The Utilization of Technology in Corporate Social Responsibility Activities: A Case Study of Sido Muncul’s Shared Value Program in Sambirata Village during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Sido Muncul Company produces modern herbal medicines and has adopted the concept of creating shared value (CSV) to synergize community empowerment with their core business. They implemented a CSV program called Desa Rempah, which focuses on the potential of Sambirata Village’s cardamom commodity. This study examines the utilization of technology in their CSV activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research utilized qualitative case study methods to gather primary and secondary data from various stakeholders, including companies, public relations officers, community development teams, and local leaders, to gain insights into implementing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities by PT Sido Muncul in Sambirata Village. The case study approach allowed for a subjective perspective on social reality and used theoretical propositions to generalize findings. The CSV program, Desa Rempah, addresses the company’s need for raw materials and the farmer group’s issues in processing cardamom. The COVID-19 pandemic posed challenges to CSV implementation. Still, the company adapted through digital transformations and prioritized the local community’s efficiency and effectiveness in developing CSV activities with BumDes (Village Owned Enterprises) Sambirata. Sido Muncul’s strategy for CSV activities involves social mapping research and collaboration with stakeholders, including government and Bumdes Sambirata,


INTRODUCTION
Sido Muncul Company is engaged in a business that produces modern herbal medicines with a significant market share in Indonesia.Sido Muncul, as a company that has initially offered a public offering (IPO) or going public, certainly needs to carry out social responsibility activities.As it develops, social responsibility activities have three essential principles: environmental principles, social justice principles, and economic principles (Font et al., 2016).However, over the years, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has primarily been philanthropy, with 'charitable' or 'alms' activities to society, without any relation to economic principles (Motilewa et al., 2016;Risky et al., 2022).Porter and Kramer (2011) conclude that the efforts of CSR activities with concepts such as philanthropy make the company more unproductive than it should be.In this regard, Porter and Kramer introduced the concept of creating shared value (CSV) as a profitable solution for the company and society (Moon & Parc, 2019).
12 Adopting CSV, Sido Muncul company associates core business with synergizing community empowerment to improve welfare and independence.In 2019, the company implemented a CSV program, Desa Rempah, in Sambirata Village, Cilongok District, Banyumas Regency.The company previously carried out the Desa Rempah program by developing the concept of CSR, ' community development (Ayu & Supartoko, 2020).However, the concept of community development prioritizes the needs of the community rather than answering the needs of companies, such as the need for raw herbal materials.Therefore, the company adopted the CSV concept from Porter and Kramer to encourage the potential of Sambirata Village with a superior herbal commodity, cardamom.
Cardamom is one of the needs of raw materials that are important in producing herbal products.Relating to CSV activities carried out by Sido Muncul, Ilmarinen, and Akpinar (2018) stated that the CSV concept is still relatively new and needs to be solved by increasing understanding of the underlying mechanisms and ways to realize CSV-oriented activities (Kim & Kim, 2021).Nevertheless, some experts still question the innovation of CSV and what distinguishes it from CSR.These unclear boundaries are judged to trap companies in choosing the right strategy between CSR and CSV (Moon & Parc, 2019).
CSV is the idea of bringing about the necessary change in the implementation of CSR.An interpersonal, relational, and public-centered approach becomes communication with promising directions.Following this development, Creating Shared Value (CSV) develops a rational model by providing a situation where the parties involved, especially organizations, are more willing to engage in dialogue to answer the community's interests, not only concerned with internal stakeholders.
CSV activities emphasize open dialogue, oriented towards discovery and value creation, which helps pursue authentic innovation and creativity (Chen et al., 2018).
The CSV introduced by Porter and Kremer seems to be a "savior," especially for companies to continue maintaining the core value of the business.However, business ethics scholars have criticized CSV derived from existing models without recognition by theorists; it needs empirical evidence, not transformative innovation (Menghwar & Daood, 2021).Although initially controversial, many theoretical and empirical works expose the CSV framework more comprehensively by emphasizing keywords to create diversity.Furthermore, assisted by leading companies, Porter and Kremer researched to measure the benefits of shared value by linking social and business results.Some well-known companies that have successfully carried out CSV activities include Nestlé, Intel, InterContinental Hotels Group, and the Rockefeller Foundation (Porter et al., 2011).
Several studies have highlighted the content of CSV, but this study offers novelty by looking at CSV activities carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic to post-pandemic.This research focused on the company's CSV activities involving groups of farmers who are members of the Sambirata BumDes Group.Bumdes, or Village Owned Enterprises, is an institution managed by the community and village government to strengthen the economy and is formed based on the needs and potential of the village (Sumantra et al., 2019).Implementing CSV strategy by companies is difficult, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.The company's factory location in Semarang Regency, with CSV activity locations in Sambirata, is separated by a distance of about 200 km.CSV activities emphasizing dialogue with communities are, usually through face-to-face interactions, starting to present digital movements in companies' implementation of CSV activities in Sambirata.The COVID-19 condition encourages digital movements in the implementation of activities.PR studies explain that dialogic public relations have emerged as a new approach in public relations theory and practice in the last two decades when information and communication technologies have enabled every entity (individual or organization) to connect with others (Schrock, 2015) constantly.The digital movement has encouraged the coordination of CSV activities to adapt to COVID-19 conditions.Therefore, this research will explain the utilization of technology in CSV activities carried out by Sido Muncul company.

METHOD
The research developed qualitative research using case study methods.First, primary data collection techniques are obtained with companies through in-depth interviews.Then, secondary data is supported through a CSV report from 2019 to 2022 issued by the Sido Muncul company.The case study is the choice of the object the researcher is interested in, a process or a population of cases, not an individual issue (Denzin & Lincoln, 2009).Using theory and theoretical propositions in case studies plays a significant role in determining the appropriate research design and the data to be collected.Equally important, the same theoretical orientation also will become the primary vehicle for generalizing the findings from the case study (Yin, 2018).The case study with a qualitative method developed in this research engages with the subjective nature of social reality.It is well-equipped to provide insights from the perspective stakeholder's point of view so that the researcher can see things the way the research subject does (Daymon & Holloway, 2011).
The process of obtaining information such as communication strategies, activity processes, methods, and implementation of Sido Muncul's CSV activities was carried out by interviewing the public relations officer of PT Sido Muncul, Mrs. Marianingsih.Furthermore, to find out activity reports, and field reviews, researchers conducted interviews with PT Sido Muncul's community development team in charge of monitoring field conditions represented by Mrs.The Link between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility.CSV was introduced as a way out that offers mutual dependence between companies and communities, implying that business decisions and social policies must follow the mutually beneficial shared value (Michelini & Fiorentino, 2012).Porter and Kramer predict that if the company plans a strategy by including social issues, it will bring about a significant transformation that benefits the sustainability of its management.Activities by prioritizing CSV will ultimately bring about shared value creation is an operational policy and technical process that increases the company's competitive value and, at the same time, improves social and economic conditions (Porter et al., 2011).Later, Porter and Kramer argued that all benefits were not created equal.The advantage of mapping and incorporating social issues involving shared values allow society to progress and the company to grow.
The concept of shared value focuses on the relationship between business and society, criticized for not adequately explaining the dynamics between the company and its public.Many factors determine the success of companies in building relationships with the public, for example, the forgotten socio-political dimension in the CSV concept.Then, the originality of the CSV concept and its differences from the CSR concept is questioned by experts.The shared value of the CSV concept is questioned by its originality and validity, which some experts judge to have no innovation.It even oversimplifies the complex relationship of the company's dynamics (Wieland, 2017).Despite the negative criticism about CSV, the concept received positive condemnation from some companies and researchers.The concept of CSV assessed is a more robust and, at the same time, transformational model in multiple ways.Although CSV is not a revolutionary idea, some experts positively assess the adoption of the CSV concept from companies emphasizing the willingness to do good in society (Menghwar & Daood, 2021).
Porter and Kremer explained that 'creating value' focuses on the relationship between social and economic progress and can unleash the next wave of global growth.It is evidenced by the growing number of companies such as Google, IBM, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, Nestlé, Unilever, and Wal-Mart working to embark on crucial shared value initiatives (Porter & Kramer, 2019).Companies can make the application of CSV in three ways, they are (1) by reconceiving products and markets in ways customers; (2) by redefining productivity in the value chain; (3) By enabling local cluster development like supporting the well-being of industries related to the business organization, in ways that improve societal conditions.Therefore, every company needs to make decisions and opportunities through a shared value lens that impacts innovation and positive growth (Motilewa et al., 2016).

B. Differences between Creating Shared Value (CSV) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Over the last few years, CSV has become a widely discussed concept in business practice, management theory, and especially in the context of CSR.CSV, which clearly emphasizes participation in solving social problems, is considered non-original and refers to the strategy developed by CSR.Although considered to follow the concept of CSR, the difference in the concept of CSV lies in enhancing social contributions as part of a firm's key strategies.On the other hand, CSR emphasizes the virtue of being responsible by participating in philanthropic activities, as implied by CSR, or taking responsibility for environmental and social contribution, as implied by the concept of Triple Bottom Line (Salim, 2018; Kim & Kim, 2021).Porter and Kremer assert that CSV is not social responsibility, philanthropy, or sustainability but a new way for companies to achieve economic success (Porter & Kramer, 2019).The differences between CSR and CSV are explained in the following table:

CSR
CSV Taking resources from the company (not from profits) and using them to invest in being a good corporate.Examples are donating money to charitable organizations, reporting on social and environmental impacts, and getting employees involved in volunteer work in the community.
Involves the development of new products and services that meet social and environmental needs while generating a financial return.
Corporate philanthropy is donating money that a company has already made.

Enter new markets
In-kind donations, pro bono services, and volunteerism: sharing the company's products, expertise, talent, and time.
Reorganize and secure the value chain by utilizing new or improved resources and partners to boost productivity.
Corporate Sustainability: Improve the capabilities (skills, knowledge, and productivity) by Complying with local, national, and international standards.Create local clusters to help communities strengthen and capture economic and social benefits.Source: Motilewa et al., 2016 The Sido Muncul company has carried out CSV by collaborating with the Kridoyuono Farmer Group.This farmer group is part of the Bumdes Sambirata.CSV activities are carried out in the Sambirata area, which includes underdeveloped villages.However, the potential of Sambirata village with cardamom commodities is considered by Sido Muncul as an opportunity for local farmers to meet the company's needs for raw materials.As reported through company documents, the activities carried out in Sambirata are CSR activities carried out by the company in the form of Creating Shared Value CSV activities (Supartoko et al., 2020).The company's claim to consider CSV as a CSR development differs from what was formulated by Porter and Kremer.As discussed in the literature review, the new concept of CSV makes several companies and experts confused about the boundaries between CSR and CSV.However, in practice, CSV emphasizes shared values based on pointing to a value exchange between business and community.Business creates economic value and, at the same time, creates social value by responding to the needs and challenges that exist in society.Apart from understanding the concept of incorporating CSV into CSR, companies still carry out CSV according to an approach that emphasizes doing good by doing good (Baines, 2015).Answering research questions, Sido Muncul carried out several CSV strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic until the post-pandemic in 2022.

C. Sido Muncul's CSV Strategy for Desa Rempah in Sambirata
The Sido Muncul company, which operates in the herbal medicine industry, requires ingredients derived from medicinal plants.Cooperation in the development of medicinal plants has been carried out with several farmer partners.
Few farmer partners have great potential but need help to overcome obstacles that need support.One of the pioneers of Sido Muncul's farmer partners is Kridoyuono Farmers, who are members of BumDes Sambirata, Cilongok District, Banyumas Regency.The collaboration with the Kridoyuono Farmers Group began in 2019.The Sambirata area was selected based on social mapping that describes the area as a potential good quality cardamom commodity with a relatively abundant harvest.However, farmers need help handling post-harvest results in terms of drying.Uncertain weather conditions make cardamom drying results not optimal and cause some cardamom to rot.Of course, this causes losses for farmers.Departing from the problems and considerations of the village's potential, Sido Muncul collaborated with farmer groups, the village government, and the Department of Agriculture to pioneer the Creating Shared Value (CSV) program under the name of the Sambirata Desa Rempah (Herb Village) program.
The company's initial strategy was to organize CSV activities by conducting social mapping.Social mapping planning is needed to find and identify potential resources, social capital, and stakeholders.In addition, mapping is needed to answer the desires, needs, and sources of problems the community feels to improve a more prosperous standard of living.Furthermore, the results of the social mapping become the basis for planning sustainable community development programs (Sukaris, 2019).The company prepares social mapping to determine strategy in collaboration with Gadjah Mada University.
Based on the interview with Sido Muncul, the objectives, and strategies of social mapping are used to answer the community's needs.However, they are expected to be able to solve the problems that exist in the community.Social mapping is needed to carry out activities well and cannot be done using a "template" from elsewhere because the community's conditions, interests, and problems differ.If social mapping is suitable, the company can find essential things and potential conflicts so that the results can be used to implement the program (Susilo & Ahmad, 2020).
For this reason, Sido Muncul explained that in the CSV program of Desa Rempah Sambirata, the target community has problems limited to economic and social problems that are the current focus.The social problem concerns farmers' lack of knowledge even though agriculture is the leading sector in the village.Farmers' lack of knowledge can impact the quality of crops that are not good, and the selling price decreases.Of course, these problems must be addressed immediately with suitable program recommendations.For this reason, the company conducted social mapping.
Based on the results of the social mapping, it was found that the Sambirata village was made because the area was suitable for cardamom plants.With a forest area that dominates, namely 571.90 hectares, it can be used as an opportunity for cardamom development.In addition, there is the potential for renewable energy from MHP (Micro Hydro Power Plant), which has yet to be used optimally.The actual use of MHP can be used as a power source to operate the dryer.Providing drying machines and optimal utilization of MHP can answer the problems of farmers who have difficulty drying cardamom.In addition, the need for more human resources capable of drying and processing cardamom according to industry standards must also be resolved.
After the social mapping, focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted before the program started.Beneficiaries and stakeholders like the village government, BUMDes, and the Department of Agriculture attended the program.The goal is for all stakeholders and Sido Muncul to contribute to each other in the program so that the program can be run properly.After that, the company prepares a strategic plan to solve the problems found.Finally, strategies must be formulated to determine appropriate and measurable steps to ensure the program runs effectively and efficiently.The following are the program's objectives, along with the strategies implemented.Then, during the Desa Rempah Sambirata program, there were many stakeholders involved.Besides Sido Muncul, activities carried out in the village benefit the community and bring changes that stakeholders feel.These stakeholders include LMDH (Forest Village Community Organization), Banyumas Regency Agriculture Office, and BRI Bank.In addition to stakeholders, program beneficiaries feel the program's benefits directly and indirectly.The direct beneficiaries are the Company, Kridoyuono Farmer Group, Farmer Youth Group, and BUMDES.

D. Implementation of Digital Technology
Digital transformation has become increasingly important during the COVID-19 pandemic.Many companies have had to shift to remote working models and adapt their business activities to rapid changes in an uncertain business environment.Public relations studies explain that nowadays, companies have entered the digital era.Company activities will shift towards the digital era 4.0.PR activities will be under the umbrella of Digital Public Relations.
For this reason, company activities need to deeply understand the use of technology, including as a communication tool.Of course, technology needs to benefit the company but also prioritizes "influential" activities, such as building relationships, solving problems, crowdsourcing, and improving design quality (Permatasari et al., 2021).Research in the PR field also shows that digital technology can be used for counseling activities, building relationships, and building community groups, where digital platforms are public relations tools for carrying out these activities (Wolf & Archer, 2018).
In practice, digital transformation is a step in handling a job by applying information technology to make it more efficient and effective.Fields that have made this transformation include e-learning-based education, business with e-business, and other examples that aim to increase efficiency and effectiveness (Pribadi & Nasution, 2021).The implementation of digital transformation is then utilized in the implementation of CSV from companies when facing the COVID-19 pandemic During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sambirata Desa Rempah program experienced obstacles in the schedule of activities.The schedule for socialization with face-to-face training has been adjusted.Before the pandemic, socialization was carried out to the target or farming community to meet the company's needs with the field monitoring method by officers from the Sido Muncul company.When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, WhatsApp and teleconference technology replaced monthly monitoring activities that should have been carried out directly.Some target communities are over 40 years old, or the boomer generation, so teleconferencing technology such as Zoom and google meet cannot be effectively used for counseling or socialization related to the CSV activity process.For this reason, Sido Muncul actively conducts monitoring by utilizing the Whatsapp feature to check the program's progress during the COVID-19 pandemic.It can be seen in the picture below, which contains a dialog or interaction with the use of technology by the company with representatives of Bumdes Sambirata farmers.

Fig. 1. Implementation of Communication Technology, Whatapps for coordinating Sido Muncul's CSV program "Desa
Rempah" in Sambirata Village with Kridoyuono Farmer Group WhatsApp has become something that can be used as a communication and educational medium for Kridoyuono Farmer Group farmers during the pandemic.Digital transformation in a pandemic era, in this case, needs to adapt to the process of delivering material that is carried out interactively using communication media.This change in the learning process indirectly becomes a new challenge (Rahadi & Yuniar, 2021).Then, technology, such as training or coordination with video conferencing, is more emphasized for young farmers or millennials.Companies can also ask for help from young farmers to conduct control activities in the field and report progress or obstacles by sending files online.However, technology such as virtual conferencing has yet to be able to optimally impact achieving the CSV program objectives arranged by Sido Muncul Company.Strategies using technology in some sectors have yet to run optimally.For example, obstacles such as machine breakdowns hinder the drying process, disrupting dry cardamom production.In addition, the COVID-19 condition makes cardamom cultivation practices less intensively carried out by farmers, making the harvest more optimal.
The diverse age segment makes the training process from Sido Muncul to the farmer groups face obstacles.When online coordination is carried out, most are only attended by young farmers or millennials.For this reason, an evaluation was carried out when entering the post-pandemic period in 2022.The company believes that monitoring and face-to-face training are necessary.Nevertheless, the changes in CSV activities during the pandemic positively impacted the independence and activeness of the farmer groups.Then, the initiation of the CSV program with online and offline training activities was also able to influence young people positively.Initially, young farmers were not interested in cardamom farming.From the initial 30 members, at the beginning of 2022, it increased to 40 young farmers who had joined and were expected to continue to grow.
The CSV training strategy to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and responsiveness is done by addressing problems.In addition to addressing the cardamom drying process, the capacity of human resources was also improved.Online and offline training is conducted to overcome obstacles to machine maintenance and cardamom cultivation.Related technical training, such as machine maintenance and handling damage, is given directly by a competent team in their fields.With this training, farmers can perform reasonable maintenance and repair minor damage according to the SOP (Standard Operating Procedure).In addition to machine-related training, training on cardamom cultivation from on-farm to off-farm was also conducted, especially for young farmers (millennials) in the village.This training is given directly by Sido Muncul employees as a form of the company's concern to share competencies with the community.Until 2023, this program is still running.It has begun to expand into activities to explore the potential of Sambirata village in other fields, such as MSME businesses making coconut sugar and several potential fields for online business development.

E. Shared Value Sido Muncul Company with Bumdes Sambirata
The shared value perspective emphasizes that companies must integrate a social perspective into their core framework to understand competition and develop business strategies.The social mapping strategy carried out by the company is the key to finding out the community's problems and solving the problem of supplying raw materials from the company.Sambirata Village is one of the 745 underdeveloped villages in Central Java Province (Pemerintah Provinsi Jawa Tengah, 2019).Even though it has a low economic level, the village's potential can make Sambirata an independent village.The Sambirata' Desa Rempah' program can increase farmers' income, especially cardamom farmers.The sale of dried cardamom to Sido Muncul can provide market certainty for farmers so that prices remain stable.From December 2019 to August 2022, farmers with incomes below IDR 1,000,000 increased by IDR 500,000 to 1,000,000 per person per month.From 2019 to 2022, cardamom shipments continued.Shipments that were initially wet have now been able to send cardamom in dry form.As of March 2022, Sambirata Village has delivered more than 7000 kg of dried cardamom with a total turnover of IDR 4,758,920,500.The addition of income and the fulfillment of raw materials indicate the implementation of CSV activities.The critical concept of shared value results from a business creating economic and societal value by addressing community needs and challenges.Shared value is not about cause marketing or programs like employee giving, volunteerism, or matched giving.Instead, it seeks opportunities within new markets that address a community need, incorporating the entire value chain and the concept of local cluster development into the process (Baines, 2015).Then, the CSV program added that in addition to overcoming drying problems, using drying machines with microhydro energy is more efficient than using PLN electricity.The energy efficiency used includes savings made by farmers.By using Micro Hydro Drying System, it can produce energy of 112,608 kWh/Th; if the electricity tariff is Rp 650/kWh, then farmers can get savings of Rp 73,195,200;-In addition to electricity savings, the use of drying machines with micro hydro energy is also able to reduce the emission rate because it uses renewable energy that is low in emissions.GHG emission reduction is obtained using micro-hydro electrical energy with CO2 emissions of 81.64 tons CO2eq.This result has been verified by the Faculty of Agriculture, Jenderal Soedirman University.

CONCLUSION
The company's strategy for CSV activities begins with social mapping research involving educational institutions.After the area problems, until the potential is obtained, collaboration with related stakeholders starts from the government to Bumdes Sambirata.The results of social mapping help generate social innovations.Social innovation, especially in lowincome markets, can drive transformation and find common ground for shared value creation.The strategy of activities in Sambirata is carried out with the concept of CSV (Creating Shared Value) because the collaboration is for cardamom commodities which are also one of the raw material needs in Sido Muncul.
Sido Muncul developed an efficiency strategy by developing the potential for renewable energy from MHP (Micro Hydro Power Plant) to be used as a power source for drying machines.Then, effectiveness is achieved by developing strategies to answer problems in processing dried cardamom according to company quality standards with a series of training carried out by experts.Then, responsiveness was developed by routine monitoring at least once a week, either directly (visiting the location) or indirectly (using Whatsapp or teleconference technologies).
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the CSV program experienced obstacles due to the difficulty of access for companies for direct field monitoring.In addition, training such as drying machines is difficult to do with virtual methods, especially the low quality of human resources, which could be more tech-savvy.To overcome these problems, Sido Muncul collaborates with millennial farmers to help achieve the company's order targets by processing cardamom according to standards.The pandemic period provides lessons for companies to get out of the crisis by using technology and collaborating with stakeholders.Sido Muncul's CSV activities have shown rapid progress with delivering cardamom when entering the post-pandemic period, which was initially wet, into higher-value dried cardamom.At the same time, it indicates that farmers' independence has increased from before to after the pandemic, as evidenced by the intensity of monitoring that can be combined through technology.As a result, the progress of the farmer group makes cardamom shipments increase which is directly comparable to income.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION A. Concept of Creating Shared Value (CSV)
Monika and Ms. Nurul.Then, to get another point of view, researchers conducted interviews with Mr. Sodirin, chairman ISSN: (print) 2339-2681 | (online) 2621-2579 13 of BUMDES Sambirata, and Mr. Ali, leader of the Kridoyuono farmers group, to validate the data and obtain information from the implementation of CSV activities in Sambirata Village from the stakeholders' point of view.The CSV concept was introduced in 2006 by Porter and Kramer's article Strategy and Society: