CSR and SMEs: relations with stakeholders and competitive performance

Stakeholder theory represents one of the frames characterizing the management of Corporate Social Responsibility; within this framework, this book analyses the question if the adoption of CSR leads towards competitive effects, especially in the case of small and medium - sized enterprises. On the basis of evidences collected by three research projects promoted by the European Commission, three perspectives are taken into consideration: a territorial outlook, based on the incentives to the adoption of CSR deriving from local collaborative networks; a sectorial one, for which being part of the same industry allows gaining higher level of innovation, improving market performance; an institutional frame, focused on the role played by public authorities in promoting CSR.