Code of conduct
Integrity is of great concern in Chipotle Mexican Grill (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012). All employees in the restaurants should work toward customers and company satisfaction, but not for personal gain. The employees should be real, honest, and work under minimal supervision. Most of the situations, the restaurant workers, make personal decisions during work performance. The personal decisions should not violate Chipotle ethics and its reputation in the public gallery. The importance of the integrity of employees gets a basis on the values of good judgment in order to maximize the Chipotle profits (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012).
Employees should adhere to a Chipotle code of ethics on gift acceptance from competitors. The acceptance of gifts in the form of money, item, or any other form, may create a conflict of interest that have a direct impact on the company’s reputation (Hitt, Ireland, Camp & Sexton, 2001).
Acceptance of gifts influences employment judgment. The managers or directors of Chipotle think that the employees who receive gifts are not satisfied with the job responsibilities in their current position (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012). In addition, the employers generate fear of competitors influencing Chipotle workers toward disclosing some confidential competitive advantage information after acceptance of gifts (Bollinger & Smith, 2001).
Whistleblower policy is of significant importance to the Chipotle business. The employees that participate in conducting investigations regarding complaints may receive retaliatory action, hence the need for protection. Whistleblower policy protects employees who willingly accept to disclose or raise concerns about business operations. The policy restores the confidence of the employees to the employers (Bollinger & Smith, 2001). The employees get assurance that their jobs will not undergo termination after raising a concern, offering assistance, or providing information in regard to Chipotle operations. The policy allows the anonymity of the employees upon request, and it complies with the federal law on employee protection (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012).
Following code of conduct
Chipotle Mexican Grill should conduct educational sessions for all employees on the company’s code of conduct. According to Bollinger and Smith (2001), the management team should ensure all the employees understand the meaning and importance of a code of conduct before commencing on their new positions. Refresher courses, seminars, and conferences should be present on a quaternary basis every year.
Continuous guidance on understanding Chipotle code of conduct will be helpful toward the continuity of the company’s operations. The restaurant should develop mechanisms of punishing the employees that breach or violate the code of conduct on personal interest. Proper guidance is essential for employees violating the code of conduct before terminating their terms of service (Hitt et al., 2001). The employees should have public sessions of interacting with the corporate office managers and board of directors in order to have a good understanding of the consequences of adhering or violating the code of ethics (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012).
Constant reviews and communication about the new changes will be helpful in an efficient adherence to the Chipotle Mexican Grill code of conduct. Chipotle board of directors should allow employees to give their views, contributions, and comments toward changes in the company’s code of conduct. The company should set a reasonable and acceptable code of conduct that has a universal description of the restaurant operations.
The employees should clearly identify the risks of a lack of compliance with the code of conduct (Bollinger & Smith, 2001). Employers have a duty of describing the association of code of conduct with the company’s goals or expectations. The code of ethics should be in line with the restaurant policies in order to avoid employees from engaging in outside business investments that may lead to low work output in Chipotle. Employees should understand the consequences and losses the company may undergo upon breaching the code of conduct (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012).
Socially responsive activities
Chipotle can engage in socially responsive activities by allowing its employees to participate in community activities within the area of restaurant operations (Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2012). Some of the community activities Chipotle participate in are beauty exhibitions, cultural events, and health education sessions among others. The restaurant and its employees are aware of the massive benefits accrued upon participation in community activities.
Hitt et al. (2001) argue that community activities are some of the methods of company advertisement, product awareness, and capacity building sessions. The restaurant may use socially responsive activity opportunities toward launching new products at minimal expenses. Participating in community activities creates a good opportunity for Chipotle in creating a partnership with other similar and beneficial companies (Bollinger & Smith, 2001).
Chipotle can engage in socially responsive activities through sponsorship of some televised shows. The shows give the restaurant a chance to promote its services to potential clients. During the show, the restaurant management may run promotions through offering free products such as burritos to the participants of the show. During special holidays, Chipotle sells burritos at subsidized prices to customers that visit the restaurants wearing chipotle vestments. Free burritos and other restaurant products get offered to the victims of catastrophic events such as hurricane Katrina (Bollinger & Smith, 2001).
Chipotle cooperate with family farms that offer organic products such as beef and vegetables to the restaurants. Additionally, cooperation with organic farms inspires more farmers and increases awareness of the importance of natural food products. The restaurant management creates reward programs for their faithful and loyal customers. Some of the rewards customers receive are free T-shirts, umbrellas, and food (Bollinger & Smith, 2001).
References
Chipotle Mexican Grill (2012): Code of conduct. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. Web.
Bollinger, A. S., & Smith, R. D. (2001). Managing organizational knowledge as a strategic asset. Journal of knowledge management, 5(1), 8-18.
Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., Camp, S. M., & Sexton, D. L. (2001). Strategic entrepreneurship: entrepreneurial strategies for wealth creation. Strategic management journal, 22(6‐7), 479-491.