Impact Of Stakeholders On Business

Submitted By Alicebutler88
Words: 1646
Pages: 7
Open Document
Stakeholders and their impact on business.
This essay is going to look at the value of stakeholders. How they can affect different business' in different ways and the importance of listening to them. Focusing on Primark; Nestle and McDonald’s, and the brand damaging reports about them in the media. Why the companies have a commitment to their stakeholders and the consequences of ignoring them.
One of the most important things to consider when running a business is your company's reputation. This can severely be affected by stakeholders, a stakeholder could be anyone with even a slight interest in what your company does or what it's beliefs are. “A stakeholder is an individual or group, inside or outside the organisation, who has a meaningful stake in its performance” (Naylor, J. 1999) They come in all shapes and sizes, some being pressure groups that have been set up to protect the environment and others to protect the rights of the employees. Some company's choose to follow ethical procedures and some do not, usually with consequences. The decisions your business makes and the path it decides to go down can be seriously affected by the stakeholders. They can in essence close your whole business down, no matter of the size. They can change the general public's behaviour, they can increase costs, ruin the firms reputation and in some cases even change the law.
A lot of company's only look after the stakeholders that they feel are important. This can sometimes be a big mistake. When looking at the shareholders and the owners goals, money is key, whereas the employees and the customers may have a completely different view. These different thoughts about how a company should be run can a lot of the time clash. In the book Business studies (Marcouse, Gillespie, Martin, Surridge, Wall. 1999 pg489) It states that “The managers should take into account their responsibilities to other groups, not just to the owners, when making decisions.” The managers need to asses their situation thoroughly before starting the business, to ensure that any people who are affected by their company have no reason to complain about their ethics. Worthington and Britton (2006, pg220) talk about corporate social responsibility and how “companies should be held accountable for any of its actions that affect people, their communities and their environment.”
In February 2008 the clothing retail company Primark came under fire by the BBC show Panorama. The show made allegations that the overseas manufacturer was exploiting children in their efforts to produce affordable clothing. Primark took immediate action against the claims, cutting all ties with the accused suppliers and counteracting the BBC’s investigation with one of their own. Although Primark acted as fast as they could, sacking the accused suppliers in India and denying any knowledge of under-age workers to the media, the reports were still brand damaging. Primark like any other business has a commitment to their stakeholders, this exposure by the media put the spotlight on them and they were subjected to bad press for some time. As a household brand they are known to produce affordable fashion, but this counted against them as everyone made a connection with cheap clothing and cheap labour. The company has now set up a link on their website called ‘Ethical Trading’ (www.primark-ethicaltrading.co.uk/, 16/10/12) which shows all their support to workers in other countries, they have also set up videos and reports about the case, claiming that the BBC report was doctored and they are in fact an innocent party. They have also set up ethical trade action plans which they hope will prevent any further attacks from the media and essentially reduce the amount of illegal and under-age workers in the future. Stakeholders are important to Primark, without them they wouldn’t be the successful company that they are today. There would be no interest by customers and like any retail business; it is the
Show More

Related Documents: Impact Of Stakeholders On Business

Impact Of Business Ethics

evaluating the impact of ethics and social responsibility on companies, it is imperative to establish the underlying conceptualization of the terms 'ethics' and 'social responsibility.' Essentially, this provides a better comprehension of how they may impact businesses. The concept of ethics is based on moral judgments of what is considered right or wrong. In the context of the corporate world, ethics is concerned with the examination of moral principles and issues that a company may face or that come…

Words 1626 - Pages 7

Ethics Program And Information

Ethics Program and Information Judy J Beasley Kaplan University AC504-01 Professor Sandra Gates Introduction In a business, an ethics program can refer to a process, and a set of the guidelines for living up to the company’s values of how to do the business tasks. This program is likely to offer an explanation of the values that the company holds and the steps to take if an employee has a question about whether they are being met or how to meet them in a particular situation. Therefore, in a…

Words 937 - Pages 4

Essay eth 501 mod 4

and Business Ethics ETH501 Business Ethics Module 4 Case 4 Trident University Abstract The terms "business ethics" and "corporate social responsibility" are used differently by various organizations, companies and media. Other related terms include: sustainability, governance, corporate responsibility, stakeholder engagement, corporate citizenship, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. All of these terms relate to how a company or organization…

Words 1133 - Pages 5

Business Ethics Essay

Business ethics refers to those values, standards and principles that operate within business (McGraw-Hill Irwin). Business ethics can also be defined as written and unwritten codes of principles and values that govern decisions and actions within a company. In the business world, the company’s culture sets standards for determining the difference between good and bad decision making and behavior. In today's modern business world, the road to success requires more than merely technical skills, practical…

Words 645 - Pages 3

Essay On Business Ethics

Business Ethics Papa James Ethics and Moral Reasoning: PHI 208 Instructor David A. Smith March 10, 2014 Business Ethics The issues behind business ethics has expand over times. Sometimes companies do not treat their employee’s right and follow their code of ethics. This could cause troubles for the company. Business ethics is a format of professional ethics that examines moral and ethical problems that come about in a business environment. The heart of any company is their employees. The policies…

Words 783 - Pages 4

Essay on Business Ethics

Business Ethics MGMT-1125 6/5/2013 Rhonda Ledbetter | Business Ethics Business ethics are forms of applied ethics or professional ethics that examine ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It can also be defined as the moral values and principles set forth for a company or market. Proper business ethics are vital for a business to be successful, providing quality care and honesty to consumers. Business ethics are important because how a business…

Words 527 - Pages 3

Essay about Business Ethics and Social Responsibility

Ethics in the workplace help the organization to grow and prosper. They bring about leadership, work culture and literacy. Ethic are beliefs about what’s right or wrong and good or bad based on individual’s values and morals, plus a behavior social context. Ethical behavior conforms to individual beliefs and social norms about what’s right and good. Unethical behavior conforms to individual beliefs and social norms about what’s wrong or bad. Business ethics refers to ethical or unethical behavior…

Words 1475 - Pages 6

Essay on Business Ethics

Pensabene What is really Business Ethics? How does it relate with Real Estate? As adults we go thru life with our values and take them to the company we work for. At work we incorporate our values and rules, weather is right or wrong, and we find how to use them for our self-interest. Ethics is all about making choices that may not always feels good but is the right decision that makes us feel good in the long term and makes us a better person. Business ethics is basically the…

Words 2096 - Pages 9

Ethical Dilemma

College ! ! ! ! !1 Ethics in business is a very wide range topic that is being practiced everyday; from a university firing a lecturer because of a high profile situation to a popular e-book selling company dealing with how they handle employee resignations (Business Ethics in the News, 2014) Many problems and situations arise from being in the workplace where not everyone wins and sometimes nobody wins. But every employee in America has some form of ethics training in order to help…

Words 936 - Pages 4

Essay about Literature: Business Ethics

INTERNATIONAL GRADUATE DIPLOMA PROGRAMME Research skills Business ethics is often described as very old new subjects. This might seems like a strange statement, but it reflects the development of the discipline. On the other hand, ethical thinking has its roots in the writings of the great philosophers like Socrates and Confucius. (Roger Bradburn, 2001). As an academic subject it has only come of age since the Wall Street scandals of the 1980s…

Words 568 - Pages 3