Ethics Policy and Corporate Social Responsibility - Essay Example

Unethical behavior is different from unlawful in the sense the former entails that which is not acceptable as per the stipulated rules by a firm. Conversely, unlawful behavior has to do with what is legally forbidden. For instance, an employee who physically attacks another at the workplace is engaging in an unlawful act; starting romantic relationships in the office is unethical.

Question 5

Corporate Social responsibility (CSR) has elicited mixed views since Milton Friedman asserted the essence of every business.  Milton’s statement that the primary objective of every business is to make a profit is often viewed negatively with some contesting these assertions. To some, businesses have a responsibility to the society around them. However, the position taken here is that the statement by Milton is correct and is strongly agreed with. First, hardly any business is conducted without employees meaning that society already benefits through employment. In addition, many companies require materials, many of which are sourced near their stations (Lee & Kotler, 2013). This greatly influences the communities around because the business offers a marketplace for different materials.

There is more that a business does for society than monetary assistance including invention. For instance, Microsoft has caused a global impact simply by inventing interesting computer-related products. As a result, people from around the world have used some of these products to change their lives positively.  In this case, society has not directly benefited in monetary from Microsoft, but their lives are transformed tremendously. Hence, CSR is not compulsory for businesses since it is not the primary objective. Besides, by undertaking different projects, businesses affect society in various ways.