The Anglo American Approach to Corporate Social Responsibility: An Evolutionary Process (Case Studies A, B, and C, and Teaching Note)

This three-case series study deals with a very interesting and successful social corporate responsibility programme, from its inception at the strategic level to its implementation in one of the Company’s locations in a developing country, Chile. The main objective of part A is to evaluate the results of Anglo American´s partnership at the Chagres Smelter where they have carried out an important programme of corporate social responsibility. As the local people, allegedly the main stakeholders and beneficiaries of the CSR project, say that the programme does not benefit the town and therefore the results of the evaluation seem ambiguous, Mr. Bickham, Anglo American´s Executive Vice President of External Affairs, is wondering how to continue with this programme and more importantly, whether AA’s current CSR methodology is the right one. He fears that the local people’s dissatisfaction may put at risk the necessary consent of the communities and jeopardize future access to natural, financial and social resources. He knows that there is too much at risk and that in order to design the next steps, there are questions that need to be answered.