Since the dawn of time human beings have conducted business of some type or other. In Biblical times people had to work and pay taxes to the king or were beaten or killed. In the early history of our country we traded and bartered with the Indians. This system meant trading something you had, like fur pelts to keep you warm on cold winter nights in exchange for whiskey or guns. However, over time businesses expanded to mean the single proprietorship of a little outside café to the CEO of a multi-million dollar business and included for-profit and non-profit organizations.
The role of business today is to provide the consumer with something they need or desire. They are the foundation on which this country thrives. Without businesses that pay taxes we would not have federal and state dollars to pave roads or feed the hungry. Capitalism or free enterprise is what allows owners to open a business of their own imagination and try to be successful. However, being successful comes with not only obligations towards the consumer that buys their product but also to society. The ethics and social responsibility of a company can make or break the company. Issues that may arise are how they treat their employees, how they treat their customers, do they outsource their jobs and how their business impacts the environment.
There are two types of businesses, for-profit and non-profit. Both organizations are similar in that they can be set up and structured like a business and both can make money. However, a for-profit company has a responsibility to make a profit for its shareholders; they also want to earn profits to pay upper management and their employees. A non-profit may make money but all their proceeds need to go back in to the organization. They are usually run by volunteers and generally involve a cause. Wisegeek (2012) states “a non-profit usually has a charter, is organized for a purpose that serves the community and it does not pay dividends to stockholder.”
However, the for-profits are having a difficult time in the current economy. Current fiscal policies tend to discourage business investment through significantly more regulation enacted since the beginning of the recession. Dodd/Frank; for example, restricts the ability of banks and other financial institutions to make loans. Also, the threat of higher taxes and the unpredictable nature of the government's imposition of new types of taxes and regulations stifle growth. Current monetary policy typically would encourage investment through low interest rates, but due to the fiscal policies or threat thereof, low interest rates are not attractive. On the other hand, those organizations (ie. green) involved with crony capitalism are realizing much success.
To broaden the horizons with a business, a company should look at attempting to go global. The world is getting to be a smaller place with all the technology that is being invented. My husband has a software product that is designed to manage home health provider patient information. If he were to attempt to access global markets this should include asking questions such as: 1) Will my product satisfy a market need? 2) Who are my potential customers? 3) Where are they located? 4) What competition exists or is anticipated? 5) What markets are currently served by competition? 6) What significant differences does my product offer? 7) Is the product easily upgraded to adequately meet changing trends? 8) Are there government regulations that reduce the feasibility of pursuing given market? 9) What price will the markets bare? Going global takes a lot of research to answer these questions as well as to learn the countries values and customs before taking on this feat.
With social responsibility being such an important stake in whether a business survives or not, it is important to learn from companies that have had a negative impact on their stakeholders. Performance Coal Company, a subsidiary of Massey Energy, prior to being sold out to Arch Coal was a company that had a great deal of negative impact on its stakeholders. On April 5, 2010, 29 miners were killed and two injured in a methane gas explosion in the Upper Big Branch mine owned by Massey Energy. Days after the explosion stories started of threatened whistleblowers and upper management knowing of safety hazards and doing nothing to correct them These stories and the lawsuits that ensued by the families of the deceased started intense investigations by the state and federal government. It soon came to light that numerous violations were found by the Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) in the days, weeks and years leading up to the explosion. MSHA is a Federal enforcement agency responsible for the health and safety of the nation's miners. In 2009, they issued Massey Energy 458 safety violations and fined them a penalty of $900,000. (Sourcewatch, Massey Energy n.d. para. 8). They also issued fifty “unwarrantable failure” citations. MSHA defines “unwarrantable failure” as conduct such as “reckless disregard”, “intentional misconduct”, “indifference” or a “serious lack of reasonable care” (MSHA, 2012).
Bagley and Savage (2010) states “the CEO plays the most significant role in instilling a sense of ethics throughout the organization. What he does, how he lives and the principle’s under which he operates becomes pretty much those the rest of the corporation emulates”. The CEO and the upper management involved had little regard for the social responsibility to their workers or the community.
After doing some research on Arch Coal, I feel they are clearly run by a CEO who has his ethics in line. In a quote from their website, “Our commitment to safe work practices is focused on people. 2010 marked our third year of record-setting safety performance. That’s a great source of pride as we continue toward what we call A Perfect Zero. Until we reach zero injuries and zero environmental violations, we won’t stop.” (Arch Coal, Inc., 2010) It seems clear to me that this company should set the example for companies and CEO’s worldwide. Putting human lives before profit is just the right thing to do and practicing good business ethics is the key to surviving in the harsh economical climate.

Works Cited

Arch Coal, Inc. (ACI) 2010/11 Corporate Social Responsibility Report. Protecting Our People. Retrieved July 23, 2010 from http://responsible.archcoal.com/protecting-our-people .

Fritz, Joanne. What are the Characteristics of a Nonprofit Corporation? Retrieved July 29, 2012 from http://nonprofit.about.com/od/gettingstarted/a/What-Are-The-Key-Characteristics-Of-A-Nonprofit-Corporation.htm

Miners Safety and Health Administration [MSHA], 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012, from http://www.msha.gov/solicitor/faqs.htm.

The Social Studies Help Center. Monetary and Fiscal Policy. Retrieved July 30, 2012 from http://www.socialstudieshelp.com/Eco_Mon_and_Fiscal.htm

Sourcewatch. Massey Energy. Retrieved July 22, 2012, from http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Massey_Energy

Wisegeek. What is the Difference Between Non-Profit and Not for Profit? Retrieved July 30, 2012 from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-difference-between-non-profit-and-not-for-profit.htm