O'Neill Surf CSR
Part 2
CSR
Frameworks
02
Stakeholder Model
O'Neill follows the stakeholder model when tackling CSR. We know this because they split their sustainability goals into 4 pillars.
"To make better products."
"To change how we work."
"To improve our supply chain."
"To give back to society."
These four pillars directly show how O'Neill's approach to sustainability is communicated through the stakeholder approach. The firm (O'Neill) works to aid and satisfy all of the stakeholders in their sphere. These include community, customers, employees, environment, stakeholders and suppliers.
CSR Activities
Through their efforts, O'Neill works diligently to participate in different CSR activities in the community, workplace, marketplace and environment.
Community
O'Neill Sea Odyssey Program
One of the biggest things O'Neill does is their Sea Odyssey Program. This program was founded in 1996 by Jack O'Neill to teach the youth about ocean conservation. Jack had a lot of love for the ocean, his mantra being, "The ocean is alive, and we must take care of it!".
The program works directly with school curriculum to teach 4th and 5th grade students about the importance of ocean conservation. Before attending, students are required to complete a community service act such as a beach clean up to earn their trip. Students get to participate in a hands-on experience where they are joined by the OSO staff on a charter boat. Here, students learn about navigation, marine biology, and ecology. As of 2018, over 100,000 students have participated in the experience.
02
Stakeholder Model
O'Neill follows the stakeholder model when tackling CSR. We know this because they split their sustainability goals into 4 pillars.
"To make better products."
"To change how we work."
"To improve our supply chain."
"To give back to society."
These four pillars directly show how O'Neill's approach to sustainability is communicated through the stakeholder approach. The firm (O'Neill) works to aid and satisfy all of the stakeholders in their sphere. These include community, customers, employees, environment, stakeholders, and suppliers. They work towards being a company of good through their efforts to have ethical operation, while also doing good deeds for society and stakeholders.
CSR Activities
Through their efforts, O'Neill works diligently to participate in different CSR activities in the community, workplace, marketplace and environment.
One of the biggest things O'Neill does is their Sea Odyssey Program. This program was founded in 1996 by Jack O'Neill to teach the youth about ocean conservation. Jack had a lot of love for the ocean, his mantra being, "The ocean is alive, and we must take care of it!".
The program works directly with school curriculum to teach 4th and 5th grade students about the importance of ocean conservation. Before attending, students are required to complete a community service act such as a beach clean up to earn their trip. Students get to participate in a hands-on experience where they are joined by the OSO staff on a charter boat. Here, students learn about navigation, marine biology, and ecology. As of 2018, over 100,000 students have participated in the experience.
Community
O'Neill Sea Odyssey Program
Workplace
Improving the Supply Chain
O'Neill commits to understanding the current situation regarding wages and safety in factories. They are committed to ensuring ALL people associated in their value chain are given fair wages and a safe working environment. O'Neill also works to ensure that forced labor, child labor, gender issues, and discrimination do not make it into their product supply chain.
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In order to do this, all product factories must adhere and closely follow a code of conduct. Also, suppliers must comply with business ethics requirements and anti-corruption practices. O'Neill's team does regular inspections and follow-ups with all of their supplier factories to ensure that all protocols are being followed. This helps to encourage improvements, as well as give the opportunity for corrections to be made.
Marketplace
O'Neill Blue Products
O'Neill prides themselves on the improvement of products while continuing to minimize their impact on the environment. This means they increase the amount of sustainable materials they use while also not losing sight of the quality of their garments. In 2015, O'Neill Blue was launched as a way of classifying when garments have at least 30% of raw fabrics be made of sustainable materials. In 2020, this minimum was raised to 40% and they hope to continue increasing the amount of sustainable products used in the years to come.
When shopping in store, garments that are O'Neill Blue certified have a tag on them to allow the consumer to know that they are made with recycled materials. O'Neill is also very transparent about the products they use along with where they were sourced from.
Environment
The Road to Circular Design
The planet is very important to O'Neill as they continue to make choices for their business. They plan to continue to care for the planet by taking steps towards circular design in their business model. For them, this means reducing their waste stream to a minimum and continuing to create collections with renewable, recyclable materials.
In order to do this, they have had to look at how they package goods in their shipping process. They aim to have 100% of their packaging be sustainable by 2025. As of now, they have a large amount of sustainable materials in their packaging such as 100% recycled carton ECOM boxes, 80% recycled plastic ECOM bags, and a plethora of other option. These steps help to lead towards circularity because less material is getting wasted in their supply stream.
In all, it is clear that O'Neill Surf commits to taking part in creating a sustainable future. Through their efforts in the community, workplace, marketplace, and environment consumers can feel good about purchasing from their brand. In looking at all of their CSR activities, O'Neill works most with their environmental efforts. A large part of their community efforts is to educate on ocean conservation. As they give back, they are also allowing student to become more aware of the environmental issue of ocean conservation. They also create a plethora of promotional videos and marketing campaigns to promote O'Neill Blue, their sustainable material initiative. I believe they do this because their brand is built around a consumers relationship with the ocean and beach. The audience that they reach as a surf lifestyle brand in most likely going to care about environmental issues considering their affiliation with the world around them. It seems unlikely that surfers would support a brand that did not care about the ocean! Therefore, it is important for them to focus on environmental CSR to please their customers and have success.