Corporate social responsibility: Air Peace reaps dividends of good strategy

Following the xenophobic attack on Africans by South Africans, the Chief Executive officer of Air peace, Allen Onyema, offered to establish goodwill to the Nigerian government by offering free air services to the Federal Government in the evacuation of Nigerians.

Air Peace is a private Nigerian airline founded in 2013 with its head office in Lagos State, Nigeria. Air Peace, which provides passenger and charter services, serves the major cities of Nigeria and flies to several West African destinations and the Middle East.

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This act of kindness rendered by Air peace, drew the attention of the Nigerian government as well as winning the hearts of Nigerians because of the evacuation of over 500 Nigerians.

Many people have used a lot of adjectives to describe the benevolent attitude of Mr. Onyema, but in the real sense, it is known as corporate social responsibility.

CSR is when organizations take responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, employees, shareholders, communities, and the environment in all aspects of operations. This effort extends beyond simply obeying local laws, as organizations voluntarily take steps to improve the quality of life for employees and their families, as well as society at large.

It also means that a company should be a good neighbour to the communities that are affected by its presence.

It is imperative for organizations, companies or brands to adopt good strategies for their CSR programmes, one that will not only attract customers but boost the image of brands.

Being a driver of innovation was a good strategy, Air peace adopted to attract people, government and organizations including people who haven’t boarded a flight, at least Air peace could be their first choice.

Companies can see CSR as an innovation driver, and invest in incubators and initiatives to research, develop, and implement.

For this perfect strategy, Nigerian law makers recommended Mr. Onyema for National award.

“We hereby commend Mr Allen Onyema and recommend him to the Federal Government for higher honours in Nigeria,” Gbajabiamila said.

On Friday, 4th October, 2019, One Africa Global announced that Air Peace is the Official Airline of ‘Interswitch One Africa Music Fest’.

The partnership will highlight the shared commitment of philanthropy, tourism and global awareness showcasing all that Africa has to offer according to the organisers.

Also, the Chairman of Air Peace also received the 2019 Humanitarian Service Award last Sunday, at the Trinity House, Victoria Island, Lagos.

According to Onyema, he decided to airlift stranded Nigerians from South Africa because of his passion and vow to God.

These are just few achievements endeared to Air peace as a result of good corporate social responsibility strategy which has built good image for the company.

Forbes outlines other strategies brands can adopt:

1. Align CSR to your business strategy: CSR initiatives should connect to your core business purpose and strategy in a way that makes intuitive sense. Alignment with important metrics that have a bottom line impact, such as the reduction of food waste, enable CSR initiatives to fit within the organization’s core business processes and enables success.

2. Earn support from the top with engagement at all levels: Once senior support has been received, it opens pathways for engagement from other staff. This engagement can make work more meaningful, and can help employees understand the full business process.

3. Strong, sustainable partnerships equal automatic success: Partnerships let you draw on the capabilities of other networks who have expertise in different fields. Connecting with partners can help companies develop thoughtful CSR initiatives faster, and more affordably, than trying to create the opportunities on their own.