INSEAD brings social innovation to the forefront

The class will be led by Professor Craig Smith, the Chair in Ethics and Social Responsibility at INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France.

CSR is firmly on the agenda of individual governments, international organisations and institutions globally, and has become increasingly recognised in the Middle East - making it an important subject for businesses and business-leaders of the future.

Always at the forefront of current business trends, INSEAD is conducting an EMBA module in Abu Dhabi this year with the support of ADEC. The 15-month Global Executive MBA (GEMBA) is a modular programme taught primarily at INSEAD's campuses in Fontainebleau and Singapore.

The programme focuses on improving the participants' key managerial skills, including competence, diversity and leadership as well as offering modules on Social Innovation, still considered an innovative field for many business schools.

According to Professor Smith, "There are almost as many definitions of CSR as there are experts in the field. The broadest is: the responsibility that corporations have towards society beyond the production of goods and services at a profit. This means taking into account not only the interests of shareholders but also those of other stakeholders - typically employees, customers, suppliers and the general public. Although there are local variations, CSR is as relevant to the Middle East as anywhere else in the world."

He further explained the decision to base this particular residential module of the EMBA course at INSEAD's Centre for Executive Education and Research in Abu Dhabi: "In the Middle East, there are some very interesting debates about the relationship between religion and business with respect to CSR, both are so closely intertwined that the balance between profitability and social responsibility may be very different here from other regions."

Since its inauguration in September 2007, the Abu Dhabi Centre, which operates in the UAE through the support of Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC), has attracted over 500 executives from across the Middle East to its various programmes, in a continued commitment to advancing business education in the region and developing a better understanding of fundamental management issues.

The CSR masterclass will be attended by visiting students from INSEAD's EMBA programme, as well as some members of the public and private business community.