Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibility

Whitney Perry

University of Maryland University College

December 13, 2015

Introduction

Being concerned about the society, environment, and world are great characteristics for corporations to have. Engaging in initiatives that improve society or the environment are corporate social responsibilities. These engagements improve the quality of life for consumers, suppliers, and people across the global spectrum. Corporations supporting corporate social responsibility are concerned with how they can improve society through environmental, social, ethical practices, and philanthropy. These initiatives can be environmental in nature by utilizing methods or supporting ideas that help protect and sustain the environment. Corporations can be supportive of society by offering jobs and community events to the local community. Corporations can have ethical practices by following fair labor standards and laws set forth by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and can go further with philanthropy by offering grants and scholarships to prepare and help future college students pay for higher education. Although, the mentioned initiatives can be considered kind gestures, they are responsibilities that must be met in some shape or form by large corporations.

        Corporations have the opportunity to use Corporate Social Responsibility in an ethical manner to avoid ethical dilemmas. This paper shall present ethical dilemmas that can arise from Corporate Social Responsibility and provide solutions with ethical theory. Ethical dilemmas may arise with Corporate Social Responsibility if it is proven that CSR takes money away from stakeholders and if CSR initiatives are not morally motivated. Theories presented through the views and principles of Kant and Stakeholder Theory prove the value, morality, and integrity that corporations can use to defend Corporate Social Responsibility’s overall moral value.

Corporate Responsibilities

Corporate Social Responsibility is composed of the economic responsibility to make money, legal responsibility to adhere to rules and regulations, ethical responsibility to do what’s right when no one is looking, and philanthropic responsibility to make contributions to society (Schmitz, 2012). Corporations are expected to be economically responsible, as they must make money and profits to avoid going out of business. This economic responsibility not only affects a business income statement but it contributes to the nation’s economy by providing jobs and taxable income. Corporations can be economically and legally sound by following rules, regulations, and policies set forth by the government. Corporations must be conformed to follow laws and regulations because they help govern and protect society. A world with no rules would be chaotic. The ethical responsibility views the corporation as a citizen. Corporations must be good citizens and do the right thing. Sometimes doing the right thing, involves bypassing profit centric views and strategies and valuing people as human beings and not as numbers. Lastly, when corporations have the ability to do so, they should give back with philanthropy. The last corporate social responsibility supports the general welfare in activities or actions that assists the needs of the surrounding community.