184 Human resource development as an element of corporate social responsibility Tracy Wilcox* University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia This paper discusses the concept of corporate social responsibility as it applies to human resource development (HRD). It is argued that the economic and political power enjoyed by contemporary corporations brings with it an associated set of responsibilities and duties, particularly in the light of issues emerging in the global and local political environment. These issues arise in part from a shifting of the regulatory ground from the achievement of ‘social good’ to ‘economic good’, and the shifting of risk from business organisations to individuals and communities. The paper considers the impact of these changes on human resource development. Some of the areas in which an organisation’s social and ethical responsibility can encompass HRD practices are explored, and possible HRD responses to the issues and concerns raised are discussed. Keywords: corporate social responsibility, ethics, human resource development Within corporations, human resource management activities such as recruit- ment and selection, performance and reward systems or restructuring may give rise to a number of easily recognisable ethical issues. Human resource development (HRD) has been considered more benign and, with a few excep- tions (e.g. Hatcher 2002), has been exempted from ethical scrutiny. However, as the social and economic consequences of corporate activity are becoming clearer, a number of HRD implications are being brought into relief. For this * An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 11th Annual Conference of the Australian Association of Professional and Applied Ethics, Richmond, NSW 2004. I would like to thank Michelle Greenwood, Doreen Tan and Karen Wilcox for their helpful comments on earlier drafts. Correspondence to: Tracy Wilcox, School of Organisation and Management, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia; e-mail: t.wilcox@unsw.edu.au Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources. Published by Sage Publications (London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi; www.sagepublications.com) on behalf of the Australian Human Resources Institute. Copyright © 2006 Australian Human Resources Institute. Volume 44(2): 184–196. [1038-4111] DOI: 10.1177/1038411106066395. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources 2006 44(2)