Corporate Foundations A Facade or a True Strategic Decision for Social Involvement?

? An Analysis of Corporative Foundations Projects Based on Their Online Communication

Dr. Camelia Crisan National University of Political Studies and Public Administration Email: camelia.crisan@comunicare.ro Tel: +40 213180881 / Fax:+40 213117148 Steliana Moraru National University of Political Studies and Public Administration Email: steliana.moraru@gmail.com Tel: +40767013078 Abstract Social pressure on companies is increasingly growing from stakeholder groups and from society as a whole. The Green Revolution started by Rachel Carson in the 70s in the United States has been amplified by several additional social movements, up to the point in which a new, more responsible attitude of companies towards communities, consumers and society as a whole has become not only a voluntary decision, but an obligation (Crisan, 2008). While for most companies such an attitude is still a bet, many enlightened firms have started playing a role in promoting the transformation towards a new business model (de Woot, 2009). Companies that have adopted corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a core value frequently define themselves as corporate citizens and view their social roles accordingly. Our previous research in Romania has demonstrated that most companies are in fact adopting CSR as a form of managerial technique, part of the managerial stage of learning CSR (Crisan, Reveiu and Andrusenco, 2011). For this reason, we believe that companies set up corporate foundations as a means of doing good to doing well, to show their civic engagement. The question that our paper aims to answer is whether or not in Romania such responses are based on a true commitment related to a companys taking social responsibility values seriously, or simply a faade for image and marketing purposes. As Starbuck and Nystrom (2006, 203) point out Facades aboundBecause managers construct facades to deceive targeted people and institutions, facades mirror the norms and expectations relevant to these targets

Our paper focuses first on the need of companies to produce facades. As Starbuck and Nystrom (2006, 202) assert managers of business organizations can and do benefit by appearing to conform to ideologies that their environments prefer. The same type of normative behaviour from companies is suggested by other authors Freeman, Harrison and

Wicks (2007), Clarke (1998/ 2004), Philips (2003) or Blair (1995/2004), though starting from the point of
view that corporations have a duty to society. The main producers of facades in a company are its top managers. Facades are a way of promoting a certain image in front of the public and shareholders, and subsequently a way of gaining financial benefits. Facades can be built in terms of work processes (e.g. some systems to ensure relevant stakeholders that the managers care about their future), in terms of structures (structures that seem to be in fashion at some point in time), and in terms of pronouncements (statements to customers) (Starbuck and Nystrom, 2006, 203). Therefore, we assume that philanthropic engagements and civic duty display may be in the wrong hands, a mere corporate faade unless they are implemented in a certain manner, which we will explain below. Could corporate foundations be facades for other managerial purposes? Several authors believe that corporations can use their charitable efforts to improve their competitive context especially in the communities where they operate, thus pursuing a context focused strategy (Porter and Kramer, 2003, 31). Such endeavours need be made not only as cash donations, but also to contribute with resources that the company has at hand, in order to help solving pressing matters and produce social benefits. In this way, corporations are encouraged to pursue goals related to charitable giving which exceed their business areas. As a result, they may not be deemed as solely interested by their charitable deductions which, in turn, can affect their image and reputation. There is no inherent contradiction between improving competitive context and making a sincere 1commitment to bettering society (Porter and Kramer, 2003, 59). This point of view deserves a little expansion. While for all corporations channelling a part of their money through their philanthropic organizations is a means to an end, and they are sincere in willing to contribute to the betterment of the society, for some this is an end in itself. And we refer here to fiscal matters - the money companies donate to their charitable arm is exempted from taxation. Smith (2003) argues that when companies join forces with their philanthropic arm, they develop strategies that, in the end, provide a powerful competitive edge. The contributions a corporation can make for a good society is not only in cash, but also in providing to philanthropic organizations with managerial skills, competent human resources and marketing skills. Smith (2003, 163) offers examples of several corporations of interest for the topic addressed in the
1

Text emphasized to point out an idea of the authors

current paper, being the corporate foundation set out by AT&T which has pursued a Janus type strategy with one face towards supporting business goals and the other towards solving pressing matters of society. Authors have seen many examples around the world where companies set out foundations or became engaged in philanthropy after the point at which their image was seriously tarnished by events affecting their credibility (Bishop and Green, 2008, 179). One of the famous cases of a reputation comeback and improving the economic situation of impoverished individuals is that of Royal Dutch Shell, which after the incidents from Nigeria, created the Shell Foundation, and its paramount endeavour is considered to be the Microfinance Trust for poor Africans. Of course, Shell benefits from this success. An increase in small and medium enterprises in Africa could improve supply chains for the companys African operations, making it easier to do business, which is good for long term profitability. (Bishop and Green, 2008, 181). The points of view presented above do not convey a definite answer probably some actions or some corporate foundations could be a faade for business interests. We believe that this is a possibility, especially in those cases where we see projects or activities in which the sole beneficiary of the results is the corporation itself (its notoriety, its image) or the corporative foundation. A taxonomy allowing companies a more universal understanding of what could be their best approach to philanthropy is proposed by Kasper and Fulton (2006), who believes that the principles for action for corporate foundations could range between more independent and more integrated corporate business models and non-responsive to proactive in terms of approach. Thus, the taxonomy includes the following typologies: The Good Citizen is the situation wherein corporate foundations fund almost any proposal from the non-profit sector, within financial limits, and without any connection to business goals. In the case of Leveraged Philanthropy companies allow the use of their resources, but not necessarily for pursuing strategic business goals. Special aid in case of emergency situations is one example of this type of philanthropy. The third type described by Kasper and Fulton (2006) is the Issue Driven Philanthropy, wherein organizations have a clear strategic approach on what issues they will tackle and what results they are expecting. In this respect, they are using their core competencies, although the domain of intervention is not necessary the corporations area of activity. The last category, the one in which authors deem the hardest to describe is the one of Aligned Philanthropy. This is the one wherein the interests of the corporation intersect with the areas of investment for the foundations activities. The top of this category is represented by The Corporate Social Enterprise, which is exceeding the borders of

business and entering the realm of socially responsible business strategy. It is the model presented above by the Shell Foundation or by the Graemen Bank from Bangladesh. The important fact about this taxonomy, as the authors remind us, is that there is not necessarily a receipt for success. Simply put, the best option is usually situational depending on the circumstances of each corporation. However, one should take into account a few variables: economic realities, perception of trust in business, regulatory scrutiny, social expectations related to the business role, and unfamiliar risks (Kasper and Fulton, 2006). Each of the categories mentioned above could be described as closer or more distant to the idea of faade mimicking the social interest of the corporation, but being in reality a form of avoiding taxation or green-washing. For this reason, in the opinion of the authors of this paper, one would need to take into account the impact the projects of the corporate foundations produce, on the environment and on the society where the corporation is operating. We are proposing a new taxonomy considering that philanthropy is only one arm of the corporate social responsibility (Carroll and Buchholtz, 2006), but also one that has the idea of sustainable development in mind (Hopkins, 2007). Companies in this model would be planning for a better, efficient and more profitable future. As a result, whatever the term used to refer to CSR be it corporate responsibility, social performance, corporate citizenship or corporate governance the responsibility of business has become central to the agendas of corporations, governments, supranational organizations, civil society groups and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and community-based organizations (CBOs) (Moreno and Capriotti, 2009). Moreover, as was noted above, a large number of companies develop their own corporate foundations. The company-sponsored foundation often maintains close ties with the donor company, but it is a separate, legal organization, sometimes with its own endowment, and is subject to the same rules and regulations as other private foundations. Having a strategic approach to CSR means that corporations have to embed it with their business strategy. These principles apply also to the corporate foundation and their programs. By integrating the mission of the corporate foundation with its business strategy, a company can become a source of opportunity, innovation, and derive competitive advantages. This means that CSR activities can ultimately be much more than costs, constraints, or charitable deeds (Porter and Kramer, 2006, 78). In this way, the actions of corporative foundations could be closer or further distanced from the idea of a faade by taking into account the two criteria adapted after Kasper and Fulton (2006): (a) the foundations activity is, or not, in line with the businesss objectives e.g. a mobile phone company is affecting the health of people due to phones SAR emissions, so the corporate foundation invests in the area of health, (b) the corporate foundation is actively investing in projects aimed at finding alternatives for business products / services and their effects, which are

potentially harming for society and/or environment versus those which are proactively promoting new business, new opportunities of growth and wellbeing e.g. a fast food chain is investing in projects related to organic farming or for the education and development of local farm suppliers. In other words, in our opinion, a strategic approach of a corporations foundation is closely linked to sustainable growth and / or with alleviating the negative effects of activities undertaken by the mother company. To that end we would like to add another point, which is legitimized in our view by the very idea of corporations having a social responsibility (c) how the results and/or impact of the foundations activities affect the companys direct stakeholders. As a result, we have created a simple matrix, where the results of an analysis can be readily judged based on a Lickert type scale (5 very much, 4 much, 3 - somewhat, 2 little, 1- very little). Table 1. Matrix for judging the faade potential of projects implemented by corporate foundations The activity / project is Project is funded to find The results and/or impact of the Criteria/Scale of fulfilling the in line with businesss alternatives to potential harmful project affect the companys objectives. businesss products / services. direct stakeholders. criteria Project 1 X x X

Considering the above, our contention is that if a corporate foundation acts in a strategic manner, implementing with integrity the companys philanthropic vision, the involvement of the company in the society is true, or sincere. Otherwise, corporation foundations are mere forms of building facades for better reputation. As a result, projects scoring low in the above categories will place a certain foundation closer or further to it being a faade. A full line of very little will mean that a foundation is only an acting faade for business interests, while a full very much line would mean that a foundation possesses a strategic approach. In between, the matrix will have several degrees and only an interpretation taking into account the reality of each organization will allow for a clear diagnosis. Our contention is that in terms of evaluating the discrepancies between what a company and its philanthropic arm are saying and doing, this is a consistent starting point. Online communication of corporate foundations Presently, online communication is part of everyday life, motivating companies, governments, institutions and people to become more and more interested in the impact and the role of this type of communication and interaction. Organizations use instruments such as websites, blogs, forums, social media, instant messaging, chat rooms, applications etc., in order to communicate about their products and activities and to receive direct feedback from their

stakeholders. For the digital natives,2 online communication is a natural way to develop interpersonal relations and their network. The rise of social media has offered an instrument that instantly connects people, places, ideas, concepts, and products; and empowers each person to express and interact directly. Online communication has a higher impact on the way consumer communication change and influenced the marketplace, enabling both people and companies to directly address each other, and to magnify the role of the consumer in addressing the company. As stated in annual report The State of Social Media (2007), technology is redefining the role of the citizen endowing the individual with more responsibility and command over how he or she consumes information and that new role is only beginning to be understood. When we talk about corporate social responsibility (CSR), the communication absorbs the social branding generated in the social media. Bhattacharya and Sen (2001) suggest that communicating about CSR activities does not imply a positive approach towards the company. But the same authors (Bhattacharya and Sen, 2004) argue that CSR leads to customer loyalty and positive post-purchase outcomes. Moreover, communication about CSR builds brand equity (Hoeffler and Keller, 2002) and helps organisations to be perceived more positively and with greater trust by stakeholders (Swaen and Vanhamme, 2004, cited by Jahdi and Acikdilli, 2009). The new digital environments

(social networks, blogs, video platforms, micro-blogging, geolocation in mobile marketing, etc.) favor the business orientation based on relations (the client-first philosophy), the generation of social branding, the segmentation and personalization of messages, the evangelization of the brand through subscription and viral marketing, and the launching of an experiential marketing that generates customer engagement ( RosDiego and Castello-Martinez, 2012). The theme of CSR is an issue that has been debated within companies for several years and it was initially used as a good argument of marketing in corporate communications and brand values (Benavides, 2010). On the other hand, Ros-Diego, V. and Castello-Martinez, A. (2012), affirm that companies are becoming aware of the importance of including the social media in their communication strategies in order to get closer to their consumers and increase their visibility on the Internet. For many companies, the Internet has become the best way to personalize their message, to interact with the target audience, and to meet the expectations of their customers. The importance of the Internet has grown to such extent that online actions constitute an essential part in the communication strategy of the brand.

Digital natives millennials (born between 1978-1993) who since birth have been exposed to the Internet and to a constant stream of digital technologies

But the importance of being present online does not consist only in brand communication; it is also an important tool in addressing corporate social responsibility programs. Far more than being a responsible company, a corporation has to communicate its approach to stakeholders, and online communication is a facilitator for making any initiative known worldwide. In the case of corporate foundations, online communication is even more of an asset in gaining legitimacy and the confidence of the public (Moreno and Capriotti, 2009). Yet despite the potential of the online communications for the corporate foundations, very few studies have specifically considered the importance of corporate web sites for the communication of CSR issues (Moreno and Capriotti, 2009). An organization needs to highlight responsible actions in its communication, not only to generate a positive return for the brand, but also to disseminate good practices and contribute to the promotion of CSR. Online communication of Romanian corporate foundations According to Mediascope Europe (2012), 7.2 million Romanians are using the internet and 93% of them have used a personal or professional social media site. At the same time, 51% of Romanian internet users believe that the way a brand communicates online is important. Romanian NGOs use social media for promoting their projects and activities, with organizations like Save the Children having 298.772 fans and UNICEF Romania having 102.305 fans on

Facebook.
Also, in Romania, the CSR approach has gained recognition at a national level and many corporations learn how to get involved in the community and have a consolidated strategy regarding their social programs. There are several corporations that implement their CSR activity through corporate foundations. Most of them have their own websites and social media channels, where the organizations state their mission, activities and grant making processes. Some publish reports about the previous years activities and have a dedicated page about the latest news, although not all have updated information about their activities. Online communication is also used as a tool for engaging and informing stakeholders, considering the numbers above where more than one third of Romanias population uses the internet. Our research objective for this paper was to determine whether the activities / projects implemented by the corporate foundations are, in fact, supporting the strategic endeavours of their parent companies or if they are a mere faade with little or no connection to the core business. Our methodological approach consisted of analysing the projects implemented by the corporate foundations as they have been presented in the online communications of corporate foundations, (Fieseler, Fleck and Meckel, 2010, RosDiego and Castell-Martnez, 2012).

Phases of the research: 1. Analysing the online communication of corporate foundations in quantity terms; 2. Conducting a content analysis, comparing the objectives stated by the corporations and their philanthropic arms; 3. Identifying all activities and projects presented online by the corporate foundations; 4. Describing in key terms each of them; 5. Evaluating each one according to the matrix presented in Table 1. The target group of our research has been foundations with a presence of at least 5 years in Romania, while the time frame for the programs and projects analysis stretched from 2010 to 2013. As a result, we have focused on: Vodafone Foundation, Sensiblu Foundation and Ronald McDonald Foundation. 1. The Vodafone Foundation Initially known as the Sirois Foundation (established in 1998), the Vodafone Romania Foundation received its current name in 2005, being the first Romanian corporate foundation. Vodafone Foundation was involved in over 300 social programs, together with its nongovernmental partners and invested over 5 million euros in different activities. Vodafone Foundation is part of Vodafone Group Foundation, with 24 branches worldwide. Its financial resources are divided into an annual budget provided by Vodafone Romania and the annual giving of Vodafone Group Foundation. Moreover, Vodafone has established an Open Fund, encouraging employees to donate for the charity activities of the Foundation. As a company, Vodafones operational objectives are: drive operational performance, support and invest in innovation and creativity, develop local business environment, offer the best communication solutions for the mobile communication consumer, offer community support. 2. Sensiblu Foundation

The Sensiblu Foundation was established in 2002, being an A&D Pharma initiative. The foundation was involved in supporting women and children, victims of domestic violence, implementing awareness campaigns, programs and public events. A&D Pharma offers financial support in addition to donation campaigns ran by the foundation (2 % campaign or individual donations). A&D Pharmas strategic objectives are: offer a unique and full range of services on the distribution, marketing, sales, pharmaceutical retail and medical services segments, health care and education, preventing domestic violence and promoting human rights, social involvement towards companys employees. 3. Ronald McDonald Childrens Charities of Romania (RMCC)

This is a corporate foundation established in 1998, by McDonalds Romania, aiming to help disadvantaged children in Romania. The Foundation works towards implementing campaigns and programs helping orphanages, children hospitals and charities. Financial support comes entirely from McDonalds Romania. Additionally, the Foundation runs different fund-raising campaigns. McDonald's corporate objectives are: to offer the best customer experience, stay committed to employees, operate the business ethically, give back to community, grow the business profitably . Quantity remarks Vodafone Foundation has its own website www.fundatia-vodafone.ro and Facebook brand page

http://www.facebook.com/FundatiaVodafone, with more 16,200 likes and 200 people talking about it. The page was created in May, 2010. According to facebrands.ro, the Foundations Facebook page ranks number l1804, out of 20713 monitored Romanian pages. In the non-profit category, they rank 14 out of 395. The Foundation also provides information about their activity on their own Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/fundatiavodafone. The average number of views is 150 per video. Vodafone Foundation provides a full activity report (2011) on their website. Sensiblu Foundation has its own site http://www.fundatiasensiblu.ro/, Facebook brand page

http://www.facebook.com/Fundatia.Sensiblu.pagina.prieteni?fref=ts (founded in June, 2012- 4,646

likes and 27

people talking about this, most popular group age is 25-34 years old, most popular city is Bucharest). The foundation communicates from time to time on their Twitter account https://twitter.com/FundatiaSSB, with 200 followers and provides blog posts: http://www.fundatiasensiblu.ro/RO_Blog.html (last post 2010). The Foundation has a Youtube channel, established in 2011, providing 2 videos, with 546 viewers. On their website, Sensiblu Foundation provides activity reports (the most recent from 2008). RMCC does not have a site, but it has a page incorporated in the companys site http://mcdonalds.ro/pages/lumeamcdonalds/caritate. Also, there is no local Facebook page, only the global Facebook page

http://www.facebook.com/rmhcglobal?fref=ts. A recent activity report (2012) is available. As we can determine from studying their online presence, these foundations do acknowledge the importance of communicating their activities, but the rate of user engagement is medium to low. Studying the posts and information provided, these foundations write mainly about their own initiatives and their partners. They also provide links to different publications and articles about their activities. While Sensiblu Foundation provides only own photos, Vodafone Foundation allows users to tag the Foundation in different photos. Moreover, Vodafone Foundation

provides on the Facebook page applications for their main projects: Work as volunteer national program, Mobile4Good, Build4Tomorrow, BigBuild. Regarding activity reports, Ronald McDonald has the most recent activity report, but it is available only on their communication agency page. Sensiblu Foundation has four activity reports (2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008) available on their website. Vodafone Foundation provides activity reports for 2011, offering also exhaustive information about their main activity areas on their web page. In terms of projects implemented by each foundation, we have found references to roughly 28 projects and activities implemented by Vodafone Foundation, 22 implemented by Sensiblu Foundation and 9 implemented by RMCC. Quality remarks We have compared the strategic objectives of the company Vodafone and Vodafone Foundation, and a content analysis of the objectives of both organizations indicates an overlap between one objective of the company, i.e. to offer community support and all objectives assumed by the Foundation, namely to offer support against school dropout, for sporting competitions, and for the social integration of people with special needs and elderly. In the case of Sensiblu Foundation the content analysis reveals an overlap between the first and second objective of the Foundation: contribute to the diminishing domestic violence effects and domestic violence prevention and support domestic violences victims through social, psychological, legal counselling, meals, shelter, clothing, medicine, help in finding a workplace with the third and fourth objective of the founder company A&D Pharma: preventing domestic violence and promoting human rights and Health care and education. In the case of RMCC and the company McDonalds there are overlaps between all the foundations objective and at least one company objective, namely: give back to community. An analysis of the projects / activities implemented by each foundation and presented online is displayed below: Table 2. Vodafone Foundation Criteria/Scale of fulfilling the criteria The activity / project is in line with businesss objectives. Project is funded to find alternatives to potential harmful businesss products / services. The results and/or impact of the project affect the companys direct stakeholders.

2010 Building social homes for disadvantaged people and victims of the natural disasters partnership with Habitat for Romania (partnership started in 2008) Building a social home for young people 4 1 2

with disabilities partnership with Habitat for Romania and Motivation Foundation Special Olympics Regional Games partnership with Special Olympic Romania and For you Foundation Work as volunteer employees national program partnership with national NGOs 2011 Work as volunteer - employees national program- partnership with national NGOs Chance For Life scholarship - partnership with Chance for Life Foundation stationary for 2 children with low income parents The Sulina Vodafone Scholarship partnership with Chance for Life Foundation stationary for 2 children with low income parents Money donation for two day centres (elderly people) partnership with Edelweiss Foundation SOS the Toy Car (employees donate toys) partnership with SOS Children Villages Getting ready to grow up(a project to aimed at stopping school dropout) partnership with Saint Dimitrie Foundation Family abandon prevention programs partnership with Bethany Foundation, SOS Children Villages, Saint Stelian Association, Touched Association Programs for children with special needs partnership with Chance for Life, the Motivation Foundation, We Vanquish Autism Association Sport programs for people with disabilities partnership with Special Olympics Romania Dont ignore me - fundraising for building the first excellence centre in curing childrens cancer in Romania partnership with Save Lives Association Swimming annual competition partnership with Motivation Foundation Donation (600 000 ) for building the First Palliative centre with clinical and educational profile, Bucharest partnership with Hospice Hope House ( the partnership started in 2006 ) Launching the Treatment and Assistance Centre partnership with Muscular Dystrophy Association ( 34 000 donation and 100 Vodafone volunteers involved) Santa Claus is you internal volunteering 5 3 5 1 5 1 3 5 5

5 3

1 1

3 2

3 5

5 5

5 5

program 2012 Mobile for Good launch national program using mobile communication and apps for sorting our social issues Work as Volunteer employees national program partnership with national NGOs Build4Tomorrow partnership with Charity Works Association and Diaconia International Aid Association Big Build partnership with Habitat for Humanity Romania Office supplies donation for Saint Dimitrie Foundation, Saint Stelian Association and Mias Children SMS fundraising campaign to build a new flank for the Intensive Therapy Department for new-born children (Marie Curie Hospital, Bucharest) partnership with Childrens Heart Association Swimming annual competition partnership with Motivation Foundation Charitable Christmas show partnership with Radio Romania Foundation 2013 Work as Volunteer employees national program partnership with national NGOs 20 000 donation for Real Madrid Foundation opening a football school in Bucharest (prevention of school dropout) Average scores 5 3 5 4 5 2 5 5 5

5 4

5 1

5 2

4 1

1 1

2 2

1 1

5 1

3 1

3,64

3,03

3,25

We have ranked the middle section as 5 for all the health projects, considering that there already exists a series of respectable institutions which are linking mobile phone usage with some forms of cancer (National Cancer Institute, 2012; Cancer Research UK, 2013). At the same time, we have considered sport competitions as a pro-active means of staying healthy, thus ranking with 5 all such events / projects. As regards the impact, we have considered very little impact for those activities or projects where demonstrably the number of people who benefited the results of the project was under 5. Table 3. Sensiblu Foundation Criteria/Scale of fulfilling the criteria The activity / project is in line with businesss objectives. Project is funded to find alternatives to potential harmful businesss products / services. The results and/or impact of the project affect the companys direct stakeholders.

2010 V-Days 16 days of activism against domestic violence ( 7th edition) NGOs trainings (communication and fundraising) Social campaign against women violence and launch of www.nuepoveste.ro Parenting workshops partnership with Tea House and Laura Ivan, psychologist Workshop The trauma effects upon human mind: theory in practice with the support of His Excellency Mark Gitenstein, US Ambassador in Romania, and his wife, Libby Gitenstein and in partnership with Inocenti Foundation Be Santa Claus- partnership with "Luminita" Center and Future for Romanian Children Foundation Blu Home- hosting and counselling program for women and children victims of domestic violence ( program started in 2002) 2011 V-Days Campaign ( with a special focus on young people -8th edition) Social campaign against women violence partnership with Avon Romania 2 % fundraising campaign Blu Home- hosting and counselling program for women and children victims of domestic violence ( program started in 2002) 2012 V-Days Campaign partnership with Peace Corps Romania and IREX Foundation/Biblionet ( 9th edition) Home peace, world peace campaign partnership with Gender Equality and Development Peace Corp Committee Romania and IREX Foundation/ Biblionet Say NO to domestic violence campaign Series of workshops Teenagers emotional abuse in family partnership with Avon Foundation 2 % fundraising campaign Human Rights internship program- partnership with Filia Centre and Euro-regional Centre for Public Initiatives Blu Home- hosting and counselling program for women and children victims of domestic violence 5 1 4 5 5 1 5 1 1 1 1 4 4 1 4 5 5 5 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 4 2 4 2 2

5 5

1 1

4 2

1 5

1 1

1 1

( program started in 2002) 2013 V-Day campaign results ( essay contest for young people) A present for 8 March- No slap campaign against women violence 2 % fundraising campaign Blu Home- hosting and counseling program for women and children victims of domestic violence ( program started in 2002) Average scores 5 5 1 5 1 1 1 1 4 4 1 4

4,4

3,09

The ranks received by the Sensiblu Foundation in column 2 have to do with the fact that the foundations projects are not contributing to alleviating the core effects of the A&D Pharmas business distribution of medicines. In our view there are plenty options one could take into account in order to answer better to the societys needs, considering for example that 60% of parents administer medicines to their children without having the doctors recommendation (ARPIM, 2012). As regards the impact, we have considered very little impact for those activities / projects where demonstrably the number of people who benefited the results of the project was under 5. Table 4. Ronald McDonald Childrens Charities of Romania Criteria/Scale criteria of fulfilling activity / the The project is in line with businesss objectives. Project is funded to find alternatives to potential harmful businesss products / services. The results and/or impact of the project affect the companys direct stakeholders.

2010 15 years in Romania information campaign Happy McDay I want to do good annual fundraising campaign (donating a percentage towards other programs) 1 5 1 1 1 3

Ronald McDonald houses, Timisoara (founded in 2008) and Bucharest (founded in 2003)- on-going program 2011 Money donation for building an oncology-homology section for children at County Hospital, Targu Mures McHappy Day- I want to do good annual fundraising campaign

Ronald McDonald houses, Timisoara (founded in 2008) and Bucharest (founded in 2003)- ongoing program 2012 I want to do well! - fundraising campaign to help improve hospital conditions from Grigore Alexandrescu Hospital, Bucharest Building an elevator for children haematology section, Louis Turcanu Hospital, Timisoara Ronald McDonald houses, Timisoara (started in 2008) and Bucharest (started in 2003)- on-going program Average scores

4,5

2,2

3,7

We have ranked all health related initiatives of this organization with 5, considering existing research which puts a direct link between fast food consumption and the risk of obesity in children (Bowman et al., 2003) or research that states that McDonalds food has more calories compared with other fast food chains, thus being less healthy (Chandon and Wansink, 2007). As before, we have considered very little
impact for those activities / projects where demonstrably the number of people who benefited the results of the project was under 5.

Conclusions and discussions

The analysed corporations are presenting most of their projects online. Some projects are better described than others, with details related to objectives and costs, while others are mentioned only briefly. In most cases the actual results and impact data are missing. The number of fans on social media is low compared with other NGOs, which have no corporate arms to rely on for getting funds. We see a mixed picture when we analyse how strategic or how close to a faade are the actions of corporate foundations. The closest to a faade are those activities reported by the organizations which are related to information campaigns about their own activities and charitable concerts. We have also considered faade-like approaches those small interventions affecting 2 or 3 individuals. We notice a strong to very strong relationships between business objectives and objectives set out by corporate foundations in the case of Sensiblu and RMCC, while Vodafone Foundation shows a moderate compliance between

the business and foundations objective. We believe that such situation could change if Vodafone Foundation would focus more on bridging the community support it offers with technology solutions in an innovative way. In the case of Vodafone Foundation, there is satisfactory leverage offered by the foundations activities for the potential damaging activities of the mother corporation. We cannot state the same in the case of Sensiblu Foundation. Although it is affecting, especially through the information campaigns, a large number of potential victims of domestic violence, we fail to see a connection to the core business of A&D Pharma and its effect on the society. We believe that issues like self-medication, selling antibiotics over the counter without a prescription, offering medicines to children by irresponsible parents are issues that could concern in a more legitimate way the Foundations activity. The same principle could be applied to RMCC, where we see investments in community housing and health projects, however; the health projects are not directly linked with the most pressing issue related to the mother company the effect fast food has on obesity. As a result, we may conclude that with a few exceptions, by analysing the online portfolio of projects / activities of our research subjects, they are far from being facades for the good intentions stated by their mother corporations. Limitations of the research

We believe that our analysis would have been more compelling if more information would have been made available online by our research subjects in domains such as: annual turnover, value of each project, clearly measured impact data. At the same time, it would have been useful to put into connection the annual turnover of the corporate arms of the foundations with their operating budgets. It would have helped us understand if companies appreciate the impact their philanthropic activities are making on society, and if they are modifying their donation strategies accordingly. Under these circumstances, we could be in a better position to re-affirm that if the philanthropy and business objectives are relying on each others results, we are building a better and more affluent society.

Key words: Corporate social responsibility, strategic philanthropy, corporate foundations, online communication. Reference list:

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