...Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not an easily defined term. It is used in several different conditions, depending on how it applies and the objectives it serves. It only came into existence during the late 1970’s after the term stakeholder started being used, meaning – those whom the organizations activities have an impact on. Before, the role of CSR was not highly required or rather thought of, but consumers today are interested in companies, which are socially responsible. If companies loose sight of their consumer’s thoughts it will impact any potential of growth and hamper profitability leading it to cease in existence. This is why; CSR highlights corporate actions and business models related to social, environmental and economic facets within the world today. In regard to understanding CSR better and deeper we were asked to choose a company we could relate our readings and concepts from the Harvard Business Review by Porter & Kramer 2006 and by Zadek 2006. Initially I had trouble choosing a company as my interest in working is majorly in NGOs. I sought out to understand their CSR but after a couple of searching, I was made aware they mainly collaborate with corporate organizations to promote CSR. Such NGOs like Save the Children, ILO, UNDP all align themselves to create a guideline for companies to function with CSR in mind. So next I thought about considering a company that had built in values of CSR from the beginning- thinking understanding a company who had...
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...Organizational Behavior at Whole Foods Introduction This paper will discuss the organizational behavior concepts that relate to Whole Foods. These concepts include Theory X and Theory Y, human and social capital, the profile of the 21st century manger, Carroll’s Global Corporate Social Responsibility Pyramid and the seven moral principles. Whole Foods Market is a supermarket chain that functions through several completely maintained divisions. The supermarkets are located in the US, Canada and the UK. It is headquartered in Austin, Texas and employed about 72,700 people as of September 30, 2012, of whom 16,400 were part-time employees and 3,200 were seasonal employees (“Company Profile”, 2013). McGregor’s Theory Y Role at Whole Foods In 1960, Douglas McGregor wrote The Human Side of Enterprise, which framed two sets of molds about human nature. The first one is Theory X is unenthusiastic and negative. It assumptions people don’t like working and must be forced to do their work, avoid responsibility and have little motivation. As Kopelman and et al. (2012) stated “the manager who holds Theory X beliefs may unwittingly engineer a low level of employee motivation and (ironically) lament to a colleague that you can't get good workers nowadays” (pg. 451). Theory Y is the counterpart. In this Theory, mangers assume employees can be self-motivated, committed, responsible and creative workers. Whole Foods hires people that are well-trained who flourish in their workplace...
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...Rethinking the Social Responsibility of Business From Reason (October 2005) Making Philanthropy Out of Obscenity -Milton Friedman By pursuing his own interest [an individual] frequently promotes that of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it. I have never known much good done by those who affected to trade for the public good. -Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations The differences between John Mackey and me regarding the social responsibility of business are for the most part rhetorical. Strip off the camouflage, and it turns out we are in essential agreement. Moreover, his company, Whole Foods Market, behaves in accordance with the principles I spelled out in my 1970 New York Times Magazine article. With respect to his company, it could hardly be otherwise. It has done well in a highly competitive industry. Had it devoted any significant fraction of its resources to exercising a social responsibility unrelated to the bottom line, it would be out of business by now or would have been taken over. Here is how Mackey himself describes his firm's activities: 1. "The most successful businesses put the customer first, instead of the investors" (which clearly means that this is the way to put the investors first). 2. "There can be little doubt that a certain amount of corporate philanthropy is simply good business and works for the long-term benefit of the investors." Compare this to what I wrote in 1970: "Of course, in practice the doctrine of social responsibility...
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...Whole Foods Market Social responsibility means that an ethical framework that suggests that an entity, be it an organization or individual, has an obligation to act to benefit society at large. There are many actions can be considered as Social responsibility like Philanthropy, Environment ,Ethical labor practices and so on. One of the example of social responsibility organization is Whole Foods Market, Inc. Whole Foods supports sustainable agriculture, and they promotes the reduction of waste.They also encourages environmentally sound cleaning and cut down consumption of nonrenewable resources. The company created the Local Producer Loan program, which provides $10 million as low-interest loans for small local producers to grow their businesses. The best social responsibility that Whole Foods Market provide is giving back to the global community. Whole Foods works to reduce hunger and poverty around the globe by offering them jobs. Grgurich (2012), "The Whole Planet Foundation, a partnership between Whole Foods Market and Nobel Prize winners Muhammad Yunus andGrameen Bank, provides grants to microfinance institutions in Latin America, Africa and Asia, which provide loans, training and other financial services to the self-employed poor." Whole Foods Market is a trust brand because, it likes the relationships we have with friends and family. They are doing their social responsibility to the world and society. Not just focusing on their own business. The reason why Whole Foods...
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...SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: WHY IT’S THE RIGHT THING TO DO “Being socially responsible means that people and organizations must behave ethically and with sensitivity toward social, cultural, economic and environmental issues. Striving for social responsibility helps individuals, organizations and governments have a positive impact on development, business and society with a positive contribution to bottom-line results,” (http://www.imasocialentrepreneur.com/social-responsibility/). In layman’s terms, corporations have a responsibility to serve the community while providing goods and services and making a profit. Business Law author Henry Cheeseman identifies the four theories of social responsibility as: a) maximizing profits, b) moral minimum, c) stakeholder interest, and d) corporate citizenship. In order to comply with social responsibility standards, all requirements must be met. Unfortunately, not all business owners feel obligated to be fully socially responsible. T.J. Rodgers, founder and CEO of Cypress Semiconductor, is one who does not. His primary interests are in maximizing profits and stakeholder interests. Whole Foods CEO John Mackey, on the other hand, fully grasps the idea of and practices all aspects of social responsibility. There are legitimate arguments for and against businesses performing social responsibility activities. The strongest argument in support of social responsibility is that because businesses have such a profound impact on their communities...
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...Company Analysis: Whole Foods Market Introduction Whole Foods Market is American supermarket chains headquartered in Austin, Texas. Today, the company is the world’s leader in selling natural and organic foods and has more than 360 stores in the North America and the United Kingdom (Whole Foods, Inc. 1). As a company, they seek the finest goods available, while maintaining the most faithful quality of natural and organic food items. In essence, they have an impeccable commitment to sustainable agriculture. Their motto is “Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet” (Whole Foods Declaration). The company markets food products and dietary supplements along with body care items, articles of clothing, educational books and household items which include furniture, carpets, lighting, etc (Whole Foods, Inc 1). Some of their specialty items are meat, fish, cheeses, wine, vitamins, vegetables, fruits, prepared meals, animal nutrition products (Whole Foods, Inc 1). The company has an overall good reputation when it comes to customer’s health and diet. With the expansion of the Whole Foods Market, organic food is becoming more popular in families’ kitchens across the globe. One might wonder what contributes to Whole Food Markets nationwide success. As a whole, ethics, social responsibility, sustainability, competitive advantage, technology and innovation are some of the contributing factors to Whole Food Market’s success. Application of Chapter Concepts Ethics One of the factors that...
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...Whole foods wants to hire leaders who are conscious leaders (Core Values). They want to be there to serve the company, other employees, and themselves. This seems to be what McGregor's Theory Y is all about. The text says that theory y employees are committed, energized, and responsible(Kreitner& Kinicki,2013). They also want to serve the organization as well as the organizations purpose. Happy employees results in happy customers. At Whole Foods, I am sure that need creative management so that employees do not become unhappy or feels “stuck” at work. If employees feel as if they are part of a company, they are more likely to be happy. John Mackey’s follows McGregor’s theory y concept because his employees are happy and provide top notch customer service. Theory y managers are easier to teach than theory x managers. Whole Foods prides itself in employee training and keeping them up to date on current issues and technologies that better the company. Whole Foods builds human and social capital in several different ways. Like most companies, they hire and train their employees to be knowledgeable in a specific product or service area. Team members then work directly with team leaders to make decisions regarding their specific area as well as contributing to store decisions as well (Core Values). When it comes to social capital, Whole Foods focuses on sustainable agriculture. It is emphasized to the point that whole foods launched a loan program to help local independent producers...
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...corporations have addressed business ethics in various ways, including the introduction of compliance programs and managers, the addition of board-level ethics committees, the development of codes of conduct, the preparation and dissemination of values statements, the hiring of corporate social responsibility managers and training programs of all kinds. As the events of the past few years in the United States have demonstrated, these efforts, unfortunately, have not prevented certain U.S.-based corporations from engaging in unethical behaviors that lead to larger corporate scandals. This analysis will clearly demonstrate that General Mills is not one of those corrupt corporate entities. The pandemic of our current global economic discontent can be found in the continuing examples of questionable behavior not just by individual employees but also corporate executives. This malfeasance has given rise to critical questions of how corporate ethics efforts can be improved and can address the underlying causes of misconduct, as well as the growing demands for proactive, socially responsible, and sustainable business practices. This paper will discuss the efforts General Mills have gone through to remain the corporate model for ethical business practices while maintaining internal, self regulation to ensure they continue to earn the trust of the consumer. General Mills Background General Mills history started in 1866 when Cadwallader Wasburn created the first flour mill on the banks...
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...Organizational Behavior 18 February 2013 Belief and Support of Human Capital: Case Study Analysis of Whole Foods What role, if any, does McGregor’s Theory Y play at Whole Foods? Explain? The primary focus of this case study analysis shall be to examine the methods of Whole Food’s distinctive approach and development to the implementation of creative management strategies and how they can continue to successfully help them to maintain growth in their company. The underscoring premise of McGregor’s Theory Y primarily rest on the assumption that that the role of management is develop the potential of their employees and help them to realize their potential to meet the common goals of their organization (Steward, 2010). With this underlining thought in mind McGregor’s Y Theory plays an intricate and crucial role at Whole Foods. According to our textbook, Organizational Behavior, by Robert Kreitner and Angelo Kinicki, and the company’s primary mission directives, Whole Foods goal is for upper management to share the responsibility with their frontline managers in the development of a successful work environment (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013, p. 30). Whole foods promotes their employee teams to be self-directed and take initiative and responsibility for operating together for the benefit of their entire business organization. To this end John Mackey, Cofounder and Co-CEO of Whole Foods Market promotes through the application of McGregor’s Theory Y the happiness and growth of all employees...
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...such, Wal-Mart took a holistic approach to changing its mission statement to “we save people money so they can live better” to appeal to a broader customer base. By expanding the target customer base, the retail giant has strategized to appeal to a mixed demographic which out performs other rivals. Wal-Mart’s net sales over the last 3 years have increased consistently with an increase in 2012 of 5.9% year over year. Wal-Mart’s performance and shareholders are inter-related, shareholders are concern about company performance because it will affect shareholders interests if company not doing well in their business. Wal-Mart main focus is to uphold and maintain it responsibilities to shareholders and follows free the market libertarianism model. Milton Friedman model was that Corporate Social responsibility a corporation to provide profit for it shareholders. Wal-Mart does not look at people welfare as one of the things that they need to promote they look at as cost of doing business. They are keeping the wages low to keep the profits. Employees constant complaining about job related issues, training and advancement opportunities. What Wal-Mart is up against...
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...the modern business environment a new component is being added to a company’s purpose; that is for a business to adapt corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a policy or to embed it into operation plans. In fact, many firms are adopting CSR concepts in their decision-making process to ensure a favorable view from the public, and a preservation of their name and reputation. Often actions that align with social responsibility cannot only preserve a corporations name it can also enhance it. This seems to be a part of a trend as society has increasing expectations from corporations to have CSR as part of the way the firm does business. “For years, corporate social responsibility (CSR) was an add-on to businesses and was basically a kind of marketing. But now it seems customers want companies to embed social responsibility into their strategies.” (Holstein, 2008) However, in some companies without CSR policies in place, might select choices without consideration of the perception and consequential ramifications that could be made by the public. This can be especially harmful for small to mid-size businesses who are seeking growth in the near future, as businesses that seem insensitive or uncaring towards the society at large (or smaller communities they serve) can be the targets of boycotts either on a communal or individual scale. Social Responsibility Viewpoint The cases in question are recent decisions made by Company Q, a small local grocery store chain. In recent...
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...Whole Foods Market Corporate Social Responsibility Whole Foods Market prides itself on their Corporate Social Responsibility. They do not have a written initiative in place but do have many aspects of it on their website. They are very much into the community, the environment sustainability. One way they benefit society is by supporting organic farmers. The government does not subsidize the organic farmer like they do the non-organic farmer making it harder for them to make a profit. The non-organic farmer uses 1.2 billion pounds of pesticides each year. The organic farmer uses no toxic chemicals. By supporting the organic farmer, they are helping to keep the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat clean. This is why they can state in their mission statement that they are “selling the highest quality natural and organic products available.” Whole Foods Market was one of the first American companies to sign on to participate in the Marine Stewardship Council. This Council promotes sustainable fisheries and responsible fishing practices worldwide to help preserve fish stocks for future generations. Whole Foods will only sell fish with the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) label. This lets the Whole Foods Customer know that they are supporting seafood sustainability by buying these seafood products. This also lets the customer know that Whole Foods has taken their pledge of quality food seriously. Whole Foods Market gives over 5% of their total net profits...
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...Whole Foods markets are the world’s leader in natural and organic foods with stores in North America and United Kingdom .Their mission is Whole Foods-Whole People- Whole Planet. Whole Food stands for searching for the highest quality and natural foods possible. Whole People mean that the people their hire are passionate about healthy food. Whole Planet means they are committed to helping take care of the world around us. McGregor’s Theory Y is one of the two theories contrasting assumptions about human nature. Theory X assumptions were negative and pessimistic; McGregor felt this was the typical behavior of how managers were perceived by employees. Theory Y was a modern and positive set of assumptions about people. McGregor believed that managers could accomplish more through others by viewing themselves as self-energized committed, responsible and creative beings (Kreitner & Kinicki, p9). McGregor’s Theory Y plays a very important role at Whole Foods. In the table on page 9 number 3 under the Theory Y column states that people generally become committed to organizational objectives if there are rewarded for doing so .John Mackey the CEO of Whole Foods states that they want their employees to be happy because happy employees make happy customers and happy customers will refer people to the place of business there for bringing more customers (Kreitner & Kinicki, p30). This case brings the profile of the 21st century manager to life by implementing many if not all of the items...
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...factors. Corporate social responsibility efforts have the ability to substantially impact both the external and internal aspects of an organization. CSR efforts can be closely tied to the concept of utilitarianism. In utilitarianism actions are performed with the intent of receiving a specific end result. This end result could be profit, social change and even a mixture of both. While many organizations find themselves seeking to solely maximize profits, others seek to have a significant impact on both the community and society as a whole. While some believe corporations are the sole beneficiaries of such practices, others believe that regardless of intent stakeholders benefit. I believe an organization must implement both profit driving and corporate social responsibility efforts in an effort to successfully maintain their business processes. Views on the benefits of corporate social responsibility differ dramatically across a variety of spectrums. Milton Friedman believes that CSR is in a sense a hypocritical concept due to its end result of greater profit for the corporation as a whole. I personally find this difficult to prove due to the benefits of CSR being challenging and nearly impossible to track within an organization. The business model of grocery store Whole Foods is a good representation of the benefits of incorporating both profit and CSR initiatives as it relates to Conscious Capitalism. In contrast to Friedman’s views, Founder and CEO of Whole Foods John Mackey...
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...Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer Strategy G & Society The Link Between Competitive Advantage and Corporate Social Responsibility overnments, activists, and the media have become adept at holding companies to account for the social consequences of their activities. Myriad organizations rank companies on the performance of their corporate social responsibility (CSR), and, despite sometimes questionable methodologies, these rankings attract considerable publicity. As a result, CSR has emerged as an inescapable priority for business leaders in every country. Many companies have already done much to improve the social and environmental consequences of their activities, yet these efforts have not been nearly as productive as they could be – for two reasons. First, they pit business against society, when clearly the two are interdependent. Second, they pressure companies to think of corporate social responsibility in generic ways instead of in the way most appropriate to each firm’s strategy. harvard business review | hbr.org DOUG FRASER 78 HBR Spotlight Making a Real Difference The fact is, the prevailing approaches to CSR are so fragmented and so disconnected from business and strategy as to obscure many of the greatest opportunities for companies to benefit society. If, instead, corporations were to analyze their prospects for social responsibility using the same frameworks that guide their core business choices, they would discover that CSR can be much more...
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