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© 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA 

 

Asian Business Research Journal 
Vol. 5, 55-61, 2020 
ISSN: 2576-6759 
DOI: 10.20448/journal.518.2020.5.55.61 
© 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA 

 
 

 

 
Corporate Social Responsibilities and Firm Performance 

 
Joshua Adeyemi Ogunjimi   
 

 
( Corresponding Author) 

 

 

Department of Economics, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. 

 

 
Abstract 

This study evaluated the impact of corporate social responsibility on firm performance using 
MTN Service centres in Ibadan, Nigeria as case study. Tables and simple percentages were used 
for the analysis of the data collected through the administration of questionnaires while the 
correlation coefficient and analysis of variance were employed as the analytical tool for this study. 
The results showed that all the MTN service centres in Ibadan carry out CSR albeit with few 
challenges. It was also found that several benefits accrue to MTN in Ibadan as a result of carrying 
out CSR activities. Furthermore, the correlation coefficient revealed a strong positive relationship 
between MTN’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and her organizational performance in 
Ibadan such that an increase in CSR activities would improve its performance. Similarly, the 
regression result showed a significant positive relationship between CSR and firm performance 
which indicates that CSR influences the performance of MTN service centres in Ibadan. 
Therefore, this study concludes that CSR is a determinant of firm performance. Based on these 
findings, this study recommends that the management of MTN Nigeria endeavour to engage in 
more CSR activities to meet the peculiar needs of their immediate environment since it has a way 
of improving their performance as well as profitability. 

 
Keywords: CSR, Firm Performance, MTN, Ibadan, Correlation, Regression. 

JEL Classification:C12; D24; G30; L25. 

 

1. Introduction 
Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) continues to be a topical issue at different local and international 

forums given its inherent benefits to the society, firms, government and the economy at large. CSR is a broad set of 
obligatory programmes, practices and policies incorporated into the supply chains, business operations and 
decision-making processes of a firm as a form to contribution to or appreciation of their host community or 
government. It involves taking corporate and social responsibilities of their past and current business operations as 
well as their future impacts particularly on the host community (Adeyanju, 2012; Mirfazli, 2008). On the other 
hand, the scope of CSR has also been a subject of debate in the literature such that whereas some authors believed 
that CSR should be limited to only the stakeholders of the company (Secchi, 2007; Smith, 2003) others alluded that 
it should include the society at large (Brown & Dacin, 1997; Kotler & Lee, 2005; Lee, 2008).  

The evolution of CSR has instigated a paradigm shift of firms from their philosophy of only maximizing profit 
to solving social problems facing their host community or government (Secchi, 2007). This has made charting a 
new course of action as regards performing CSR vital for firms as it has become a prerequisite for improved firm 
performance (Korkchi & Rombaut, 2007). The proponents of CSR argued that it is laced with numerous benefits 
including: increasing customer loyalty, improved public image, better access to financial credits, enhanced brand 
name, greater trust and confidence of stakeholders, motivated community, and safer or healthier workplace, among 
others (Diffey, 2007; Elizaveta, 2010; Mirfazli, 2008; Tuodolo, 2009). Specifically,Tapang and Bassey (2017) argued 
that CSR-performing firms tend to enjoy better long run corporate performance mostly stemming from the 
support, kindness, peace and tranquillity their operating environment affords them. However, the degree or volume 
of CSR varies from company to company and community to community. The size and degree of CSR are often 
determined by the legal framework, firm’s product or service type (environmentally detrimental product or service 
firms are likely to be required to carry out more CSR), business sector, firm or company size, economic situations in 
the host community and geographical location, among other (Adeyanju, 2012). Given the increasing inability of the 
government (especially those in developing economies) to single-handedly tackle the economic and environmental 
problems of its citizens, CSR has been identified as a viable option through which the private sector can help 
partner with the government to shoulder the responsibilities of growth and development of the economy. 
Accordingly, the burgeoning socio-economic needs of Nigeria are so numerous that corporate organizations must 
intervene to help salvage the economic situations in Nigeria. Interestingly, CSR remains one of the strategic ways 
through which this could be attained. Many telecommunication companies in Nigeria have been exploring this 

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channel in a bid to have competitive edge over their competitors, expand their customer base and boost their 
profitability. However, most of the CSR activities of these telecommunication firms are adjudged to be with ulterior 
motives rather than from philanthropic and ethical perspectives (Amposah-Tawiah & Dartey-Baah, 2011).  

Unfortunately, the concept of CSR has not been fully integrated by the firms of various sectors of the Nigerian 
economy. The argument is that there exists a systematic approach in allocating costs, whether for investment or 
societal well-being (Kanwal, Khanam, Nasreen, & Hameed, 2013). They rather see their involvement in CSR as the 
function of the culture of the firm, size and stakeholders demand. It is pertinent to note that in developing countries 
like Nigeria where consumer education awareness is low, with little or no organized pressure group put in place, 
there is difficulty in the demand of full implementation of the CSR by society or institutions. Therefore, a good 
number of managers of these firms in Nigeria, including Mobile Telecommunication of Nigeria (MTN), tend to 
demonstrate poor attitude towards CSR. Hence, CSR in developing countries including Nigeria is still at low ebb 
despite the intense campaigns for facilitating corporate social programmes for tackling various economic maladies 
in the society. There are a number of studies on the CSR-firm performance nexus in the literature for several 
countries of the world (Boafo & Kokuma, 2016; Elizaveta, 2010; Freeman & Phillips, 2002; Nguyen, Hoang, & Luu, 
2019; Tsoutsoura, 2004; Wael, 2014) including CSR in the Nigerian manufacturing sector (Nnamani, Onyekwelu, 
& Ugwu, 2017; Olaroyeke & Nasieku, 2015) and services sector (Adebisi & Akinmadelo, 2014; Nsikan, Umoh, & 
Bariate, 2015; Tapang & Bassey, 2017). However, studies examining the CSR activities and the performance of a 
service firm in Ibadan are particularly rare. Studies of this nature are important to effectively disentangle the 
variation in CSR activities across different geographical locations in Nigeria so as to aid plausible comparisons. 
Thus, this study seeks to fill this gap in the literature by exploring the relationship between CSR and MTN 
performance in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Specifically, this study will examine the CSR activities carried out by 
MTN, Ibadan; examine the extent to which MTN carries out CSR and its benefits; evaluate the problems MTN 
encounters in the practice of CSR; and assess whether CSR enhances the performance of MTN. Gbam and Dedi 
(2017) carried out a similar study for Plateau state and Ogunsanwo and Ajayi (2018) did same for Ado-Ekiti. 

Following this introductory section, the rest of this paper is organized as follows: section two presents the 
review of relevant literature, section three discusses the research methodology adopted in this study, section four 
interprets the empirical findings while section five concludes this study.  
 

2. Literature Review 
There are various views in the literature with regards to the impact of CSR on firm performance and societal 

welfare. Freeman and Phillips (2002) postulated that CSR is an action a company decides to take that will 
adequately affect identifiable social stakeholders’ welfare. However, Tsoutsoura (2004) averred that the 
management and corporate companies should step up to implement policies and business practices beyond the 
minimum legal requirement and positively affect the welfare of its key stakeholders. Elizaveta (2010) alluded that 
CSR-practising firms tend to attract great customers, shareholders and the best employees as against firms who do 
not perform CSR. Moreover, Mujahid and Abdullah (2014) investigated the effects of CSR on firm’s financial 
performance and shareholders’ wealth of 20 firms in the Pakistani economy. Their results showed that CSR exerts 
a positive influence on the financial performance and shareholders wealth of the firms. Similarly, Wael (2014) 
administered questionnaires and employed the descriptive statistical method to evaluate the impact of CSR on the 
profitability of the Orange Telecommunication Company in Jordan. The result suggests that CSR has a positive 
impact on firm’s profitability. In a similar study on Vodafone Ghana Limited, Boafo and Kokuma (2016) showed 
that CSR has an ample positive effect on finances, brand differentiation, reputation and employees’ commitment and 
of the company. In a study on MTN Telecommunication Company in Nigeria, Adebisi and Akinmadelo (2014) 
found that good ethical, society-focused and environmental CSR affects the performance of the mobile service 
provider positively. On the other hand, Olaroyeke and Nasieku (2015) examined the impact of CSR on the 
performance of fifteen manufacturing firms listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange Market. Using descriptive 
statistics to analyse the collected data, their empirical result indicated that CSR impacts the performance of these 
firms positively and that these firms engage in CSR not just for profit-making but also for promoting their brand 
name, improving their corporate image and enhancing their competitive advantage. 

Nsikan et al. (2015) used the survey method and random sampling technique to collect data with which to 
evaluate the nexus between CSR and competitiveness of mobile telecommunication companies. Their finding 
showed that CSR enhances competitive advantage of firms. Using the exploratory qualitative approach, Nguyen et 
al. (2019) examined CSR with special attention on the opportunities and innovations experienced within four 
Vietnamese multinational subsidiaries. The results showed that CSR activities triggered new business innovations 
and opportunities.  Moreover, Ohiokha, Odion, and Akhalumeh (2016) sampled twenty-nine firms for the period 
between 2005 and 2010 to evaluate the nexus between CSR and corporate financial performance in Nigeria. The 
panel regression results showed that CSR has a negligible effect on the firm’s financial performance. In the same 
vein, Gbam and Dedi (2017)analysed the impacts of CSR on telecommunication industry in Plateau State, Nigeria. 
The chi-square result revealed that CSR exert a substantial impact on social progress. More so, Akinleye and 
Adedayo (2017) randomly selected five Nigerian multinational companies and collected their 5-year financial 
reports (2010-2014) to analyse the impact of CSR on their profitability level. They found a weak negative 
relationship between CSR and company’s profit as well as a unidirectional causality running from CSR to 
company’s profitability. On the other hand, Oladimeji, Adebayo, and Ogunshola (2017) evaluated the impact of CSR 
on customers’ loyalty and retention. Using the correlation and regression analysis, their result revealed that CSR 
enhances customers’ loyalty and retention. However, Nnamani et al. (2017) analysed the impact of sustainability 
accounting on the financial performance of selected manufacturing firms in the Nigerian Brewing industry with the 
result showing that sustainability reporting exerts a positive impact on the firms’ financial performance. Besides, 
Tapang and Bassey (2017) assessed the impact of CSR on stakeholder’s perception of telecommunication companies 
in Nigeria. The multiple regression result showed that economic, legal, ethical and discretional expectation of CRS 
performance impact stakeholder’s perception significantly. Ogunsanwo and Ajayi (2018) assess the impact of CSR 
on the performance of MTN Nigeria and found a significant relationship between economic, legal and philanthropic 
expectations of CSR and firm performance but an insignificant relationship between ethical expectation and firm 



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performance. The foregoing shows that there is no consensus on the impact of CSR on firm performance due to 
differences in methodological approaches, measurement issues, firm type, business sectors, and data sources, among 
others. As a matter of fact, the studies that found a positive impact of CSR on firm performance have different 
opinions on the nature of relationship and the magnitude of impact. More so, studies of this nature have not been 
carried out for MTN Ibadan, Nigeria. This shows that it is needful to examine this relationship so as to formulate 
and implement appropriate CSR policies for the good of the host community and country at large. 
 

3. Research Methodology 
3.1. Research Design 

This study assesses the impact of corporate social responsibility on the performance of MTN, Ibadan through 
the use of a descriptive survey design (questionnaire). Survey method is considered appropriate because it helps to 
assess the knowledge and attitude of people at a particular period. The choice of this research design 
(questionnaire) lies in its ability to facilitate adequate data collection, aid easy administration and enhance easy 
documentation. 
 

3.2.Sample Size and Sampling Technique 
The sample size comprises all the fourteen (14) MTN service centres scattered across the whole of Ibadan thus, 

one questionnaire each is administered to the fourteen (14) managers, twenty (20) customer care representatives 
and sixteen (16) attendants of these service centres. These members of staffs are selected since they are better 
placed to answer the question in the questionnaire as they would give accurate and reliable information with which 
the analysis of this study will be carried out and recommendations made to improve both CSR and performance of 
MTN in Nigeria. Hence, this study employs the purposive non-probability sampling techniques because there is no 
ambiguity about the target population to whom the survey instrument (questionnaire) will be administered. 
 

3.3. Method of Data Collection 
This study sourced for both primary and secondary data. Primary data is collected through the administration 

of questionnaire which contains both open and close ended questions on CSR and performance of MTN in Ibadan. 
On the other hand, the secondary data used for this study are source from the website of the MTN Nigeria.  
 

3.4. Methods of Data Analysis 
The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used to collate and analyse the collected data of 

this study. The collected data were collated and analysed in tables, simple percentages and the hypotheses was 
tested using Correlation coefficient and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to investigate impact of CSR on 
organizational performance in MTN, Ibadan.  
 

4. Empirical Analysis 
4.1. Socio-Economic Characteristics of Respondents 

Table 1 presents the socio-economic characteristics of respondents of this study. It shows that 10 (20%) of the 
respondents are selected from the Ibadan Service Centre which is the headquarters of MTN Nigeria in Ibadan. 5 
(10%) of the respondents are chosen from Cocoa Mall Connect Lite, 3 (6%) of the respondents are selected from 
each of Ibadan2/Bodija Connect Store, Ibadan Connect Store, Iwo Road, Mokola Centre, Idi Ape Centre, Total 
Garden Centre, Eleyele Centre, Akobo Connect Point, Sango Connect Point, Iyaganku Connect Point, New Ife 
Road Connect Point and Ibadan2 Service Centre, Agodi Gate, while only 2 (4%) of the respondents was selected 
from University of Ibadan (UI) Centre because it has just two (2) staffs. Further, distribution of the position held 
by MTN shows that 14 (28%) of the respondents are managers, 20 (40%) are customer care representatives and 16 
(32%) are attendants. Furthermore, 30 (60%) of the respondents are males and 20 (40%) are females. This indicates 
that MTN has more male staffs than female. In addition, the age distribution of the respondents reveals that 5 
(10%) of the respondents are between the age of 18 and 55; 15 (30%) falls in the 26-30 age bracket; 10 (20%) falls 
between the age of 31 and 35; and 20 (40%) are 36 years and above. The age bracket that has the least percentage 
among the respondents is the 18-25. The addition of the percentage of age group 18-25, 26-30 and 31-35, totalling 
60% suggests that the MTN has the human resources in terms of the working class or the active labour force that 
is capable of generating enough resources and thereby driving development in the company. Moreover, the 
distribution of the marital status of the respondents in MTN shows that 15 respondents which represents 30% of 
the respondents are single while the remaining 35 (70%) of the respondents are married. This depicts that most of 
MTN staffs are married. Table 1 also shows the religion of the respondents. It reveals that 30 (60%) of the 
respondents are Christians while 18 (36%) are Muslims, and the remaining 2 (4%) are Traditionalists. This 
suggests that there is peaceful co-existence among the staffs and their right to willingly express their freedom of 
worship is not being denied. It also shows that 36 respondents representing (72%) of the total respondent earn less 
than #50,000 per month while only 28% of the respondents earn between #101,000 and #150,000 per month.  

 

4.2. Presentation and Interpretation of Result 
4.2.1. Corporate Social Responsibility Programs of MTN in Ibadan 

The report from the website of MTN Nigeria reports that all the MTN service centres in Ibadan engage in 
CSR activities. MTN Foundation, incorporated in 2004, is the body charged with the responsibility of driving 
MTN’s various CSR initiatives. The CSR programs they undertake are: ICT and Business Skill training, provision 
of transformers for electrification, drilling of boreholes for potable water, provisions of food and capital items to 
orphanages, provision of digital libraries in universities, refurbishment of Adeoyo Maternity Teaching Hospital, 
organizing independent living programmes for people living with disabilities, provision of basic teaching and 
learning materials, the MTN Rural Telephone Project (RTP) and MTN Foundation Schools-Connect project, 



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among otherssee Table 2. The beneficiaries of the CSR programs are the customers, host communities, general 
public, employees and the government. 
 

Table-1.Socio-economic characteristics of respondents. 

S/No Socio-Economic Characteristics Of Respondents Frequency Percentage 

1. Name and Address of Service Centre   
 Ibadan Service Centre, Ring Road 10 20 
 Cocoa Mall Connect Lite, Dugbe 5 10 
 Ibadan2/Bodija Connect Store, Bodija 3 6 
 Ibadan Connect Store, Iwo Road 3 6 
 University of Ibadan (UI) Centre 2 4 
 Mokola Centre 3 6 
 Idi Ape Centre 3 6 
 Total Garden Centre 3 6 
 Eleyele Centre 3 6 
 Akobo Connect Point 3 6 
 Sango Connect Point 3 6 
 Iyaganku Connect Point 3 6 
 New Ife Road Connect Point 3 6 
 Ibadan2 Service Centre 3 6 
2. Position Held in the Service Centre   

 Manager 14 28 
 Customer Care Representatives 20 40 
 Attendants 16 32 
3. Sex   

 Male 30 60 
 Female 20 40 
4. Age   

 18 – 25 5 10 
 26 – 30 15 30 
 31 – 35 10 20 
 36 and above 20 40 
5. Marital Status   

 Single 15 30 
 Married  35 70 
 Widowed 0 0 
 Separated/Divorced 0 0 
6. Religious Affiliation   

 Christianity 30 60 
 Islam 18 36 
 African Traditional Religion 2 4 
 Others 0 0 
7. Income level per month   

 Below #50,000 36 72 
 #51,000 - #100,000 0 0 
 #101,000 - #150,000 14 28 
 Above #150,000 0 0 

Source: Fieldwork (2020). 

 
Table-2. Corporate social responsibility programs of MTN in Ibadan. 

S/No CSR Programs And Beneficiaries 

1. The main CSR programs undertaken by MTN, Ibadan 
i. ICT and Business Skill Training 
ii. Provision of Transformer 
iii. Drilling of Borehole 
iv. Provisions of food and capital items to Orphanages 
v. Digital Libraries in Universities 
vi. Refurbishment of Adeoyo Maternity Teaching Hospital 
vii. Independent Living Programmes for People Living with Disabilities 
viii. MTN Foundation Schools-Connect project 
ix. Provision of basic teaching and learning materials 
x. The MTNF Rural Telephone Project (RTP) 

2. Beneficiaries of MTN Ibadan’s CSR programs 
i. Customers 
ii. Host Communities 
iii. General Public 
iv. Employees 
v. Government 

Source: Fieldwork (2020). 

 

4.2.2. Benefits/Effects of Practising CSR 
Table 3 presents the responses of the respondents on the benefits that accrue to MTN through practising CSR. 

Table 3 shows that 70% and 30% of the respondents strongly agreed and agreed respectively that CSR improves 
corporate reputation, image and identity. This indicates that CSR actually improves corporate reputation, image 
and identity. On whether CSR enhance profit maximization, 90% agreed while only 10% disagreed thus indicating 
that CSR enhances profit maximization. Furthermore, with mean value and standard deviation of 1.94 and 0.91 
respectively, the respondents showed that CSR helps to reduce operational costs. In addition, 76% and 24% of the 
respondents strongly agreed and agreed respectively to the fact that CSR enhances company’s ability to attract 
talent and retain staff and that CSR raises public interest in the activities of the company. 56% and 46% of the 
respondents also strongly agreed and agreed respectively that CSR enhances market and financial performance. 



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Also, 74% and 26% of the respondents strongly agreed and agreed respectively that CSR raises investors’ 
confidence and customers’ loyalty. Furthermore, with a mean value and standard deviation of 1.18 and 0.38 
respectively, the respondents opined that CSR improves public goodwill towards the company. However, whereas 
50% and 30% of the respondents strongly agreed and agreed respectively that CSR facilitates the overall 
performance of the company, 10% disagreed. Moreover, 80% and 20% of the respondents strongly agreed and 
agreed respectively that CSR leads to improved sales and increased profits. Also, the assertion that CSR aids 
organizational growth was strongly agreed and agreed on by 70% and 30% respectively. Also, whereas 40% and 
36% of the respondents strongly agreed and agreed respectively that CSR attracts positive media attention, 4% are 
undecided, 16% disagreed and 4% strongly disagreed. Additionally, whereas 62% and 34% of the respondents 
strongly agreed and agreed respectively that CSR increases our market share, 4% are undecided. Likewise, 34%, 
46%, 6%, 10% and 4% of the respondents strongly agreed, agreed, were undecided, disagreed and strongly 
disagreed respectively that CSR makes access to finance easier. Similarly, 24%, 38%, 12%, 18% and 8% of the 
respondents strongly agreed, agreed, were undecided, disagreed and strongly disagreed respectively that CSR 
eases/reduces regulatory burden. 
 

Table-3.Benefits/effects of practisingCSR. 

No. Benefits/Effects of Practising CSR SA A U D SD Mean Std. Dev. 

1. It improves corporate reputation, image 
and identity 

35 (70%) 15 (30%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.30 0.46 

2. It enhances profit maximization  26 (52%) 14 (28%) 0 (0%) 8 (16%) 2 (4%) 1.92 1.24 
3. It helps in reduction in operational cost  18 (36%) 21 (42%) 0 (0%) 7 (14%) 4 (8%) 1.94 0.91 
4. It enhances company’s ability to attract 

talent and retain staff 
38 (76%) 12 (24%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.24 0.43 

5. It enhances market and financial 
performance 

28 (56%) 22 (44%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.44 0.50 

6. It raises investors’ confidence and 
customers’ loyalty 

37 (74%) 13 (26%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.26 0.44 

7. It raises public interest in the company’s 
activities  

38 (76%) 12 (24%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.24 0.43 

8. It improves public goodwill towards the 
company  

41 (82%) 9 (18%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.18 0.38 

9. It facilitates the overall performance of 
the company 

25 (50%) 15 (30%) 0 (0%) 10 
(20%) 

0 (0%) 1.50 0.50 

10. It leads to improved sales and increased 
profits 

40 (80%) 10 (20%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.20 0.40 

11. It aids organizational growth 35 (70%) 15 (30%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.30 0.46 
12. It attracts positive media attention 20 (40%) 18 (36%) 2 (4%) 8 (16%) 2 (4%) 2.08 1.20 
13. It increases our market share 31 (62%) 17 (34%) 2 (4%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1.42 0.57 
14. It makes access to finance easier  17 (34%) 23 (46%) 3 (6%) 5 (10%) 2 (4%) 2.04 1.08 
15. It eases/reduces regulatory burden 12 (24%) 19 (38%) 6 (12%) 9 (18%) 4 (8%) 2.48 1.26 

Source: Fieldwork (2020). 

 

4.2.3. Challenges/Problems Faced in the Practice of CSR 
Table 4 presents the responses of the respondents on the challenges MTN faces in the course of practising 

CSR. 28%, 36%, 4%, 8% and 4% of the respondents strongly agreed, agreed, were undecided, disagreed and 
strongly disagreed respectively that CSR increases in the cost of doing business. Since the percentage that agrees 
to this exceeds those that disagreed or are undecided, then it is apparent that CSR actually increases in the cost of 
doing business. Likewise, 46%, 38%, 12% and 4% of the respondents strongly agreed, agreed, disagreed and 
strongly disagreed respectively that CSR lowers the profitability of the company. The percentage of those that 
agreed exceed those that disagreed, thus, CSR actually lowers the profitability of the company. In addition while 
22% and 58% of the respondents strongly agreed and agreed respectively that lack of shareholders’ commitment is 
a problem they encounter in the practise of CSR, 14% and 6% of the respondents strongly disagreed and disagreed 
respectively. Furthermore, 54%, 28%, 8%, 8% and 2% of the respondents strongly agreed, agreed, were undecided, 
disagreed and strongly disagreed respectively that the company’s CSR is not recognized by society. Thus, lack of 
recognition of the company’s CSR is a major problem faced by MTN in Ibadan. Moreover, 18%, 26%, 4%, 20% and 
32% of the respondents strongly agreed, agreed, were undecided, disagreed and strongly disagreed respectively 
that lack of organizational commitment is a challenge face in the practice of CSR. Given that the percentage of 
those who disagreed exceeds that of those who agreed, it can be said that MTN is committed to practising CSR in 
Ibadan and that lack of organizational commitment is not a challenge they face. Lastly, 4%, 22%, 16% and 58% of 
the respondents strongly agreed, agreed, disagreed and strongly disagreed respectively that MTN lacks of CSR 
strategy. Given that the percentage of those who disagreed exceeds that of those who agreed, it can be said that 
MTN does not lack CSR strategy. 
 

Table-4.Challenges/problems faced in the practice of CSR. 

No. Challenges/Problems Faced in the 
Practice of CSR 

SA A U D SD Mean Std. Dev. 

1. Increase in the cost of doing business 14 (28%) 18 (36%) 2 (4%) 4 (8%) 2 (4%) 2.04 1.01 
2. Low profitability of the company  23 (46%) 19 (38%) 0 (0%) 6 (12%) 2 (4%) 1.74 0.82 
3. Lack of shareholders’ commitment  11 (22%) 29 (58%) 0 (0%) 7 (14%) 3 (6%) 2.04 0.78 
4. The company’s CSR is not recognized 

by society  
27 (54%) 14 (28%) 4 (8%) 4 (8%) 1 (2%) 1.76 1.04 

5. Lack of organizational commitment  9 (18%) 13 (26%) 2 (4%) 10 (20%) 16 (32%) 2.66 1.55 
6. Lack of CSR strategy 2 (4%) 11 (22%) 0 (0%) 8 (16%) 29 (58%) 1.86 1.26 

Source: Fieldwork (2020). 

 

4.2.4. Hypothesis Testing 
H0: CSR does not have significant impact on performance of MTN, Ibadan 



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H1: CSR has significant impact on performance of MTN, Ibadan 
The correlation coefficient of approximately 0.88 indicates a strong positive relationship between MTN’s 

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and her firm performance in Ibadan see Table 5. Further, the R-Squared 
value shows that about 76.8 percent of the variation in MTN Ibadan performance is explained by her CSR 
activities. In other words, CSR activities predict about 76.8 percent variability in MTN Ibadan’s performance. The 
remaining 23.2 per cent is accounted for by other variables not specified in the model.  

On the other hand, Table 6 shows that probability of the F-statistic is significant at all levels of significance, 
implying that the null hypothesis will be rejected while the alternative hypothesis will be accepted. This indicates 
that the performance of MTN Service Centres in Ibadan is influenced by the extent to which it carries out 
corporate social responsibilities. 
 

Table-5.Model Summary. 

Model R R-Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate 
1 .876a .768 .765 1.05152 

Note: a. Predictors: (Constant), Firm Performance. 

 
Table-6.Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). 

Model Sum of Squares Df Mean Square F Sig. 

 
Regression 329.227 1 329.227 297.758 .000b 

Residual 99.512 90 1.106   
Total 428.739 91    

Note: 
a. Dependent Variable: Firm Performance. 
b. Predictors: (Constant), CSR. 

 
The regression result is presented in Table 7 which shows the magnitude of CSR on firm performance. 

Specifically, it indicates that CSR has a significant positive relationship with firm performance such that when 
MTN increases its CSR activities by one unit, firm performance will improve by about 0.5 unit. This implies that 
CSR plays a very pivotal role in the firm performance of MTN Service Centres in Ibadan and that CSR is a major 
determinant of MTN Ibadan’s performance. This result supports the findings of Adebisi and Akinmadelo (2014); 
Wael (2014); Boafo and Kokuma (2016) and Olaroyeke and Nasieku (2015). The foregoing shows that it is 
imperative for the management of MTN Service Centres in Ibadan to take CSR activities control very seriously 
because it is a key determinant of her organizational performance. CSR is so critical that the management of MTN 
Service Centres in Ibadan should endeavour to deliberately invest in CSR activities so as to increase their 
performance, profitability, impact and fame in the neighbourhood wherein they operate. 
 

Table-7.Coefficients. 

Model  Standardized Coefficients T Sig. 

B Std. Error Beta 

(Constant) .944 .466  2.025 0.46 

CSR .490 .028 .876 17.256 .000 

a. Dependent Variable: Firm_performance 

 

5. Conclusion and Policy Recommendations 
This study evaluated the impact of corporate social responsibility on firm performance using MTN Service 

centres in Ibadan as case study. Tables and simple percentages were used for the analysis of the data collected 
through the administration of questionnaires while the correlation coefficient and analysis of variance were 
employed as the analytical tool for this study. The results showed that all the MTN service centres in Ibadan 
participates or carries out CSR even though they highlighted a few challenges they face in the course of engaging 
in CSR. However, it was also found that several benefits accrue to MTN in Ibadan as a result of carrying out CSR 
activities. These benefits include: improvement in company’ reputation (goodwill), improved sales and profits, ease 
in regulatory burdens, increase in investors’ confidence and customers’ loyalty, and attraction of positive media 
attention, among others. Hence, it can be said that the benefits MTN Ibadan gets from engaging in CSR activities 
far outweighs the challenges they face implementing them. Furthermore, the correlation coefficient revealed a 
strong positive relationship between MTN’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and her organizational 
performance in Ibadan. Similarly, the regression result showed a significant positive relationship between CSR and 
firm performance which indicates that CSR plays a pivotal role in the performance of MTN Service Centres in 
Ibadan. Thus, this study concludes that CSR is a major determinant of firm performance. Intuitively, the 
profitability, corporate image, and sales, of MTN thrive on account of the CSR activities it carries out in its local 
(host) community and beyond. In other words, the success in organizational performance MTN has recorded so far 
in Ibadan can be linked to the CSR activities it carries out in its host community and beyond. Based on foregoing, it 
is important that the management of MTN Nigeria endeavour to engage in more CSR activities to meet the 
peculiar needs of their immediate environment and the government should put appropriate measures in place to 
ensure that CSR is carried out by corporate organizations so as to complement the efforts of the government 
towards growth and development of Nigeria, and appropriate punishments should be mete on defaulters. 
 

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Citation: Joshua Adeyemi Ogunjimi (2020). Corporate Social 
Responsibilities and Firm Performance. Asian Business Research 
Journal, 5: 55-61. 
History:  
Received: 28 October 2020 
Revised: 20 November 2020 
Accepted: 4 December 2020 
Published: 18 December 2020 
Licensed: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons 

Attribution 3.0 License  
Publisher:  Eastern Centre of Science and Education 
 

Funding: This study received no specific financial support.    
Competing Interests: The author declares that there are no conflicts of 
interests regarding the publication of this paper. 
Transparency: The author confirms that the manuscript is an honest, 
accurate, and transparent account of the study was reported; that no vital 
features of the study have been omitted; and that any discrepancies from the 
study as planned have been explained. 
Ethical: This study follows all ethical practices during writing.  
 

Eastern Centre of Science and Education is not responsible or answerable for any loss, damage or liability, etc. caused in relation to/arising out of the use 
of the content. Any queries should be directed to the corresponding author of the article. 

 

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