关键词: CSR, 商业模式创新, 互噬过程, 案例研究

Abstract:    Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and business model innovation have always been hot topics in the field of business management. CSR has a positive impact on business model innovation, and business model innovation provides an economic base for enterprises to fulfill their social responsibility, as though the combination of the two has become a theoretical consensus. However, there is a significant conflict between this theoretical consensus and the actual business practices we have observed. Companies such as Pangda Group, Huishan Dairy Group, Wanda Group, and China Fortune Land Development Group have incorporated the concepts of CSR, deeply practiced CSR, and radically implemented business model innovation, but end up with a co-destruction of business model and CSR. The co-destruction of CSR and business model innovation is a new phenomenon that needs in-depth analysis. Therefore, we have derived two research questions: (1) how does the co-destruction of CSR and business model innovation occur and develop? (2) what is the relationship between CSR and business model innovation in this process? 
    In view of this, this paper adopts the multiple case study method, taking four companies including Pangda Group, Wanda Group, Huishan Dairy and China Fortune Fortune as the study objects, and it also conduct a longitudinal case study to analyze the co-destruction of CSR and business model innovation. This research contributes to existing literature of CSR by unpacking the process of mutual eating and its interactions, as well as the interactive relationship between them. This research also has practical implications for companies to implement CSR and business model innovation more pragmatically and rationally.
     The results of the research are as follow: Firstly, we have identified the process of mutual eating between CSR and business model innovation, including three stages: attachment phase, mutual absorption phase and co-destruction phase. In the attachment period, the success of business model innovation causes the implementation of CSR by third-party organizations. In the mutual absorption period, CSR honor triggers entrepreneurs′ scale preference, resulting in the replication of business model. Success of business model replication further strengthens the stakeholder′s CSR adherence, forming a positive interaction between CSR and business model innovation. In the mutual phagocytic period, the out-of-control of entrepreneurs causes disorderly expansion of firms, which in turn triggers the collapse of business models, causing major CSR accidents, and the co-destruction of CSR and business model innovation. 
    Secondly, our research also identified a double-edged sword effect between CSR and business model innovation. CSR accelerates the pace of business model innovation and also enlarges the risks. Business model innovation provides an economic basis for CSR performance, but uncontrollable business model innovation can also bring huge CSR disasters. Thirdly, entrepreneurs play a bridge role between CSR and business model innovation. Entrepreneurial scale preference triggers the mutual attraction between CSR and business model innovation, but entrepreneurs losing rational judgment cause the co-destruction of CSR and business model innovation.
      This research makes several theoretical contributions to the existing literature as follows. First, it describes the co-destruction of CSR and business model innovation, fully uncovers the dark side of CSR, and reconciles the conflict between theory and practice. Second, it summarizes the process of interaction between CSR and business model innovation from the perspective of process, and unpacks the black box of double-edged sword effects between them. Third, it reveals the unique bridge role of entrepreneurs, and provides new insights for understanding CSR and business model innovation.
     The findings also provide some practical implications for Chinese entrepreneurs, especially private entrepreneurs and government agencies. First, entrepreneurs should give full play to the positive role of CSR in business model innovation, and use CSR′s reputation mechanism to amplify the brand awareness and reputation of their company, so as to better integrate with stakeholders, remove the hindrance and accelerate the pace of business model innovation. Second, entrepreneurs should avoid the dark side of CSR during the process of business model innovation, pay attention to the scale preference induced by third-party CSR adherence and stakeholder promotion, always maintain objective and cautious during business model innovation, and avoid losing control during expanding. Finally, government departments or industry institutions should establish an authoritative corporate social responsibility evaluation mechanism to create a favorable corporate social responsibility business environment for entrepreneurs and executives to start businesses, and preventing unethical media and organizations from seeking ill-gotten wealth in the name of CSR.
    Although this paper selected the four most representative and typical companies for objects of case study, it is recommended here due to the limitations of the study to further validate and testify the results obtained from the study through a quantitative empirical analysis in the future research to improve the generalizability.

Key words:  CSR, business model innovation, mutual eating, case study