Possibilities of the Concept of Socially Responsible Business in Ensuring Sustainable Competitive Advantages

The article outlines the possibilities of the concept of socially responsible business to ensure competitive advantages of the enterprise. They are necessary to increase the stability of the company's positions in the market and the efficiency of production and economic activities. The problems of social responsibility and gaining competitive advantages have been studied by many scientists, so the topic is relevant. The content of the concept of social responsibility and its significance in the activities of the enterprise are shown. It is emphasized that it can play a key role in the process of forming competitive advantages. The need for an enterprise to have competitive advantages in order to strengthen its position and stand out among competitors is considered. Possible competitive advantages are given that are associated with different areas of the enterprise's activity: new technological processes and types of products, new ideas and solutions, innovative activities of the enterprise, etc. Among these types of competitive advantages, the social orientation of business stands out. The importance of social responsibility as a concept that can contribute to the acquisition of competitive advantages is emphasized. The positive consequences of applying this concept in the activities of the enterprise are formulated: improvement of the enterprise management system and changes in the behavior of the workforce; the presence of loyal and satisfied consumers; positive opinion about the enterprise, its products, quality, innovations, trademarks; goodwill from society and partners with whom the enterprise has relations, etc. The responsibility of the enterprise is classified depending on the environment of manifestation: internal, microenvironment, macroenvironment. The consequences of applying responsibility among the company's employees (internal environment) are considered. The essence of the proposed measures in acquiring competitive advantages in relations with consumers and other components of the microenvironment is described. Possible advantages of responsibility to society and business partners (macroenvironment) are proven. The relationship between the social orientation of the company and competitive advantages has been determined. Thus, the implementation of the basic provisions of the concept of socially responsible business in the activities of the enterprise can become a source of competitive advantages.