Corporate Social Responsibility Essay Example for Free

Corporate Social Responsibility Essay To what extent is Corporate Social Responsibility beneficial to a company’s performance? In the 21st century, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become an important, if not essential, for businesses. In addition to basic law compliances, the focus of the consumers as well as the business world now include the impact the company has on the society and on the way they use recourses (Davis, 2010). CSR has become a contributing factor to a company’s financial performance. This is supported by the issued figures of sizeable direct contribution from CSR to a company’s profitability (International Corporate Social Responsibility Conference, 2006) from analysis of notable companies. CSR is believed to have assisted companies both externally and internally. 70% of European consumers express that they are ready to pay more on goods produced by socially responsible companies (CSR Magazine Europe, 2000). On the other hand, CSR is suggested to be one of the qualities employees would like to seek. As Copeland (2003), former CEO of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu has highlighted, the best professionals in the world want to work for companies that exhibit good corporate citizenship. This essay aims at advocating Corporate Social Responsibility as a beneficial policy to a company’s performance through improving customers’ perceptions and employees’ work performances, and thus, can possibly result in a boost of company’s performance, particularly financially. A company’s revenue is mostly generated from customers. The Service-Profit Chain stated that customer value is one of the two factors that will heighten a company’s revenue and hence the company’s profitability( Zeithamal Bitner, 2003). Therefore, a company’s financial performance is affected by how customers value a company’s products. CSR is believed to be a factor that adds value to the product as well as the overall reputation of a corporation. According to Cone Communication (2012), 82 percent of consumers state that they are more likely to purchase a product that clearly demonstrates the results of the companys CSR initiatives. Further more, in the survey conducted by Woolley (2012) that make comparisons between two similar products, the Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola; over half of the respondents say that they would switch to the alternative provided if it offers more in terms of CSR. In fact, CSR influences consumers’ decision in a way that they tend to be in favor of their company than the competitors that are doing poorly in terms of social responsibility. This creates loyal customers. Hallowell and Schlesinger (2000) illustrated that customer loyalty drives company’s profitability by minimizing marketing and operating cost. Those are achieved through consumers’ confidence with the company’s products, word of mouth and familiarization of the company’s operation system. This results in a higher profit for the company. While the gain from maintaining a good reputation through CSR initiatives may not seem evident, the adverse effect by a socially irresponsible decision on a com pany’s revenue is much easier to observe. In 1980s, Nestle, the world’s largest producer of breast milk substitutes was boycotted because of its infant formula and way of unethical marketing, which contributed to the unnecessary death and suffering of infants in developing countries. The boycott was widespread globally and Buffle (1986, p. 13) estimates $770 million to $ 1540 million sales were lost. It shows that corporations who are being socially irresponsible may have to face severe consequences, including decrease in profits, damaged reputation and lower preferences. To conclude, CSR is likely to uplift a company’s image in customers’ perceptions, earn a higher preference and improve a company’s performance, which mostly will reflect directly from its higher revenue and profitability. CSR benefits a company not only externally but also internally; not only by increasing revenue but also decreasing costs across various aspects. Good CSR practices can help to attract new and talented employees. According to the research by the resourcing communication agency Tenney Clemons Saarelainen (TCS), 44% of employees express an organization’s CSR policy is likely or very likely to affect their decision to apply for a job within that organization. This may result in a lower advertising cost for hiring. Further more, cost of retaining staff can also be reduced by enhancing morale and hence commitment to the corporation. As CSR initiatives within a company includes providing employees’ a work life balance, a safe and more comfortable work place and being environmental friendly in the office, these require employees’ participation and team building. Sharma and Devi (2009) argued that it helps to build positive team spirit in the organization and creates a ‘winning’ environment at the workplace. The dedication from the directors will also result in improving employees’ satisfaction. This is reinforced by the investigation result by Rittippant.N, Tangthuttong.A, Sinyodyeam.J and Aurjongmanee.A (2011) which stated that there is a positive significant relationship between organizational’ members perception of CSR and organizational commitment, which is coherent with the previous studies. On the other hand, Heskett et al (1994) stated that satisfied employees are more productive and produce a higher service value. With more satisfied employees from the well-organized CSR initiatives, a company is expected to be more efficient and thus fewer wastage and errors. The improved quality of services is expected to delight consumers and increase their satisfaction, which can further enhance the value of products. Conclusion In order to heighten a company’s revenue and hence the company’s profitability, increasing revenue or cutting costs can be one of the solutions. Corporate Social Responsibility benefits a company in the way that it may achieve both options at the same time. On one hand, it is likely to be able to enhance the image of the company and increase customers’ preferences, and achieve higher revenue; on the other hand, it tends to reduce operating costs on advertising, retaining employees and wastage for corporates. The combination of increasing revenue and decreasing cost may result in a boost of the company’s financial performance. By analyzing how customers and employees react towards socially irresponsible behaviors by companies, it is observed that both customers and employees have become more and more engaged in CSR. According to Strandberg (2002), one of the top trends around which there is consistent agreement is the increasing importance of stakeholder engagement in the future of CSR. However, whether or not there would be a conflict of interests between CSR and marketing strategies, operating strategies or human resources strategies is yet to be explored.

An Inspector Calls as a Tool for the Political and Social Criticism Ess

An Inspector Calls as a Tool for the Political and Social Criticism of the Elite "An Inspector Calls", by J.B. Priestly, is in effect a method the playwright uses to convey an imperative political and social message to his readers. John Boynton Priestley was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, in the north of England. After finishing school, he decided to abandon education to pursue his passion for writing and literature. In 1914 at the age of twenty Priestley was called to fight in the First World War. As one may expect, the years Priestly spent on the frontline, had an immense impact on his ideas towards the social and political system in Britain, and are what fuelled his great politically charged writings. Priestly began to ponder the state of society and the way the social system worked. Perhaps most importantly, he realised that while large numbers of people were suffering, there were many egocentric individuals who were enjoying grand luxuries. "An Inspector Calls" was written in the very week that the Second World War culminated. This shows the urgency with which Priestly wanted to communicate his message. This play, like some of Priestley's earlier work, explores the concept of time, and the phenomenon of how someone's actions can affect someone else's life in the long run. The play is set in an industrial Midlands town in 1912, just before the First World War started. There are 5 main characters, other than the inspector who appears at the very end of Act 1. These are Mr. and Mrs. Birling, their children Sheila and Eric Birling and Sheila's fiancà © Gerald Croft. All of them are upper class citizens and are shown to consider themselves to be part of the social elite. Priestley uses this soci... ...of pay. In his defence, Mr. Birling says: "Well, it's my duty to keep labour costs down, and if I'd agreed to this demand for a new rate we'd have added about twelve per cent to our labour costs." (Act 1, pg 14) Again greed and egocentricity is shown among the higher class. Birling says he had to come down sharp or else they would have been asking the Earth. To this the inspector replies: "They might. But after all it's better to ask for the Earth than to take it." (Act 1, pg 15) Here Priestley is bluntly expressing his anger at the exploitation of the poor by the rich. At its simplest, "An Inspector Calls" is just another moral story, no different from Aesop's Fables. Priestley is trying to teach his audience that individualism and narcissism are one of the greatest evils. He wants us to be aware that our actions today immensely affect events tomorrow.

Nature and Nurture Influences on Child Development Essay

When it comes to child development there are two major influences. These influences are nature which are traits we inherit and nurture which are the traits we learn. Nature and nurture are different in several ways but they both play an important role in child development. Although they both influence development the topic of which has the greatest influence in frequently debated. This paper will describe the relationship between nature and nurture, explain the biological, environmental, societal, and cultural influences on child development in relation to nature and nurture, and discuss whether nature or nurture has the most influence on child development. Nature and nurture are different in several ways but share one similarity which is the fact that they both have an influence on child development. Both of them play an important role in how children develop as well as the type of people they will grow up to be. In the video â€Å"Nature vs. Nurture in Child Development† Shirael Pollack states that children are born with some traits and characteristics while they learn others (Pollack, S. n.d.). Nature is one(s) genes. The traits and characteristics that they inherit such as skin tone, eye color, and hair color. Nurture is what they are taught or what they learn from the people around them such as manners; learning to say â€Å"please† and â€Å"thank you†. Read more: Essay explain how children and young people’s development is influenced by a range of personal factors. There are different influences on child development in relation to nature and nurture. These influences are biological, environmental, societal, and cultural. Nature is responsible for the biological influences. Biological influences are traits that are passed parents to their children. They  include appearance, talents, and abilities, and also certain illnesses (Groark, C., McCarthy, S. & Kirk, A., 2014). Nurture is responsible for environmental influences. These are things that are in a child(s) environment that they are exposed to or experience. Nurture can also be responsible for cultural and societal influences on child development which can be instilled subtly through natural interactions with others. The cultural and societal influences can be direct and indirect impacts of culture, race, and ethnicity as well as the powerful effects of economics, gender roles, marriage, divorce, single parenthood, and religion (Groark, C., McCarthy, S. & Kirk, A., 2014). No matter what type of influence there is on child development it is either related to nature or nurture. Some people believe that nature and nurture are partners because of the fact that they both play a role in child development. However, theorists have different views about the two. Some theorists believe that nature is ultimately responsible for growth while other theorists believe that children become whatever their environment shapes them into (McDevitt, 2010). Regardless of what the different views of theorists are on the topic of nature versus nurture, the fact of the matter is that both of them play a role in how children develop and have some type of impact on what and how they will be when they grow up. Both nature and nurture play important roles in child development. Regardless of if one has more of an influence than the other, the fact is that they both impact how children develop. Truth of the matter is that they are different but share one important factor which is the fact that they help make children who they are. This paper described the relationship between nature and nurture, explained the biological, environmental, societal, and cultural influences on child development in relation to nature and nurture, and also discussed which of the two influences is more influential than the other. References Groark, C., McCarthy, S. & Kirk, A. (2014). Early child development: From theory to practice. Bridgepoint Education: San Diego, CA. McDevitt, T.M. (2010). Nature and nurture: Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/nature-nurture/ Pollack, S. (n.d.). Nature vs. nurture in child development [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.howcast.com/videos/513307-Nature-vs-Nurture-Child-Development

Geoffrey Chaucer s The Canterbury Tales - 1781 Words

During the Medieval and Renaissance Era, women were never the dominant partner in a relationship and were wholly looked down upon. During these women s lifetimes, sovereignty was sought after but never fully achieved. Women were looked at as a way to please the man and someone to carry his child when time came. In modern time, the extremist who don t support equality among women and men are known as misogynists or anti-feminists. On the side of the spectrum, those who do support equality are known as feminists. Geoffrey Chaucer, who is by some considered a proto-feminist writer, is one of the few writers of this time to go against the crowd and speak up for what women wanted. However, because of strict laws in this time, outwardly going†¦show more content†¦Some critics see her stance and ideals as anti-feminist because of her deceitful way of getting the power and pleasure she wants over her husband, portraying the un-idealistic side of the Renaissance women. Women of this time were expected to stay in their lane and conform to the standards of their husbands and the law. Through her physiognomy and linguistics, the Wife of Bath is accurately shown as a confident woman who favors power. During the pilgrimage, Allyson is described as a striking woman with a reddish-tint to her face. She wore stockings of scarlet reed (Chaucer line 456) and high-quality clothing she wove herself. The Renaissance time period only allowed the highest ranked nobility to wear the color red (Daily Life in the Elizabethan Era). Even though Chaucer wants to show her as a noble woman, he uses the color red symbolic to seduction, lust, and passionate love. She has a gap in her teeth which was lusted after during this time, and was an old-pro when it came to love and romance stories. Allyson also mentions she has been married to five different men since she was twelve, but the marriage she is in now is not for wealth but for love. During the Middle Ages, a marriage was highly based off wealth and gaining higher social standing rather than the true meaning of marriage, love. Allys on continues to be the antithesis of women during this time by being shameless about her sexual appetite and how she twists