Jan Jonker, Marco de Witte (editors), Springer, 378 pages, hardback. £44
Management Models is an ambitious book – both in its declared intent to
be a knowledge bank for tried and tested corporate social
responsibility models and instruments, and in its 42 chapters by 70
authors.
The editors have attempted to give some coherence to so many
submissions by grouping them into areas such as the business
proposition, organizational identity, and accountability. Although
there is some logic to this, the categories make the book seem on first
impression much more academic and jargon-laden than it is in practice.
To the editors’ credit, they have kept the chapters short and clearly
structured: each typically contains an introduction, the essence of the
model, experience with the model, some dos and don’ts, and concluding
remarks. Beyond this, there is the expected varying quality: some
models appear incredibly simplistic and unlikely to be of much value,
while others have well-developed systems, techniques and case studies
to back them up.
Despite its claim to be ‘the result of the practical efforts of
professionals’, the book will probably appeal more to students,
teachers and researchers than practitioners. Perhaps a comparative
analysis of the models might have made the book more handy for CSR
managers. As it stands, it is more likely to find its way into
libraries than boardrooms. More’s the pity, because there is a wealth
of ideas between the covers.
Wayne Visser
