Create a 4-5 page corporate policy that addresses an organization-wide ethical issue that impacts multiple levels of stakeholders.

Introduction

Consider how leaders contribute to the ethical profile of an organization and how organizational structures can either support or create vulnerabilities for operating in an ethically sound manner. Where do you see gaps that may be mitigating against an atmosphere that encourages self-regulating ethical behavior? Once you find these gaps, your challenge is to examine strategies that can both remedy and even create model practices for maintaining an ethical base of operating.

Employees are a special group of stakeholders that deserve our attention. As at-will employment and outsourcing become more common, many employees who trusted their employers and expected a lifetime relationship have been shocked by the lack of relationship between themselves and their employer. At the same time, employers say that they have never paid more for benefits or been more accountable for their behavior toward employees. These are just some of the difficult issues within the changing twenty-first-century workplace-all of which speak to our personal and professional ethical boundaries.

Overview

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is defined in several ways. From an ethical perspective, CSR may be used to “cultivate a broad view of their own self-interest while searching for ways to align that self-interest with the larger public good.” There are many ethical dilemmas today that impact companies, such as:

• Harassment.
• Discrimination.
• Nepotism.
• Unequal pay.

In this assessment, we will look at CSR, what it involves, and how to create a corporate policy for a selected ethical dilemma. For example, if the chosen ethical dilemma is discrimination in the workplace, your paper should discuss how a policy could be created, communicated, and implemented to reduce or eliminate instances of discrimination as well as the consequences if discrimination were to occur after the policy was implemented. This exercise will help you to understand how CSR can be a force for good, not just in the company, but in the larger arena of the public good, and how you can have a positive impact via the policy you create.

Reference:

Mayer, D., & O’toole, J. (2010). Good business: exercising effective and ethical leadership. Routledge.

Instructions

For this assessment, consider how a company’s social responsibility can affect the workplace, stakeholders, clients, and other outside parties. In your paper, address these questions:

• How can a company’s social responsibility policy complement its obligation to maximize profits for shareholders?
• How does the ethical issue itself affect employees, stakeholders, clients, and other outside parties, considering the specific company issue? What are the positive and negative outcomes?
• What ethical decision-making approaches would you incorporate into your policy? How would your policy solve the ethical issue?

Follow these steps to complete the assessment. For all of these steps, make sure you provide examples and information from credible sources to support your writing and claims.

• Step 1: Analyze how corporate social responsibility policies can both complement and conflict with profit-maximizing goals.
  • Explain how robust corporate social responsibility policies can enhance a company’s reputation and public perception.
  • Examine how having responsible corporate social responsibility policies support a company’s sales and marketing efforts, and ultimately, the bottom line.
• Step 2: Assess how an organization-wide ethical dilemma impacts the organization internally and other outside parties.
  • Describe, in detail, the organization-wide ethical issue.
  • Describe these impacts and how they affect each category:
    • Employees.
    • Stakeholders.
    • Clients.
    • Other outside parties.
  • Explain how these different categories are interrelated and why an organization needs to address the ethical dilemma through corporate policy.
  • Discuss the ramifications or outcomes that might occur if the ethical dilemma is addressed or not addressed.
• Step 3: Explain how a selected ethical approach is suitable to address the organization-wide issue.
  • Describe, in detail, the selected ethical approach that you would incorporate into your policy.
  • Connect the approach to the ethical issue and describe how the approach is suitable to address the issue with multiple stakeholders. Provide examples and possibly data from other organizations with similar ethical issues.
• Step 4: Create a corporate policy that can help resolve an ethical issue.
  • Identify the essential parts of a corporate policy, then explain how these parts address the impacts from these perspectives:
    • Employees.
    • Stakeholders.
    • Clients.
    • Other outside parties.
  • Create an actual corporate policy that addresses the ethical issue.

Additional Requirements

Your submission should meet the following requirements:

• Written communication: Write in complete sentences free from errors that detract from the overall message. Communicate in an exemplary and professional manner through clear, concise, well-organized, and grammatically correct writing.
• Font: Arial, 12-point.
• Page length: 4–5 pages.
• Citations: Include complete citations of your sources. Review Evidence and APA for more information on how to cite your sources. You can also use the Writing Center, Writing Support, and Wayfinding the Writing Center [DOCX]  as resources to help you with the writing process.

Review the assessment scoring guide for details on how your assessment will be graded.

Competencies Measured

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:

• Competency 1: Evaluate the parameters for ethical decision-making in 21st-century multi-cultural business environments.
  • Explain how a selected ethical approach is suitable to address the organization-wide issue.
• Competency 2: Assess the impact of corporate social responsibility policy.
  • Analyze how corporate social responsibility policies can both complement and conflict with profit-maximizing goals.
  • Assess how an organization-wide ethical issue impacts the organization internally and other outside parties.
  • Create a corporate policy that can help resolve an ethical issue.
• Competency 4: Convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards.
  • Write in a well-organized and concise manner that adheres to the rules of grammar, usage, and mechanics.