Social Responsibility as Stewardship
This article discusses and identifies ways that Christian business leaders can become socially and ethically responsible leaders in their community by the way they run their firm. The article highlights key points and discusses current issues that are being created in the World by leaders who do not operate their firms with ethically sound decisions nor act as Stewards in their community. Because of these unethical manners, the world has experienced numerous problems over the past 50 years, which was when people began expressing their concerns.
Showing responsibility toward a business customer is one of the key highlights that can help contribute to the way in which a business is run. The simple idea of deciding what products a business should make and sell can have a large influence on how they contribute to their industry and to the world. As stated in the article “it is very important to analyze which human needs and drives we appeal to in making a sale.” (pg. 209) Making sure that a company is producing items that are an actual need to an individual and not just a desirable marketing approach is a very important concept to consider. We should also consider the waste that could be potentially generated from our products. “Our increased use of disposable products that are not biodegradable is creating massive problems because there are not enough landfills in which to dispose of them.” (pg. 210-211) When considering a new product, it is important to analyze all of these aspects, especially because of the current effects on the world that scientists are suggesting are caused by such bad business and consumer decisions. The erratic changes in today’s weather patterns are just one example of how unethical decision making by business leaders can effect just about the entire world.
Even after these considerations towards the introduction of a new product are considered, additional measures must be taken in order to maintain a Christian based Stewardship towards society. Setting prices is another example of how our decisions as a business leader can have a lasting effect on others. “Prices may be set high to manipulate consumer perceptions that high prices indicate premium products. In setting prices we must consider variable and fixed costs, the need for research and development, and a reasonable profit margin.” Variable and fixed costs play an important role in how a company is benefiting from a products manufacturing and production costs, and thus should not be taken lightly. As labor overhead varies with production levels, the fixed costs remain the same for the most part. So unless your intake marginally exceeds your overhead, the harder it will be for the company to maintain a profitable inflow of cash. The way a product is manufactured and priced to customers can have a heavy impact on how profitable the company will be. If a company increases a product’s price with the false perception of the product being “good”, then that particular company will likely not benefit from selling to that individual in the future. Additionally, that particular person may share their negative perception of that company with many others. This is particularly concerning in today’s society, mostly due to the popular use of social media. Just about everyone uses Twitter, Facebook, or some form of internet based resource for communicating with others and shopping. Because of society’s turn toward internet- based activities, it is very likely that a person will be more prone to filling out an online review that is available for millions of people to read. An unethical company who has been revealed online is not likely to remain in business for very long. Many companies throughout history can contest to this concept.
Responsibility toward competitors is another way that a business leader can show stewardship and act as a Christian should. Some companies throughout history have been known to display
