Corporate Social Responsibility Training Course

Duration 10 days 20 modules · 65 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends CSR or Sustainability Manager, HSE Manager and others
Fee from USD 2,200 KSh 190,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-SC-027

Before you join: Participants should understand their organisation’s main operations, stakeholder groups and existing environmental, social or community activities.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Corporate social responsibility becomes credible when it is connected to business decisions, stakeholder expectations, environmental and social impacts, and clear evidence of results. Many organisations still treat CSR as a collection of donations, volunteering activities or communications campaigns. This creates exposure to greenwashing claims, stakeholder criticism, inconsistent supplier practices and weak reporting. A well-managed CSR programme identifies material responsibilities, assigns ownership, sets measurable commitments and shows how the organisation is addressing priority impacts.

This course equips participants to design, manage and improve practical CSR programmes. Participants examine CSR strategy, stakeholder engagement, materiality assessment, human rights, labour practices, environmental responsibility, community investment, responsible procurement and ethical communications. They use recognised approaches including ISO 26000, GRI Standards, ESRS and the AA1000 Stakeholder Engagement Standard to structure decisions, assess risks, define targets and prepare credible disclosures.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with sector cases, group analysis, simulations and application planning. Participants work progressively on a CSR challenge relevant to their employer or a realistic case organisation, building materials from the first week onward. They leave with a structured CSR programme pack containing a materiality assessment, stakeholder engagement plan, priority action plan, measures, governance arrangements and reporting outline.

The course is suited to managers and specialists who contribute to sustainability, HSE, communications, procurement, human resources, risk, compliance, community relations or corporate affairs. It is particularly valuable for organisations formalising CSR responsibilities, responding to investor and customer scrutiny, improving social and environmental performance, or preparing more credible public reporting.

What you will be able to do

  • Assess CSR maturity using governance, programme, measurement and disclosure criteria
  • Conduct a stakeholder analysis and create an engagement plan using AA1000 principles
  • Prioritise social and environmental issues through a materiality assessment
  • Develop a CSR strategy with commitments, targets, owners and implementation milestones
  • Apply human rights due diligence to operational and supply-chain risks
  • Design responsible community investment and employee volunteering programmes
  • Prepare GRI-aligned CSR disclosures supported by evidence and performance indicators
  • Present a complete CSR programme pack for management review

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Ability to turn scattered CSR activities into a managed programme
  • Confidence discussing material social and environmental responsibilities with senior leaders
  • Practical experience applying stakeholder engagement and materiality assessment methods
  • Stronger capability to challenge unsupported CSR and sustainability claims
  • A reusable CSR programme pack for workplace application

For your organisation

  • Clearer ownership and governance for social and environmental commitments
  • Better prioritisation of CSR spending against stakeholder and business needs
  • Reduced exposure to misleading claims and weak public disclosures
  • More consistent treatment of supplier, workforce and community responsibilities
  • Evidence-based reporting for customers, investors, regulators and community stakeholders

Course modules

20 modules over 10 days

Participants can distinguish CSR from related management approaches and assess their organisation’s current CSR position.

  • CSR definitions, business responsibilities and limits of voluntary commitments
  • Distinguishing philanthropy, compliance, ESG management and corporate citizenship
  • Triple bottom line trade-offs tested against operational decisions
  • UN Sustainable Development Goals mapped to material business impacts
  • CSR maturity assessment using governance, programmes, measurement and disclosure criteria
  • Creating a shared course case from an organisational CSR challenge

Participants can design governance arrangements that assign accountability for CSR commitments and decisions.

  • Board oversight responsibilities for social and environmental commitments
  • Executive sponsorship, committee mandates and delegated decision rights
  • RACI matrices assigning CSR policy, delivery, monitoring and reporting accountabilities
  • Codes of conduct linked to ethical decision-making procedures
  • Whistleblowing channels, grievance handling and non-retaliation safeguards
  • Escalation criteria for material incidents, allegations and stakeholder disputes

Participants can identify priority stakeholders and map their influence, interests and likely concerns.

  • Stakeholder inventories covering affected groups, decision-makers and opinion formers
  • Power-interest matrices used to prioritise engagement resources
  • Affected-rightsholder analysis separating vulnerable groups from general audiences
  • Mapping stakeholder concerns to operational decisions and potential impacts
  • Influence pathways linking business activities, consequences and stakeholder responses
  • Documenting assumptions, evidence gaps and contested stakeholder representations

Participants can prepare a proportionate stakeholder engagement plan using AA1000 engagement principles.

  • AA1000 principles of inclusivity, materiality, responsiveness and impact
  • Engagement objectives matched to information, consultation, dialogue or partnership
  • Selecting interviews, workshops, surveys, focus groups and community meetings
  • Engagement plans specifying participants, methods, timing, owners and outputs
  • Accessible consultation arrangements for language, disability, location and safety
  • Closing feedback loops through documented responses and follow-up actions

Participants can conduct a materiality assessment that prioritises significant CSR issues.

  • Materiality concepts for organisational impacts, stakeholder concern and business significance
  • Issue registers built from stakeholder input, incidents, trends and commitments
  • Scoring criteria for scale, scope, likelihood, severity and stakeholder concern
  • Materiality matrices showing priority issues and decision rationale
  • Double materiality considerations for impact and financial effects
  • Validating priority issues with leaders, specialists and affected stakeholders

Participants can draft a CSR strategy linking priority issues to commitments and delivery plans.

  • Strategy statements defining purpose, scope, ambition and operating boundaries
  • Material issues translated into commitments, objectives and measurable targets
  • Theory of change models connecting activities, outputs, outcomes and impacts
  • Policy architecture linking corporate policies, procedures and local implementation
  • Prioritisation criteria balancing impact severity, feasibility, cost and timing
  • Drafting a CSR strategy narrative for management approval

Participants can identify human rights and labour risks requiring preventive action.

  • Internationally recognised human rights relevant to business activities
  • Human rights due diligence stages: assess, act, track and communicate
  • Workplace risks involving discrimination, harassment, wages, hours and freedom
  • Vulnerable worker analysis covering migrants, contractors, women and young workers
  • Remediation pathways for adverse impacts caused, contributed or directly linked
  • Grievance mechanisms assessed for legitimacy, accessibility and predictability

Participants can integrate priority environmental responsibilities into a CSR programme.

  • Environmental aspects linked to energy, water, waste, emissions and biodiversity
  • Life-cycle thinking applied to products, services and procurement decisions
  • Environmental commitments translated into operational controls and performance measures
  • Pollution prevention hierarchy: avoid, reduce, reuse, recover and treat
  • Climate adaptation considerations for facilities, workers, communities and suppliers
  • Environmental incidents incorporated into stakeholder communications and corrective actions

Participants can establish CSR expectations and due diligence processes for suppliers.

  • Supplier codes addressing labour, human rights, ethics and environmental practices
  • Risk segmentation using country, sector, spend, commodity and supplier evidence
  • Prequalification questionnaires collecting policy, certification and incident information
  • Supplier audits distinguished from worker interviews and grievance evidence
  • Corrective action plans with deadlines, owners, verification and escalation
  • Responsible purchasing practices preventing unrealistic prices and delivery pressures

Participants can design community investment initiatives with clear social outcomes and safeguards.

  • Community needs assessments separating evidence from assumed local priorities
  • Community investment criteria covering relevance, equity, scale and sustainability
  • Cash grants, in-kind support and partnerships compared for control
  • Social value measures defining beneficiaries, outputs, outcomes and unintended effects
  • Conflict-of-interest controls for donations, sponsorships and political relationships
  • Exit plans preventing dependency after time-limited community initiatives

Participants can structure employee participation programmes that are safe, inclusive and purposeful.

  • Volunteer programme objectives linked to community needs and employee skills
  • Skills-based volunteering matched to partner capacity and defined assignments
  • Participation rules covering paid time, expenses, conduct and safeguarding
  • Risk assessments for volunteering sites, travel, vulnerable people and supervision
  • Inclusion measures supporting shift workers, remote staff and disabled employees
  • Volunteer outcomes tracked through hours, skills, partner feedback and results

Participants can identify, evaluate and control CSR risks using structured risk methods.

  • CSR risk registers linking causes, events, consequences and existing controls
  • Inherent and residual risk scoring using likelihood and impact criteria
  • Control design tests for preventive, detective and corrective measures
  • Key risk indicators signalling deteriorating social or environmental conditions
  • Scenario analysis for protests, supplier allegations, incidents and media scrutiny
  • Risk treatment plans assigned to accountable owners and review dates

Participants can create measurable CSR targets and indicators supported by reliable data sources.

  • Baseline selection using verified historical, operational and stakeholder data
  • SMART targets stated with scope, timeframe, threshold and accountable owner
  • Leading indicators measuring training, assessments, supplier checks and engagement
  • Lagging indicators tracking incidents, complaints, outcomes and remedial actions
  • Indicator dictionaries defining formulas, sources, frequency and quality checks
  • Data ownership mapped across HSE, HR, procurement and community teams

Participants can establish evidence controls that support credible CSR decisions and disclosures.

  • Evidence files organised by claim, indicator, owner and reporting period
  • Data quality dimensions: accuracy, completeness, consistency, timeliness and traceability
  • Sampling checks applied to supplier, workforce and community programme records
  • Version control procedures for policies, commitments, calculations and approvals
  • Management representations distinguished from independently verified supporting evidence
  • Audit trails prepared for internal review and external assurance requests

Participants can prepare a structured CSR reporting plan aligned with stakeholder information needs.

  • GRI Standards used to structure material topic disclosures
  • ESRS concepts considered when reporting impact, risk and opportunity information
  • Reporting boundaries defined across entities, sites, contractors and value chains
  • Narrative disclosures supported by policies, actions, targets and performance evidence
  • Balanced reporting of progress, shortfalls, incidents and corrective actions
  • Disclosure calendars coordinating data collection, review, approval and publication

Participants can prepare CSR information for internal challenge and external assurance.

  • Assurance readiness assessed through evidence, controls, traceability and accountable owners
  • Internal review questions testing completeness, consistency and substantiated claims
  • Materiality process documentation prepared for reviewer examination
  • Limited assurance distinguished from reasonable assurance and management review
  • Correcting reporting errors through root-cause analysis and documented amendments
  • Assurance findings converted into control improvements and action plans

Participants can review CSR communications for accuracy, balance and substantiation.

  • Claim substantiation tests linking statements to current, relevant and documented evidence
  • Absolute claims challenged for scope, exceptions, baselines and verification
  • Greenwashing warning signs: vague language, selective disclosure and irrelevant claims
  • Marketing, investor and community messages checked for consistent commitments
  • Approval workflows involving CSR, legal, communications and technical specialists
  • Incident communications prepared with facts, accountability, actions and updates

Participants can create an implementable CSR action plan with resources, milestones and controls.

  • CSR budgets separated into operating costs, capital costs and community grants
  • Resource plans identifying specialist skills, internal capacity and external support
  • Implementation roadmaps sequenced by urgency, dependencies and decision gates
  • Milestone plans connecting actions, deliverables, owners and approval points
  • Change management communications addressing resistance, incentives and role expectations
  • Quarterly review cycles using performance dashboards and risk updates

Participants can run a management review that directs corrective action and programme improvement.

  • Management review packs combining indicators, risks, grievances and stakeholder feedback
  • Decision logs recording approvals, challenges, actions and accountable executives
  • Root-cause analysis applied to missed targets and recurring stakeholder concerns
  • Corrective and preventive actions tracked through closure and effectiveness checks
  • Benchmarking practices compared without copying unsuitable commitments or metrics
  • Annual CSR planning refreshed from materiality, performance and emerging risks

Participants can build, review and present a complete CSR programme pack for management approval.

  • Integrating material issues, stakeholder priorities, commitments and implementation actions
  • Completing a CSR programme pack using course templates and evidence
  • Reviewing governance, budget, targets, controls and reporting responsibilities
  • Testing proposed commitments against operational feasibility and stakeholder expectations
  • Presenting management recommendations, trade-offs, risks and approval decisions
  • Receiving structured feedback and documenting post-course implementation priorities

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. CSR maturity assessment template
  2. Stakeholder mapping and engagement plan
  3. Materiality assessment matrix
  4. CSR strategy and implementation roadmap
  5. CSR indicator dictionary and reporting calendar
  6. Management-ready CSR programme pack

Who should attend

  • CSR or Sustainability Manager — responsible for building or improving formal CSR programmes
  • HSE Manager — connects environmental and social responsibilities with operational controls
  • Corporate Affairs Manager — manages stakeholder expectations and public CSR commitments
  • Procurement Manager — addresses supplier labour, human rights and environmental risks
  • Human Resources Manager — links workforce practices, volunteering and inclusion commitments
  • Risk, Compliance or Internal Audit Manager — tests CSR governance, controls and reported claims

Skills and tools covered

CSR strategy designStakeholder engagementMateriality assessmentHuman rights due diligenceCSR performance measurementSustainability reporting

Tools and standards

ISO 26000, GRI Standards, European Sustainability Reporting Standards, AA1000 Stakeholder Engagement Standard

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short briefings to introduce methods and standards, followed by case analysis, group exercises, facilitated discussion and structured application work. Participants examine realistic issues such as supplier labour concerns, community opposition, environmental commitments and disputed public claims. Simulations develop stakeholder engagement and management-review skills. Each participant builds elements of a CSR programme throughout the course, receives peer and instructor feedback, and refines the work into a final management-ready pack. Trainers adapt cases and discussions to the sectors represented in each cohort.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should understand their organisation’s main operations, stakeholder groups and existing environmental, social or community activities. Experience in sustainability, HSE, communications, procurement, HR, compliance, risk or community relations is useful, but specialist CSR experience is not required. Participants should be comfortable reading policy documents, discussing business decisions and working with basic performance data. Prior knowledge of GRI, ESRS, ISO 26000, assurance standards, carbon accounting or formal sustainability reporting is not assumed. No technical environmental science, legal qualification or financial modelling background is required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants need a working understanding of their organisation’s operations and stakeholder groups. Previous CSR, sustainability or reporting experience is helpful but not required; the course explains the main methods and standards from first principles.

Participants should bring a laptop if possible, plus any available CSR policies, sustainability reports, supplier requirements, community investment records or performance data. Sensitive documents are not required, and participants can work from a realistic case where necessary.

It suits managers and specialists with responsibility for CSR, sustainability, HSE, procurement, HR, communications, risk, compliance or community relations. It also suits cross-functional teams asked to establish more formal social and environmental commitments.

This course focuses on building and managing a CSR programme, including stakeholder relationships, human rights, community investment, responsible supply chains and governance. ESG reporting and environmental management are addressed where they support CSR decisions, but neither is treated as the sole subject.

Participants build a CSR programme pack during the course and can adapt it to their organisation after training. The materials support management discussions on priorities, ownership, targets, budget, stakeholder engagement and reporting.

Training runs from 08:30 to 16:30 each day, providing about 6.5 contact hours daily. The first week establishes CSR foundations and develops core planning materials; the second week deepens implementation, measurement, reporting and management-review capability before the final capstone presentation.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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