CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES-A STUDY ON THE AWARENESS AND PRACTICE IN MANGALORE

Background: Organizations are increasingly realizing that corporate social responsibility (CSR) is no longer a collection of discreet practices or occasional gestures motivated by marketing or public relations. Business organizations cannot pay lip service to CSR as they did in the past as it has become a process from the concept and creates value that can be used as a competitive tool. Aim: The objective of the paper is to explore the attitude towards CSR and understand the CSR initiatives of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Methodology: Descriptive study was conducted in Mangalore, Karnataka. Data was collected from the managers or proprietors of micro, small and medium enterprises. Results: Awareness SMEs is inadequate and their CSR policies are mostly limited to occupational safety. As large number of individuals depend on-SMEs for employment, promoting awareness regarding CSR, at least work related policies becomes highly essential in the years to come.