CSR Case Studies and Examples

Prof. Claudia Goldin made history by becoming the first woman to win a solo Nobel Prize in Economics. She was recognized for her ground-breaking work on the key drivers behind gender differences in the labour market. Goldin’s work shows that although historical factors such as disparities in education have narrowed in modern times, the earnings gap between men and women remains.   One reason for this is a lack of opportunities. This is where behavioural science may be able to help by identifying implicit biases and engineering a choice architecture to help tackle them.   Acknowledging the difficulty in proving that discrimination on the basis of gender in the workforce exists, Goldin and her colleagues at Harvard University turned their attention to one occupation which attempted to combat gender-biased hiring – musicians.   Before 1980, none of the “Big 5” symphony orchestras in the U.S. contained more than 12% female musicians due to both implicit and explicit biases in the hiring process. To combat these, orchestras began implementing “blind” auditions – that is, the candidate performed behind a screen so that the committee could not identify them as male or female.   This helped a little, but less than expected until they added a carpet.   What?   It turned out that the committee could hear the click of women’s shoes as they walked on stage and even that was sufficient to bias their decisions!   Analyzing data from 11 orchestras who implemented these changes revealed some shocking statistics. By hiding the identity of the musician in the audition, there was a 50% increased likelihood of a female musician progressing to the next round of auditions.   Goldin further estimated that blind auditions accounted for about 25% of the increase in the number of female orchestra musicians from 1970 to 1996. (Other factors like training more female musicians also contributed to this growth).   So, what does this teach us? 👉 Being blind to the #gender (as well as to other things like race) can improve impartiality in #hiring 👉 Biases are persistent and creep into decision making through the smallest of gaps (e.g. no carpet!) 👉 A carefully designed choice architecture can help to mitigate hiring biases and enhance #equity in the workplace Do you know of other innovative ways organisations are changing hiring processes to be as unbiased as possible?   #DiversityAndInclusion

When men step into caregiving roles, they begin to understand the systemic barriers women face daily. Globally, women perform over three times as much unpaid care work as men, totaling 12.5 billion hours every day. Valued at minimum wage, this equals $10.8 trillion annually — more than three times the size of the global tech industry (Oxfam). In countries where caregiving is shared and publicly supported, #women are freer to pursue economic and leadership opportunities. In Iceland, both mothers and fathers are entitled to six months of paid parental leave at 80% of their salary under a “use it or lose it” policy. This has led to more women returning to the workforce after maternity leave. Combined with heavily subsidized childcare, these policies help reduce the “motherhood penalty” — a major driver of gender inequality that accounts for 80% of the gender pay gap (World Economic Forum). In 2020 alone, over 2 million mothers left the workforce, contributing to a sharp drop in women’s labor force participation (ILO, via WEF). But when governments and families share the responsibility of care, women are empowered to stay in the #workforce, lead, and thrive. Transforming norms of masculinity and investing in shared caregiving are not just #gender issues — they are economic necessities. Only by sharing care can we build a future where everyone has the freedom and #opportunity to lead. #economicempowerment

When countries work together, supported by strong coalitions and partnerships, we can turn shared risks into shared progress. In the Western Balkans, support from the Adaptation Fund has enabled Albania, Montenegro & North Macedonia to join forces in tackling floods in the Drin River Basin – a challenge that knows no borders. With UNDP and partners, and building on earlier efforts supported by the Global Environment Facility, this initiative truly highlights the power of partnerships to meet transboundary climate challenges and advance shared climate goals. The results speak for themselves: More than 30 new or upgraded hydrometeorological stations are improving flood forecasting and early warning. Thousands of hectares of farmland and communities are better protected through rehabilitated embankments and drainage systems. And for the first time, Albania, North Macedonia & Montenegro have a joint flood risk management strategy, backed by shared data, aligned with EU standards, shaped by community voices, and paired with a five-year action plan to reduce vulnerability across borders. See the work in photos: https://lnkd.in/e-hgzK9C This is proof that partnerships are one of the most powerful defenses we have against climate change. UNDP in Europe and Central Asia UNDP Albania UNDP Montenegro UNDP North Macedonia

For many countries, the next round of nationally determined contributions (NDCs) offers a strategic opportunity to align SDG7 targets with national climate commitments. For example, through Mission 300, the ambitious initiative by The World Bank and the African Development Bank Group working together with Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), The Rockefeller Foundation and The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) to electrify 300 million people across Africa, energy access can become a central pillar of national climate strategies. In January, twelve countries unveiled their “Energy Compacts” with trackable targets for expanding renewable energy generation, electricity access and clean cooking solutions, and the public and private financing needed to meet these ambitions by 2030. I therefore see the ambitious targets set in Energy Compacts being easily translated into the new NDCs currently under development, showcasing the alignment between new NDCs and equivalent Energy Compacts or strategies that articulate targets to 2030 and beyond. Find out about Energy Compacts and their alignment with NDCs here: https://lnkd.in/dWqzMjW2

The bridge between a middle-income nation and a developed nation is how much you 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲. In urban India, the % of educated women working in the formal sector remains abysmally low. In 2019, our research at LeadHers estimated that only 7-9% of educated women in urban India were in the formal workforce. Some data now suggests this is ~19%. Encouragingly, India’s female labor force participation rate (FLFPR) has improved to 37%, according to the latest reports. But is this enough? For many reasons, I like to look at the Vietnam model and how it has integrated women's workforce participation into its GDP growth. Vietnam's GDP per capita is around $4110, whereas India's around $2500. 𝗩𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗻𝗮𝗺 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗟𝗙𝗣𝗥 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝟲𝟴%. Could India take inspiration from Vietnam’s model? Well, the Vietnam model is not by chance. It is a result of many deliberate and thoughtful policies, particularly the 𝘿𝙤𝙞 𝙈𝙤𝙞 economic reforms of 1986, which transformed Vietnam’s economy. This and other policies led to- ✅ Opening markets to foreign investment, creating more jobs in services and industry ✅ Gender equality in education, preparing women for workforce participation ✅ Providing generous childcare and maternity benefits to support working mothers ✅ Setting targets for businesses to increase female workers ✅ Offering preferential tax incentives for companies that hire more women ✅ Expanding credit access for rural women in agriculture, forestry and fishing India has a critical opportunity here. Prioritising women in the formal, high value industries especially in STEM and leadership/management roles can significantly expand this talent pool driving productivity and innovation. According to a 2024 World Bank report, closing gender gaps in manufacturing alone could boost India’s economy by 9%. 𝗧𝗼 𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲-𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽, 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿-𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗮 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲. 𝙎𝙖𝙙𝙡𝙮, 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙣𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙮𝙚𝙙. The question is: 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹? This is my wish for this year's Women's Day. 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙚𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨, 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝗮 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝙙𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙜𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨. 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿. #iwd2025

🏭 👩🏭 "At the other end of the state, in Krishnagiri district of northern Tamil Nadu, women were, till recently, seen as a liability. The district’s sex ratio, at 963 women to 1,000 men, is lower than the state average of 996, the 2011 Census of India shows. Sex determination and abortion were rampant. Female literacy was a low 57% and girls were rarely educated beyond the 10th standard. Child marriage was common and so were teenage pregnancies. But a lot changed in the last few years. Enrolment of girls into colleges and polytechnic institutes have surged. In the last two years, the average age of marriage has risen from 14 years to 21 years, data from Krishnagiri collectorate shows. Child marriages have dropped significantly... ...Industrial development, like in the case of Tirunelveli district, is at the heart of this transformation. EV maker Ola Electric, Tata Electronics and Fairway Enterprises, a footwear manufacturer, have invested in the district, predominantly employing women. All of a sudden, thousands of jobs have been created with salaries in the range of ₹15,000 to ₹20,000 per month. Many families now regret not having a girl child at home." Absolutely heartwarming field report in Mint today, and a kind reminder: there's nothing quite like a change in material conditions to [abruptly] shift deeply entrenched norms. Don't miss. #manufacturing #TamilNadu #GenderEquality #WomenAndWork https://lnkd.in/gxdhRHk4

Close the leadership gender gap in your organisation by following the lead of PepsiCo. PepsiCo is known as a “CEO Factory” known for its robust leadership development program. This program has been instrumental in developing numerous executives, including four women who became Fortune 500 CEOs. PepsiCo’s training offers ‘hi-potential’ individuals access to diverse roles, international experience, and significant responsibilities, fostering skills essential for C-suite roles. Importantly, 43% of PepsiCo managers are female, emphasising the company’s commitment to nurturing talented women. This approach contrasts with the general lack of transparency in leadership development in many other companies, which often leaves aspirants, especially women, without clear pathways to executive roles. How organisations can do what PepsiCo did: 1. Develop a structured leadership program, to identify and nurture high-potential women. 2. Provide diverse, challenging assignments and roles, including international experiences and P&L responsibilities. 3. Maintain a supportive environment where failure is seen as a learning opportunity. 4. Ensure transparency in career progression paths, especially to executive roles, to counter the typical opacity disadvantaging women in other companies. 5. Emphasize the representation of women in managerial positions to eliminate rigid gender stereotypes. ARTICLE: https://bit.ly/3HGiwsk #AdvancingWomen #WomeninLeadership

𝐈𝐊𝐄𝐀 𝐕𝐬 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 When IKEA opened its first India store, it didn't just bring Scandinavian design. It brought a bold people-first policy 50% women across all levels from warehouse to leadership. That’s not a target. That’s a redesign of how work works. Because gender diversity isn’t a hire-and-hope exercise. It’s a system. 𝘏𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘐𝘒𝘌𝘈 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦. 📦 In warehousing, where female presence is often <5%, IKEA introduced flexible shifts, secure transport, and ergonomic redesigns. 🛒 In retail, women took on frontline and leadership roles not through tokenism, but through structured mentorship and skill-building. 👷♀️ Even construction teams of partner vendors were held to inclusion metrics. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵? More than 46% of IKEA India’s workforce today are women👍 Across roles, ranks, and regions. 💬 As Parineeta Cecil Lakra, Country People & Culture Manager at IKEA India, put it: “Gender balance is a business priority. It's about building better teams, better decisions, and a better workplace.” This wasn’t easy. But it was deliberate. 𝑷𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝑷𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 ➡️ Is gender diversity part of your business model , or just your HR strategy? ➡️ Are frontline and supply chain roles truly open to women, or just support functions? ➡️ Do your vendor contracts reflect your internal diversity values? ➡️ Are inclusion metrics tied to leadership performance KPIs? ➡️ Would your workplace design need to change to include more women? Sources: IKEA India via HR Katha, Infosys ESG Report 2023, Wipro Annual Report 2023, Hindustan Unilever Integrated Report 2023, Tata Sons DEI disclosures, Mahindra Group Sustainability Report, Godrej Group DEI data, Nestlé India Corporate Sustainability Report. #Diversity #CorporateGoveranance #OrgCulture

When Dr Amanda Sterling asked me to work with her on reviewing women in leadership at Z Energy NZ, I didn't realise what an incredible project it would be. To start with we had the pleasure of working with Rebecca Morrissey Dave Bennett, Kellie Wade and Helen Sedcole. And while many organisations struggle to achieve gender balance in leadership roles, Z Energy has established itself as a market leader with 46.9% female representation at senior leadership levels AND they've made consistent progress towards closing their gender pay gap, sitting at 1.78% (including their CEO). Despite this the Z Energy team wanted a deeper understanding of their persistent challenges, as well as specific recommendations for maintaining and building on their impressive progress.    We benchmarked them against industry leaders, conducted focus group discussions with their female leaders, and reviewed their policies and metrics. From this analysis we identified what had been working well for them and built on these strengths to identify areas where more impactful work could be done. You can download the full case study here, including the insights and recommendations https://lnkd.in/gx3VsZbA We are so proud of this work and the case study 💛 Would love to hear your thoughts #Leadership #WomenInLeadership #GenderEqualLeadership The Culture Ministry

When we talk about #climateaction, the focus is often on infrastructure, technology, and policy. Yet the most resilient societies rely on something less visible but equally critical: strong #communities. In the #MiddleEast, social cohesion has long been a natural resilience system enabling faster recovery from shocks, safeguarding livelihoods, and keeping value within local economies. Examples from the region show the power of community in climate resilience: - Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia: Farmers have revived ancient irrigation systems, sharing water resources collectively. This heritage-based approach reduces drought vulnerability while strengthening cultural identity. - Farasan Islands, Saudi Arabia: Fishing communities regulate catch levels through local agreements that align with national marine protection, helping ecosystems adapt to rising sea temperatures. - Liwa, UAE: Date farming cooperatives pool resources for irrigation and storage, protecting livelihoods during extreme heat. These are examples showing that climate resilience is built as much through social infrastructure as physical infrastructure. In preparing for the future, investing in people’s connections, culture, and shared responsibility is as important as any technical solution. Strong communities are not just part of the solution, they are the foundation of it. #resilience #sustainability #adaptation #socialsustainability #CenterforSustainableFuture Elie El Khoury Mario Sanchez Ibrahim Saleh Farah Assaad Valentin Lavaill Kearney Kearney Middle East and Africa