Performance Indicators of CSR Fund Management: Insights from Selected Indian Corporates

Abstract

In accordance with section 135 of the companies act, 2013, corporate Social responsibility (CSR) of Indian companies has become a strategic necessity of the Indian companies, considering that the required expenditure in the CSR of the qualifying companies was institutionalized by the legislation. Despite the intense emphasis on the amount of CSR spending and their focus area, a minor empirical research has been conducted on the performance indicators under which CSR investments may be held and operated successfully. The suggested study will identify, investigate and evaluate the key performance indicators (KPIs) of the CSR fund management in the sampled Indian companies that operate in manufacturing industry, banking industry, and service industry.The research design is descriptive, as it is analytical and involves the use of primary and secondary data. The direct sources of data used were the structured questionnaires and interviews with the CSR managers and finance executives, the annual reports, CSR disclosures, sustainability reports, and corporate governance statements were known as secondary data sources. There are the indicators of financial efficiency (fund utilization ratio, administrative cost ratio, variance analysis), the impact assessment (beneficiary outreach, social return on investment, outcome measurement), governance (board oversight, audit mechanisms, compliance reporting), and transparency (disclosure quality, third-party verification, digital reporting practices), which are studied.The findings indicate that effective governance systems, impact assessment systems that are properly designed and open reporting systems are positively correlated with proper management of CSR funds. Business corporations with special CSR committees and online surveillance systems are more efficient in using their finances and measurable impact on their community. However, the gaps of measuring the impacts universally and being sustainably evaluated in the long run still exist. The paper will give a proposal of an elaborate CSR performance measurement model that incorporates aspects of financial accountability, measures of social impact, good governance and stakeholder engagement.This research can be incorporated into the formation of an emerging discourse on the topic of CSR responsibility in India since it offers a proper model of performance variables that could help provide transparency, effectiveness, and alignment of CSR programs with the common goal of sustainable development.