Sport Social Responsibility as a Driver for Organisational Change on Example of Polish Sport Organisations

Organisations within sport industry are playing an important role in society nowadays. They influence fans attitudes through their activities, which in many cases may be classified as CSR. Those include volunteerism, educational initiatives, philanthropic/charitable donations, community development and initiatives, fan appreciation, health-related initiatives, and community-based environmental programs (Aubrey & Walker, 2009, p. 747). The emphasis is given to create competitive advantages on the market but mostly to improve image of the organisation through community involvement and building relationships (Bouris & McGowan, 2012, p. 398). This study highlights the importance of implementing CSR as a part of business strategies of sport organisations. During quantitative research fans of sport organisations were sampled (N=120), with results suggesting that CSR is seen as an evidence of a sport club being a responsible member of a community focused not only on sport results. The research revealed that CSR events organised by sport clubs are usually short-ranged, prepared spontaneously and focused on local community. The results suggest that even though managers of sport clubs are aware that CSR is one of the factors creating reputation it still does not play an important role in overall business strategy of those organisations.