Framing Engagement that Resonates: Organizing Advocacy for Corporate Social and Environmental Accountability

Abstract

This paper examines how advocacy organizations organize engagements to advance corporate social and environmental accountability. We present an in-depth case study examining how an influential Dutch advocacy organization enacted its engagement with companies to promote the adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting and management practices. Drawing on the construct of strategic framing, we unpack the characteristics that supported the development of a resonant engagement frame that set the boundaries and expectations around the organization’s engagement with companies. We unveil how several internal organizational deficiencies impeded the quality of these engagements, thereby threatening this frame resonance. The paper extends our understanding of the nature and role of strategic framing in the construction of CSR reporting and advances our limited knowledge of how CSR advocacy organizations’ internal operations impact on their engagement efforts. This allows us to better comprehend how these organizations can set engagement agendas and mobilize support for collaborative CSR change initiatives.

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