Part A: Instructions
Read the following:
• Donaldson, T. (1996, September). Values in tension: Ethics away from home. Harvard Business Review, 74(5), 48-62. [available through the TRU library]
• Case Study "Google in China"
Answer the following two questions.
• Note: In answering the questions, you should demonstrate your ability to incorporate and integrate your learning from all aspects of this module. Ensure that you include information from the course material, the readings, and your own research.
• Question 1: Do you feel that it is possible to develop a universal set of ethical standards for business, or do you believe that cultural differences make universal standards impractical and/or impossible?
Question 2: Do corporations have a right and/or a responsibility to influence ethics in the countries in which they operate? Defend your position.
Part B: Instructions
Write a 2500-word double-spaced report on corporate social responsibility and related ethical issues in society. You should demonstrate your ability to integrate your learning from all aspects of this module. Ensure that you include information from the course material, the readings, and your own research. Select a topical, newsworthy issue that involves ethical and social responsibility issues relating to business and society.
PICK ONE OF THE FOLLOWING TOPICS:
• Privatization of hospital services in one or more provinces in Canada (e.g. Ontario, Alberta and/or British Columbia).
• Pharmaceutical companies and the conflict over making HIV/AIDS drugs available in poor countries.
• Corporations manufacturing and distributing genetically modified foods.
• Corporations importing toys from manufacturers in China, given the discovery of lead in some toy products produced in that country.
Your report should cover the following:
Section 1. Introduction: Introduce the topic and identify the CSR (and ethical) issue(s) that are of concern. Then, list the stakeholders that influence or are influenced by this issue. Be specific in naming individuals, groups, associations, and/or government bodies. Cite references for your research.
Section 2. Rationale: Analyze the ethics of the issues involved using three of the methods of ethical reasoning (utility, rights and justice) described on pages 88-90 of your textbook. Then, indicate which of the three methods you feel is most helpful in evaluating the ethics of the relevant issue(s). Explain the reasons for your choice. (30 marks) Note:In Section 2. Rationale, rather than estimating the actual costs and benefits involved, you may simply identity and describe the costs and benefits that you would consider (if actual cost-benefit information is not provided in the literature).
Section 3. Impacts (What does this mean to my family?): Describe the potential and/or real impacts to you and your family. Are these impacts direct or indirect? Briefly explain why.
Section 4. Impacts (What does this mean to my community?): Explore the potential and/or real impacts on the local or site community, as well as real or potential impacts on other communities. Describe these impacts from multiple perspectives, ensuring you represent both community and corporate (or organizational) perspectives.
Section 5. Impacts (What does this mean to my country?): Are there broader impacts or ramifications associated with this issue? If yes, how do this ethical and CSR issue impact business and society in Canada as a whole? If no, explain why not.
For part A: Donaldson, T. (1996, September). Values in tension: Ethics away from home. Harvard Business Review, 74(5), 48-62
Unable to find the full article but I found the abstract which sould be suffice.
Abstract:
What should managers working abroad do when they encounter business practices that seem unethical? Should they, in the spirit of cultural relativism, tell themselves to do in Rome as the Romans do? Or should they take an absolutist approach, using the ethical standards they use at home no matter where they are? According to Thomas Donaldson, the answer lies somewhere in between. Some activities are wrong no matter where they take place. Dumping pollutants for unprotected workers to handle is one example of a practice that violates what Donaldson calls core human values: respect for human dignity, respect for basic rights, and good citizenship. But some practices that are unethical in one part of the world might be ethical in another. What may feel like bribery to an American, for example, may be in keeping with Japan's longstanding tradition of gift giving. And what may seem like inhumane wage rates to citizens of developed countries may be acceptable in developing countries that are trying to attract investment and improve standards of living. Many business practices are neither black nor white but exist in a gray zone, a moral free space through which managers must navigate. Levi Strauss and Motorola have helped managers by treating company values as absolutes and insisting that suppliers and customers do the same. And, perhaps even more important, both companies have developed detailed codes of conduct that provide clear direction on ethical behavior but also leave room for managers to use the moral imagination that will allow them to resolve ethical tensions responsibly and creatively.