Business Management

Unit VIII Lecture Transcript

Slide 1

Unit VIII, Organizational Ethics, Sustainability, & Social Responsibility,

and Global Issues for Human Resource Managers

Slide 2

In order to gain a deeper understanding of the concepts presented in

this course, the unit lessons will be structured in question and answer

format. Each slide will provide at least one question based on concepts

presented in this unit and an accompanying audio response from a subject

matter expert. Review each slide to further enhance your practical

knowledge about the field of human resource management.

Slide 3

Meet Marilyn Pike. Marilyn has over 20 years of experience in HR

leadership positions in both the public and private sector, large and small

businesses, and union and non-union environments. She currently holds

both the SPHR and SHRM-SCP.

Question: What do you believe the concept of ethics entails?

Answer: There are probably as many different ideas about ethics as

there are people, but I think most people would agree on the need for trust.

I’m certainly no expert on the mafia and/or gangs, but I believe members of

those organizations have their own set of “rules” or ethics they live by in

order to trust one another. As the saying goes, “there is honor among

thieves.” My point is that in every relationship, be it personal or business, a

fundamental trust is necessary for the relationship to succeed. I think this

speaks to the necessity of organizations having a specific code of ethics,

which gives employees a guide to follow. Ethics should be part of the culture

of the organization. Every culture has concepts of right and wrong, although

those values do vary some from culture to culture, a primary objective of the

code of ethics is to define what the company is about, and make it clear that

the company is based on honesty and fairness. Managerial support, and

especially top management support, is absolutely critical to a successful

code of ethics. If senior managers pay no attention to the code of ethics,

subordinate managers and employees will pay no attention as well. But that

said, everyone needs to practice personal responsibility. This is the concept

that everyone in the organization is responsible for the ethical conduct of

business, not just “the boss.” Personal responsibility also refers to

accountability for one’s own actions, so we need to identify the

consequences to an employee if they violate the code of ethics. And then, of

course, there is compliance. The compliance factor can identify applicable

laws or industry regulations that must be adhered to as part of the code of

ethics.

Slide 4 (2:06)

Question: What is corporate social responsibility (CSR)? (2:06)

Answer: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the idea that

organizations have a duty to all stakeholders to operate in a manner that

takes each of their needs into account. “All stakeholders” means everyone,

not just shareholders or executives. Legal CSR focuses on maximizing profits

while obeying the law; it focuses on increasing sales and cutting costs to

maximize returns to stockholders. In dealings, these firms meet all of their

legal requirements. Of course, that begs the question, “If something is legal,

does that mean it is ethical?” That’s an issue that people and businesses

have to struggle with constantly. Child labor is legal in third world countries

and the cost of goods may be lower, so is it okay for our business to buy

products made in sweat shops? It is legal for pay day loan companies to

charge exorbitant interest rate and (some say) prey on the poor—is that

ethical? Do we want to be involved in that type of business? There’s not

necessarily a right or wrong answer. One could argue both sides of the

question. But every business and person has to make the choice. Ethical

CSR focuses on profitability and doing what is right, just, and fair. These

companies meet reasonable societal expectations and exceed government

laws and regulations to be just and fair to stakeholders. Benevolent CSR

focuses on profitability and helping society through philanthropy. This

highest level of CSR is also called “good corporate citizenship.” Benevolent

firms are philanthropic, giving gifts of money or other resources to charitable

causes. Employees are expected, encouraged, and rewarded for being active

volunteers in the community, often on company time. Some would call this

“good PR or Public Relations”. I’m sure you can all think of organizations in

your community which are known for benevolent CSR.

Slide 5 (0:33)

Question: What is sustainability?

Answer: Sustainability involves meeting the needs of the current

generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet

their own needs. Business must practice sustainability today because so

many resources are being overused to the point that they cannot be

replenished and will ultimately disappear unless we quickly change our

practices. The most common, or well-known, sustainability practices are

done by what are known as green companies. A green company acts in a

way that minimizes damage to the environment.

Slide 6 (0:44)

Question: Why do some businesses work to transition to global

operations?

Answer: The main reason is to increase business. Goods, ideas,

services, and knowledge flow freely across national borders, creating greater

demand for products. So the biggest reason for globalization is to remain

competitive and increase business. For example, let’s face it, if you are a

major corporation, like Coca-Cola, is there any place in America to expand?

No, the market is saturated. Ultimately, in many industries, at least, the

company will consider international operations of some type to gain a

competitive advantage over its competitors. Enter the expatriate employee,

an employ who leaves their home country to work in another country.

Slide 7 (1:15)

Question: What are some human resources trends and issues in

globalization?

While the world appears to be moving more toward protectionist trade

policies, it appears the degree of globalization is continuing to rise based on

the most recent available data. At the same time, evidence shows that some

developed countries are retrenching when it comes to international

operations. Governments continue to pressure business to reshore some of

their operations. Some companies are retrenching jobs back to their home

country. For example, call centers in the U.S; a recent article in Forbes

highlighted the fact that in the last 5 years, the trend to outsourced

overseas call centers has begun to reverse. American companies began to

figure out that customers did not want to talk with someone 10,000 miles

away, even if their English is perfect, often their understanding was not

(Dichter, 2019). That said, it appears that some production and service jobs

will continue to be moved out of home countries to other locations around

the world to take advantage of capital cost savings. This means that

managers, including HR managers, are going to have to continue getting

more capable in training and preparing employees for international

assignments.

Slide 8

This concludes the Unit VIII question and answer session with subject

matter expert Marilyn Pike. Reflect on this question and answer session as

you review your readings for this unit.

Slide 9

Reference

Dichter, T. (2019). Call centers return to the U.S. – More companies get the

link between customer service and profit. Retrieved from

https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasdichter/2019/03/30/call-centers-

return-to-the-u-s-more-companies-get-the-link-between-customer-

service-and-profit/#31495c7114ff