Industry Project: Effective Participation in the Workplace - Coursework Example

Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Industry Project: Effective Participation in the Workplace Executive summary Social responsibility among employees encourages initiatives that put into consideration the contribution or damage of functions of the organization to the wider society. Employees in a supermarket have to be encouraged to support social responsibility initiatives. This report discusses the essence of social responsibility within a supermarket scenario and what can the management do to successfully implement and evaluate it. Personal ethics can be encouraged through codes of conduct provided by the supermarket and employees asked to adhere to it. Suggestions of enhancing personal ethics have been provided. Accountability plays an important role in the workplace and organizations have to look for ways of successfully implementing it. This report discusses accountability in details, its importance and how it can be implemented and evaluated. Organization awareness is another part of social responsibility and accountability that has been explored. The report winds up with an appropriate conclusion and recommendations. Table of Contents Executive summary 1 Table of Contents 2 Responsibility and Accountability 3 Introduction 3 Discussion 5 Accountability 5 Evaluation of accountability 9 Social responsibility 10 Social responsibility implementation 12 Personal ethics 15 Organizational awareness 16 Conclusion and recommendations 17 References 19 Responsibility and Accountability Introduction Supermarkets all over the world are grappling with a new role which is the need to cater for the present generation needs without relenting on the ability of the next generation to cater for their own needs. Organizations are being urged to adopt responsibility for the manner in which their operations impact on the natural environment and the societies. Organizations are called upon to put in place sustainable principles in the manner that they carry out their operations. Sustainability refers to the activities of organizations, considered voluntary, that show the incorporation of environmental and social concerns in their business operations as well as their interactions with other stakeholders (Black & Hartel 138). It is not common nowadays for supermarkets to enjoy economic prosperity without incorporating agents that are impacted by its actions. The larger society has to be incorporated in the strategic plans of the company. A company has to emphasize on increasing its bottom line as well as being an excellent corporate citizen that add value into the society. Being conversant with global trends together with remaining committed to financial obligations to realize both public and private benefits have compelled firms to reshape their rules, frameworks as well as business models. In order to enhance and understand current efforts, the most socially responsible organizations will continue to revise both their long-term and short-term plans in order to stay ahead of the rapidly changing environment. Moreover, a complex and stark shift has happened in the manner in which organizations have to understand themselves in connection to a wider variety of both global and local stakeholders (Stewart 14). The relationship quality that an organization harbors with its employees and key stakeholders like investors, customers, investors, suppliers, government officials and the public, communities and activists is crucial to its success, as its capacity to respond to corporate social responsibility and competitive conditions. These main transformations require global and national companies to approach their business incorporating sustainable development, and both organizational and individual leadership plays an important role in this transformation. Organizations have come up with various strategies for ensuring successful interaction of the natural environment, social needs with corresponding business imperatives. Organizational awareness makes employees confident and able to serve effectively in the supermarket. Employees who are aware of the structure of the organization understand where to go if there is a challenge in the course of their duty. Organizations can also be regarded on the development continuum with regard to how well and how deeply they are incorporating social responsibility approaches into both daily operations and strategy globally. There are organizations in the continuum that do not at all acknowledge any responsibility to the environment and the society as well. However, other organizations perceive their operations as possessing an important impact together with reliance on the society at the social, ecological, and economic levels, thus occasioning an obligation towards responsibility above the traditional boundaries that an organization operates within. Majority of organizations are a caught in the middle of the continuum (Black & Hartel 138). Sustainability or corporate responsibility is consequently a prominent characteristic of the society and business literature, encompassing topics of corporate social performance, business ethics, stakeholder management, and global corporate citizenship. Management education could be a significant source of new ideas with regard to shifting towards an integrated as opposed fractured knowledge economy, but this translate to mean that the meaning and role of social responsible leadership has to be evaluated. Personal ethics contribute to delivery of excellent service and ensuring that employees work within the stipulated code of conduct. This report uses a supermarket example to illustrate the understanding, importance, implementation and eventual evaluation of social responsibility, accountability, personal ethics and organizational awareness as important ingredients towards success. Discussion Accountability Accountability is the act of accepting responsibility for own actions, decisions and work outcomes. Workplace accountability is whereby every individual is responsible the chores or obligations that are allocated to him and if he does not perform the chores accordingly they he must be accountable for the subsequent implications. Accountability at the workplace is doing the right thing consistently every time in interactions, in tasks in order to fulfill the mission of the organization as well as meeting its objectives (Berenbeim 502). Accountability calls for acceptance of responsibility for one’s actions, decisions and outcomes of work. Looking for scapegoats is not an option for a person who is accountable. Social responsibility is the behavior that is sustainable as well as socially responsible. In work environment where all the workers are fully engaged in whatever they do and go an extra mile to fulfill their tasks each day responsibility is practiced. The employees feel connected to the vision and mission of the organization since they see a solid connection between what they do and the organization’s success. Employees view their work as meaningful, are expectant of reporting to work, and possess a sense of pride in what they engage in and the organization which they work for. Where there is personal responsibility and trust and employees are engaged, the outcome is automatic. Staff turnover reduces; customer satisfaction, and profitability and productivity increase. Engagement of employees can be increased by making employees to take personal responsibility for work (Matten & Moon 411). Employees who are responsible are more productive and engaged. The employees have to accept accountability for getting the right results and persistently find ways that they can enhance their performance. The best employees are known to be responsible. Some people care less about their productivity or their final output. They do their work haphazardly and hand in the feedback without confirming if they have done accurate work (Grant & Keohane 27). They do not show positive work ethics as well as character through taking personal responsibility and they only do what is required of them in their contracts and not more. Accountability is a process whereby a leader or any organization uses to ensure integrity. In the global society accountability is one of the challenges that organizations face. Leaders who are responsible are concerned with aligning and reconciling needs, demands, values and interests of their employees, suppliers, customers, communities, the environment, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and the society as a whole. Accountability comes with being conscious of time and deadline of things to be accomplished. Despite working in teams, individual workers have personal responsibility towards every task (Stewart 14). Taking personal accountability translates to deciding to make a choice that is above circumstances and show ownership necessary for attainment of their desired results. Keeping with the timeline of the project is the goal of any responsible and accountable employee in the organization. Workers have to be accountable for their actions. Implementation of accountability The right environment has to be created by the management in the organization. People will not be held accountable but they can only choose to be accountable. The natural outcome of an individual deciding to take full responsibility for something is what is referred to as accountability. Self-directed people are responsible for their performance and behavior. Employees possess a sense of ownership in their job and have input in the manner in which things should be done and have a direction in the way performance has to be measured. Employees who perceive themselves to have no say will either be rebellious or compliant. Other-directed employees switch off and become disengaged as they rebel against accountability. Such employees will blame someone or other things if they do not perform well. Therefore managers have attempt to hold people accountable by insisting on compliance with procedures and policies, establishing performance standards and goals for employees, through offering incentives in an effort to motivate people to comply. An environment of fear will not encourage trust and accountability (Siegel 15). The natural outcome of applying control-based or authoritarian to enforcing accountability is what is not expected. Some of the control has to be handed to the employees to enhance responsibility. Personal accountability at the workplace can comprise of everything from workers being accountable for themselves, being indispensable, to people in leadership roles and managers demonstrating personal accountability for the purpose of fostering an environment of accountability within the workforce. Employees showing traits of accountability assures the company of a valuable asset that foster meeting of the organizational goals. When people in the management position show personal accountability, it helps in building a culture of accountability within the company (Solomon 118). The employees are keen to see what their leaders are doing and follow suit. When the management is leading by example, it is easier for the rest of the employees to emulate what their leaders are doing. Employees have to set SMART goals for themselves. This is to say that the goals have to be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Result-oriented and Time-bound. Goals that meet this requirement will permit employees to feel more comfortable and at ease with their work. Personal productivity can be subsequently measured. Team initiative programs are also important. These programs will give a chance to employees to motivate each other towards accomplishing common goals, and will be rewarded for exceeding set goals. Prioritization is another aspect that is very crucial. Employee accountability goes down when employees struggle with many things and goals at the same time. Eventually they are overwhelmed and fall below the expected returns. Employees have to be helped in prioritizing their responsibility in the workplace. The management has to monitor the progress of its employees after initiating accountability measures (Schwartz 18). Monitoring will help the manager to know where the employees are struggling and help in encouraging them. Productivity and accountability has to be encouraged through motivation. The employees will try as much as possible to perform better than before if their progress is being monitored. Progress reports will highlight areas that still need improvement among the employees’ accountability initiatives. Monitoring gives feedback of what has to be done in future in order to obtain desired results. Employees in the supermarket have to be put in charge of specific duties and asked to report to the management. Evaluation of accountability Loss of funds and other forms of misappropriations will decrease as employees strive to be accountable. Effectiveness of programs implemented to enhance accountability has to be evaluated from time to time. The supermarket has to set aside time to reflect back with regard to accountability implementation. Trust and honesty are encouraged when employees are accountable. Behavior change and mindset transformation is anticipated where accountability has been successfully implemented. Productivity and profitability will be increased where accountability has been successfully implemented (Solomon 117). If employees at the supermarket can eventually work without persistent supervision, it shows that the programs have been assimilated in the right manner within the organization. Giving employees a free hand in their assignment will give them an opportunity to practice accountability and report genuinely to the management. Successful delegation of duty shows that the level of accountability in the organization has gone up. Social responsibility Social responsibility-behave in a way that is socially responsible and sustainable such as broader community values and consistent company policies. Social responsibility is a duty each organization or individual has to perform so as to ensure a balance is maintained the ecosystem and economy. Social responsibility refers to the ethical perspective that an organization has an obligation to in a manner to benefit the society. An organization or company should not be only focused on making profits. Social responsibility involves developing business having a positive relationship with the society within which they operate. Organizations and people have to behave with sensitivity and ethically toward cultural, social, environmental and economic issues. A company should be concerned about pollutions, creation of jobs to the local community, provisions of social amenities like schools and hospitals, and engaging in social work like clean ups (Grant & Keohane 27). Individual social responsibility entails the involvement of every person in the community where he lives that can be demonstrated by developing interest in what is happening in the community and actively taking part in solving local problems. Responsibility is the usual feeling of ownership for an individual’s life, for circumstances including a person’s accountabilities as well as responding when things go in the wrong way. Accountability is the processing of keeping, making, and managing expectations and agreements in any relationship, business environment or the workplace. Sustainability needs transformation in behavior as well as mindsets. There should be a culture anticipates and expects change. If employees are involved in change at all levels in the change process they will become an important part of the innovative process (McWilliams & Siegel 126). People who have tested work character and ethics take responsibility for the kind of work that they do. They show willingness to make sure the assigned task is done and accept responsibility for the outcome regardless of it being bad or good. The assigned duties are taken seriously and they strive to give their best. People with such character and work ethics are accountable; they make sure their work is a representation of themselves. The character of not claiming responsibility regardless of directly being involved in a task does not foster accountability within the organization. The track record of an organization with regard to corporate social responsibility will be effective if appropriate measures are incorporated in its eternal and its dissemination of good practice in corporate social responsibility as well as supply chain activities. Implementation and functions of social responsibility can be evaluated through the benefits it draws to the company. Organizations which perform well with regard to corporate social responsibility build their reputation whereas those that badly can perform poorly can hurt the company value and brand when exposed. Company loyalty, reliability, trust and credibility can increase when social responsibility measures are implemented rightly. There will enhanced ability to develop, recruit, and retain staff. This is as a result of the pride in the practices and products of the company or introduction of family-friendly policies like allowing time to pick children from school (Berkhout 17). Employee morale and loyalty is improved. Corporate social responsibility can lead to improved competiveness, innovation and market positioning. Corporate social responsibility is about seizing opportunity like rise avoidance. Getting feedback from stakeholders can be a good source of ideas of new product development, markets and processes that result into competitive advantage. The recipe of good business has always been being privy to innovations, trends, and quick market response. There will be automatic cost saving as a result of operational efficiencies. These synergies are obtained from improved efficiencies available through systematic approach to management that involves continuous improvement. For instance, a firm may become certified to social and environmental standards so that it becomes a supplier for specific retailers. Examining the energy and environmental aspects of a certain operation can divulge opportunities for turning waste streams into streams of revenue (Campbell 959). With successful social responsibility there is enhanced ability of a firm to build and attract efficient and effective supply chain relationships. Like-minded firms can build long-term business links through improving standards and consequently leading to risk reduction. A supermarket that has a clear dialogue with its stakeholders is in a better position to respond and anticipate economic, regulatory, environmental, and social changes that may happen unprecedented. With implementation of social responsibility there will be robust social silence as the firm is given a go ahead to operate freely in the society. Enhanced stakeholders and citizens understanding of the company and its objectives result into better stakeholder relationship than before. If some of these features are showing within the organization then it will be an indication that social responsibility has been implemented successfully (Siegel 11). Benefits of social responsibility show the level of implementation in organization. Social responsibility has to be evaluated against the objectives and goals that led to its development in the organization. Social responsibility implementation Commitment to social responsibility has to begin with a written commitment to it. It is not enough for supermarket leaders to hold meetings once a year or hold a press conference to state the commitment to social responsibility. The commitment has to be put in writing. For successful implementation of social responsibility to take place, there should be written commitment into its policies as well as mission statement. The written commitment has to be followed by supporting procedures that have to reflect its commitment to social responsibility (Windsor 107). The supermarket has to come up with clean up programs and evaluation of the environment damage as a result of its operations. The supermarket can also choose to use electronic means of storing and dissemination of data in order to avoid littering the environment through paperwork. The supermarket corporate culture is important and can be used as the right anchor for social responsibility commitment. Repressive culture can put employees off and make them not to contribute to activities that encourage social responsibility. Commitment to social responsibility has to begin at home through initiative of the management or the executive. Procedures and policies are good but they have to be supported by the organization culture where employees feel valued and treated in the right manner. The corporate culture has to incorporate values that will encourage the employees to take part in social responsibility initiatives. Culture reflects the beliefs, values, and attitudes of a corporation. Culture impact the interaction of staff and managers as well as outside stakeholders like suppliers (Bhattacharya, Sankar & Korschun 43). It is a reflection of the alignment of staff with the organization values. In adaptive and responsive cultures staff is excellently aligned to the values of the business and quickly respond to change. Sustainability requires transformation in mindsets and behaviours. The supermarket has to engage in actions that demonstrate its commitment to social responsibility. The supermarket can set up a portion of its profits just for social responsibility activities. New employees have to be initiated into the corporate culture of the supermarket that supports social responsibility and accountability (Stufflebeam & Shinkfield, 328). Formation of an adoptive culture is founded on the work environment that permits ideas to flow, and allows room for errors and corrections. Staff commence to do things since they believe is the only right thing to be done and the deep engagement of staff results into a cohesive group that operates to meet the objectives of the group as opposed to personal interests and motivations. An adoptive culture will automatically support product innovation as well as sustainability. Offering creative freedom and change support is in itself a competitive advantage to the organization since there is more adaptability, responsibility, accountability, and flexibility to the market shifts and trends. The leadership has to set the tone for social responsibility and it should be fully anchored in the culture of the organization. Leadership from the executive is important for any sustainability initiative to be implemented because it offers direction from where decision-making is anticipated. Culture of environmental values is conveyed through action, enhanced by decision-making and interpreted by staff that sees the organization portraying goals and values or performing the required actions. Making sure that owners and the executive set the standards for the company is very critical (Zink 1043). This has to be integrated into sustainability performance into the bonuses or salaries of managers and executives to make sure it is fairly compensated and taken seriously. Creating groups of workers devoted to various initiatives and projects is a way of dividing implementation work, foster team spirit, and create synergy. Sustainability teams are groups of employees representing various business areas like marketing, purchasing, sales, among others. Different employees from various departments can come together to solve problems through presenting divergent views. Personal ethics Personal ethics is being guided by and remaining committed to core values and beliefs like integrity and honesty. In a supermarket setting personal ethics is paramount since the conduct of employees will determine whether they attract more customers or fewer customers. There are intervening challenges in the daily business that can prevent employees from being fully ethical, fair and consistent. Ethics is concerned about human qualities of a person but not the need to be perfect. When an individual is overwhelmed, ethical standards will be compromised. An employee will lie about his physical health in order to avoid reporting to work due to an oppressive supervisor. An employee will also not say the truth if he knows there is no chance that the consequences of his actions will be put within the context of the happening. While unethical behavior like lying has to be discouraged, there should be important channels that allow employees to ventilate and air out their concerns. Employees in a supermarket have to treat the customers well and talk to them in manner that is not aggressive but respectful. Personal ethics can be groomed through teambuilding and organizing retreats where workers bond and exchange their experiences in the course of their duties. High performers have to be given an opportunity to share with the rest of employees how they manage to achieve their targets. Employees in a supermarket have to be compensated adequately in order to discourage thieving and giving of false information. Personal ethics can be implemented by introducing codes of conducted that have to be observed by all employees. Relationship among employees of opposite sex that will affect their working and productivity has to be prohibited. The code of conduct have to be written down and every employee given a copy of the stipulation to read for himself. Ethical standards and behavior have to be outlined clearly. The corporate culture of the supermarket will have to incorporate values of the ethical standards that they desire from their employees. Role playing and mentorship programs can be used to enhance personal ethics among employees. Older and experienced employees can be given new and young employees to mentor and guide with regard to personal ethics. Personal ethics can also be encouraged through rewarding of good behavior among employees. It is good to recognize those employees who have demonstrated exemplary behavior. Personal ethics can be evaluated through analysis of feedback from the customers to see whether there are negative or negative comments from customers with regard to quality service delivery. Organizational awareness Organizational awareness is the ability to recognize organizational operations, structure, systems and culture and adjust attitudes and behaviours accordingly. It is vital for employees to be aware of the kind of organization they are working in so that they give their best when they understand what is going on. Employees in a supermarket will work well if they are conversant with the level of management and expected supervision and what is expected on them. Employees have to be conversant with the environment where they work. Organization awareness makes an employee to understand where to go when looking for a specific service or clarification. Service delivery to customers is faster since the employees know what to go or how the system works and who is responsible for what. Organization awareness can best be implemented during the induction stand in the recruitment process. The newly recruited employee has to be taken through the structures of the organization and how it operations, its corporate culture and the entire mission statement. From the beginning the employee has to understand his input towards achievement of goals of the supermarket. Short courses have to be offered to equip the employee with the knowledge about the structure of the organization. Conclusion and recommendations Social responsibility can be implemented successful through the use of the corporate culture that set outs the standards that employees have to engage in with respect to behaving responsibly. Refuse disposal and getting involved in charitable work has to be slotted in the calendar of events of the company to allow employees to take part in social responsibility initiatives. Ethical behavior standards have to be engraved in the culture of the supermarket and all members encouraged to embrace them. It should be common knowledge of every worker or employee to understand what is expected of him in every situation within and outside the organization. Individual social responsibility from where employees resides play an important role as a build up to the corporate social responsibility that is observed at the company’s level. All members of the supermarket have to be encouraged to take part in activities or initiatives that target to contribute towards improvement of corporate social responsibility. Implementation of accountability and social responsibility should be a collective initiative for the entire organization. The organization corporate culture has to reflect its commitment to social responsibility and accountability. Accountability should not be associated with blame but encourage learning and openness. Employees should be free to engage in activities that will boost the social responsibility status of the organization. Culture of accountability has to be initiated slowly by slowly while its implementation is being monitored. Accountability should not be associated with financial reporting alone but accomplishment of simple tasks by every member of the organization. Research and training has to be conducted on these principles to find the best way of implementing them without pressure on the employees. Implementation of accountability and social responsibility initiatives should be done in consultation with employees. Employees should not feel that they are being sidelined or forced to engage in something that was just imposed upon them. The importance of social responsibility and accountability in any company cannot be disputed. It is important for modern organization working in diverse environment to embrace social responsibility as a way of gaining acceptability in the market and even increasing customer base. Social responsibility opens up opportunities for the company to work in various environments without experiencing resistance from the government or the local community. Social responsibility is an integral part of the strategic plan of organization aimed at increasing the operations of the company. The essence of accountability cannot be overlooked. Accountability is an ingredient that results into increased productivity and profitability. References Black, L.D., & Hartel, C.E.J., “The five capabilities of socially responsible companies,” The Journal of Public Affairs, 2003, 4: 125-144. Berenbeim, R.E., “Business ethics and corporate social responsibility: Defining an organization’s ethics brand,” Vital Speeches of the Day, 2006, 72: 501-503. Berkhout, T., “Corporate gains: Corporate social responsibility can be the strategic engine for long-term corporate profits and responsible social development,” Alternatives Journal, 2005, 31 (1): 15-18. Bhattacharya, C.B., Sankar Sen & Korschun, Daniel "Using Corporate Social Responsibility to Win the War for Talent," MIT Sloan Management Review, 2008, 49 (2), 37-44. Campbell, JL., “Why would corporations behave in socially responsible ways? An institutional theory of corporate social responsibility,” Academy of Management Reviews, 2007, 32: 946-967. Grant, Ruth, W & Keohane, Robert O, "Accountability and Abuses of Power in World Politics". American Political Science Review, 2005, 99, (1): 29–43. Lange, E. A., & Fenwick, T. J., “Moral commitments to community: Mapping social responsibility and its ambiguities among small business owners,” Social Responsibility Journal, 2008, 4: 1/2, 41-55. Matten, D., & Moon, J. “Implicit” and “explicit” CSR: A conceptual framework for a comparative understanding of corporate social responsibility, Academy of Management Review, 2008, 33: 2, 404-424. McWilliams, Abagail & Siegel, Donald "Corporate social responsibility: A theory of the firm perspective", Academy of Management Review, 2001, 26: 117–127. Schwartz, Mark, S., Corporate Social Responsibility: An Ethical Approach, Broadview Press, 2011, P.18. Siegel, Donald S. “Green Management Matters Only If It Yields More Green: An Economic/Strategic Perspective,” Academy of Management Perspectives, 2009, 23: 3, 5-16. Solomon, Jill, Corporate Governance and Accountability, John Wiley & Sons, 2011. Stewart, T.A., “Corporate social responsibility: Getting the logic right. Harvard Business Review, 2006: 84:12, 14. Stufflebeam, Daniel, L. & Shinkfield, Antony, J., Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, London: John Wiley & Sons, 2007, p.328 Windsor, D., “Corporate social responsibility: Three key approaches” Journal of Management Studies, 2006, 43:1, 93–114. Zink, K.J., “Stakeholder orientation and corporate social responsibility as a precondition for sustainability,” Total Quality Management and Business Excellence, 2005, 16:8–9, 1041–1052. Read More