Approaches to Corporate Social Responsibility - Essay Example

Apple - Sweatshop Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) refers to a self-regulating mechanism present within an organization, which serves to monitor an organization’s compliance with the ethical standards of the society in which the firm operates. This includes; outlined legislations, international norms and other societal ethical expectations. This allows the organization to take responsibility for its actions. Therefore, the surrounding society can hold an organization accountable. As a result, CSR encourages positive practices towards its stakeholders. It is crucial to note that the term stakeholder refers to the entire group of people affected by an organization’s operations. Different companies adopt different approaches of CSR. These approaches include; the Canadian, Continental European, and Anglo-Saxon approaches. Despite the differing approaches, most organizations adopt a common approach which involves philanthropy through giving out aids and monetary donations. However, some organizations opt to incorporate CSR into the firm’s business strategy, whereas others opt to Create Shared Value (CSV). CSV revolves around the idea that success within an organization is interdependent on the society’s welfare (William & David 156). Carroll’s CSR model is a four-layered pyramid. The bottom layer contains the label economic responsibilities, and it represents the profitable endeavors of an organization. This layer is the foundation on which all other layers rely on. Just above this layer lies the legal responsibilities layer, which represents, the legal obligations an organization must follow to avoid attracting legal liabilities. The next layer’s label is ethical responsibilities, and this layer represents an organization’s obligation to do what the society considers as acceptable, right and fair in order to avoid any harm befalling any of the stakeholders. The top-most layer has the philanthropic responsibilities label attached to it. This entails an organization’s involvement in exemplary corporate citizenship through engagement in philanthropic endeavors within the community as a way of giving back or saying thanks for the support granted by the community. Carroll’s arrangement of responsibilities on a pyramid served to show the existence of tension between the responsibilities. This arrangement also showed that the responsibilities were not mutually exclusive. Carroll’s CSR model continues to be empirically tested in many organizations around the world, for example, the initial empirical test involved an analysis of Forbes leading company CEOs in 1985 (McDermott 98). Apple Company continues to face allegations of using sweatshop labor in its Foxconn's plant, in China. In addition, the company faced allegations of involvement in practices which led to environmental destruction. Apple’s practices constituted to unethical business practice in the eyes of the company’s critics. The allegations compelled Apple to conduct further investigations and figure out ways in which the company could once again appease its stakeholders. From the investigations carried out, Apple tried to reassure its stakeholders that the allegations made about the company's use of sweatshop labor were false. However, the company executives acknowledged the presence of some irregularities with the labor relations policies used by the organization at the Foxconn plant. The further went to assure their stakeholders that the irregularities were of a technical nature and, that company personnel were tirelessly working to rectify these irregularities, for example, the use of complex remuneration systems. They refuted all allegations of the use of forced, child or sweatshop labor made against them by supporting their claims using investigation reports (Laurie & Lawrence 77). Carroll’s CSR model emphasizes the existence of tension between the different categories of responsibility. However, he maintains that the different categories are not mutually exclusive. As a result, a company might be making astronomical amounts of profit while displaying poor ethical standards. Therefore, such a scenario would result in high level of tension, which might lead to tension between an organization and its stakeholders. High tension levels might lead to the disintegration of other sectors that were previously experiencing high performance levels. In the case of Apple Company, the allegations made about the use of sweatshop labor in China affected the organization and the stakeholders differently. Hypothetically speaking, if the company did use sweatshop labor, the levels of profit would go higher because of the reduced production costs. However, the stakeholders would lose faith in the company’s poor Corporate Social Responsibility because of the sub-standard ethical practices portrayed by the company. Therefore, if the company executives did not take the allegations seriously by taking necessary steps to reassure their stakeholders, the company would suffer substantial economic setbacks in the long run (Shane 155). From the very beginning the pay structure should have been simplified instead of the complex pay structure previously used. Apple Company should have ensured their labor relation policies were at par with the acceptable standards of labor relation policies. This would leave no room for doubt, which in turn leads to false allegations. Both the stakeholders and the company personnel not be exposed to unnecessary, false allegations, which would undercut Apple’s Corporate Social Responsibility policies (Lisa & Stephano 66). Apple Company works to keep its stakeholders satisfied by practicing exemplary Corporate Social Responsibility. The company officials do this by ensuring the company’s practices and policies remain in line with the changing legal policies institutionalized by government officials. In addition, these officials ensure all company personnel follow the required ethical standards. This helps to prevent the occurrence of any harmful situations. Finally, the company practices exemplary corporate citizenship by involving itself in philanthropic activities, which assist the members of the given community in which the given company operates (Kelly & Mcelhaney 115). In conclusion, people around the world disagree on the importance of CSR. Some argue that CSR is crucial to the success of a business whereas others disagree with this. Those in disagreement view CSR as a distraction from the economic roles played by an organization. As seen above, poor CSR has adverse effects on an organization. This is because of the negative impact poor Corporate Social Responsibility has on a company’s stakeholders. Therefore, organizations work to ensure their stakeholders remain happy by adhering to legal policies, involvement in philanthropic activities within the community, and maintaining acceptable, ethical standards. This fosters intimate relations between the organization and the people it affects directly or indirectly (Sanjit, Stanley & Jakki 157). Works Cited Jakki K. Mohr, Sanjit Sengupta, Stanley W. Slater. Marketing of High-Technology Products and Innovations. Washington: Jakki Mohr, 2009. Print Kellie A. Mcelhaney, McElhaney K., Kellie A. Just Good Business. Easyread Large Bold Edition. New Jersey: ReadHowYouWant.com, 2009. Print Laurie Bassii, Ed Frauenheim, Costello Lawrence. Good Company: Business Success in the Worthiness Era. Washington: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2011. Print Lisa Ann Richey, Stefano Ponte. Brand Aid: Shopping Well to Save the World. Washington: U of Minnesota Press, 2011. Print McDermott, Catherine. Design: The Key Concepts. New York: Routledge, 2007. Print McElhaney, Kellie A. Just Good Business. New York: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2008. Print Sparks, S. Barbara Books, LLC. Business Ethics: Enron, Public Relations, Industrial Espionage, Stakeholder, Creative Destruction, Sweatshop, Whistleblower. New York: General Books LLC, 2010. Print William B. Werther, Jr., David Chandler. Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Stakeholders in a Global Environment. New York: SAGE, 2010. Print Read More