The article studies the essence of the process of managing social development of an enterprise in a market economy. In order to ensure competitiveness, there is a need to realise the creative potential of employees, their ability to generate innovative changes in various spheres of activity. The relevance of the company's social activities to create conditions conducive to the development of human capital, including not only increasing professional activity, but also providing comprehensive support for the professional and personal development of staff, is indicated. The social orientation of an enterprise is an important element in achieving its strategic goals, since motivation and interest of employees are the basis for sustainable development. The mechanisms for implementing the social development of enterprise, which consist not only in the use of material resources, but also in the active involvement of intellectual capital, are shown. The essence of corporate social development is defined as a system of quantitative and qualitative organisational changes aimed at improving the social environment of enterprise and the sphere of social relations using social partnership and participatory management. The main directions of social orientation of Ukrainian companies are analysed, which, by demonstrating social responsibility and active participation in solving social problems, help not only to ensure the development of their employees, but also to strengthen their competitive position in the market.