Back in 1998, I had a great friend who was UK CSR Officer for a global top 5 bank. He was badly paid and had a small office in the basement of their St James offices. But, over the next ten years, how times changed. Corporate Social Responsibility became mainstream, with savvy companies of all sizes setting out a clear CSR policy and integrating it into their business strategy, procurement policy and marketing communications.

So here we are now in 2009, and as of Friday 23rd January, officially in recession. What happens to ethical practice now? Surely, with the focus on just keeping corporate heads above water, the ‘nice’ things  like CSR need to be relegated?

Not so. The simple fact is that a good CSR strategy allows companies to operate efficiently, to save money whilst upholding quality, to maintain staff morale and to hold onto their customer base. And in these worrying times, all of those things can contribute towards a business’s survival, even growth.

The even better news is that for you, the business owners, decisions made under the mantle of CSR do not necessarily have a higher cost than those made without. Eco print, for example, is neither more expensive NOR lower quality than its polluting counterpart, with clean-looking paper stocks, biodegradable laminates and metallic ink all readily available. ( You can visit www.springadvertising.co.uk and click on eco print to find out more.)

Charitable involvement is still possible, as well; just in different ways. Spring, for example, has donated around £9,000 to The Suffolk Foundation – but in time, rather than hard cash. The Foundation gets good quality design work for which it doesn’t have to pay; which is good for its donors and beneficiaries to know; and Spring fulfills part of our ethical promise, without raiding the bank. Other recipients of this new Spring way for 2009 will include an orphanage in the Congo and the local lifeboat.

Strong, well communicated brands are even more important in a recession than in a strong market. Your activities, market and standards need to be stated, and a clear CSR policy helps you to do just that. But, importantly for these times, it allows you to do more than that: once embedded in your company’s culture, focused CSR helps you to run things frugally, manage staff effectively and maintain your output quality.

And in that way, much CSR boils down to good business practice. Essential, I think you’d agree, especially in a recession.