Corporate social responsibility current state and development tools

Consolidation of government and business resources on the principles of social responsibility is the most promising way to control the development of a territory in the context of weak economic and financial possibilities of authorities so that they could fully implement the powers delegated to them. In the research by leading Russian and foreign scientists corporate social responsibility is considered as the liability of economic entities for the impacts of their decisions and activities on economy, society and the environment; their behavior promotes socio-economic development of territories. Moreover, the lack of budget funds determines the need for attracting business resources for regional development. This paper presents the theoretical-methodological basis of corporate social responsibility, and clarifies the conceptual framework of “corporate social responsibility”. The authors consider key parameters for the development of corporate social responsibility in the city of Vologda. They reveal modern trends of business involvement in addressing issues of socio-economic development in the regional center. In particular, the number of projects and organizations involved in them is increasing annually. At the same time, there are problems hindering its development. The results of a survey of organizations reveal the following causes: lack of financial capabilities of enterprises, lack of awareness about possible forms of participation and available incentives, etc. Negative factors can be eliminated and the existing experience diffused with the help of a strategy for development of the institution of corporate social responsibility focused on the development of a package of measures to expand the practice of applying these principles in the activities of economic entities. The authors use general scientific methods (logical, system approaches, generalization), statistical (grouping, selection, comparison, and generalization) apply tabular and graphical techniques for data visualization. The article can be used in scientific and educational activities, it is of practical interest for bodies of power and administration and can help improve economic policies to increase the contribution of business to regional development.