THE DEVELOPMENT OF A BUSINESS SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (BSR) MODEL TO PROMOTE THE LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF HOSPITALITY SMMEs IN THE FREE STATE REGION

Abstract

The advancement of a business competitiveness and promotion of a good reputation are often hailed as the prime motivations for businesses’ engagement in socially responsible behaviour. Although social responsibility literature tends to focus on large organisations and hence the buzz term “corporate social responsibility”, the emergence of the term “business social responsibility” (BSR) resonates with small business entities’ commitment to fulfil the needs, desires and aspirations of their stakeholders and community at large. However, the activities of Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs), especially those in the hospitality sector, continue to be eclipsed by those of large corporations due to their perceived small scale and impact. This raises critical questions about the actual extent, significance and long term sustainability of the BSR activities of small hospitality businesses in view of their limited financial base, unsophisticated marketing strategies and their concomitant limited visibility at the national and international level. In view of these challenges, this study explores an ideal BSR model that will guarantee the Free State Province’s hospitality SMMEs’ long term sustainability. Drawing on a positivist epistemology and a survey approach, 120 questionnaires were distributed to owner/managers and employees of the hospitality SMMEs in the Free State to establish their BSR activities and unravel the relationship of these activities with firm sustainability. A total of 92 questionnaires were duly completed and returned yielding a high response rate of 76.6%. The findings suggest that although most hospitality business owners/managers understand what BSR is, their engagement in its associated activities remains informal and ad hoc. Most SMME owner/managers also acknowledged that BSR promotes sustainable community development and improves the competitive advantage of small businesses. Based on the study findings, a BSR model that promotes the long-term sustainability of hospitality SMMEs in the Free State Province is one that integrates and aligns business operations, the business’ competitive strategy and BSR activities to the appropriate combination of relevant stakeholders. It is also postulated that this systemic integration will align business operations with the goals and vision of the business and promote the business’ long term sustainability.