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Unilever in India- Hindustan Lever’s Project Shakti

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Introduction Karl Marx once said as I quote: “Capital comes, dripping from head to toe, from every pore, with blood and dirt.” As the permanent purpose of business, profit making, all the time, has been depending on squeezing surplus labor force and consuming large quantity of natural resources in an uneconomic way which makes the rich richer and the poor poorer with mother earth being damaged and disharmony between classes spreading among the human kind. But nowadays, due to the pressure from the media and public, business is not only required but obligated to operate in a more sustainable and innovative way. As a successful and initiative example, the Project Shakti of Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) is being a pioneer of showing how …show more content…

The living quality and standard will be significantly improved in rural India reducing the possibility of illness and infection as a result of some traditional but unscientific life style and living habits. Profit vs. CSR → Challenge As the European Commission defined, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is “a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis.” The benefit of Shakti shouldn’t be measured via the annual balance sheet. An enterprise gain advantages in anticipating in the fast changing social expectation and operating conditions because the CSR engages with internal and external stakeholders. It can therefore drive the development of new markets and create opportunities for growth. The social responsibility furthermore helps the enterprise to build up a long term triangle relationship between employee, consumer and citizen. The trust build on the relation is the foundation for the sustainability of the company. HLL should still pursue the program even if Shakti is proved unprofitable. HLL has already invested large amount of money into Shakti and all the established organization and facilities are considered hard to refund. Sunk costs are past and irreversible outflow. If HLL doesn’t pursue, a significant loss both for financial position and reputation would occur immediately and permanent damage would

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