategi nasional dan berbagai pilihan kebijakan

“…Secara luas CSPs sekarang telah disetujui setelah mengalami perubahan sejak tahun 1990-an ketika bentuknya masih serupa dengan kemitraan publik-swasta (Nelson 2002). CSPs telah bergerak lebih ke arah bentuk-bentuk tata kelola menyeluruh yang melibatkan warga dalam membentuk sasaran-sasaran berbagai proyek (Linder 200;Ählström dan Sjöström 2005). Bahkan, sebuah LSM Indonesia (dikutip oleh Tahmina dan Gain 2002) mengatakan, 'Dengan menciptakan berbagai kemitraan, kami juga berusaha untuk meningkatkan kesetaraan dan mendorong nilai-nilai seperti keadilan sosial'.…”