Experiences with structuring corporate social responsibility in Dutch industry

This article reflects upon the practical experiences gained by 19 companies with structuring corporate social responsibility within the framework of the programme 'From Financial to Sustainable Profit' of the National Initiative for Sustainable Development (NIDO), that was run from May 2000 to December 2002. Based on the available literature and the views of representatives from the participating companies, a structured approach towards corporate social responsibility has been designed and tested in practice. In this process, the company representatives were confronted with various knowledge gaps, some of which could not be solved during the NIDO programme. Therefore, recommendations for bridging these gaps are made.