Wards Accounting Seminar Series. " A Radical Critique of Corporate Social Responsibility through the Lens of Philanthropy: Gift, Sharing, and Sacrifice"
Published: 22 September 2025
29 October 2025. Professor Cameron Graham, York University Canada
Professor Cameron Graham, York University, Toronto, Canada
"A Radical Critique of Coroporate Social Responsibility through the Lens of Philantropy: Gift, Sharing and Sacrifice"
Wednesday, 1 October 2025. 12:00-13:30
Room 282, The Hothouse Adam Smith Business School Building
Abstract
A Radical Critique of Corporate Social Responsibility through the Lens of Philanthropy: Gift, Sharing, and Sacrifice Our paper develops a radical critique of corporate social responsibility (CSR) through the lens of philanthropic gift-giving. It problematizes CSR—from its business case, through its social enterprise variants, and ultimately to its moral case as corporate benevolence—by interrogating its normative foundation in philanthropic goodness. Drawing on Russell Belk’s research, we discuss two attainable philanthropic ideals: the perfect gift and sharing. These are then contrasted with Georges Bataille’s notion of the sovereign gift—pure sacrifice without any care or calculation, and ultimately unattainable for humans—to illustrate that philanthropy, however practiced, inevitably involves a calculative mindset and therefore perpetually falls short of the incalculability of pure sacrifice. This analysis locates at the heart of philanthropy, and by extension, of CSR, a “moral divinity” grounded in human rather than divine love, and thus incapable of transcending mundane human existence. This essay is offered as a provocative critique, not of CSR instrumentalism, but of CSR moralism. We push scholars to ask they want from CSR, and whether CSR can really deliver it. We seek to open up a constructive dialogue with CSR scholars and practitioners who ground their own critique of CSR in the desire to see businesses “do good.”
Bio
Cameron Graham, Professor of Accounting at the Schulich School of Business in Toronto, is an Associate Editor of Critical Perspectives on Accounting. He draws on social and linguistic theory to explore how accounting constitutes poverty. His research has examined the Canadian old age pension system, the relationship between Canada and the First Nations, homelessness programs and social impact bonds in the UK, microfinance in Sri Lanka, and the role of the World Bank in restructuring education in Latin America. He is the host of a multi-disciplinary academic podcast called “Podcast or Perish,” about academic research and why it matters. The podcast can be found at www.podcastorperish.ca. Cameron's research and teaching website can be found at
www.camerongraham.ca.
For further information, please contact business-school-research@glasgow.ac.uk
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First published: 22 September 2025