A uniform reglementation of the social dialogue system in Romania, of its functionality and development, in the context of clearly defined responsibilities, can lead to the harmonization of construction, the avoidance of omissions and parallelisms, the assurance of all premises for an effective social dialogue - autonomy, representativeness, communication and negotiation skills, vision, organizational capacity and responsibility.social dialogue, management, social partners, dialog and social ethics, social responsibility.

Camelia KONRAD

English

Research Papers in Economics

 
Review of General Management                                                Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010  91 
 
 
SOCIAL DIALOGUE MANAGEMENT AT THE COINTERESTED 
GROUPS’ LEVEL 
 
Camelia KONRAD 
 “Spiru Haret” University, Romania 
Faculty of Management, Brasov 
konradcamelia@yahoo.com 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Keywords:  social  dialogue,  management,  social  partners,  dialog  and  social  ethics,  social 
responsibility. 
 
JEL Classification: M12, M54. 
 
1. Social responsibilities and implications at the corporations’ level  
 
 Romanian companies begin to realize the advantages and problems arising from the 
relations they have with the groups they interact. More and more Romanian managers seize 
the  chance  to  create  business  opportunities  through  social  dialogue,  through  responsible 
management, aimed at sustainable development. 
 For several decades, Western business environment has created management tools and a 
concept for managing the companies’ relations with their social and business partners. The so-
called interested groups (stakeholders) are those groups who can affect or are affected by an 
organization’s activities. The organizations’ dialogue with the interested groups involves the 
development and implementation of mechanisms for communication and feedback to support 
the efficient and balanced management of these groups’ expectations. The cointerested group 
management is the systematic and strategic management of the relationships with companies, 
their partner groups, and the integration of social and business partners’ expectations into the 
organizations’ management strategies.  
Abstract 
A uniform reglementation of the social dialogue system in Romania, of its functionality and 
development,  in the  context  of  clearly defined responsibilities,  can  lead  to  the  harmonization  of 
construction, the  avoidance  of omissions and parallelisms, the assurance of all premises for an 
effective  social  dialogue  -  autonomy,  representativeness,  communication  and  negotiation  skills, 
vision, organizational capacity and responsibility.  
Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010                                                        Review of General Management  92 
 Dialogue with social partners is useful not only for strategic reasons, but for preventing 
certain  risks.  It  implies,  above  all,  a  learning  process  that  all  the  involved  parties  take 
advantage  of.  For  such  a  dialogue,  understood  as  a  learning  process,  a  constant 
communication  is  needed  to  determine  the  exchange  of  arguments,  accepting  critical 
opinions, common actions and, ultimately, sustainable partnerships. 
 A  company  can  balance  its  own  objectives  with  the  business  partners’  interests  by 
applying the so-called rule of tyranny of "or" and of the "and" genius. In his “Built to Last” 
work, Jim Collin shows that the partners’ interests do not necessarily claim the scarification 
of  the  company’s  interests.  Decisions  should  be  taken  in  agreement  with  the  principle 
“company’s  interests  and  partners’  expectations”,  not  according  to  the  rule  “company’s 
interests or the others’ expectations”. If one acts according to the “and” rule, in time, we can 
identify those strategies beneficial for both the company and the cointerested groups. This is 
possible through a gradual process of awareness of the needs of the others. Such an effort 
leads to lasting results.  
 The  companies’  dialogue  with  the  cointerested  groups  proves  to  be  effective  when 
specific  mechanisms  of  communication,  consultation  and  feedback  between  partners  are 
created. They help organizations to better know the social context in which they operate, to 
respond to their real needs, to transform the potential risks into business opportunities. There 
are  several  principles  that  should  underpin  the  relationship  between  companies  and 
cointerested groups:  
1)   knowledge – identifying the cointerested groups and their expectations; 
2)  responsibility –assuming the company’s obligations of the interested groups; 
3)  reciprocity - companies have not only responsibilities, but also rights in relations 
with the cointerested groups; companies and their partners should identify profit strategies for 
all parties in decisions; 
4)  right - in the relations of the companies and the cointerested groups, the rights and 
responsibilities should be distributed equitably, in line with the investments and risks assumed 
by each party. 
 In Romania you can not speak of a mature business community, with ethical codes 
defining  moral  standards  and  values.  Companies  fail  to  define  and  cultivate  an  ethical 
dialogue with the cointerested groups. 
 An effective dialogue with the cointerested groups claims, first of all, the identification 
of the partners relevant for an organization. Relevant groups are either those that, by their 
interests, influence the future and prosperity of the company, or those whose interests are or 
may be affected by the company.   
Review of General Management                                                Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010  93 
 Also, a company’s effective dialogue with the cointerested groups implies a strategy of 
their involvement in the organization’s activities: 
￿ to understand and take into account their expectations and problems in the decisional 
process; 
￿ meet these expectations according to the company’s policies and practices and in line 
with the economic context in which it operates. 
 A  good  dialogue  strategy  involves  the  construction  of  several  channels  of 
communication  that  provide  companies  credible  information  on  the  cointerested  groups’ 
needs  and expectations and offer  these  groups  relevant  information about  companies.  An 
effective dialogue requires communication in both directions: companies talk, but listen, too. 
Companies often do not listen. It is a mistake. Because, listening, they can learn more and, 
understanding more, they can devise better strategies( Stephen B. Young, 2003). 
 Companies must also identify their main social and business partners and know their 
expectations. An effective dialogue with partners involves constant communication and the 
identification of the company and the social groups’ common objectives.  
 Communication with the cointerested groups can be effective when discussion forums 
will  be  created,  in  which  the companies  interact  with  the  representative  groups  from  the 
community. Building social relationships outside the channels of communication specific to 
the  business  environment  is  a  safe  way  of  involving  the  community  in  defining  the 
companies’ mission and strategies. 
 Communication with interested groups allows companies to understand the environment 
in which they operate. 
 Dialogue with partners is necessary for strategic reasons, and it should be managed not 
only for the purpose of immediate interest, but also for identifying the opportunities arising 
from the today’s society new demands of the environment. 
 In the absence of systematic dialogue with communities, the organizations miss the 
opportunities given by the understanding of the social environment in which they operate. The 
management  of  the  relations  with  partners  is  especially  important  for  the  Romanian 
companies, who just begin to realize the issues arising from their relations with the groups 
they interact. Romanian managers have the chance to create business opportunities through 
social dialogue, through responsible management, sustainable development oriented. 
 Eiichi Shibusawa, called "the father of the Japanese capitalism", claimed the possibility 
of  a  harmony  between  morality  and  business.  Romanian  business  leaders  have  the  great 
chance to join those who attempt to restore their society’s moral values. 
 It is important to understand that the involvement of social partners in management 
strategies is beneficial for both companies and communities.  
Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010                                                        Review of General Management  94 
 Social responsibility is a company’s obligation, beyond its legal obligations or those 
imposed by the economic restrictions, to pursue long term goals, which are for the society’s 
benefit. 
 Socially  responsible  firms  respond  not  only  to  shareholders,  but  also  to  all  those 
interested in their work. The goal pursued by firms in support of responsible behavior is, on 
the one hand, improving the image and, on the other hand, promoting the management based 
on the values spread within the organization.  
 Building  good  relations  with  a  company’s  social  and  business  partners  involves  an 
ongoing  and  difficult  process.  For  a  dialogue  with  partners,  organizations  can  use  any 
decisional  and  communicational  tools,  strategies  of  corporate  social  responsibility  (CSR), 
corporate governance, instruments involving the cointerested groups in the decisional process, 
public relations.  
 A research report of Ashridge Business School from the UK highlights two basic words 
for  a  successful  Corporate  Responsibility  (CR)  practice:  integration  and  relevance 
(www.euractiv.ro). Social responsibility is a general term that refers to the companies' role in 
society and should be made according to each company’s activities. Social involvement has 
the greatest effect when combined with the companies’ main activity. 
 The efficiency of the dialogue between partners depends on the company’s motivation 
and  openness  to  its  community’s  issues.  In  order  to  be  effective,  the  dialogue  between 
partners should build a healthy relationship between the company and the groups it interacts 
with. For this purpose, the social responsibility policies should be part of the companies’ 
management strategy. No one speaks of social responsibility in the case of a company that is 
not profitable, that does not comply with laws and fails to provide the products and services 
required by the market.  
 The companies must understand the nature, the problems and the responsibilities of 
each and every group they interact with. Knowing the social environment is essential for 
developing an effective dialogue with the cointerested groups.  
 
2. The concepts of business ethics and corporate responsibility 
 
 In recent years, more and more scholars and international organizations develop ethical 
standards  regarding  the  relationship  between  companies  and  the  cointerested  groups,  and 
methodologies for evaluating the companies' practices in dealing with partners. 
 The level and accuracy of the managerial ethics are determined by the following factors 
(Puiu, Al., 2000, p.261): legal regulations, rules, local regulations, sectoral ethical codes, the 
company’s ethical codes, the managers’ characteristics, the organizational culture, the social  
Review of General Management                                                Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010  95 
pressure.  The  organizational  culture  contributes  to  creating  an  ethical  climate  due  to  the 
imposition  of  some  rules  and  ethical  standards.  They  determine  the  conduct  within  the 
company and represent, in fact, ways to support the organization’s mission, objectives and 
vocation.  
 To  increase  ethical  accountability  of  employees  and  managers  it  is  necessary  to 
intensify the actions of moral development and training through seminars, workshops, role-
plays. In such activities, moral dilemmas arising in the decision making process are presented 
and alternatives for solving them are proposed ( Popa, I., Filip, R, 1999, p. 270). 
 A manager’s behavior in business should consider the following values (Gavrilă, T., 
Lefter,  V,  2002,  p.  275):  honor,  integrity,  trust,  fairness,  concern  for  everybody’s  good, 
compliance with laws, pursuing excellence, taking the leader’s position, responsibility of their 
acts. In practice, it is not sufficient for managers to monitor the compliance with ethics in 
their organizations. The entire organizational culture must support social responsibility and 
strengthen ethical actions (Ionescu, Gh. Gh., 1997, p. 230). Managers are those who create 
ways of planning, implementation and control of social responsibility and ethical behavior. 
 Companies wishing to legitimize in the social environment in which they operate must 
manage, in a strategic way, the dialogue with the cointerested groups. Thus, they can identify 
and rank the different social and business partners’ expectations, and balance their interests, 
minimizing the long-term risks, which could affect their reputation. Until recently, in business 
social responsibility meant observing the laws. Today, social responsibility involves much 
more, including meeting the countless demands of the cointerested groups.  
 In the current context, marked by uncertainty and rapid changes, investors and analysts 
see  the  dialogue  with  social  partners,  a  strategic  component  of  the  long  term  risk 
management.  
 The companies’ sole objective is not to maximize the investors’ profits. Owners and 
shareholders are not the only people in the world of business. Attention to the communities’ 
interests, the involvement of companies’ social partners in the decisional process, meeting the 
consumers’ demands, transparency and reporting of social performance are ways in which 
management seeks to meet the expectations of a wider number of cointerested groups. 
 In an era in which the environment is fading day by day, corruption in business is being 
emphasized,  and  the  level  of  poverty  is  increasing,  the  community’s  pressures  are  more 
obvious on the companies. Communities claim the latter should assume certain social and 
environmental obligations, reducing the negative impact of their economic activities.  
 Business leaders start to admit that their decisions are beyond the economic sphere, 
affecting, often negatively, the social and political areas. To a growing extent, they require the  
Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010                                                        Review of General Management  96 
business ethical standards and different actions, such as, voluntary programs of corporate 
responsibility and evaluations of the companies’ social and environmental performance. 
 Non-governmental  organizations  that  advocate  for  the  rights  of  employees  and 
consumers or for protecting the environment gave a widespread global issue to corporate 
moral responsibility. 
 Managers  began  to  be  tempted  by  the  role  of  community  champions,  grasping  the 
chance  of  promoting  businesses  and  products  as  socially  responsible  and  nonaggressive 
towards the environment. Thus, the concepts of business ethics and corporate responsibility 
amend the classic concepts of firm and business. 
 Companies must change their strategies, giving them a moral and social dimension, for 
the simple reason that it allows long-term development. "Companies need to admit that they 
have responsibilities not only to investors, but also to the public and to the society as a whole. 
To  the  extent  that  they  accept  their  social  obligations,  companies  will  have  a  beneficial 
influence on the community, contributing, perhaps even better than governments, to solve 
many of the today’s social problems" (Nicholas, I. -coordonator, Beyond Branding, Kogan 
Page, 2003).  
 Development of a company involves not only obtaining profit, but its reinvestment. On 
the other hand, a company needs not only financial capital but also assets, human resources 
and a social capital created on trust and reputation.  
 The  success  of  the  communication  of  the  social  dialogue  does  not  rise,  yet,  to  the 
challenge, the development of social progress being kept back, with considerable effects on 
the social life and inefficiency of social dialogue management both in theory and practice. 
This trend should be extended, which will make the vector of the social development, its 
priorities and aims become the major from the significance point of view.  
 The  condition  of  resolving  this  global  problem  lies  in  accelerating  social  progress, 
increasing its social maturity through the implementation of collective wisdom, resources of 
innovation in regulating social space, through the means of social dialogue management.  
 
3. Final Considerations: 
 
￿ For companies, knowing and understanding the partners' needs is not just a way of 
identifying and preventing risks, but also a source of opportunities.  
￿ Organizations can identify and create long term benefits through dialogue and ethics 
in dealing with social and business partners. 
￿ Companies must understand that, in business, the concern for the cointerested groups’ 
needs is not an additional cost, but a means to generate added value on long term.  
Review of General Management                                                Volume 11, Issue 1, Year 2010  97 
￿ Any company that initiates and maintains a prophylactic dialogue with the groups that 
may affect its development can prevent any image damage on long term. In addition, social 
dialogue allows companies to better meet the society’s expectations. Social dialogue allows 
companies to address such problems. 
￿ Those companies who can exploit the knowledge gained through dialogue with social 
partners innovate in a durable way. Companies can turn into competitive advantages impulses 
received from the dialogue partners. 
￿ The  business  environment  has  the  social  responsibility  of  producing  welfare. 
Capitalism  is  a  process  of  "creative  destruction"  in  which  change  is constant  and  risk,  a 
condition  of  survival.  Communities  live  with  the  fear  that  the  negative  consequences  of 
change  and  the  risks  taken  by  the  companies  are  put,  unjustly,  on  their  shoulders.  The 
business environment must use power in a socially responsible way.  
￿ The actions of social responsibility bring direct benefits to the society and indirectly to 
the companies that take them. Thus, through the specific organizational culture, companies 
are much closer to the community, feeling its needs and satisfying them as closely as possible; 
the responsible behavior is to meet successfully the society’s interests and the companies’ 
own interests.  
 
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SOCIAL DIALOGUE MANAGEMENT AT THE COINTERESTED GROUPS’ LEVEL

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Research Papers in Economics