LD9632 - SME Project Proposal (1000 words)

(Should be submitted via turnitin on or before the deadline).

Student ID

Student Name

The title of the project

Evaluating the Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on SMEs in the United Kingdom (UK) Construction Industry

An outline of the problem or opportunity being addressed

There is a clear indication of the significance of CSR programs among SMEs in the UK. However, no specific statistics are indicating how
small businesses in the UK have benefited directly or indirectly from their commitment to CSR programs (Perry & Towers, 2009). The
research attempts to evaluate the impact of integrating CSR practice by SMEs in the UK on their overall performance, growth, and
profitability margins.

The aim and objectives of the project

The aim of the research study is evaluating the impact of CSR practice on the overall performance of SMEs in the UK construction industry.
The five main research objectives addressed in the study include:
1. To evaluate the role of CSR practice in profit maximization among SMEs in the UK construction industry.
2. To establish the contribution of CSR practice towards high-performance standards of UK SMEs in the construction industry.
3. To investigate the correlation between brand competitiveness and CSR practice among UK SMEs in the construction industry.
4. To determine the strategic role of CSR practice in shaping the growth and development of SMEs in the construction industry of the UK.
Management literature and theories underpinning the project
According to the Office of National Statistics U.K., there are over 5.5 million Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), accounting for
89.9% of the business population. Baden, Harwood & Woodward (2009) noted that the UK construction industry also thrives in the vibrant
SMEs businesses operating in various sectors of the industry, including supplies, materials, construction, plumbing, wiring and electricity,
and transport, among others. These small businesses are important to the industry, and to the UK economy at large, as they not only create
employment, but lso help improve the country’s GDP. This is significant because the economic stability of the country is dependent on low
unemployment rates. However, Battaglia et al (2014) argued that because of the strong competition for SMEs in the UK construction
industry, given the widespread consumer awareness in the market, entrepreneurs running SMEs are expected to go the extra mile to secure
brand and market share of their businesses by embracing and practicing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs. Castka et al
(2004) added that pursuing active CSR programs has proven to have multiple benefits for SMEs including increased sales volumes, brand
reputation, market share, fast growth, and expansion, as well as market competitiveness.

Murillo & Lozano (2006) noted that a common assumption among entrepreneurs is that CSR is irrelevant to small operations. However,
Stoian & Gilman (2017) established that this notion is misguided as British consumers have embraced brands with CSR and ESG business
practices, and as such, will most likely purchase and consume products and services sold by firms practicing CSR as opposed to those that
are not practicing CSR. In this regard, Jenkins (2009) asserted that it was imperative for SMEs in the construction industry in the UK to
engage in some form of CSR, even on small margins, as this does not necessarily have to match the costly big-ticket activities undertaken
by their multinational counterparts. On the contrary, SMEs in the UK construction industry can do this by restricting their choice of business
partners based on social responsibility.

Jenkins (2006) stated that over half of the SMEs in the UK construction industry lacked a clear CSR strategy, even though the same
proportion believed that such a commitment could add value to their businesses. The majority of these SMEs cited financial considerations
and lack of resources as the main challenges to their implementation of an active CSR strategy. Mendibil et al (2007) noted that pursuing
CSR practices had multiple benefits for small businesses, especially when the CSR programs were sustainable and tied to the core
competencies of the business. Many companies use volunteering in charity as a team-building exercise that can also benefit the business's
brand reputation. Turyakira, Venter & Smith (2014) added that the simplest CSR program for SMEs to pursue was an environmental policy,
such as investing in low-energy light bulbs, conducting public cleaning exercises, or replacing plastic cups with China mugs. Such activities
aimed at saving energy, reducing carbon emissions, and controlling plastic pollution, with the overall aim of addressing environmental
pollution generate CSR benefits for the company. The study will address this through a qualitative research method to conduct the collection
and analysis of data. Qualitative research methods entail collecting and analyzing ordinal or non-figurative datasets to analyze their common
patterns, trends, and themes, to address the research problem (Kakilla, 2021). The study will use semi-structured interviews for collecting
data, designed to include both close-ended and open-ended interview questions.
An indication of the methods to be used
You should reflect on the following areas for this section:

Research Approaches
There are three different research approaches that a
researcher can use, including the deductive, inductive, and
abductive research approaches. The deductive approach is
applied to quantitative studies, as it draws specific
conclusions from generalized observations. The inductive
approach is applicable to qualitative studies, as it draws
generalized conclusions from specific observations (Kakila,
2021). The abductive research approach applies the best
features of the two, thus preferred for mixed research
studies. The study will use the inductive research approach
for the qualitative assessment of data. The inductive
research approach is preferred for the study because it
facilitates making generalized conclusions based on
multiple independent reports on the research problem.
Therefore, the findings shared by different interviewees will
be generalized to make meaningful conclusions on the
research problem, based on the prominent themes,
patterns, and trends identified in the dataset.

Research Strategy
There are two common research strategies for use, the
questionnaire surveys, and interviews. The questionnaire
surveys are used for collecting quantitative data through
close-ended questions and a Likert scale to quantify the
respondent’s opinions (Braun et al., 2020). The interviews
are used to collecting qualitative data through open-ended
 questions, involving open discussions that integrate human
interest in the research study. The study will employ the
interview strategy, a standard social research tool that
enables the researcher to gather data from an existing
study population by engaging directly with research
participants. In this case, the researcher performs semi-
structured interviews in data collection. The strategy is
preferred because of its effectiveness to engage the
participants at a personalized level.

Research Methods
There are three common research designs used in
undertaking a research study, the qualitative, the
quantitative, and the mixed research design. The qualitative
research method collects and analyses non-numerical or
ordinal datasets in completing the study through common
themes, patterns, and trends (Braun et al., 2020). The
quantitative research method collects and analyses
numerical or figurative datasets for completing the study
through common trends, patterns, and forms. The study will
use the qualitative research design, as the study findings
will be based on first-hand market information collected
from participants through semi-structured interviews. As
such, the study design will also affirm the effectiveness of
utilizing digital tools in conducting qualitative research.

Data Collection
Sources The study will use the qualitative research design, where
the preferred models of data collection include case
studies, systematic literature review, and interviews. Case
studies and reviews are preferred for secondary data
collection, while interviews are preferred for primary
 research study (McCusker and Gunaydin, 2014). Semi-
structured interviews will be used for data collection
purposes. The interviews will be performed in person to
boost the quality of contributions made by integrating
human interest in the research process. Each interview is
expected to last for about 30 minutes.

Data Analysis
Qualitative datasets are usually analysed through focus
groups, case studies, and thematic analysis (Braun et al.,
2016). The case studies focus on studying specific cases
relating to the research problem, while focus groups
evaluate the contributions of specific actors in the study
population (McCusker and Gunaydin, 2014). Thematic
techniques of data analysis will be used to analyze the
qualitative interview transcripts collected from the study
population. The data analysis technique entails identifying
the common themes, patterns, and trends in the dataset to
address the research problem in the study.

Sampling Technique
There are different forms of sampling techniques, including
random, stratified, and purposive. Random sampling
employs the concept of equitable representation of the
study population, while stratified sampling focuses on
specific clusters within the study population for sampling
(Etikan and Alkassim, 2016). A purposive sampling
technique will be used in identifying and selecting
participants to contribute to the study. The purposive
sampling technique entails selecting participants based on
prior knowledge, contact, or familiarization that the
researcher has with the participants.
 Ethical Issues
All research studies must observe ethical considerations to
ensure the credibility and accuracy of research findings.
The ethical considerations to observe are based on whether
the researchers adopted primary or secondary research.
The study will observe the ethical considerations of
conducting a primary research study involving human
participants. This entails observing the confidentiality of the
research participants, free will, and informed consent.

A programme of work and timetable (use a table or Gantt-chart)

Sn. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
 1 Introduction Chapter
2 Literature review chapter
3 Research methodology chapter
4 Data collection process
5 Research findings/results chapter
6 Discussion chapter
7 Conclusions and
recommendations
8 Finalizing and submitting the
project
References

Baden, D. A., Harwood, I. A., & Woodward, D. G. (2009). The effect of buyer pressure on suppliers in SMEs to demonstrate CSR practices:
an added incentive or counter-productive? European Management Journal, 27(6), 429-441.
Battaglia, M., Testa, F., Bianchi, L., Iraldo, F., & Frey, M. (2014). Corporate social responsibility and competitiveness within SMEs of the
fashion industry: Evidence from Italy and France. Sustainability, 6(2), 872-893.
Braun, V., Clarke, V., & Weate, P. (2016). Using thematic analysis in sport and exercise research. In Routledge handbook of qualitative
research in sport and exercise (pp. 213-227). Routledge.
Braun, Clarke, V., Boulton, E., Davey, L., & McEvoy, C. (2021). The online survey is a qualitative research tool. International Journal of Social
Research Methodology, 24(6), 641–654. https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2020.1805550
Castka, P., Balzarova, M. A., Bamber, C. J., & Sharp, J. M. (2004). How can SMEs effectively implement the CSR agenda? A UK case
study perspective. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 11(3), 140-149.
Etikan, I., Musa, S. A., & Alkassim, R. S. (2016). Comparison of convenience sampling and purposive sampling. American journal of theoretical
and applied statistics, 5(1), 1-4.
Jenkins, H. (2006). Small business champions for corporate social responsibility. Journal of business ethics, 67(3), 241-256.
Jenkins, H. (2009). A ‘business opportunity’model of corporate social responsibility for small‐and medium‐sized enterprises. Business
ethics: A European review, 18(1), 21-36.
Kakilla, C. (2021), Strengths and Weaknesses of Semi-Structured Interviews in Qualitative Research: A Critical Essay, Research Gate
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352565661_Strengths_and_Weaknesses_of_Semi-
Structured_Interviews_in_Qualitative_Research_A_Critical_Essay
McCusker, K. & S. Gunaydin, (2014), Research using qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods and choice based on the Research, Sage
Journals, Vol: 30 issue: 7, page(s): 537-542
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0267659114559116?casa_token=9_7pPD2UvcMAAAAA%3AOtVlB-yKgvn705aj0vW-
wBAlO0XqW2piakEs1yoOgbaM4dkfCWfjls1LsI7lZ3vidMjq9KTe39hE
Mendibil, K., Hernandez, J., Espinach, X., Garriga, E., & Macgregor, S. (2007). How can CSR practices lead to successful innovation in
SMEs. Publication from the RESPONSE Project, 1-7.
Murillo, D., & Lozano, J. M. (2006). SMEs and CSR: An approach to CSR in their own words. Journal of business ethics, 67(3), 227-240.
Perry, P., & Towers, N. (2009). Determining the antecedents for a strategy of corporate social responsibility by small-and medium-sized
enterprises in the UK fashion apparel industry. Journal of retailing and consumer Services, 16(5), 377-385.
Stoian, C., & Gilman, M. (2017). Corporate social responsibility that “pays”: A strategic approach to CSR for SMEs. Journal of Small
Business Management, 55(1), 5-31.
Turyakira, P., Venter, E., & Smith, E. (2014). The impact of corporate social responsibility factors on the competitiveness of small and
medium-sized enterprises. South African Journal of Economic and Management Sciences, 17(2), 157-172.