Literature Review:
Corporate Social Responsibility
Corporate social responsibility is generally seen merely as a device for generating goodwill and improving the reputation of an organization among its customers (Chernev & Blair 2015). According to (Carroll & Shabana 2010) “The social responsibility of business encompasses the economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic expectations that society has of organizations at a given point in time.” (Witkowska 2016). Fig 1.1
According to (Waldman, Siegel & Javidan 2006) the components of CSR model by Carroll can be summarised as below
Economic Responsibility:
It is the return to investors, fair compensation to employees, goods at fair prices to customers, etc. Thus, meeting economic responsibility
…show more content…
This has been well documented in prior researches that the companies who are socially responsible will generate better financial results (Chernev & Blair 2015). The customers remain loyal to the brand plus the price sensitivity also tends to decrease according to the research by (Orlitzky, Schmidt & Rynes 2003). In another study it was revealed that the good social behaviour of the company will increase sales as the consumer will be morally satisfied and is likely to reward the company for its good conduct (Andreoni 1990). However on the contrary, some findings demonstrate that socially responsible firms have a tendency to be perceived as being warmer, more ethical, and more compassionate, but they apparently turn out to be less competent in their core area of expertise (Aaker, Vohs & Mogilner 2010) henceforth, expected to produce inferior products compared to those made by companies not engaged in prosaically behaviour.
Ethical Theories: Consequentialist
● Consequentialist Ethics: the expected outcome or consequences of the action. According to (Chakrabarty & Erin Bass 2013) Consequentialist ethics from CSR perspective emphasizes more on the cost and benefits of the outcome rather than costs and benefits of the action originally performed. So whether an act is right
…show more content…
The rough idea behind ethical egoism is that the right thing to do is to only look out for your own self-interest. We are morally required only to make ourselves as happy as possible. We have no moral obligations to others. Leadership would then be a way to control our inner trend for domination and to avoid our own (physical or psychical) death. So, according to (Hobbes 1960) leaders, as everybody else, would also be continuously searching for their
As mentioned before, in consequentialism the “consequences” of an action are everything the action brings about, including the action itself. In consequentialism, the “consequences” of an action include (a) the action itself, and (b) everything the action
Consequentialist believe that morality is about producing the right overall consequences, and that the action brings about either happiness, freedom or survival of species. Utilitarianism is an example of consequentialism that maximizes utility (happiness). The difference between utilitarianism and consequentialism is that a utilitarian overlooks justice, as long as an utilitarian can maximize pleasure they would do whatever it takes. Consequentialist enjoy maximizing pleasure like a utilitarian, but they also take into account autonomy and justice. A consequentialist believes that determining good by measuring the outcome, if the good for all in the act is greater than the bad for all in the act, it is deemed morally good.
Consequentialism is based more around the consequence and final result of the actions. In our text book, Ethical Reasoning, it states that in consequentialism, “consequences count, not motives or intentions” (Pence, 2011). Non-consequentialism is based around the intention of one’s doing, regardless of the consequences. A particular action may be good for a business but not good for society or ones health. An example of this would be pharmaceutical companies raising the cost for medicine, this cause many patients to suffer or not be able to afford the medication they need.
As we know consequentialism is the focus of an action that does more intrinsically good than bad, one kind of consequentialist theory is utilitarianism. Utilitarianism is an action that produces consequences that are more good over bad for everyone involved. In order to produce an action that is the best one a utilitarianist would consider both long and short term effects. Two sub categories of utilitarianism include act utilitarianism and rule utilitarianism. act utilitarianism bases an action on the overall well being produced by an individual.
It judges the rightness or wrongness of an action based on properties intrinsic to the action, not on its consequence. A non consequentialist won’t think a lot while taking a decision, all they think while taking a decision is that whether this decision will benefit anyone or if it will harm anyone they forget the outcome related to it. He/ She can be selfless while
It is the firm’s obligation to evaluate in its decision-making processes the effects of its decisions on the external social system in a manner that will accomplish social benefits along with the traditional economic gains, which the firm seeks. It means that social responsibility begins where the law ends. A firm is not being socially responsible if it merely complies with the minimum requirements of the law, because this is what any good citizen would do.” A firm will not survive without the support of both the stakeholders and shareholders, thus the CSR proposes the indication which states that a firm can never exist In a vacuum (Khalidah et. al.).
Leadership Thought Prior to 1900 The earliest study of leadership thought would be the “Great Man Theory. This theory conceptualized leaders as a single “Great Man” who knew everything and influenced others to follow him. In leadership discourse, the Great Man theory—an assertion that certain individuals, certain men, are gifts from God placed on earth to provide the lightening needed to uplift human existence—is associated mainly with Thomas Carlyle (Spector, 2015, p.250). The focal-point of this theory is that leaders’ skills are inherent and set that them apart from those around them and that these traits enable them to assume roles of power and authority.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) relates to the actions of an organization and the effects on the environment and social wellbeing. It is about the way that the company assesses its actions and takes responsibility for this. (Investopedia, n.d.) CSR is a management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental issues in their business operations and interactions with stakeholders . The company aims to achieve a balance of economic, environmental and social objectives, while also listening to the needs of stakeholders.
Discussion Nestlé’s Corporate Social Responsibility consists of looking further then the own company needs or profits and pay more attention to other stakeholders. Everyone concerned or connected to the company business will get a closer look on their situation and will be treated right. They divide the stakeholders in two categories; the first being the internal stakeholders such as employees and shareholders. The second category is external stakeholders where we find the suppliers, customers, environment and so on.
1) Evaluate how Nestlé 's approach to corporate responsibility was good for their business. Corporate businesses generally have to meet ethical, legal, commercial and public expectations. That is what is expected of the business world today. This is known as the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). However, businesses with short-term goal will rarely practice CSR since practicing it does not bring any benefit.
The two moral reasonings are consequentialist and categorical. Consequentialist means the consequences that will result after whatever you do, whether it is the right or wrong thing to do. Categorical moral reasoning locates morality in certain duties and rights. Somethings are just morally wrong even if it brings good outcomes. According to Mill the principle of utility means realizing a consequence of something before you do it,whether your intentions are good or bad.
Davis (as cited by Khalidah, Zulkufly, & Lau, 2014) defined Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as “… the firm’s consideration of, and response to, issues beyond the narrow economic, technical, and legal requirements of the firm. It is the firm’s obligation to evaluate in its decision-making processes the effects of its decisions on the external social system in a manner that will accomplish social benefits along with the traditional economic gains, which the firm seeks. It means that social responsibility begins where the law ends. A firm is not being socially responsible if it merely complies with the minimum requirements of the law, because this is what any good citizen would do.” A firm will not survive without the support of both the stakeholders and shareholders, thus the CSR proposes the indication which stats that a firm can never exist In a vacuum (Khalidah et.
What is Ethical Leadership some may ask. It is leadership that shows through the actions of having respect for ethical beliefs and values, and for the dignity and rights of others. Ethics is associated with the morals and values an individual finds desirable. It is a philosophical term originating from Greek word “ethos” meaning custom or character. While in the United States Marine Corps, the definition of ethics in an organizational setting was as follows:
In the recent years more and more companies in the retail and food industry are concerned about the environmental consequences of their action and also the social ethics for the people involved in the production process. This is a shift from the philanthropic actions companies used to take in 1970’s and by following basic international standards to a ‘business case’ perspective of CSR (Customer Social Responsibility). According to the World Business Council for Sustainability Develpoment ( WBCSD) CSR is: ‘’ the commitment of business to contribute to sustainable economic development, working with employees, theirfamilies, the local community and society at large to improve their quality of life’’ (World Bank, 2002)
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) relates to the actions of an organization and the effects on the environment and social wellbeing. It is about the way that the company assesses its actions and takes responsibility for this. (Investopedia, n.d.) CSR is a management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental issues in their business operations and interactions with stakeholders. The company aims to achieve a balance of economic, environmental and social objectives, while also listening to the needs of stakeholders.