The Worlds Most Ethical Companies: PepsiCo - Case Study Example

The World Most Ethical Companies Introduction Ethics in an organization can take multinational companies in to new dimension. The ethics in an organization can be defined as the standards and principles that regulate the acceptability of conduct. Companies need to be morally and ethically responsible for employees, environment and consumers which are pivotal part in an organization. PepsiCo is one of the global leaders within the food and beverage industry. The sustainable growth of PepsiCo has been maintained by deep commitment towards the empowerment of people and its employees. Ethical systems, structures and ethical leadership are the components of PepsiCo. This essay will discuss about the ethical responsibilities and company policies of PepsiCo towards consumers, employees and environment. Discussion Ethical and social responsibilities are vital for every organization to strengthen the relationship between customers, employees and communities. PepsiCo is the most global ethical company that is promoting ethical responsibility both socially and environmentally. Moral Responsibility PepsiCo has also developed several practices and programs that can help them to achieve success. Some of world popular beverage brands are owned by PepsiCo which are Pepsi-Cola, Lay’s, Mountain Dew, Tropicana and Diet Pepsi. The pivotal mission of PepsiCo is to be world’s largest premier consumer products’ manufacturing and distributing organization. Environment There are many ways in which PepsiCo behaves morally responsible towards environment. In the year 2009, PepsiCo promoted and created sustainable process that can enable to raise the level of availability of water in regions which are affected by crisis of water. The promotion of clean water is one of the important practices initiated by PepsiCo to be more responsible towards environment. The demonstration and promotion of this practice made PepsiCo Foundation to receive award for best ethical initiative taken by any organization in the year 2010. Huge amount of capital has invested by PepsiCo Foundation to ensure clean water to the emerging markets. Some of the countries in which PepsiCo has started this operational program are Bangladesh, Brazil, India and Africa. Some of the examples of the commitment initiated by PepsiCo for environment sustainability are Safe Water Network Grant and Water Partners Grant (Przybylowicz, 2014). Another moral responsibility of PepsiCo is recycling programs and other environment policies to ensure environmental sustainability. Continuous improvement in the packaging and reduction of waste is core component of PepsiCo to maintain environment sustainability. The objective of council is to create innovative strategies which can be responsible for relating the practices that are effective for disposals. Consumers PepsiCo is also morally responsible towards the consumers in many ways. The production of high-quality and safest beverage and food is pivotal for every organization and PepsiCo is dedicated towards it. Food safety programs are developed and maintained by PepsiCo to assure the safety of every packed product. Consumers who are consuming products of PepsiCo can feel safe about the quality and taste of the food and beverage products. The detailed analysis of internal programs of PepsiCo helps to ensure safety of food (UNMICH, 2012). Advertise regarding food safety can help parents to succeed in their task of making eating habits for their children which is vital for their health. . PepsiCo is also morally responsible to the consumers by dedication towards maintaining and manufacturing high quality and safest food products around the world. The advance packaging program is initiated to maintain robust level of safety of food consumed by consumers. Public trust, transparency and honesty are vital for PepsiCo to maintain its sustainable growth. The application of moral responsibility initiative enables PepsiCo to ensure success in the future. Employees PepsiCo behaves morally responsible towards employees. PepsiCo has committed towards maintaining ethical workplace practices and providing opportunity to every employee to contribute to the success of the organization (Danielsethics, 2012). PepsiCo is committed towards providing sexual harassment and racial discrimination free workplace environment. Two morally responsible steps implemented by PepsiCo towards employees are creating and opening favorable atmosphere for employees who can treat other with fair-mindedness and fostering the workplace environment of trust and candor. The moral responsibilities towards employees can help the organization to increase business profit. For long-term benefit of organization, PepsiCo has initiated to establish racial discrimination free workplace. Employees are the pivotal part of every organization. Effective corporate citizenship is important for every organization to enhance sustainable business growth rate and improved bottom line. Impact On Company’s Bottom Line Any damage to the reputation of organization can create huge adverse effect on business. The application of morally responsible decision towards employees, environment and consumers can have a huge effect on company bottom line. Consumption of beverage and food has increased when business is conducted in ethical manner. The bottom line of PepsiCo is effectively increased by the implementation of strategies and initiatives and strengthening relation with customers. PepsiCo initiated Water Partners Grant and other activities to conserve water which is the precious asset of world. PepsiCo is helping farmers to improve their level of income. Example of the process is the introduction of India Agro-Partnership with PepsiCo that enables farmers to grow and earn more money for their benefit. This creates huge effect on the business revenue generation and it helps to create a cost effective process. Introduction of other farming techniques can help to maintain environment sustainability. This can eventually help PepsiCo to maintain financial success and leave behind a positive imprint about the commitment towards success of organization. Environmental Policies PepsiCo has initiated several environmental policies. Policies and initiatives adopted by PepsiCo are to maintain responsible citizen of the world environmentally. Some of the policies committed by PepsiCo are sustainable Agricultural Policy, PepsiCo Environmental Policy and Sustainable Packaging Policy. Sustainable Agricultural policy has been developed to ensure a sustainable progress in the agricultural supply chain. This also includes the protection of soil, water savings and the use of chemical. Recycling and packaging are the way where company can improve its treatment of the environment. Recycling and packaging are the beneficiary factors for every organization to be environmentally sustainable. The improvement of environment is substantially influenced by the proper execution of recycling. Employment Policies Employees are vital part of organization. Respect for dignity and human right for each and every employee has been taken seriously by PepsiCo. PepsiCo provides opportunity to every employee to reach full potential by treating every employee honestly and fairly. The organization has adopted and implemented workplace diversity policy in business process in order to motivate the employees of different cultural background to work collaboratively to ensure conflict free workplace environment. Consumer Policies Policy implemented for consumers is to provide safety and high quality foods and beverage to the customers. Quality of food and safety are the two issues that company need to address to improve the treatment of consumers. Ethical workplace environment has been fostered by the by Sustainable packaging policy which includes multidisciplinary team. This team consists of leader of innovation, marketing, sales and R&D. it is actually helping to organization to meet the needs and demands of target customers. Recommendations to improve treatment Environmental, agriculture and packaging policy are the viable options that are developed to address key areas of business. PepsiCo Policies enables to maintain ethics of the company. Despite the policies and several initiatives, the organization is facing several challenges. Following recommendation plans will help to address the challenges. The greenhouse gas management has created new opportunities for PepsiCo to meet the demands of consumers by supplying affordable, safe and high quality food and beverage. Recycling of manufactured bottles can help to reduce the impact that it possesses on environment. Several initiatives must be taken by PepsiCo to increase the recycling of post-industrial packaging. Consumer sustainability programs initiated by PepsiCo are Healthcare Reform, Food Safety program, and Responsible Marketing. Customers are god for every company. The demands of the customers should be met to enhance the success of company both financially and socially regarding quality of products. Robust safety programs should be developed by PepsiCo to ensure the safety of every consumer. Products should be manufactured ethically to meet the nutrition criteria of consumers which promote healthier living and wellness.Safe food and high quality of beverage and food is vital for company to develop a potential customer base. The implementation of several viable initiatives and practices is necessary for company. The two issues that PepsiCo faces in its workplace are sexual harassment and racial discrimination in spite of taking several initiatives. Sexual and racial discrimination are the issues that every workplace in organization has to cope with. Ethics of workplace should be maintained by creating a work environment where employees treat each other with fairness and respect. The encouragement of the inclusive culture is pivotal for providing opportunity to employees to do their best. Conclusion PepsiCo is regarded as one of the most ethical companies in the world. The pride of PepsiCo has been developed by maintaining environment sustainability, social responsibility and ethical business practices. The commitment of PepsiCo towards employees and consumers is quite significant. It has helped to ensure a sustainable future growth. The benefits of healthier lives and information of education of making effective healthcare decision has been promoted by PepsiCo to ensure social and community welfare. The ethical work environment of PepsiCo has been fostered by the application of several viable policies to encourage employees to work at their fullest for creating positive impact on company bottom line. References Danielsethics. (2012). PepsiCo’s Journey toward an Ethical and Socially Responsible Culture. Retrieved from: < http://danielsethics.mgt.unm.edu/pdf/PepsiCo%20Case.pdf>. Przybylowicz, S. (2014). Protecting Resources - Satisfying Consumers: New Corporate Water Strategies. Retrieved from: < https://wrrc.arizona.edu/awr/f11/protectingresources>. UNMICH. (2012). Sustainable Enterprise: Plastic Waste Recycling in Jakarta. Retrieved from: < http://www.erb.umich.edu/Research/InstituteReports/11-12/PepsiCoSNREMastersProject2012FinalPaperSmall.pdf>. Read More