Corporate Philanthropy is often thought to help firms build image and reputation as well as acquire stakeholder cooperation and support. This strongly suggests that firms should then ride on the benefits of corporate philanthropy and actively advertise and communicate their CSR activities to the public. Why then do some firms keep a low profile about their philanthropic deeds?
According to statistics, corporate philanthropy in the United States, dropped in 2009 due to the recession. However this was contradicted by fund-raising consultants who reported that total giving actually increased as many large gifts were not reported or acknowledged. Similarly, more recently, statistics suggest that over half of Chinese companies that make donations do not mention them in their CSR reports.
Why the strategic silence by firms about their philanthropic acts? In a ground-breaking study, Professor Wang Heli, Janice Bellace Professor of Strategic Management examines the phenomena of quiet giving drawing on her research of 1530 Chinese firms over 7 years. She will share her insights into how and when corporate donations may potentially cause backlash among its stakeholders, and conversely, when repercussions are less likely to occur; as well as elaborate on the factors which influence the firms’ decisions on whether to remain silent or promote their philanthropic efforts.
Professor Wang will also present her in-depth analysis of the challenges surrounding corporate giving and how a balance may be struck between legitimacy management and stakeholder conflict.
About the Speaker
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Professor Wang Heli Janice Bellace Professor of Strategic Management Area Coordinator, Strategy & Organisation Lee Kong Chian School of Business Singapore Management University Professor Wang Heli is Janice Bellace Professor of Strategic Management and area coordinator of the Strategy & Organization group at Singapore Management University. She received a Ph.D. in Strategic Management from the Ohio State University. Prior to joining SMU, she was an assistant and then associate professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Her research focuses on the resource-based view of the firm, strategic human capital, stakeholder management, and corporate social responsibility. She has published in journals including Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, and Organization Science, among others. She has previously served as a consulting editor of Management Organization Review and an associate editor of Academy of Management Journal. She is currently serving as an associate editor of Academy of Management Review. |
About Janice Bellace
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Professor Janice R Bellace Founding President, SMU Samuel A Blank Professor of Legal Studies and Professor of Management, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania Professor Janice Bellace was the Founding President of Singapore Management University, where she helped lay the foundation for the University to flourish, as we see today. She stepped down in 2001. She was a trustee until 2013, and then served on the SMU’s International Academic Review Panel until last year. Currently, Professor Bellace is the Samuel Blank Chair in Legal Studies, and is Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, and Professor of Management at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Having held several academic leadership posts at Penn, she is currently the Director of the Tanoto ASEAN Initiative which supports the Wharton School’s research and teaching activities designed to engage faculty and students with ASEAN. An author of numerous publications in the area of labour and employment relations, she is a recognized expert in international labor law. In September, she was elected president of the International Society for Labour and Social Security Law. Earlier this year, she was appointed a judge of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal. Professor Bellace received her undergraduate degree and law degrees from the University of Pennsylvania. A recipient of a Thouron Award for British-American Exchange, she received her master’s from the London School of Economics. |
Programme
| 4:30pm | Guest Arrival and Registration |
| 4:55pm | Emcee Opening |
| 5:00pm | Welcome Remarks by Professor Lily Kong Provost & Lee Kong Chian Chair Professor of Social Sciences, SMU |
| 5:10pm | Conferment of the Janice Bellace Professorship of Strategic Management Presented by Professor Arnoud De Meyer, President, SMU to Professor Wang Heli |
| 5:20pm | Inaugural Janice Bellace Professorship Lecture by ProfessorWang Heli, Janice Bellace Professor of Strategic Management, Area Coordinator, Strategy & Organisation, Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Singapore Management University |
| 6:05pm | Q & A and Closing Remarks Moderated by Professor Janice Bellace, Founding President, SMU Samuel A Blank Professor of Legal Studies and Professor of Management, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania |
| 6:20pm | Presentation of Tokens of Appreciation To Professor Janice Bellace; & To our generous donors for establishing the Janice Bellace Professorship at SMU |
| 6:30pm | End of Lecture Dinner Buffet |
