When looking at a company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the tie in to consumer confidence, the apparel industry illustrates both the best and the worst cases. Today’s consumers are more aware of how multinational corporations are incorporating or failing to incorporate CSR practices throughout the product lifecycle. This awareness has pushed companies in the apparel industry like Nike and Gap to evaluate current practices and incorporate socially responsible and environmentally responsible policies throughout their supply chain. Product Lifecycle The push for companies to become both ethically and environmentally conscientious has created a push for companies to evaluate all stages of product creation. CSR practices will directly impact the lifecycle pricing of these products. For example, wages have increased in developing countries when CSR practices have been implemented in the apparel industry. This increases the production costs which will influence the lifecycle pricing. In addition to increased wages, acquisition and disposal of raw materials also plays an important role in the pricing. Sourcing in the apparel industry costs more to organically produce cotton, especially in developing countries. Mass production of cotton is cheaper, but is usually not ecologically friendly; however, sourcing of products is only one portion of the picture. Often forgotten, is the need for disposal of waste material. Environmentally concerned stakeholders are
In my paper I will be discussing the topics related to corporate social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility (CSR, also called corporate responsibility, corporate citizenship, and responsible business) is a concept whereby organizations consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities and other stakeholders, as well as the environment. This obligation is seen to extend beyond the statutory obligation to comply with legislation and sees organizations voluntarily taking further steps to improve the quality of life for employees and their families as well as for the local community and
Robert Swan once said “the greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” Two companies that understand this concept are Patagonia and Nike. How they address these issues regarding sustainable business practice vary, however. Both have made it their mission to deliver excellence and make the best quality products within their industries, Patagonia focussing more on outdoor active wear, while Nike is more sports oriented. Part of this process has been developing products from sustainable sources. Patagonia, for example, actively took a stand against chemical intensive cotton in 1994, and has since switched to less harmful means of organic cotton within all their cotton-based products. They are even going the extra
Although not all companies are successful at truly embodying what it means to be green, even companies that have been synonymous for contributing pollutants and greenhouse gasses spend millions trying to convince stakeholders that they do. It’s often these last two dimensions of CSR—social and environmental, that either embroil a corporation in controversy or allow it to serve as an exemplar in good ethical business practices.
From the public outcry of unethical sweatshops in the 90s to the Rana Plaza collapse of 2013, the issue of whether corporations should engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been a topic of debate. When determining whether branded apparel corporations should engage in CSR or not, there are many factors to consider, like questions of economics, legality, and philosophical outlook. From the factors mentioned, philosophical outlooks are extremely subjective and hard to solidify into legitimate reasons, so I will not explore into such domain. In terms of legality, corporations are not obligated by law to engage in CSR. CSR is the idea by which corporations voluntarily choose
In other words, these socially responsible companies will evaluate not only the short and long term economic outcomes of their present decisions but also the long-term environmental and societal outcomes of their current actions. This thus leads to the triple bottom line approach of reporting environmental, social, and economic performance. In addition, Wilson from the Ivey Business Journal argues about corporate social responsibility or the CSR. The CSR has been around longer than the term and implication of “sustainable development” but has similar guidelines. From about 1953 the on, the main debate was whether corporate managers had an ethical responsibility to consider the needs of society and by 1980, it was generally and consensually accepted that corporate managers should and did have this moral responsibility. So by incorporating sustainability plans or even creating a separate branch dedicated to doing so, the company’s reputation often is increased, which over the long term, will contribute to accentuate customer loyalty, market share, and brand value and awareness. (Wilson, 2003) This case study done on Johnson & Johnson published by the IMA Educational Case Journal analyzes the impact that implementations of these sustainability
The social responsibility of the American apparel industry covers responsible practices related to human rights, labor standards, and environmental sustainability. Some of the advantages of being socially responsible is higher revenue, customer loyalty, safe and happy laborers, and an overall healthy environment. Research conducted by Price Waterhouse Coopers found out after researching 1,000 retail companies 79 percent said that corporate social responsibility (CSR) was vital to the profitability and value of their company. Throughout the paper there will be a discussion of the advantages of being a socially responsible company. As well as the importance of
Secondly, Gap is investing in CSR to improve its operational efficiency. A major part of CSR is about energy reservation and environmental protection (Hollender and Visser, 2011). As a player in the apparel industry, Gap’s factories are consuming considerable gas, oil and electricity. Statistics show that in apparel industries, the wasting of these resources is quite common (Nevaer, 2010). The wasted energy and resource is not only a loss to the human kind, but would also incur unwanted operational costs for the cloth production in Gap, a practice with great harm to Gap’s operational efficiency. In this case, honoring the energy and resource
I would like to narrow down my project to focus on the affects of CSR on the apparel industry’s supply chain. Therefor my research project aims to examine how CSR as a global trend affects vertically and horizontally integrated manufacturing in the fashion/apparel industry.
According to Waller & Conaway (2011), in the 1990’s, a very large percentage of businesses, particularly large corporations involved in consumer products, made it their top priority to build a reputation for corporate social responsibility (CSR). CSR entails business organizations to incorporate societal expectations at any given point regarding lawful, moral, and unrestricted expectations that society may have (Waller & Conway, 2011). Nike must always be aware of all laws and principles in the communities where it contracts the manufacturing of their products.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) is a term describing a company’s obligation to be accountable to all of its stakeholder in all its operation and activities. Socially responsible companies consider the full scope of their impact on communities and the environment when making decisions, balancing the needs of stakeholder with their need to make profit.
It is difficult for an organization to remain competitive in today’s market without taking Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) into consideration. In today’s market consumers are more aware of how businesses develop their products and service. A few major concerns for consumers are human rights, environmental health, and animal safety. By implementing a strong CSR program organizations will find that they value chain will become more effective and efficient. CSR in the value chain will also foster more good will
The responsibility of a business goes beyond just turning a profit, they also have an obligation to society. The stakeholders; consumers, employees, the community and the environment, all have a variety of needs that should be met by the company. These needs can include things such as safer more affordable products for the consumer, fair wages and good working conditions for the employee, or environmentally safe production practices that cut down on pollution for the community. Meeting these needs is known as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and can have a profound impact on the company. Businesses, big and small, have an obligation to society to provide quality services while protecting the integrity of the environment and community surrounding them.
What is Corporate social responsibility (CSR) to a company? what is the relationship between CSR and profitability to a company? According to the class material I have learned CSR is not only companies do with their profits, but also how they make profits. It goes beyond philanthropy and addresses how corporation manage their economic, social and environmental impact, as well as the relationship with the customers, supply chain, and the community we live in. Corporate social responsibility promotes a vision of business accountability to a wide range of stakeholders, more than just shareholders and investors. The most important aspect of CSR is to protect the environment and the wellbeing of employees, the society and the community in general.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is the intention of the companies to do the right things and act in certain ways that are good for the company, society and environment. CSR was accelerated in 1970 (Archie B, 2006) and took into account since there was a concern between the increased population and scarce resources. It was established in order to ensure that the global development is sustainable. There are three fundamental aspects of sustainability, economic progress, communities’ relationships and environmental protection. This essay will report the managerial skills, leadership style and management practises in leading and managing an organisation to promote better and greener environment. Considerable research has been undertaken on Toyota Motors Corporation.
The founders played a big part in bringing success to the company. First, the founders positioned the company as a socially responsible entity that was really concerned with the welfare of society and the environment at large. As an example, the company was actively involved in supporting the World Wildlife Fund and planted 52 million trees. The founders believe that corporate social responsibility initiatives were not meant to boost the image of the company but to ensure environmental sustainability. Secondly, the founders also successfully adopted a decentralized business model that allowed workers to feel empowered. For instance, various teams in the company played a big part in negotiating critical business deals such as the