Analysis of Social Performance in the Spanish Financial Industry Through Public Data. A Proposal

Abstract

Banking firms are becoming increasingly aware that their clients’ management of environmental and social risks may in term threaten their own business as lenders and investors. In addition, stakeholders are requiring banks to improve their social performance. As a result, some banks are developing corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies and management systems to reduce potential risks and improve their performance. In the Spanish financial system, half of the banking firms are savings banks, most of which have always used some Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) criteria in their management. Private Banks have only recently started to integrate social aspects in their performance. However, no formal analysis has been carried out on the impact of CSR strategies. Various initiatives have been launched nationally and internationally to include the social dimension in management systems. The purpose of this research is to analyse the social performance of the main Spanish financial companies through public data such as social or sustainability reports and media sources. In order to do this, we need to determine which CSR criteria most greatly affect banking firms and to choose the most accurate quantitative and qualitative indicators to measure social performance. Copyright Springer 2006corporate social responsibility, sustainability, banking firm, social performance,

Determinants of bank social responsibility: case of Croatia

“…The framework for assessing bank social responsibility is derived and adapted from previous research conducted by CuestaGonzalez, et al [23] and Scholtens [81]. The main reason why these studies are taken as a reference point is that their methodology, contrary to some other available approaches, is transparent and easily measurable.…”

“…The increased economic and public pressure has forced banks to analyse their role in society and their contribution to obtaining more sustainable development [23]. In particular, the recent economic crisis and its social consequences have to some extent damaged consumer confi dence and the level of trust in fi nancial institutions.…”

“…Social responsibility of banks and other fi nancial institutions has already been recognised as necessary (e.g. [23], [10], [76], [81], [15]). The matter that arises is how the banking sector has and will continue to evolve in this respect.…”

Corporate Social Responsibility and Management Control

“…Several studies (Douglas et al, 2004, Branco & Rodriguez, 2006Cuesta-Gonzalez et al, 2006) have examined public disclosure from banks within specific countries. This research tends to focus on the volume of CSR disclosure rather than the practices that generate results.…”

Responsible Practices are Culturally Embedded: Theoretical Considerations on Industry-Specific Corporate Social Responsibility

“…On closer inspection, many more initiatives can be found at the local level, where they often operate under the radar of scholarly scrutiny. Indeed, there are numerous cases situated in specific industries, sometimes ''controversial'' industries (e.g., Cuesta-González et al 2006;Biedermann 2007;White 2007;Lee and Kohler 2010;Lindgreen et al 2012), yet more conceptual work-in the way it considers the relevance of the industry-is still in its infancy (e.g., LundThomsen and Nadvi 2010; Martinuzzi et al 2010;Timonen and Luoma-aho 2010).…”