For Molson Coors, Nike, Coca-Cola and other companies operating in different countries, social responsibility can be a tool for self-definition – and a way to exchange cultural values
From ethics to etiquette, fashions to values, cultural norms vary vastly from place to place – and companies that ignore the differences do so at their own peril. But what if a company is caught between two communities – and two sets of community values? For companies that manufacture products in one country and sell them in another, balancing the ethics and moral values of two cultures can be a delicate dance of give and take, with lessons for both sides.
There’s a very real impetus for companies to make corporate social responsibility (CSR) work: developed-world customers often respond harshly to companies that they perceive as coming up short on social responsibility. As a UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs report noted, a large amount of CSR has been “driven by the concerns of investors, companies, campaign groups and consumers in the world’s richest countries”. In other words, as developed-world consumers and communities have called for greater corporate responsibility from their preferred brands, companies have responded with actions that, the report notes, have become important for reducing poverty in middle- and low-income nations.
May 27, 2017 at 01:03PM
from Bruce Kennedy
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