“At this moment, America’s highest economic need is higher ethical standards — standards enforced by strict laws and upheld by responsible business leaders.” - George W. Bush, corporate responsibility speech - July 9, 2002
I find it extremely interesting how social responsibility has become such a hot topic in today’s culture. It makes sense then that companies understand that they have to give back to their community, whether it be locally or globally, in order to win some consumers trust and business. In the week leading up to Valentine’s Day this year, there was a big push on Twitter for men not to buy from a certain online flower delivery company because they were not using best practices in regards to hiring workers who had been abused in foreign countries. I recently saw a notification that congratulated this company for changing their practices as a result of the public outcry that had recently occurred. While I think this is a great thing that the company changed their ways, I am skeptical in regards to the motives. Did the company change because it was the right thing to do, or did they change because it was affecting their bottom line?
I believe it’s true that some people believe in the importance of corporate social responsibility while others could care less. There is a third group that says they care about corporate social responsibility, yet where they shop indicates that they don’t really care. When I was in undergraduate school, one of my professors would talk negatively about Walmart and refused to shop there; however, he admitted that he probably had money invested in Walmart if he were to look closely at his mutual funds. It’s an interesting thing to consider…there seems to be a breaking point in regards to how much we really care about social responsibility and how much we care about our bottom line – the price we pay for a product.
As a result, I think it is important for a company to not only show that they are socially responsible, but that they do their best to do it with pure motives. While I’m not sure how to market your pure motives (it seems to be similar to saying “I am the most humble person I know”), I do hope that companies are doing good not only for their bottom line but also because they care about making the world a better place.
Do you care about social responsibility? Have you ever refrained from buying from a company for an ethical reason?