Analysis of the Activities of Coca Cola - Case Study Example

Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility Introduction Coca-Cola Company was established in 1886 and it has grown to become a leading manufacturer, distributor, and marketers of non-alcoholic beverages (Coca-Cola Company, 1). Moreover, they involve distribution of concentrates and syrups that are used for production of more than two hundred brands of beverages. This Company was stated in Atlanta, where their corporate headquarters are located; in fact, they have grown, thereby venturing into international markets and operating in more than two hundred countries in the around the world. Ethics Published company code of ethics The company’s code of ethics entails two sections, whereby the first section offers a description of values that the Coca-Cola Company focuses safeguarding in every region it operates. In this case, the company upholds a high level of responsibility to public and employees (Coca-Cola Company, 36). The other part focuses on offering the responsibility of employees to the company; in fact, this involves the scope of Code of Ethics that is applicable to managers and employees in the company and subsidiaries. There are orientation meetings that are held in every two years, where information regarding this Code of Ethics is offered to employees and they are expected to sign. Personal commitment of CEO to high standards of ethics Coca-Cola Company’s CEO has a high commitment to standards of ethics, whereby they are considered to be representatives of the company through their honesty, and consistency in every condition. In this case, CEO has a commitment of guiding employees in order to facilitate compliance to the Code of Ethics (Coca-Cola Company, 36). The CEO has the mandate of ensuring that managers in various departments, especially Human Resource department. Audits to ensure compliance with code Coca-Cola Company has an Internal Audit Department, which focuses on monitoring the operations and behaviors, which entail specified those that are stipulated in the Code of Ethics; thus, these audits are conducted regally in the organization annually (Coca-Cola Company, 36). Clear and logical consequences for failure to follow the code The Company has clear and logical implications of failing to comply with this Code of Ethics, whereby employees are subjected to penalties due to their misbehaviors. Moreover, there is detailed information concerning the process of punishment and it is entailed in the Code, and reviews of this Code of Ethics, which leads to necessity of making relevant alterations depending on stakeholders’ expectations. Environmental Stewardship Detailed assessment of the company’s environmental impact Coca-Cola Company has focus on being compliant with standards involves in operations that relate to supply chain, distribution channel and disposal of obsolete or broken products. In this case, this company is highly involved in recycling of bottles; in fact, this is a manifestation of their environmental stewardship (Coca-Cola Company, 50). On the other hand, obsolete products are disposed appropriately to avoid environmental pollution, besides most of these products are used to manufacture new products. Clear goals for improvement in each impact area The company has a goal of being complaint with provisions of legislation regarding the environment. In order to improve their impact area, the Company establishes procedures that facilitate employee compliance (Coca-Cola Company, 51). Therefore, the company established an obligation of their employees, whereby they are expected to comply with procedures and polices associated with environmental protection. Moreover, they are expected to give reports regarding any case of breaches to their managers and supervisors. Internal audits to ensure improvements There are regular internal audits aimed at ensuring improvements through adaptation of objectives and principles. Therefore, continuous improvements involve activities that accomplish these objectives in regard to environment (Coca-Cola Company, 51). Apparently, this is a way of practicing leadership environmental issues and this can lead to avoidance of environment to promote their opinions. External audits to determine improvements in supply and distribution chains Suppliers involved in providing the Company with materials required for manufacturing are audited to in order to determine the improvements in supply and distribution chains. Therefore, the suppliers are expected to meet requirements set by the company such as being ISO certified, having required capacity, and being consistent (Coca-Cola Company, 52). Human Resource Stewardship Clear standards for providing safe working environments and reasonable working conditions The Company has established standards for providing safer working environments and reasonable working condition. It ensures that there is no racial, gender, religion based discrimination in the process of hiring, remunerating and promoting employees (Coca-Cola Company, 45). Therefore, the Company offers chances for employees to access corporate management. Moreover, there equal chances in working conditions and promotion, which is based on performance and qualifications. Clear statements of expectations from supply and distribution channels The company has established clear statements regarding expectation from supply and distribution channels (Coca-Cola Company, 45). Moreover, necessary precautions are made in order to safeguard employees’ personal information. On the other hand, there are obligations of offering equal chances for employees to acquire training, which enables them, achieve expected level of performance. Regular audits, particularly of supply chains The company conducts regular audits aimed at ensuring that employees are complying with the occupational safety health regulations related to supply chain (Coca-Cola Company, 45). Moreover, they provide training and routine audits are applied for reinforcement of compliance. Taking action when deficiencies are found Deficiencies are identified through necessary measures, which ensure that occupational safety and health of all employees are observed (Coca-Cola Company, 45). In this case, this forms a basis for the company to take necessary measures for protecting occupational safety and health of employees. Community Service and Impact Coca-Cola Company has highly prioritized the community throughout its operations, which is in accordance with social expectations. Therefore, the Company makes necessary arrangements regarding business processes in order to alleviate necessary risk, which may have adverse effects to the public in terms of health and safety (Coca-Cola Company, 64). On the other hand, the Company supports public activities through direct participation or sponsorship. Besides, dialogue is enhanced through local communities as a way of fostering understanding of public expectations. In this case, the Company achieves its objectives through fulfillment of societal expectations and meeting legal regulations in the country and region of operations. They have also become role models of significant players in areas that are sustainable in development (Coca-Cola Company, 64). Nonetheless, the organization focuses on contributing the society through local community, since the social stakeholders are treated with fairness based on the prestige of their brand, truthfulness, and intelligibility. Broader Social Causes Activities are related to the brand image, customer attributes, or nature of products or services delivered by the company Consumers have developed a high interest for the Company’s social, ethical, and environmental performance as a result of dynamic social-cultural and economic conditions and high awareness (Coca-Cola Company, 31). Awareness of CSR performance has a direct influence on customers and consumption trends that are influenced by trust. The Company is focusing on preparing for the future, in which they have expectations of increased consumer awareness; thus, this may affect their product quality and pricing decisions. However, they have a high consideration that consumers trust the company and their brands. Therefore, value to their brand is added through their reputation of being a responsible Company. Investments in the social cause are regularly assessed for impact and progress Cola-cola is deriving benefits due to opportunities offered by their effort to pursue the vision 2020, thereby focusing on sustainability as an integral element of their operations (Coca-Cola Company, 32). Therefore focusing on increasing their effectiveness, they have found the need to use their resources to facilitate achievement of essential sustainable growth. Employee gift matching has a defined goal Employees are awarded for good performance, which is associated with a level of satisfaction in their workplace (Coca-Cola Company, 32). In this case, managers are able to evaluate their performance in order to improve their level of satisfactions. Works Cited Coca-Cola Company. Corporate Social Responsibility Report: March 2008 - March 2009. Web. 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