BMW Korea active in corporate social responsibility activities

BMW Korea CEO Kim Hyo-joon, center, poses with students during a BMW Korea Future Fund event at the BMW Driving Center in Incheon, last year. / Courtesy of BMW Korea

By Jhoo Dong-chan

BMW Korea is proving the company’s quality in corporate social responsibility (CSR) through various charity and social investments, in contrast to other foreign auto brands who reportedly only paid heavy dividends to their headquarters without any social contributions.

According to a BMW official, Thursday, the company donated a total of four billion won ($3.5 million) last year, the top donor among foreign auto brands in Korea.

Of this, it used three billion won for the BMW Korea Future Fund established in 2011 as a part of the company’s efforts to find and train future global leaders while one billion won was donated to various charity activities.

BMW Korea has reportedly donated a total of 18.3 billion won through the future fund for the last five years. The company’s donation ratio to operating profit was 8.51 percent in 2014 and 3.9 percent last year, higher than most domestic companies.

The company’s CSR responsibility was rewarded in 2011 when it received the Korea-EU Social Benefactor Award.

“BMW sells not just a car but also values within,” said an official.

“BMW offers not only high-performance luxury driving pleasure but also the company’s belief in mutual and sustainable growth with society. BMW Korea CEO Kim Hyo-joon also shares such values and takes utmost efforts in CSR activities.”

Its CSR is not limited to helping people in need and education. The company invested a total of 77 billion won to build the BMW Driving Center in Incheon, offering a new type of auto leisure for Koreans.

In a bid to fulfill its responsibility in mutual growth, BMW Korea has partnered with 22 local subcontractors and ordered a total of 319 billion won in parts from them last year. An estimated contracted deal between 2011 and 2020 is expected to be over eight trillion won.

In October, BMW Korea workers visited a local orphanage in southern Seoul to carry out volunteer work with 60 orphans aged between 1 and 21. By the end of this year, the company promised to renovate the old orphanage building and will offer various educational activities.

“I understand the headquarters in Germany was also impressed by BMW Korea’s various CSR activities and will carry out similar operations in other countries,” said an official.

“BMW Korea will do its best to not only offer best-performance cars but also sharing values through its commitment to society.”