Influence of National Institutions on the Corporate Social Responsibility Practices of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises in the Food-processing Industry: Differences Between France and Morocco

This paper analyzes how national institutions impact corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the foodprocessing industries of France and Morocco. In this study, CSR practices are defined around two main dimensions: corporate performance (financial vs. global) and the CSR approach (defensive vs. active). Qualitative data were collected during semi-structured interviews with SME managers in charge of CSR issues. We then performed a content analysis. Our study shows that there is a distinct difference between the CSR practices adopted by SMEs in France and Morocco. Indeed, the findings suggest that under the rulebased governance system of France,most SMEs view CSR as an economic tool and it is adopted as an opportunity-seeking perspective anchored in the search for global performance. The findings also show that under the relationship-based governance system of Morocco, SMEs mainly see CSR from a constraint-reducing perspective. However, some Moroccan SMEs have begun to see the economic opportunities of CSR, especially in accessing foreign markets.