Top-level managers deeply immersed in CSR

Press release

To what extent do business schools successfully incorporate social and environmental considerations in management programmes? The Aspen Institute not only ranks CBS' full-time MBA programme as No. 8 in Europe but also places CBS in the Global Top 10 for research

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is no longer just another elective course taken by a few students. Incorporating social and environmental considerations in the study programmes has in fact become quite common, and according to the Aspen Institute, a renowned American management think tank, CBS ranks among the best in Europe at doing so.

Acting President Alan Irwin says:

- At Copenhagen Business School, we view corporate social responsibility as a core element in the training of next-generation business leaders. By bringing education and research together, we aim to make a positive difference both locally and globally. But we also see CSR as an important focus for research, analysis and critical inquiry.

A leap of 20 places

The think tank has just released the latest Beyond Grey Pinstripes ranking, which reports on the extent to which business schools all over the world incorporate social responsibility and other social considerations in teaching and research. CBS ranks as No. 43 on the global list, having leapt 20 places from the last ranking in 2009. Thereby CBS holds the eighth place among the European institutions on the list.

CSR as an integral part of all course activities

Torben Andersen is Associate Dean for the full-time MBA programme at CBS. He explains that social conscience has always been in the corporate fabric in our region and engrained in the way business is carried out.

- We have taken a unique approach in the MBA programme here at CBS by incorporating CSR concepts into all of our course activities. The faculty has worked closely with the CBS Center for Corporate Social Responsibility to incur relevant CSR perspectives in all areas of the vast curriculum. We believe that for CSR to truly work, it must be part of how we think and act. This focus is now slowly paying off and we will continue to improve. We want to extend this tradition and continue to learn from the CSR research conducted at CBS, says Torben Andersen.

Research: A spot in the global Top 10

The ranking also assesses research related to environmental and social fields and there has been progress here as well, as CBS ranks as No. 9 on the current list, compared to No. 22 in the previous ranking. This means that CBS holds the first runner-up position in Europe. Erasmus University in Holland holds the first place.

The runner-up position is significant since a good ranking may open doors in the global research landscape.

- The ranking is the most widely used business school ranking in the world to assess how MBA programmes incorporate social and environmental considerations into their curriculum, and the level of related research being done at these schools. CBS’s position as No 43 on the overall list is important, and in particular having achieved a Top 10 ranking for research demonstrates the world-class research being done at CBS in the business in society and sustainability related fields, says Associate Professor Kai Hockerts of the CBS Center for Corporate Social Responsibility.

Meet some of the MBA participants.

Beyond Grey Pinstripes

The ranking is conducted biennially. The Top 100 is comprised based on approximately 12,000 courses and faculty research abstracts, and 4,000 examples of institutional support (e.g. extracurriculars, joint degree opportunities) have been collected from 149 participating schools.

Find more information on the ranking at beyondgreypinstripes.org/rankings