Working Papers

Our Working Papers offer a variety of perspectives on defining, categorizing, and evaluating issues related to corporate  responsibility. The Working Paper series includes the work of CRI faculty, senior fellows, and staff members, as well as affiliated scholars from other institutions. Many Working Papers are subsequently published in trade or peer-reviewed journals or as book chapters.

Risk, Uncertainty, and the Future of Corporate Human Rights Due Diligence | Malcolm Rogge | December 2022 | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 81

Integrating Human Rights Due Diligence Into Model Supply Chain Contracts | John F.  Sherman, III | December 2022 | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 80

Human Rights Due Diligence and Corporate Governance | John F.  Sherman, III | June 2021 | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 79

Ten Years After: From UN Guiding Principles to Multi-Fiduciary Obligations | John G. Ruggie, Caroline Rees and Rachel Davis | May 2021 | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 78

Irresponsible Exit: Exercising Force Majeure Provisions in Procurement Contracts | John F. Sherman, III | January 2021 | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 77

Making 'Stakeholder Capitalism' Work: Contributions from Business & Human Rights | John G. Ruggie, Caroline Rees and Rachel Davis | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 76, November 2020

Transforming How Business Impacts People: Unlocking the Collective Power of Five Distinct Narratives | Caroline Rees | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 75, November 2020

Integrated Corporate Governance: A Practical Guide to Stakeholder Capitalism for Boards of Directors | Richard Samans and Jane Nelson | World Economic Forum White Paper, June 2020

The General Counsel as Partner in Shaping A Corporate Culture That Respects Human Rights | John F. Sherman, III | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 74

The Contractual Balance Between 'Can I' and 'Should I'?: Mapping the ABA's Model Supply Chain Contract Clauses to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights | John F. Sherman, III | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 73

Bringing Corporate Governance Down to Earth: From Culmination Outcomes to Comprehensive Outcomes in Shareholder and Stakeholder Capitalism | Malcolm Rogge | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 72

Beyond CSR: The Story of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights | John Sherman III | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 71

Nevsun puts Canada's Corporate Decision Makers in the Human Rights Zone | Malcolm Rogge | Corporate Responsibility Initiative Working Paper No. 70

The Paradox of Corporate Globalization: Disembedding and Reembedding Governing Norms | M-RCBG Faculty Working Paper Series No. 2020-01 | March 2020

Money, Millennials and Human Rights: Sustaining 'Sustainable Investing' 
John G. Ruggie and Emily K. Middleton | June 2018  | CRI Working Paper No. 69

Multinationals as global institution: Power, authority and relative autonomy
John G. Ruggie | June 2017 | Published in Regulation and Governance | CRI Working Paper No. 68

The Social Construction of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights
John G. Ruggie | June 2017 | CRI Working Paper No. 67

Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises: Normative Innovations and Implementation Challenges
John Ruggie and Tamaryn Nelson | May 2015 | CRI Working Paper No. 66

Reinforcing Regulatory Regimes: How States, Civil Society, and Codes of Conduct Promote Adherence to Global Labor Standards
Michael W. Toffel, Jodi L. Short, and Melissa Ouellet | January 2013 | CRI Working Paper No. 65

The Impact of the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Representative & The UN Framework on the Development of the Human Rights Components of ISO 26000
Sandra Atler | June 2011 | CRI Working Paper No. 64

International Support for Effective Dispute Resolution Between Companies and Their Stakeholders: Assessing Needs, Interests, and Models
David Kovick and Caroline Rees | June 2011 | CRI Working Paper No. 63

Corporate Partnerships for Entrepreneurship: Building the Ecosystem in the Middle East and Southeast Asia
Shannon Murphy | December 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 62

Emerging Nations and Sustainability. Chimera or Leadership?
Simon Zadek | November 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 61

Corporate Responsibility in African Development: Insights from an Emerging Dialog
Maya Forstater, Simon Zadek, Yang Guang, Kelly Yu, Chen
Xiao Hong and Mark George | October 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 60

Extraterritorial Jurisdiction: Lessons for the Business and Human Rights Sphere from Six Regulatory Areas
Jennifer A. Zerk | June 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 59

The Accountability Web: Weaving Corporate Accountability and Interactive TechnologyExecutive Summary
Bill Baue and Marcy Murninghan | May 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 58

Trade Agreements, Business and Human Rights: The case of export processing zones
Andrew Lang | April 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 57

Mediation in Business-Related Human Rights Disputes: Objections, Opportunities and Challenges
Caroline Rees | February 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 56

Human Rights Due Diligence: Is It Too Risky?
John F. Sherman III, Amy Lehr | February 2010 | CRI Working Paper No. 55

Responsible Business in Africa: Chinese Business Leaders’ Perspectives on Performance and Enhancement Opportunities
Simon Zadek, Chen Xiaohong, Li Zhaoxi, Jia Tao, Zhou Yan, Kelly Yu, Maya Forstater, Guy Morgan | November 2009 | CRI Working Paper No. 54

Due Diligence for Human Rights: A Risk-Based Approach
Mark B. Taylor, Luc Zandvliet & Mitra Forouhar | October 2009 | CRI Working Paper No. 53

Business and Philanthropy Partnerships for Human Capital Development in the Middle East
Shannon Murphy | October 2009 | CRI Working Paper No. 52

Human Rights Corporate Accountability Guide: From Laws to Norms to Values
Chip Pitts and John Sherman | Corporate  Responsibility Initiative | 2008 | 
CRI Working Paper No. 51

Government Clubs: Theory and Evidence from Voluntary Environmental Programs
Cary Coglianese and Jennifer Nash | May 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 50

Environmental Leadership Programs: Toward an Initial Assessment
Jonathan Borck, Cary Coglianese, and Jennifer Nash | May 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 49

Evaluating the Social Effects of Performance-Based Environmental Programs
Jonathan Borck, Cary Coglianese, and Jennifer Nash | May 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 48

Evaluating the Impact of SA 8000 Certification
Michael J. Hiscox, Claire Schwartz, and Michael W. Toffel | May 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 47

Coming Clean and Cleaning Up: Is Voluntary Disclosure a Signal of Effective Self-Policing?
Michael W. Toffel and Jodi L. Short | May 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 46

CSR and Public Policy: New Forms of Engagement between Business and Government
Jane Nelson | May 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 45

Corporations and Human Rights: A Survey of the Scope and Patterns of Alleged Corporate-Related Human Rights Abuse
Michael Wright | April 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 44

Corporate Social Responsibility through an Economic Lens
Forest L. Reinhardt, Robert N. Stavins, and Richard H.K. Vietor | April 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 43

Investment Agreements and Human Rights: The Effects of Stabilization Clauses
Andrea Shemberg | March 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 42

Rights-Compatible Grievance Mechanisms: A Guidance Tool for Companies and Their Stakeholders
January 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 41

Grievance Mechanisms for Business and Human Rights: Strengths, Weaknesses, and Gaps
Caroline Rees| January 2008 | CRI Working Paper No. 40

Shamed and Able: How Firms Respond to Information Disclosure
Aaron K. Chatterji and Michael W. Toffel | September 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 39

Business and Human Rights: The Evolving International Agenda
John Ruggie | June 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 38

Overview of a Selection of Existing Accountability Mechanisms for Handling Complaints and Disputes
Caroline Rees | June 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 37

The Rise of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) as a Case of Institutional Entrepreneurship
Halina Szejnwald Brown, Martin de Jong, and Teodorina Lessidrenska | May 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 36

Encouraging CSI in Italy: The Enabling Role of Government in Mandating, Motivating, and Supporting Responsible Business Practices
Francesco Perrini | April 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 35

The Operation of Non- Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in a World of Corporate and Other Codes of Conduct
Jane Nelson | March 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 34

How Well Do Social Ratings Actually Measure Corporate Social Responsibility?
Aaron K. Chatterji, David I. Levine, and Michael W. Toffel | February 2007 | CRI Working Paper No. 33

Building the Institutional Infrastructure for Corporate Social Responsibility
Sandra Waddock | December 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 32

Business Recognition of Human Rights: Global Patterns, Regional and Sectoral Variations
Michael Wright and Amy Lehr | December 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 31

Social Risk as Strategic Risk
Tamara Bekefi, Beth Jenkins, and Beth Kytle | December 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 30

Meaningful Change: Raising the Bar in Supply Chain Workplace Standards
Roseann Casey | November 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 29

Human Rights Policies and Management Practices of Fortune Global 500 Firms: Results of a Survey
John Ruggie | October 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 28

Constructing the License to Operate: Internal Factors and their Influence on Corporate
Environmental Decisions

Jennifer Howard-Grenville, Jennifer Nash, and Cary Coglianese | August 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 27

Beyond Corporate Codes of Conduct: Work Organization and Labor Standards in Two
Mexican Garment Factories

Richard Locke and Monica Romis | August 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 26

Operating in Insecure Environments
Jane Nelson | August 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 25

Does Monitoring Improve Labor Standards?: Lessons from Nike
Richard Locke, Fei Quin, and Alberto Brause | July 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 24

Governing Collaborative Governance: Enhancing Development Outcomes by Improving Partnership Governance and Accountability
Simon Zadek and Sasha Radovich | April 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 23

Leveraging the Development Impact of Business in the Fight against Global Poverty
Jane Nelson | April 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 22

Uncommon Partners: The Power of Foundation and Corporation Collaboration
Mark Kramer, Marc Pfitzer and Karin Jestin | March 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 21

Investing in Social Innovation: Harnessing the Potential of Partnership between Corporations and Social Entrepreneurs
Jane Nelson and Beth Jenkins | March 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 20

Business Ethics: The Law of Rules
Michael L. Michael | March 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 19

Game Changing CSR
Mark Kramer and John Kania | February 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 18

The Logic of Collaborative Governance: Corporate Responsibility, Accountability, and the Social Contract
Simon Zadek | January 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 17

Doctrinal Unilateralism and its Limits: America and Global Governance in the New Century
John Gerard Ruggie | January 2006 | CRI Working Paper No. 16

The Strategic Use of Decentralized Institutions: Exploring Certification with the ISO 14001 Management Standard
Andrew A. King, Michael J. Lenox, and Ann Terlaak | December 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 15

Signaling Social Responsibility
Jason Scott Johnston | November 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 14

Corporate Citizenship in a Global Context
Jane Nelson | May 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 13

Public Sector Capacity, Corporate Responsibility, and Corporate Profitability in Africa
Malcolm F. McPherson | April 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 12

Legitimacy and Corporate Governance
Cary Coglianese | March 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 11

Corporate Social Responsibility as Risk Management
Beth Kytle and John Gerard Ruggie | March 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 10

Building Public Sector Capacity to Address HIV/AIDS: The Role of the Private Sector
Jane Nelson | January 2005 | CRI Working Paper No. 8

Values-Based Performance: Seven Strategies for Delivering Profits with Principles
Ira Jackson and Jane Nelson | December 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 7

Reconstituting the Global Public Domain: Issues, Actors and Practices
John Gerard Ruggie | December 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 6

American Exceptionalism and Global Governance: A Tale of Two Worlds?
John Gerard Ruggie | April 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 5

Turning Ethical Values into Business Value
Jane Nelson | March 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 4

On Creating Public Value: What Business Might Learn from Government about Strategic Management
Mark Moore and Sanjeev Khagram | March 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 3

On Collaborative Governance
John Donahue | March 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 2

The Public Role of Private Enterprise: Risks, Opportunities and New Models of Engagement
Jane Nelson | February 2004 | CRI Working Paper No. 1