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Ethics and social responsibility

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Ethics and social responsibility
Ethics and Social Responsibility
History
In a business sense ethics emerged in the 1970s but social responsibility actually emerged in the 1950s when organizations began believing that they should be operating in a way that would increase the benefits and reduce or eliminate harms caused by their operations (Perks, 2011). In light of the recent ethical scandals of organizations such as Enron this has really become a vital part of organizations. Further, over the last 60 years businesses have come to realize that acting in an ethical manner can give them an edge over the competition and so it has become a part of their strategy to act socially responsible and in an ethical manner. Not only that, over the past several years corporate accountability has increased and the stakeholders are holding the companies accountable for their actions.
Requirement for education and experience
Many companies are beginning to see that employees cannot be held accountable for their behavior if they are not aware of what is expected of them. They must realize the importance of ethical and social responsibility to the company and be provided with the information and tools they need to carry out their jobs based on this importance (Overview, 2004). Many companies include these topics in management training programs which gives their managers the ability to carry it throughout the company. Also, other corporate ethics programs commonly include formal ethics codes articulating the company’s expectations regarding ethics; ethics committees that develop policies, evaluate actions, and investigate violations; ethics communication systems giving employees a means of reporting problems or getting guidance in how to remedy the problem (Ethics, 2010).
Certifications
Because the public is increasingly concerned with matters of ethics in the everyday conduct of professional life both as a society and as members of professional communities, individuals are measuring their and others '



References: Certificate in socially, environmentally, and ethically responsible (SEER) business strategy (2014). Retrieved from www.bschool.pepperdine.edu/ Ethics and corporate responsibility – mcgraw-hill (2010). Retrieved from www.highered.mcgraw-hill.com/.../batemanM2e Overview of corporate social responsibility (2004). Retrieved from www.bcn.ufl.edu/.../csr-overview Perks, S. (2011). A management perspective of ethics and social responsibility: From past to future. Rochester: Social Science Research Network. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com Undergraduate certificate in applied ethics and professional responsibility (2014). Retrieved from www.american.edu/cas/.../applied-ethics-certificate

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