Challenges in the Global Business Environment - Essay Example

Challenges in the Global Business Environment Tony Webb Jeremy Smithson BUS 475- Business and Society August? Introduction Besides Coca-Cola Company, I choose Red bull Gmbh Company Limited and Heineken Company limited. Red bull is a company that engages in the production of energy drinks. It produces one of the most popular energy drinks by the name Red bull. The company operates many other businesses apart from manufacturing of energy drinks. But its core business is the manufacture of energy drinks (Hays, 2005). The world recognizes the company for the manufacture of energy drinks and being the pioneer industry to produce the drinks. The company ensures that the highest industry standards are upheld. It also dedicates its resources to ensuring that it remains to be the leading energy drink manufacturer. This desire is reflected in the mission statement that states that the company aims to spread its wings over the world in its quest to focusing on global expansion (Hays, 2005). Heineken Company is engaged in the production of beer brands. In the current beer business, Heineken remains at the lead in terms of revenue from its production worldwide. It continues to expand its reach through mergers and alliances with other companies. The company engages in the production of more than 170 beer brands worldwide. Its largest brands are Heineken and Amstel. They reach most of their customers through maintaining their slogan that states that their beers refresh the parts other beers cannot. The coca-cola company belongs to the American company platforms. It is a multinational company the deals with the production of beverages. It carries all the functions of production from manufacturing, retailing and marketing. The company lead product is the coca-cola soda. The company has engaged in many acquisitions in order to facilitate its access to various markets in the world. Ethical considerations The three code of conduct within ethical considerations of business are as follows: creation of a culture of open and honest communication. Within the company, everyone should feel comfortable to speak his or her mind (Pride & Ferrell, 2006). The freedom should be accelerated especially when ethics is in play. Managers are responsible for the creation of open and supportive environments that employees will feel secure and comfortable to raise any issues of concern. Consequently, employees will learn to exercise their power in error prevention. The company should engage in further investigations of any unethical behaviors. Appropriate action in response to the unethical behavior is an important aspect in correction and streamlining the values of the company (Hays, 2005). Strategies should be placed in order to safeguard employees from dishonest managers or leaders who may want to retaliate in cases of genuine ethics concerns in good faith. The managerial department and the human recourse department should be always ready to cooperate with the employees in order to ensure that the policies and codes of ethics stipulated are followed. Another critical issue in the code of conducts as observed is the development of trust and credibility. The success of any business is highly defined by the trust and confidence the organization earns from its employees. The other stakeholders who should earn the trust of the group are customers and shareholders (Pride & Ferrell, 2006). Company credibility is highly reliable on the commitment the company puts forward. It is also dependable on the displayed honesty and integrity in attaining the set objectives and goals. Before the company engages in any action, it is important to constitute the best minds in coming up with decisions. Good decisions will reflect on the ethics of the company (Hays, 2005). The other critical factor is respect for the individual. Every employee, be it a manager or the lower ranking employees, all deserve to work in environments that respect their individualism. The company should be committed to the development of an environment where individual rights are respected. The environment should be able to foster on bringing the full potential of an individual such that the business success is highly safeguarded (Pride & Ferrell, 2006). The company should create a forum where all the employees are treated equally. The environment should be free of discrimination and safe from any types of abusive events or offensive and harassing behaviors. There should exist open and confident channels through which employees can launch their complaints relating to a violation of individual rights (Hays, 2005). Comparing and Contrasting Heineken and red bull companies are all embracing the individual respect for employees and other stakeholders. Both maintain channels through which any concerns affecting individuals in the organizations can be addressed. They carry sensitization programs on the respect for individuals and develop safe environments where the employees can participate in the development of the company towards meeting its stipulated targets. Both companies maintain and highly value trust and credibility as their core values for success. They engage in openness on the products they develop and the components used in the development processes. For instance, Heineken ensures that it lists all the components used in the development of the Heineken beer on the beer bottle such that the consumer can have an insight on what he or she is consuming. Red bull also ensures that the ingredients are listed on the cans such that the customer is aware of the mixture used. Heineken is more discreet when it comes to listing the health benefits of the beer brands, and if there are any anticipated health disadvantages resulting from the beer consumption, the company is always open to sharing with other stakeholders. As opposed to red bull, they do not critically evaluate the health risks associated with the drinks hence, as much as they remain open to their customers, there is still some hidden information. Both companies have engaged in the development of open and honest communication cultures. The only contrasting thing on this code is that the two companies employ different strategies in ensuring that the codes of ethics under this factor are enhanced. They produce different channels through which they solve any misunderstandings within the organizations and develop different pillars that support such environments. The extend of address Both companies take the factors discussed above with great weight. They consider the factors as great influences of their daily business dealings. The two companies understand the diversity of values. They apply them not only to how business is conducted but also how business deals with customers and the interaction of business leaders and other stakeholders. Per se, the two companies ensure that business ethics is highly regarded under any operations they undertake (Pride & Ferrell, 2006). As much as they are highly concerned with profits and satisfying shareholders, they have developed strategies to ensure that the factors discussed above are highly safeguarded. Being ethical ensures that the companies enjoy decreased vulnerability. The companies discussed above have developed and established their business across many countries. Ethics development ensures that the companies remain on the core of their business. Being ethical ensures that the businesses minimize their vulnerability to misconducts and the harms that can come with misconduct especially to profitability (Pride & Ferrell, 2006). The two companies may suffer great deals of profits if they are assumed to be unethical in their production. Consequently, they increase considerably for following the codes of conducts and being ethical. For instance, Heineken has received several ethical conduct awards and media lists on corporate reputation. Such benefits accrue to the advantages of the companies in that they gain positively by following ethics. The two companies have been able to cope with different laws and avoidance of fines in their operation by being ethical (Pride & Ferrell, 2006). Coca-cola Company can adopt the techniques mentioned below in order to maintain its ethical code of conduct at all times. The first is anticipating specific threats to ethics standards and integrity within the company (Dubbink, Liedekerke & Luijk, 2011). Attention to systematic threats that may lead to a weakened adherence to ethical behavior of the company should be strategized in order to minimize the risks involved. Commitment to good governance is also an important factor within this technique. Preparation to tackle the political and management strategies to uphold its ethics ensures a company is safe. The other technique is improving the moral competence of the employees and other stakeholders of the company. Increasing the moral competencies of employees facilitate a smoother decision-making environment for the management of the organization. Moral competencies lead to the development of administrative practices and processes. The processes and practices promote moral values and integrity (Dubbink, Liedekerke & Luijk, 2011). One of Coca-Cola’s methods in sustaining environmental issues is sustainable packaging. The company ensures that it develops stories in every packaging materials used in order to advocate recycling and renewable materials. The company uses the sustainable packaging in order to impact positively towards long-term zero waste (Pendergrast, 2000). In order to attain the above, the company has produced into production of consumer-preferred and recourse efficient packaging. It has also resulted in eliminating landfill waste and using recycled and or renewable materials for packaging. The packaging is done to ensure the quality of the products and safe delivery of the refreshments. The company also engages in environmental law. The legislation places a minimized environmental impact as a core target for the company. The business is always seeking new ways to decrease the use of water and energy as part of its strategies to reduce waste. The company devised ways through which water could be availed to the company through sustainable sources. The integrated approach involves using water more efficiently in the business operations. The company has also engaged in public-private environmental partnerships that aim at protecting watersheds and raising public awareness (Pendergrast, 2000). There are various methods adopted by Coca-Cola in embracing technological advancement. One of the methods is in packaging. The company has engaged in the use of customized packaging that bears a strong link to mobile technology and social media. For example, the company engages in many promotions and campaigns (Pendergrast, 2000). The other method that the company uses to embrace technological advancements is through cultural leadership. The company believes in the era of technological advancement; it is supposed to lead culture other than just following it. The company has invested in modern storytelling tools and data-driven applications that enable it to move from traditional models in precision target advertising (Pendergrast, 2000). Coca-Cola Company will meet particular technological challenges in its lifetime. For example, software security for its data may face big challenges in the future due to the evolving nature of risks. Cyber terrorists are targeting big corporations due to the amount of revenue they collect. Per se, they have been able to develop viruses that can penetrate the security walls of data hence coca-cola may be at risk too (Pendergrast, 2000). In order to safeguard the business from this threat, it needs to develop stronger security walls and carry out a diagnosis of its principal back-up machines regularly. Another challenge is technological mobility. The company may suffer mobility challenges due to the enormous nature of its operations. The company will not be able to escape the need to go mobile. Hardware manufacturers will continue to push the company to go mobile in all its undertakings (Dubbink, Liedekerke & Luijk, 2011). Coca-cola Company has placed its core beliefs in responsible corporate governance. The company employs political process in an effort to educate policy makers. It also engages in helping the policy makers to develop reasonable policies impacting on the businesses and system associates. Moreover, the company ensures that it complies with all the policies that are applicable in its existence (Pendergrast, 2000). Coca-cola Company ensures that it abides by the regulations and legal requirements that stipulate guidelines on contribution to political organizations. The company specifically has embraced corporate political actions which, in other words, mean that the company has devised proactive strategies (Dubbink, Liedekerke & Luijk, 2011). The company adopts all the three factors involved in the process that is passive reaction, positive anticipation, and public policy shaping. Lobbying is an influential practice that is assimilated by most companies in their bid for good relations with governments. Lobbying helps the company develops influence in the decisions made by different parties. Lobbying is an excellent strategy because it enables the company to influence the lawmakers who in return make laws in favor of the company. Coca-cola global citizenship efforts are efforts in relationships forged between individuals, organizations and the wider community (Pendergrast, 2000). The company has build its operation on the assumptions that giving back to the community in which it does business in ensures that it earns good faith. The philosophy is rooted in the company’s beliefs to form a core part of the corporate culture. One of its global citizenship efforts is through sponsoring of sporting activities, and another way is through the engagement in its efforts to recycling and minimum use of scarce resources. Philanthropy forms one of the key backbone components of coca-cola company culture such that it contributes to forming one of the greatest assets of the company. Its global citizenship efforts are seen in its philanthropic actions displayed in the coca-cola foundation (Dubbink, Liedekerke & Luijk, 2011). References Dubbink, W., Liedekerke, L. V. & Luijk, H. V. (2011). European Business Ethics Cases in Context The Morality of Corporate Decision Making. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands. Hays, C. (2005). The Real Thing: Truth and Power at the Coca-Cola Company (Revised/ Expanded ed.). New York: Random House. Pendergrast, M. (2000). For God, Country, and Coca-Cola the Definitive History Of The Great American Soft Drink and the Company That Makes It. New York: Basic Books. Pride, W., & Ferrell, O. (2006). Marketing: Concepts and Strategies (Revised/Expanded ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Read More