Question

Assignment 2: Prologue: Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); Reading pgs. 13-14 of Prologue (Worth 9 pts. total)

In recent years, there has been an increasing awareness and growing interest in sustainability and social responsibility by both consumers and corporations.

Merriam-Webster defines sustainability as the ability of a system to maintain its own viability, endure without giving way, or use resources so they are not depleted or permanently damaged. Or, in other words, it’s the ability of a system to operate in such a manner that it is able to continue indefinitely. The United Nations has defined sustainability as the “ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Others have defined sustainability as an expansion of the golden rule: “Do unto others, including future generations, as you would have done unto you.”

Sustainability has three overlapping pillars: environmental, social, and economic. They are not mutually exclusive and are often mutually reinforcing. The pillars are interdependent and none can exist without the other. Many have come to believe that a company will only be viable in the long run if all three of these factors are considered when making business decisions. As a result, many companies, including The United Nations and other public sector organizations, adhere to the notion of a triple bottom line (TBL or 3BL). TBL recognizes that a company’s performance should be viewed not only in terms of its ability to generate economic profits for its owners, as has traditionally been the case, but also by its impact on people (social) and the planet (environmental). Most of the leading companies in the world are now issuing corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports through which they communicate their social and environmental impact. Businesses are now viewing sustainability and social responsibility as opportunities for innovation and business development.

Part 1: Worth 6.5 pts. (1/2 pt. each)

Below are examples of green initiatives recently undertaken at The Coca-Cola Company. For each example, indicate whether this initiative would primarily impact the environmental (EN), social (S), or economic (EC) factors.

1.      ______ Provided on-site wellness coaching for employees in the Baltimore sales facility to help to improve employee health.

2.      ______ Diverted more than 2.5 million beverage containers from landfills by placing more than 3,000 recycling bins at NASCAR racetracks across the United States.

3.      ______ Generated a positive economic benefit in every community in which Cocoa-Cola has facilities in the United States.

4.      ______ Reduced beverage calories in U.S. schools by 88% since 2006.

5.      ______ Prohibited marketing to children under the age of 12 in its global marketing policy.

6.      ______ Deployed hybrid electric trucks, which generate approximately one-third fewer CO2 emissions than a regular truck, in several major U.S. cities.

7.      ______ Minimized the amount of water used in the manufacturing and cleaning processes, resulting in a water use savings of over 2 billion liters since 2008.

8.      ______ Recruited from a wide cross section of the communities that its services so that the representation of women and minority groups in management can be improved.

9.      ______ Displayed total calorie counts on the selection buttons on company-controlled vending machines so that consumers can make informed choices.

10.    ______ Generated a profit for the company’s shareholders.

11.    ______ Removed the side walls on the corrugated trays that carry products, which resulted in savings of almost 2,400 metric tons of corrugated packaging.

12.    ______ Provided training and career training for employees to help to provide a rewarding work life.

13.    ______ Reduced the bottle cap size by .5 millimeters and shortened the bottle neck, which resulted in a total plastics savings of more than 11,000 metric tons since 2007.

Answer 1

Answer:

1. Economic factor

2. Environmental factor

3. Social factor

4. Social factor. This is a voluntary decision taken by the American Beverages Association to reduce the supply to schools by 88%.

5. Social factor

6. Environmental factor

7. Environmental factor

8. Social factor

9. Economic factor. Displaying calorie count on the selection buttons makes the user more comfortable and thus, creates a positive impact on the company. Which in turn increases the sales revenue.

10. Economic factor

11. Economic factor

12. Economic factor. Providing training to their employees will benefit the organisation as the employees become more skillfull and efficient.

13. Economic factor. Actually this impacts primarily both Economic and Environmental factors as it saves alot of money and also protects environment from plastic. But from the business point of view, their primary objective would be reduction of costs. Hence it impacts their Economic factors.