Corporate Social Responsibility Practices during COVID-19 Crisis: a Critical Review

Purpose: This article aims to identify CSR activities undertaken by companies during Covid-19 in terms of environmental, social, and economic dimensions as well as the responsibility toward employees and customers, using a “systematic literature review method” in order to outline the perceived challenges in terms of companies’ organizational practices. Findings: This study shows that the Covid-19 pandemic has forced a redefinition of the norms of social responsibility and created significant challenges to companies that required difficult decisions to be made regarding the safety of employees, the economic viability of the company, and its dedication to CSR efforts. Materially, the pandemic directs researchers towards different ways of conceptualizing CSR, yet the existing literature on CSR and the Covid-19 pandemic has focused on the social responsibility without taking into account the challenges faced by companies during this transition in terms of companies’ organizational practices. Theoretical Implications: This study provides a comprehensive framework of CSR practices in times of the crisis and underlines the changes in companies’ organizational practices in order to implement a sustainable business model not only to tackle this ongoing crisis but also to resist future crises by balancing economic performance and social responsibility. Practical Implications: The article reflects the importance of delimitating the major factors that help companies overcome new challenges such as resilience, supply chains, public health and corporate responsibility at a new juncture. Originality/Value: The relevance of this study is the discussion of CSR during the Covid-19 pandemic and its Impact on the organizational practices that have been changed and which should exist to ensure future effective CSR practices. Research Limitations/Future Research: As in all studies, this research has some limitations. The most important one is that it addresses the topic by referring to a defined literature base. It would be more useful for future comparative research to use other literature bases to assess the robustness of our results. In addition, this paper offers important implications for future empirical researches in order to investigate the impact of each factor highlighted in our study and to explore how CSR can help to address challenges such as public health, supply chains, corporate governance, and corporate responsibility at a new juncture. Paper Type: Conceptual JEL Classification: M140, I1, D23