Artificial Intelligence for Asset Management and Investment

Chapter 17Corporate Social Responsibility

WITH ESG (ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, AND CORPORATE governance) becoming popular, social responsibility is more than an investment strategy. It has now become a way of life to operate a business. As AI and machine learning have become pervasive in business, their effect is being felt in the CSR (corporate social responsibility) arena. If done right, AI can be used to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the CSR programs. AI in CSR is a three-step process that consists of:

• Understanding the CSR processes in the firm;
• Determining the failure points; and
• Applying AI technology for automation and insights.

CSR WOES: CAN PROCESSES EXPLAIN THEM?

Having ethics, sustainability, a multi-stakeholder model, and corporate social responsibility programs is one thing; making them effective, another. In general there is consensus that these programs help the firm, the world, the society, the environment, and human civilization (Dhiman, 2008). However, these programs are not without critics. Many of those criticisms are not discussed in the corporate world. We tend to focus on the good news, while ignoring the bad.

The criticism is mostly about the underlying processes of CSR. Automation offers one way to improve the processes and hence close the gap.

Visser defines CSR as “the way in which business consistently creates shared value in society through economic development, good governance, stakeholder responsiveness and environmental improvement. ...