Integration of CSR Practices by Project Managers

Abstract

Extant research has overlooked the critical role that middle position actors, not directly related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, play in the implementation of the sustainable development policy of the organization. In the context of project-based organizations, there is a need for a deeper understanding of the role of project managers' integration of CSR practices when developing and executing their projects. To capture the concrete actions project managers perform when integrating CSR practices into their projects, the authors collected data through semi-structured interviews, opting for a qualitative methodology and a single exploratory case study. They contribute to the CSR literature by opening the black box of intra-organizational CSR dynamics, by bringing forward the relational process triggered by project managers to enact the organizational CSR practices, and by recognizing the importance of project managers' horizontal interactions inside their organization to achieve their project goals while framing them on a sustainable approach.