Introduction
The statement, “It isn’t enough for a multinational corporation to be socially responsible; they must be a triple bottom line company to meet their ethical obligations,” is a brave statement on the surface. Breaking down and explaining the statement, plus providing insight to social responsibility and triple bottom line, will help to understand the impact of the statement. In addition, the underlying outcome from social responsibility and triple bottom line, known as wealth redistribution, will be explored.
Breaking It Down
A multinational corporation is one that does business in two or more nations around the globe. The statement emphasizes that, in an effort to adhere to the ethical duty that is bestowed upon it, a global
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Social Responsibility The duty of social responsibility is fulfilled when the company provides selfless support to a community. The four elements of social responsibility are financial, legal, ethical, and philanthropic, in this order of priority.
Economic responsibility is shown by being a profitable company that contributes to the wealth, jobs, and products or services of a community. A company that is not financially viable does not add leadership or prosperity to a community. They are a drag on society and do not follow the expectation of being a prosperous and responsible business.
Legal responsibility is shown by being a law-abiding, upstanding, and moral business. The expectation is that a company operates well within the boundaries of legal issues, not walking the fence of breaking the law. An unlawful company is one that does not deserve to be in business.
Ethical responsibility is shown when the company encounters issues that are not guided by law, but need an appropriate and good-hearted reaction. Whether the issue is related to the environment, people, or financial, taking the proper action gives the company the right to fully embrace the persona of being a moral member of the community.
Philanthropic responsibility is shown through helping the community through giving. The act of giving can be in the form of providing funding for a health cause or providing people to volunteer their time for
Multinational Corporation - business enterprise with manufacturing, sales, or service subsidiaries in one or more foreign countries, also known as a transnational or international corporation. These corporations originated early in the 20th century and proliferated after World War II.
Social responsibility is generally regarded as a duty of an organization’s management towards the benefit and well-being of the society in which it is engaged. The organization must behave ethically considering the social, cultural, economic and environmental issues.
Many believe that business entities should have an ethical duty to be socially responsible, to work towards increasing its positive effects on society while decreasing its negative effects. Many organizations look for opportunities to be socially responsible while also creating shareholder wealth.
The four components of corporate social responsibility are Economic responsibilities by being profitable to the company, Legal responsibilities by obeying the law or playing by the rule, Ethical responsibilities by being ethical in carrying business and Philanthropic responsibilities by being a good corporate citizen and also by improving the quality and standard of living of the community and society. Economic performance is important as the foundation of
Social responsibility is an ethical framework which suggests that an organization or individual has an obligation to act for the benefit of society at large. Social responsibility is a duty every organization has to perform so as to maintain a balance between the economy and the environment
Corporations can be large or small but they all have some sort of ethical impact on their employees, shareholders, customers, community, and surrounding environments. Richard DeGeorge writes, “We can speak of corporations having moral responsibilities to act in certain ways, and they are morally responsible for the consequences of their actions on people.” (p. 200). Large corporations are comprised of the board of directors, management, and their workers. They also deal with suppliers, customers, and have competitors. This essay will examine the moral responsibilities within a corporation.
Difficult to define, ethical responsibility is the ability to recognize, interpret and act upon multiple principles and values according to the standards within a given field and/or context (Investopedia LLC., 2015). Social responsibility is the concept that businesses develop a positive relationship to the society and environment, which they operate; and not focus, solely on maximizing profits (Stan Mack, 2015).
Every business has a social responsibility toward society. That means to maximize positive affects and minimize negative affects on the society. Social responsibilities includes economic-to produce goods and services, that society needs at the price, that satisfy both-business and consumers, legal
Corporate Social Responsibility are actions taken by a corporation that have positive and lasting impact for all stakeholders associated with the organization, seeking to strike a balance between profits and helping to establish lasting investment in the community (Carrol, 2015). In the 1980’s, then President Reagan challenged the business community to take on more responsibility to address social problems (Carrol, 2015). Socially responsible actions can benefit local communities as well as the greater societal good.
Social responsibility is a construct of appropriate ethical behaviors, where two or more individuals, and corporations strive to provide better outcomes for the benefit of society as a whole. With such a set of meticulous structured frameworks in mind, it is fundamental to achieve a harmonious balance between the ecosystem and the developing economy. However, social responsibility is not always first and foremost on the mind of big name corporate companies – such as General Mills Inc.
3.Business to External Environment. Because businesses exist within a community from which they take resources, businesses have ethical responsibilities to the community. This obligation to protect and enhance the society is called Social Responsibility. This also includes responsibilities to the customers from which they earn profits. The main areas of Social Responsibility are:
Social responsibility is built on a system of ethics, in which decisions and actions must be ethically validated before proceeding. If the action or decision causes harm to society or the environment then it would be considered to be socially irresponsible. Being socially responsible means that people and organization must behave ethically and sensitivity towards, social, cultural, economic, and environmental issues. Striving for social responsibility helps individuals, organization and government to have a positive impact on development, business and society. Often, the ethical implication of decision/action are overlooked for personal gain and the benefits are usually material. This frequently manifest itself in companies that
Carroll (1991) organized different corporate social responsibilities as a four-layered pyramid model and called it the pyramid of responsibilities. The four different responsibilities - economical, legal, ethical and philanthropic are the layers of the pyramid. Corporate social responsibility involves the conduct of a business so that it is economically profitable, law abiding, ethical and socially supportive. To be socially responsible then means that profitability and obedience to the law are foremost conditions when discussing the firm’s ethics and the extent to which it supports the society in which it exists with contributions of money, time and talent”. And the different layers in the pyramid help managers
Social Responsibility is the idea that a company should embrace its social responsibilities and not be solely focused on maximizing profits. Social responsibility has a hidden connotation attached to it, which is awareness. When I hear the phrase “being socially responsible,” I think of the repercussions that come with not being socially responsible. According to ASQ.com, social responsibility is “The responsibility of an organization for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, through transparent and ethical behavior that: contributes to sustainable development, including health and the welfare of society” (ASQ, 2016). It also, “takes into account the expectations of stakeholders” (ASQ, 2016). In addition, social responsibility “is in compliance with applicable laws and consistent with international norms of behavior” (ASQ, 2016). Finally, it “is integrated throughout the organization and practiced in its relationships” (ASQ, 2016).
Corporate social responsibility is the voluntary stance or set of actions from a corporation that demonstrate a contribution to a better society and a cleaner environment. Corporations are already required to operate within the law, but laws do not always protect all people or individuals who will be affected by the corporation’s actions. In addition to this, it is very common for special interests to play a part in legal decisions through lobbying efforts, so it is assumed to be an additional effort for a corporation to be socially responsible. Being socially responsible essentially comes down to being considerate and calculated in the decision making process, paying attention to the consequence of every action. In the ethical decision making model, there are two particular steps that I believe to be of greater importance than the others. The first would be that of