A Qualitative Analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility in Saudi Arabia’s Service Sector-Practices and Company Performance

Abstract

Corporate social practices have become increasingly important in the service sector, as companies recognize the need to not only provide quality services to their customers but also to operate in a socially responsible manner. The goal of this research is to identify the practices of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Saudi Arabia’s service sector, as well as the relationship between these practices and performance. The study was based on the data collected from six semi-structured interviews with managers responsible for CSR implementation in the banking, insurance, and telecommunication sectors. The findings support the two research propositions, and reveal, based on managers’ perceptions, that companies have adopted several practices in their efforts to become socially responsible. Evidence also revealed that CSR practices have a positive impact on companies’ performance, corporate reputation, customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, and employee engagement. This study adds to the current body of research on the impact of applying CSR practices by providing evidence that doing so positively improves corporate performance, and identifying the most common CSR practices that can help firms improve their performance.