The United States of America is a land of opportunity. As citizens, we have the opportunity to pursue an education, the opportunity to practice freedom of speech, and the opportunity to engage in business affairs. Each of these opportunities functions under a set of guidelines, principles, and procedures. The field of education has a set of standards and expectations that those working in it operate by, social media has become a platform where people have the freedom to say whatever they want and businesses continue to work hard to earn profits and serve their consumers. Though the primary objective of most businesses is to reach some sort of financial success, businesses must re-evaluate their practices regularly. Though separate entities, business ethics, corporate social responsibility, and international business are concepts that connect.
To see the relationship between corporate social responsibility, international business, and business ethics, it’s important to understand the philosophy behind each component. Corporate social responsibility, or CSR, is an ill and sometimes inadequately defined concept. From one perspective, it is the assumption and fulfillment of responsibilities beyond those dictated by markets. Some research states that the fundamental idea of CSR is that business and society are working together in harmony as one entity rather than two distinct ones; therefore, society has certain expectations for appropriate business behavior and outcomes. Other conceptions of CSR focus on performance and outcomes based on profit, which can be assessed independently of motivation. Corporate social responsibility, or CSR, is an initiative that can be broken down further into four categories. These categories are environmental sustainability initiatives, direct philanthropic giving, ethical business practices, and economic responsibility.
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The first category of corporate social responsibility is the environmental sustainability initiative which strives to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases and pollution. All of us want to live our best life and living our best life includes being productive and responsible human beings, showing respect to others around us, and living in an environment free of harmful agents. There are some concerns regarding the state of environmental sustainability initiatives. Scientists have identified a series of harmful impacts on present and future human populations resulting from climate change. Even though economic development is growing, there is a fear that future generations are on the verge of confronting scarce natural resources and a polluted environment. These include water scarcity, drought, heat waves, forest fires, increased global distribution of tropical diseases, increased intensity of storms, rising sea levels, and the inundation of low-lying coastal regions. These impacts of a changing climate will have direct, negative impacts on human populations and will have an especially harmful impact on the ability of the least economically well-off to attain basic human rights (Arnold, 2016). As citizens, we all have a responsibility to leave this planet as clean and healthy as possible, not only for future generations but also for other species that share this planet with us. Economic sustainability challenges businesses to make sure that their products and services are not causing danger or harm to the environment in which we live.
The second category of corporate social responsibility is direct philanthropic giving. Direct philanthropic giving involves donating one’s time, money, or resources to charities and organizations at a local, national, or international level. These donations provide financial assistance to underdeveloped countries, educational programs, and disaster relief funds. One of the most visible ways a business can help a community is through corporate philanthropy. While the courts have ruled that charitable contributions fall within the legal and fiduciary powers of the corporation’s policymakers, some critics have argued that corporate managers have no right to give away company money that does not belong to them and any income earned by the company should be either reinvested in the company or distributed to the stockholders (Wulfson, 2001). Businesses and entrepreneurs that engage in direct philanthropic giving activities promote organizational and field-wide effectiveness. This type of giving also helps to build capacity and encourage knowledge-sharing and collaboration among grantees and grantmakers. Examples of direct charitable activities include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation which sponsored a health summit and facilitated a national HIV prevention initiative; the Annie E. Casey Foundation established a program to provide services to vulnerable children; and the Marin Community Foundation operates a resource center to help people and businesses successfully plan and implement philanthropic activities. Businesses have a responsibility to give back to their communities. Direct philanthropic giving shows that businesses are deeply invested in more than just making a profit.
Another category of corporate social responsibility revolves around ethical business practices. Under these practices, businesses should provide fair labor laws for their employees and the employees of their suppliers. The issue of equal pay continues to plague some businesses. While the federal Equal Pay Act already abolishes wage disparity based on sex, federal laws such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibit compensation discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability. However, many states and businesses are taking it upon themselves to enforce laws aimed at further addressing pay equity. Some laws are more restrictive than others in matters such as prohibiting employers from asking about compensation history or relying on it to help determine employment and compensation offers. Other laws prohibit employers from restricting workplace discussions among employees about their wages. Despite this debate, businesses should also implement equal pay for equal work and living wage compensation initiatives for all employees.
The last category of corporate social responsibility is economic responsibility. Businesses are economic units before anything else. They should offer solutions to their clients to help solve their challenges and achieve their financial goals. For example, ethical leaders have a moral obligation to provide safe, healthy, and non-discriminatory working conditions for employees. This moral obligation also includes providing their customers with safe products and services that meet their needs and expectations. Ethical leaders ensure that the potential risks of products and services are openly and transparently communicated to meet the needs of their customers for safety. To the community, ethical leaders need to be sensitive to the world in which they operate. Ethical leaders assess the impact of business decisions on natural and social environments. They also ensure that production processes are as environmentally friendly as possible. The ultimate goal of ethical leadership is to achieve a common good such as business sustainability and organizational legitimacy (Maak & Pless, 2006).
In addition to corporate social responsibility, international business is an entity that has several functions. These businesses export goods and services all over the world which in turn earns valuable foreign exchange. This foreign exchange is used to pay for imports and it increases profits for businesses, therefore, strengthening the economy of the country. The strategy that international businesses operate under is to utilize the finances and technologies of rich countries and the raw materials and labor of poor countries. By using the best technology, hiring highly qualified employees and managers, producing high-quality goods, and selling these goods all over the world, international businesses often meet their primary objective which is to earn high profits. However, when a loss takes place in one country, the loss can be balanced by gaining a profit in another country. Surplus goods and resources in one country can be exported to another country. All of these things help minimize business risks.
International businesses have a high level of organizational efficiency. They continually use modern management techniques to improve their organization’s efficiency by hiring qualified and experienced employees and managers. Personnel is trained regularly. They are highly motivated with high salaries and strong benefits. From stakeholders’ perspectives, international business leaders possess the art of building and sustaining good relationships with all relevant stakeholders, and their relationships with them are connected through a shared sense of meaning and purpose. By doing so, they create incentives to encourage respectful collaboration and improve motivation and commitment to achieving sustainable and responsible change inside and outside the organization (Maak & Pless, 2006). International businesses receive several financial and tax benefits, facilities, and concessions from our government because these businesses bring in a lot of foreign exchange for the country. International businesses produce high-quality goods at low costs. They spend a lot of money on advertising all over the world. Using the best of the best technology, management techniques, marketing techniques, etc. make these businesses more competitive and in turn, fight off their competitors.
Business ethics involve rules, principles, and standards for deciding what is morally right or wrong when doing business. We understand that business ethics as a concept is changing in the context of new technologies, new ways of resource mobilization and utilization, evolving societal practices, and growing towards a connected global business network. Growing universal awareness of the finiteness of natural resources, the growing wealth divide, and the pervasive presence of businesses in the individual citizen's life through technologies such as big data and cloud computing, bring forth business ethics to the forefront of the conversation on societal norms (Goel & Ramanathan, 2014). CSR holds business leaders- local, national, and global- to a high level of accountability which involves making sure that the decisions made do not violate any laws or ethical principles. Corporate social responsibility examines how international businesses comply with the obligations of applicable legislation and conventions, but also how it integrates social and environmental factors into their global strategic decision-making, policies, and practices. International businesses put business ethics into practice by being sensitive to cultural diversity and thinking globally and strategically. Corporate social responsibility now goes beyond earning money. It’s concerned with protecting the interests of employees, customers, suppliers, and the communities in which businesses operate. Other business ethics practices from corporate social responsibility involve adopting humane employee practices, caring for the environment, and engaging in philanthropic endeavors.
While the primary objective of most businesses is to earn money, there is also a set of principles that should lead them in their day-to-day operations. The principles, or business ethics, are to ensure that companies and organizations operate in a fair and just manner when it comes to employee relations and business transactions. Corporate social responsibility, international businesses, and business ethics are connected because business ethics are a part of both. By donating generously to those in need, establishing fair pay and benefits, and implementing humane employee practices, corporate social responsibility and international businesses demonstrate a strong sense of business ethics.
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