Business and Society Reflections - Essay Example

Business and Society Reflections (Name) (University Affiliation) (Date) Reflection 1: meaningful work Theoretically, meaning work has always been believed to enhance the performance as well as the motivation of an individual (Rosso et al., 2010). Besides, meaningful work usually emerges from the pursuit of significant purposes in the context of understanding one’s self. I concur with Rosso et al. (2010) who holds that meaningful work gives an individual the purpose to live within the community as the individual feels needed thus attaining his or her sense of belonging. Thus, this paper will discuss what meaningful work means to me as an individual. I will also cite various viewpoints from different authors. I believe that if one understands his or her weakness as well limitations, the individual concomitantly understands the type of work that he or she is most effective at. Moreover, one gets a clearer sense of self-efficacy with regards to the task required to make appropriate as well as satisfying career choices in their lives. Therefore, I believe meaningful work is more than working towards attracting rewards and other forms of appraisals or achieving the organizational objectives as far as the job description is concerned. From Zhong’s et al. (2010) assertion, I gather that meaningful work involves understanding the procedures, culture as the well as the purpose of one’s organization towards having a mutual relationship with the community. This is because meaningful work does not only involve attaining huge profits thus good salaries and bonuses but contributing towards having a sustainable environment, where everyone can live comfortably. When an individual understands how he or she fits and relates with his or her community through the work done by the individual, the sense of accomplishment with respect to work is attained. This indicates that meaningful work involves being excellent for socializing as well as working on teams and feeling more identified with the community, and more committed to work ethics. As such, a comprehension of the aforementioned aspects predicts a more efficient and accurate worker functioning. From the arguments brought forth by Zhong et al. (2010) I have gathered that meaningful work arises when individuals an accurate understanding of the societal, nature as organizational expectation. Most importantly, meaningful work arises when one has a clear sense of self and his or her responsibility to the society. I concur with Moriarty (2010) who posits that meaningful work incorporates the participation of the worker in all spectrums whether it is workplace-related or not, as it is a significant feature in promoting the society’s welfare. When a worker is involved in community programs, he or she contended as the citizenry experience a meaningful life through the community-work-oriented projects. In effect, the customers and other stakeholders would often express their gratification by associating themselves with the organization. I have also realized that non-employee stakeholders often are directly connected to the workplace participation as the workplace institutions more often than impact the autonomy as well as the interests of non-employee stakeholders. Equally, Christensen (2010) maintains that getting good grades and joining one of the best colleges in the world and later landing on a successful career is not enough for one’s life to be complete. Apart from the daily business world, individuals need to learn how to be happy in their career as well as relate well with their families. This reminds me of an uncle, who owned a lucrative and renowned business in my hometown. However, my uncle never lived long enough to enjoy the success of his efforts as he died of stroke, which was caused by high blood pressure. His health condition was majorly caused by the incessant family conflicts that he often experienced, as he did not know how to control his temper thus could not solve any issue with his wife amicably. Having said all that, it should be noted that the most powerful motivator of work is not money, but the opportunity to gain more knowledge and experience, contribute to the society, to be recognized as well as grow in responsibilities. In essence, meaningful work is achieved when one’s relationship with his or her source of happiness as well as well the individual’s work is appreciated by both the community and the organization. Reflection 2: corporate social and environmental sustainability strategies as a competitive advantage." This reflection will discuss the significance of corporate social as well as environmental sustainability with respect to gaining a competitive advantage. I have often been fascinated by various literature that explore the concept of the organization’s role in environmental sustainability as they vividly indicate the reason a business cannot survive in today’s competitive world without being involved in CSR. Research indicates that 70% of organizations are involved in the production of greenhouse gasses as well as other waste materials that adversely impact the environment. Thus, all organizations must be involved in corporate social, environmental sustainability to have a competitive advantage. As the instrumental perspective (Fridman 1970, cited in Black, 2006) posit engaging in any of the CSR programs is not only ethical but also economically beneficial for the organization. Similarly, I concur with Jayaraman and Luo (2007), who assert that the key idea behind corporate social and environmental sustainability initiatives is closely associated with “company branding.” Research indicates that most customers prefer purchasing from reputable organizations that are responsible for a clean and sustainable environment. This view is also supported by Black (2006), who is of the opinion that CSR initiatives tend to build legitimacy in the eyes of the consumers. Likewise, from the class readings and discussion I have gathered that good reputation is significant vis-à-vis other fundamental stakeholders such as contract and business partners, employees and policy makers. Therefore, corporate social and environmental sustainability initiatives should be evaluated based on their propensity in order to make the corporation look good in the eyes of different stakeholders. While the CSR concept is a sophisticated marketing tactic, the instrumental approach does not suggest that organizations should ignore the local and international legislation. I also believe that doing “good” should not be a reason for a company to go beyond the “letter of the law.” Thus, I think it is of competitive advantage if organizations abide by the existing laws and regulations set by the national government as well as the international bodies such with regard to responsible environmental sustainability. In other words, all the corporate social responsibility activities should be carried out within the confines of the law. From my perspective, I believe that if companies are not engaged in sustainable development, which is often considered as one of the most significant issues, then the organizations ought to lose their customers to their competitors. Besides, if firms do not adopt sustainable development, the environmental, as well as the social atmospheres, will be adversely affected globally (Ignatius, 2012). Looking at the statistics with the regards to the prevalence of greenhouse gasses emitted by firms every year, if nothing is done, future generations will be in jeopardy. Nevertheless, being environmental friendly is vital for organizations as a firm grows as well as make profits by lowering their productions through using recycled materials and improving energy efficiency. I think Black (2006) was in his best sense when posited that companies need to come up social and environmental sustainability interventions such as using biogas in their production process in order to appeal to more investors. Today, investors are looking for companies that use limited resources in production in order to have good returns for their money. Therefore, when a firm is involved in such kind of CSR activities, it has a competitive advantage over its competitors as it faced with growth and development opportunities. Thus, social and environmentally sustainable strategies give a competitive advantage over its rivals. Reflection 3: integrity. It does not matter whether one is a CEO or a junior employee; integrity defines a person and as such it is an important aspect that every professional should possess. I remember, during my internship at a local company in y town one junior employee was fired for leaking some personal information to a supplier as he had requested. It was embarrassing for the sacked employee as he revealed the information in exchange of money. I believe the workplace integrity makes a significant difference to one’s professional development as well as enhance the overall company culture. Turknett et al. (2005) as puts it, “it is a ripple effect.” Integrity starts with trustworthiness, honesty, and decency. Thus, as an individual or professional one’s words should match with his or her honorable actions, which create professionalism and respect. Moreover, one should follow through with his or her words as well as being impeccable. As a professional, integrity is considered to be more than ethics; it incorporates the individual’s character. An individual’s characteristics should be consistently considerate, ethical, compassionate, honest as well as transparent. In essence, I am certain that the characteristic of trust is closely related to integrity. Similarly, I believe that a professional should be characterized with integrity since he or she is expected to be consistent with doing right and taking care of other’s feeling. Turknett et al. (2005) were straightforward when they posited that a professional characterized by integrity is reliable as well as predictable with regards to dealing with other individuals both at work and outside. Moreover, they defend what is right, fair and acceptable. According to Turknett et al. (2005) leadership character model, integrity is the foundation of any professional and therefore without integrity no individual/leader can be successful. Accordingly, I believe a professional of integrity cannot twist facts for individualistic advantage. I expect a professional to stand up for what us right and true. A professional with integrity is often careful on keeping promises; also, they can always be called upon to tell the truth during work conflicts and cases. References Black, L.D., 2006. Corporate Social Responsibility as Capability, Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 23:25-38. Christensen, C. M. (2010). How will you measure your life. harvard business review, 88(7/8), 46-51. Ignatius, Adi. (2012). Captain Planet: Interview with Unilever CEO Paul Polman. Harvard Business Review, June, 112 - 118. Jayaraman, V. and Luo, Y., 2007, Creating Competitive Advantages through New Value Creation: A Reverse Logistic Perspective, The Academy of Management Perspectives, Vol. 21, Iss. 2; p. 56, Briarcliff Manor, [available via ABI/INFORM Global] Rosso, B. D., Dekas, K. H., & Wrzesniewski, A. (2010). On the meaning of work: A theoretical integration and review. Research in Organizational Behavior, 30, 91–127. Turknett, Robert L., & Turknett, Carolyn N. (2005). Decent People Decent Company: How to Lead with Character at Work and in Life. Mountain View, CA: Davies Black Publishing. Zhong, C. B., Ku, G., Lount, R. B., Jr., & Murnighan, J. K. (2010) Compensatory ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 92, 323–339. Read More