Managing Business Responsibly - Case Study Example

Managing Business Responsibly Table of Contents Portfolio One 3 Portfolio Two 4 Portfolio Three 6 Portfolio Four 7 Portfolio Five 9 References 10 Portfolio One Breaching experiments have been related to the work of the ‘Professor Harold Garfinkel’ (Appelrouth and Edles, 2008, p.574). Breaching experiments aim to show the actual elements of social behaviour, meaning especially the reactions of people to events of everyday life ((Appelrouth and Edles, 2008). Breaching experiments are structured in such was so that they are able ‘to disrupt normal procedures in order to expose them” (Appelrouth and Edles, 2008, p.574). In other words, breaching experiments intervene in every day life and ‘disrupt the taken-for-granted world’ (Atkinson and Young, 2008, p.69). Then, the response of people to complex/ unexpected events can be considered as more credible, based on the fact that there has been no time available for the individuals involved to be prepared in regard to their response to the particular events (Atkinson and Young, 2008). For example, Garfinkel asked the students participated in his experiment to change their normal behaviour at home and ‘to act as if they live in a rented house and not in the house of their parents’ (Garcia 2013, p.19). The responses of the parents varied: other considered this behaviour as ‘a consequence of an illness or others regarded as rudeness’ (Garcia 2013, p.19). In other words, in any case this behaviour was perceived as being out of social norms (Garcia 2013). It should be noted that parents were not informed on the development of this experiment (Baert and da Silva 2010). However, this is the core characteristic of breaching experiments: those participating in the experiment develop a behaviour which is not aligned with social norms (OpenStax College 2012). In this context, the breaching experiments can be considered as valuable for identifying the actual response of people to unexpected events/ behaviour. Personally, a few years ago, I had developed a breaching experiment trying to check the response of my parents to my professional choices. For about a month I avoided going out and I was keeping on reading/ watching business – related videos through the Internet, a behaviour that was fully contradictory with my habit to meet my friends almost every afternoon and to watch sports in TV. My parents reacted rather positively; they’ve told me that they are not going to be opposed to my decision to choose the specific professional field and that I could continue my normal social life, as before. In other words, for my parents, my behaviour was perceived as an effort to show my willingness for a specific career. In fact, I had used this behaviour trying to understand if my parents had realized by professional choices and my needs, a fact that was verified in practice. Breaching experiments, as they were described above, can be used in a business environment especially when change needs to be implemented (Zan et al. 1993). In such conditions, managers can use breaching experiments, as conversational tool, in order to identify the potential response of employees to the change initiated (Neyland 2007). Through the breaching experiments managers can identify potential ‘failures in organizational routines but also the expectations of employees’ (Neyland 2007, p.88), as related to the planned change. Portfolio Two Each individual has a series of specific ‘behavioural characteristics, also known as behavioural tendencies’ (Boyden 2004, p.81-82). These tendencies can be distinguished as belonging into two, major, categories: the tendencies referring to the behaviour of an individual as a member of a social group and the tendencies that reflect the individual’s social concerns (Boyden 2004, p.82). In regard to each individual it is possible for conflicting tendencies to co-exist (Smith 1980, p.206). In any case, for any individual there are certain behavioural tendencies that are standardized, meaning those tendencies that have appeared ‘in the early years of life and remain the same throughout the individual’s life’ (Matthews et al. 2003, p.64). Behavioural tendencies can be better understood by referring to an example: while working, as a volunteer, in the library of local community centre, a damage to a book rented was noted. The person that had rented the book denied that he had a role in the damage caused; I had to report the event/ damage to my supervisor. The conversation developed between me and the customer could have a different content, by my side, so that the tension would have been avoided. The phrases of the conversation, my part, are presented below (in Table 1) including the utterances and the responses that should have been given instead. Behavioural Tendencies Examples of Utterances What might have been said Anger ‘You didn’t pay attention while using the book and you destroyed it’ ‘According to our records, the book was in excellent condition when you received it. Therefore, the damage has been caused while the book was in your possession’ Anxiety ‘Who will cover now the cost of the damage?’ ‘The damage needs to be fully recovered as soon as possible. The relevant cost, according to our rules, has to be covered by you’ Frustrated ‘The damage is not repairable’ ‘The damage seems to be extensive. If it is not repairable then the relevant cost will be significantly higher. The supervisor of the library will decide on the process followed in such case’ Table 1 – Key phrases, by the volunteer’s side, of the conversation Portfolio Three In order to be successful, storytelling needs to emphasize on the following issues: a) the scene involved in the particular story needs to be explained to the audience, b) the structure of the story should be simple so that listeners are able to understand the sequence of events and c) the person that tells the story needs to use his emotions in order to help the listeners to understand better the conditions/ environment of the story (Lipman 1999, p.201). In any case, a storytelling is an excellent way for urging others ‘to develop values’ (Spaulding 2011, p.133). In the workplace, storytelling can help towards the improvement of communication with colleagues or followers (Reissner and Pagan 2013, p.158). It should be noted that most commonly storytelling reflects not only the educational background of the narrator but also his personal perceptions on the story’s theme and the events described (Langellier 2011, p.155). The issues discussed above could be made clear through a story that refers to an accident that took place in the street in front of my house during this New Year’s Day: “It was early in the morning, about 7am, of New Year’s Day of 2014 when I heard a strong noise in the street in front of my house. I ran toward the window to see what has happened. A car had passed over the side barrier of the street and hit on a tree. The car had suffered a major damage; its left-front side was destroyed. The driver, a middle aged-man, was trying to open the door. A child, sitting by the driver, was crying. People from nearby houses ran towards the car; someone had made a call to the police. Police officers arrived about 10mins later; an ambulance had followed the patrol car. Both the passengers of the car were released and were transferred into the ambulance. About 15 minutes later the street was empty; the car left in front of the tree reminded what had happened earlier.” The above story could be described by referring to my involvement in the events: “It was about 7am of New Year’s Day of 2014. A strong noise was heard; the noise seemed to come from quite near. I looked through the window towards the street; I saw a car that had hit on one of the trees beside the street. I ran out and tried to reach the driver who was trapped inside. The driver’s door could not open. A child, by the driver, was crying. I returned home and made a call to the police and informed them on the event and the address. In just 10 minutes the police officers had arrived. In the meantime people from nearby houses had reached the car quite worried. An ambulance had also arrived; the physicians checked the two passengers, the driver and the child, who had been released from the car thanks to the efforts of the police officers. Both passengers seemed ok, at least externally; they could stand on their feet without problem; the driver was anxious in regard to the child’s health; the child seemed also to be ok, no external wounding seemed to exist. The ambulance left the site for transferring the two persons to the nearest hospital, as a precaution in case that an internal wounding had been caused because of the accident. The police officers stayed and made a few questions to me and the other people that had gathered in the place. In about 30 minutes everything had finished. I returned home relieved as both passengers had escaped a severe wounding. All that day I kept on thinking that the accident could be more severe in case that the speed was a bit higher.” Portfolio Four Question a The view of Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop, in regard to CSR seems to be fully verified. As noted by Mrs. Roddick, CSR has been used for a purpose similar to hijacking: the words Social Responsibility that the term includes make the public to believe that a business is fully ethical, a fact that it is usually proved false. The problem has been created by the willingness of large businesses to increase their profits without being interested on the social implications of their activities; in other words, profit has destroyed the potential perspectives of CSR, as Mrs. Roddick noted; this view, in my opinion, is quite right. The credibility of the above view is also verified by the existing literature: Paetzold (2010) noted that CSR has been proved a valuable means for businesses in order to increase ‘their revenues and their reputation’ (p.52). Also, Asongu (2007) explained that many firms have adapted CSR strategies only because of the pressures of their shareholders (p.22). Question b The use of CSR as a tool for improving the image of a brand is a common practice in markets worldwide (Carroll 2013). The relationship between CSR and marketing is reflected in the following fact: several marketing schemes, quite popular in businesses, are based on CSR (Carroll 2013). Reference can be made, for example to corporate giving/ philanthropy and social marketing (Carroll 2013, p.365). An examples of the involvement of CSR in marketing is the following: Rolex has established the ‘Mentor and Protégé Arts Award’ (Ihlen et al. 2011, p.1989) for rewarding artists with unique artistic skills worldwide. The firm has used the art for showing its support towards fields that are related to the social life and culture. When referring to marketing social responsibility is a term used for showing the willingness of firms to respond to the expectations of their customers in regard to the support of activities that promote the public interest (Pride and Ferrell, O. 2008, p.96). Examples of socially responsible ways used by firms to support their marketing are the following: a) the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, introduced in 1992, aimed to increase the awareness of the public on the specific disease and help towards the gathering of funds used for fighting this form of cancer; by the end of 2010 the specific scheme has led to the gathering of about $700 million for covering research and medical treatment in regard to this disease (Avon, Breast Cancer Crusade 2014). In the context of this Crusade a logo has been developed, see below in Figure 1, while social events of various types have been organized worldwide. Figure 1 – The logo of Avon for its Breast Cancer Crusade Portfolio Five Cole and Parker is an example of a socially responsible business. The specific firm has introduced a unique initiative: part of the profit from every pair of socks sold by the company is dedicated to a fund that it supports people in developing countries to start their own business (Cole and Parker 2014). The relevant initiative, in cooperation with Kiva, a non-profit organization, is named ‘1 for Many’ and it is advertised through an image showing a man wearing a pair of socks and, besides, a woman holding a large box full of fruits; the existence of a local brand name on the box of fruits implies that the woman had managed to establish her own enterprise with the support of the funds offered by Cole and Parker (Figure 2). Figure 2 – The ‘1 FOR MANY’ initiative of Cole and Parker (source: Cole and Parker, 1 FOR MANY 2014) The specific business is considered as socially responsible because of the following reason: its target, i.e. the gathering of funds for small businesses in developing countries, may not be welcomed by all people; In opposition, if the company had focused in the support of a broadly known health problem, then the expected revenues of the company would be significantly higher. The company’s leaders preferred to support a social issue that it is not popular, even if the monetary benefits for them would be low. This fact makes the business an exception in the market, where the CSR framework is commonly used as a means for increasing profits, as explained earlier. References Appelrouth, S. and Edles, L., 2008. Classical and Contemporary Sociological Theory: Text and Readings. London: Pine Forge Press. Asongu, J., 2007. Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility in Practice. Lawrenceville: Greenview Publishing Co. Atkinson, M. and Young, K., 2008. Deviance and Social Control in Sport. Champaign: Human Kinetics. Avon, 2014. “Breast Cancer Crusade.” Available at http://www.avoncompany.com/corporatecitizenship/corporateresponsibility/philanthropy/avon-breast-cancer-crusade.html Baert, P., and da Silva, F., 2010. Social Theory in the Twentieth Century and Beyond. Cambridge: Polity. Boyden, S., 2004. The Biology of Civilisation: Understanding Human Culture as a Force in Nature. Sydney: UNSW Press. Carroll, C., 2013. The Handbook of Communication and Corporate Reputation. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons Cole and Parker, 2014. 1 FOR MANY. Available at http://coleandparker.co/1-for-many/ Garcia, A., 2013. Introduction to Interaction: Understanding Talk in Formal and Informal Settings. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. Ihlen, O., Bartlett, J. and May, S., 2011. The Handbook of Communication and Corporate Social Responsibility. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Langellier, K., 2011. Storytelling In Daily Life: Performing Narrative. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Lipman, D., 1999. Improving Your Storytelling: Beyond the Basics for All who Tell Stories in Work Or Play. Little Rock: August House Inc. Matthews, G., Deary, I. and Whiteman, M., 2003. Personality Traits. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Neyland, D., 2007. Organizational Ethnography. London: Sage. OpenStax College, 2012. Introduction to Sociology. Washington: The Saylor Foundation Paetzold, K., 2010. Corporate Social Responsibility: An International Marketing Approach. Hamburg: Diplomica Verlag. Pride, W. and Ferrell, O., 2008. Marketing. 15th ed. Belmont: Cengage Learning. Reissner, S. and Pagan, V., 2013. Storytelling in Management Practice: Dynamics and Implications. London: Routledge. Smith, W., 1980. THE BEHAVIOR OF COMMUNICATING. Boston: Harvard University Press. Spaulding, A., 2011. The Art of Storytelling: Telling Truths Through Telling Stories. Plymouth: Scarecrow Press. Zan, L, Zambon, S. and Pettigrew, A., 1993. Perspectives on Strategic Change. London: Springer. Read More