Concepts of Ethics
Ethics is one of the most significant branches in philosophy (Sims 12) that deal with the concepts of morality and special standards of special business behavior. In the third chapter of the book under consideration, the author defines several important concepts of ethics which are corporate behavior, discriminatory workplaces, lack of respect to human rights, and numerous conflicts of interests (Luthus and Doh 60).
All these concepts play an important role for the development of any company. The way of how managers and corporate workers understand their duties and functions defines the quality of the work performed. This is why each concept identified in this chapter has to be considered by all members of a company.
Concepts of Corporate Social Responsibility
In the chapter, several concepts of social responsibility are identified to help managers organize company’s work on a good level. As a rule, CSR has to be concerned with a number of appropriate working conditions, social impact, and role of environment. These concepts are the three main points which are analyzed in the chapter.
The point is that the concepts of CSR is usually closely related to the concepts of ethics, still, the main difference is that these activities are predetermined by law and are of voluntary nature so that a firm may benefit the required number of people. To promote the work of a good quality within a company, it is necessary to adhere to special ethical codes and standards. Attention to working conditions will help to define the range of all operations and perform all them properly.
MNCs and CSR
MNCs are getting involved in corporate social responsibility due to several reasons: first, it is the impact of globalizations under which it is necessary to carry out the chosen business properly regarding social roles set; second, it is obligatory for all MNCs adopt internal codes of behavior; and finally, CSR is one of the most effective ways on how to develop good business, and the vast majority of MNCs understand that they have to display CSR’s sense before they make a decision to take some steps in the chosen field.
Kajima Construction Corporation: an American company to be analyzed
There are many foreign companies the actions of which may serve reliable both positive and negative examples of social responsibility. Each country bases a number of conditions under which it is possible to develop a successful business. Still, such country like Japan deserves much attention as many ethical issues remain to be unsolved and workers may suffer from sexual harassment, slaver, and unequal working conditions.
So, Japan is the country that is chosen for the analysis, and Kajima Corporation is one of the Japanese companies with the help of which the identification of positive and negative aspects of work will be done. There are many people who benefit from being a member of the team, still, not much attention is paid to those people who cannot defend their rights and have to follow the directions of people with high positions.
Backgrounds of the company chosen
Kajima is one of the leading Japanese companies in the sphere of constructing (Gotemba and Iwamoto 55). It was established in far 1840 (Lee 1503), and during a long period of time, the members of the company proved that their achievements and services are worth recognition and customers’ money.
Among the variety of existed domains, Kajima deals with building constructions, engineering, real estate, and design. In spite of the fact that the results of the company’s work are visible to the public eye (Kajima Corporation), there are several negative aspects which have to be elaborated.
What influences the development of the company?
Due to the globalization process and the possibility to work with many people at the same time, the representatives of the company try to set a number of goals and consider ethical and social responsibilities. The official sources admit that Kajima Corporation aims at providing its workers with the best working conditions.
Still, it is evident that certain financial operations as well as managers’ corruption impact the prosperity of the company from all perspectives. Unfortunately, not all Japanese cities are eager to work at this firm. In order to meet the norms not at expense of services’ quality, the company makes a decision to hire Chinese civilians as the required forces laborers and neglect the importance of human rights. Though such decision cannot be justified, many people are eager to earn money and allow the idea of inequality at work.
The role of the company and the Government regulatory body
It is necessary to admit that governmental corruption is still one of the main challenges in Japanese business environment. Still, the role of the Government regulatory body is not as huge in business as the role of the company itself. First of all, responsibility lies in the company and the way of how each member of a team understands personal functions.
Sustainability is formulated within a company, and the regulatory body should control the methods chosen to support sustainability and order. This is why if a company like Kajima Corporation is able to veil their methods, steps, and ideas, the regulatory body cannot be the place where responsibilities lies. And the company is the only reliable source of where ethical principles should be taken into account.
Works Cited
Gotemba, Goro & Iwamoto, Yoshiyuki. Japan on the upswing: why the bubble burst and Japan’s economic renewal. New York: Algora Publishing, 2006.
“Kajima’s CSR framework.” Kajima Corporation, 2011. Web.
Lee, William. International handbook of earthquake and engineering seismology. San Diego: Academic Press, 2003.
Luthus, Fred and Doh, Jonathan. International management: culture strategy and behavior. New York: McGraw Hill, 2008.
Sims, Ronald, R. Ethics and corporate social responsibility: why giants fall. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc, 2003.