Developing CSR in retail–supplier relationships: a stakeholder interaction approach

Figures & data

Table 1. Empirical materials.

Time	# of interviews	Type	Purpose/aim	Sources
January 2011–August 2011	9	Phone interviews and meetings, including observations and visits to Clas Ohlson headquarters and stores	Preparing the study and getting an overview of the CSR work at Clas Ohlson	Interviews with staff at HQ in Insjön and the sales, CSR and purchasing organization
September 2011	13	Interviews and meetings, including observations and supplier visits, and visit to Clas Ohlson’s purchasing office in Shanghai	Data collection through visit to gain rich insights and first-hand observations on CSR development in buyer–supplier relationships	Interviews with staff at the purchasing office in Shanghai and representatives from the supply side (Dongguan and Shanghai)
April 2012	10+	Interviews and observations at Clas Ohlson’s stores in southern Sweden	Data collection through observations and interviews to get an idea of buying behaviour and a better case context	Interviews with store employees and consumers in southern Sweden
May 2012–October 2012	4	Phone interviews, interviews and meetings, including visit to Clas Ohlsons’s purchasing office in Shenzhen	Follow up the study and additional data collection	Interviews with staff in Sweden and interviews with staff at the purchasing office in Shenzhen

Table 2. CSR development in supplier relationships – the case of Clas Ohlson 2005–2012.

	Initiation (2005–2006)	Implementation (2007–2009)	Maturation (2010–2012)
Key events	• Top management attention beyond having a code of conduct • Code of conduct presented in 2005 • Procedures for systematic supplier monitoring developed in 2006	• Membership in UN Global Compact in 2008 • Purchasing office and CSR team in operation in 2008 • Implementing the reporting standard GRI • Implementing procedures and increasingly auditing suppliers and an annual CSR report from 2007/2008	• Communicating CSR progress in detail; non-compliance, goals, activities and challenges • Implementing a system for supplier education • Completing the full circle of audits in the Asian supply base • Implementing a grading system for suppliers (red, orange, yellow and green)
Interaction with suppliers	• Arms-length relationships, typically via intermediaries • No permanent local presence in key sourcing markets • No regular audits of supplier practices	• Arms-length, initiating a system for monitoring of suppliers – focus on information and education • Initiating regular contacts with suppliers through local presence	• Balancing arms-length with collaboration enabled through local presence – focus on production process improvements • Identifying key supplier relationships and reducing supplier base
Interaction with secondary stakeholders	• Hunter-prey relationship with NGO’s • Strong external pressure with focus on deficiencies on supply chain control • Building code based on OECD and UN Global Compact standards	• Development of stakeholder collaboration, in particular with NGO’s and consultants to perform initial supplier audits in 2007/2008 • Initiating association and partnerships to increase knowledge and legitimacy	• Gaining legitimacy and trustworthiness through association, participation and partnerships to support long-term change • Focusing on openness and dialogue, increasing communication on CSR progress
Key managerial tasks	• Analysing the business model and business processes and the causes of the critique from NGO’s • Setting up a roadmap and assigning resources to adequate CSR attention • Identifying relevant stakeholders and interaction partners • Initiate planning for an organization to manage CSR in the supply chain	• Setting up an integrated organization to pursue CSR in the supply chain • Launching procedures to secure CSR in the supply chain • Setting up priorities and linking CSR to general business goals • Establishing measurements and action plans to cope with • Non-compliance	• Prioritizing among actors in the supply chain, reducing the supply base • Providing detailed reports on CSR progress • Adapting business model in terms of systems integration, planning and reporting • Making arrangements to increase the efficiency in CSR activities in the supply chain

Table 3. Type of supplier activities in response to a retailer’s CSR strategy.

	Monitoring retail strategy	Collaborative retail strategy
Proactive supplier	Supportive/resistant	Constructive/confronting
Reactive supplier	Adaptive/avoiding	Absorb knowledge/obstructing