Corporate Social Responsibility as a Component of a Co-operative Member-Relationship Management: Socially Responsible Behaviour of Credit Co-operatives

The term 'Corporate Social Responsibility' (CSR) refers to the stakeholders' demand on firms to act socially responsibly. In an exploratory research project, a stratified sample of 3,000 customers (884 member customers and 2,116 non-member customers in line with the customer structure) of an Austrian credit co-operative was questioned. 342 usable questionnaires (143 member-customers, 199 non-member customers) were returned. These data suggest that members of co-operatives are not only interested in the co-operative's services, but also in other partial benefits. So they are interested in the co-operative itself because they can identify with the values conveyed. In the course of a differentiated co-operative member-relationship management (cMRM), CSR measures, through socially responsible actions, can achieve positive image effects and can contribute to the enhancement of the membership value of certain member types.