ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses the unique Brazilian experience of social reporting in the context of the evolution of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) agenda that has gathered momentum worldwide. Since Bowen coined the expression ‘social responsibilities of the businessman’ through the title of his book in 1953, consumers, social movements, governments and others have increasingly adhered to the notion that companies - and not only their owners - have ‘obligations’ toward society beyond legal duties. These included the quality, reliability and safety of the products (or services) they provide; fair relations with their employees; a non-damaging relation with the environment; and good community relations. Gradually, CSR became part of the new set of administrative principles that firms adhered to, along with others such as ‘total quality’ and ‘just in time’ (Grayson and Hodges 2002; Kirschner 2006).
