BUSINESS ETHIC AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Table of Contents

QUESTION 1
Straw Man Approach……..…………………………………………………..2 – 4

Examples of Straw Man.….…………………………………………………..5 - 6

Philosophy……………………………………………………………………..7 - 9

Child Labour ……………..…………………………………………………….10 – 13

QUESTION 2
Noblesse Oblige………….……………………………………………………14 – 16

2 Examples Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) ….……………………17 - 18

Microsoft………….……………………………………………………………..18 - 19

Apple …………………………………………………………………………….19 - 21

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………....22 - 23

References…………………………………………………………………………...23

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QUESTION 1

Straw Man Approach

Four straw men approaches:

1. Friedman doctrine - the only social responsibility of business is to increase profits, so

long as the company stays within the rules of law, .Companies should not undertake
expenditures beyond those mandated by law and those required for the efficient running
of a business.

2. Cultural relativism ethics ate culturally determined and firms should adopt the ethics
of the cultures in which they operate, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do".

3. Righteous moralist - a multinational's home country standards of ethics are the

appropriate Ones for companies to follow in foreign Countries. Approach is common
among managers from developed Countries

Naïve Immoralist - If a manager of a multinational see that firms from other natios are
not following ethical norms in a host nation, that manager should nor either – do what
other foreign firms are doing. Actions are ethically justified, if everyone else is doing the
same thing.

All four approaches offer inappropriate guidelines for ethical decision making.

• The Friedman doctrine was developed by economist Milton Friedman, who argued that
the only responsibility of business was to increase profits.

• Friedman claimed that as long as the firm stayed within the letter of the law, ethics
didn't enter the equation.

• So, in other words he would argue that it's not the responsibility of a company to take
on social expenditures beyond what's mandated by law and what's required to run a
business efficiently.

• So, Friedman would advocate the use of child by law, labor, as long as it wasn't
prohibited by law.

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• Similarly he would argue that a company could dump pollutants into a river, again as
long as there wasn't a law against it.

• Friedman did suggest that companies stay away from fraud and deception though.

• The second straw man approach, cultural relativism, is the belief that ethics are
culturally determined and that firms should adopt the ethics of the cultures in which they
operate.

• In other Words‘ When in Rome. Do as the Romans do

• So, if a culture supports slavery, the approach would suggest that companies adopt
slavery, too.

• Most People would agree however, that it's appropriate to follow certain business
practices in some cases.

• For example, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act was amended to allow for facilitating
payments.

• The d approach, the righteous moralist, takes the opposite perspective from cultural
relativism. and claims that multinational’s home country standards of ethics are the
appropriate ones for companies to follow in foreign countries.

•While initially you may think this is the right approach, following it can create problems.

• For example, suppose you decided that since you pay your pay your employees $15
per hour at home, you should pay employees the same wage to do the job wherever
they may be located.

• Well, you've just eliminated a key reason for making an investment in a developing
country - lower wages.

• If you don't make the investment because it doesn't save you moneys then you won't
bring new jobs to the developing country, job that could be very beneficial to the
Country

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• the naive immoralist argues that if a manager of a multinational company sees that
firms from other countries are not following ethical nouns in a host country, that
manager should ignore the norms as well,

• You might think back to your elementary playground and the old adage that two
wrongs don't make a right.

• Example: because another country is paying off drug lords doesn't mean you should
do it too.

•Straw Man.

•A fallacy is an argument or belief based on erroneous reasoning. Straw Man is one

type of logical fallacy, Straw Man occurs when someone argues that a person holds a
view that is actually not what the other person believes. Instead, it is a distorted version
of what the person believes. So, instead of attacking the person's actual statement or
belief, it is the distorted version that is attacked.

•https://laborrights.org/publications/child-labour-football-stitching-activitity-india

•https://laborrights.org/releases/forced-labor-down-sparing-cotton-work-systemic-
problems-remain

•https://laborrights.org/publications/federation-trade-unions-uzbekistan-workers
%e2%80%99-organization-or-instrument-control-workers

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Examples of Straw Man:

1. Senator Smith says that the nation should not add to the defense budget Senator
Jones says that he cannot believe that Senator Smith wants to leave the nation
defenseless.

2. Caroline says that she thinks her friends should not be so rude to the new girl Jenna
says that she cannot believe that Caroline is choosing to be better friends with the new
girl than the girls who have always known her

3. Pamela is the class secretary. She says that she thinks that the class should do more
service projects. Mark says he can't believe that Pamela doesn't support the annual
school dance.

4. Biology teacher begins teaching evolution by stating that all things evolve. Student
says she just can't accept that humans came from bugs.

5. Student tells his professor that he thinks some of Donald Trump’s positions have
merit Professor says he can’t believe that the student believes in support racism.

6. Student tells his professor that he thinks some of Hillary Clinton’s positions have
merit. Professor says he can’t believe that the student supports giving access to
classified documents to foreign countries.

Utilitarian approaches to ethics hold that the moral worth of actions or practices is
determined by their consequences • An action is judged to be desirable if it leads to the
best possible balance of good consequences over bad consequences - One problem
with utilitarianism is in measuring the benefit, costs and risks of an action - The second
problem related to utilitarianism is that it does not consider justice, so the minority will
always be at a disadvantage

•Kantian ethics hold that people should be treated as ends and never purely as means
to the ends of others - People are not instruments like a machine - People have dignity
and need to be respected - Kantian ethics are viewed as incomplete.

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Kantian ethics - based on the philosophy of Immanuel Kant who argued that people
should be treated as ends and never purely as means to the ends of others .People
have dignity and need to be respected they are not machines.

Kantian ethics suggests that people should be treated as ends, and never as means to
the ends of others. What does this mean?

It mean that people shouldn't be employed in sweatshops because that’s essentially

treating people as cogs in a machine, rather than as conscious moral beings who have
dignity.

(Example)Utilitarian and Kantian approaches to ethics hold that the moral worth of
actions or practices is determined by their consequences.

Rights theories recognize that human being have fundamental rights and privileges
which transcend national boundaries and cultures •Rights establish a minimum level of
morally acceptable behavior . Moral theorists argue that fundamental human rights from
the basis for the moral compass that managers should navigate by when making
decisions which have an ethical component.

The notion that there are fundamental rights that transcend national borders and
cultures was the underlying motivation for the United Nations Universal Declaration of
Human Rights – All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights – They
are endowed with reason and conscience and should act toward one another in spirit of
brotherhood - Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and
favorable conditions of work, and to protection against unemployment United Nations
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work -
Everyone who works has the right to just and favorable remuneration ensuring for
himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity and supplemented if
necessary-, by other means of social protection - Everyone has the right to form and to
join trade unions for the protection of his interests. Rights theories - human beings have
fundamental rights and privileges that transcend national boundaries and culture.

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Philosophy

Immanuel Kant by Carle Vernet (1758–1836)

In Kant's essay "Answering the Question: What is Enlightenment?", Kant defined the
Enlightenment as an age shaped by the Latin motto Sapere aude ("Dare to be wise").
Kant maintained that one ought to think autonomously, free of the dictates of external
authority. His work reconciled many of the differences between the rationalist and
empiricist traditions of the 18th century. He had a decisive impact on the Romantic and
German Idealist philosophies of the 19th century. His work has also been a starting
point for many 20th century philosophers.

Kant asserted that, because of the limitations of argumentation in the absence of

irrefutable evidence, no one could really know whether there is a God and an afterlife or
not. For the sake of morality and as a ground for reason, Kant asserted, people are
justified in believing in God, even though they could never know God's presence
empirically. He explained:

All the preparations of reason, therefore, in what may be called pure philosophy, are in
reality directed to those three problems only [God, the soul, and freedom]. However,
these three elements in themselves still hold independent, proportional, objective weight
individually. Moreover, in a collective relational context; namely, to know what ought to
be done: if the will is free, if there is a God, and if there is a future world. As this
concerns our actions with reference to the highest aims of life, we see that the ultimate
intention of nature in her wise provision was really, in the constitution of our reason,
directed to moral interests only.

The sense of an enlightened approach and the critical method required that "If one
cannot prove that a thing is, he may try to prove that it is not. If he fails to do either (as
often occurs), he may still ask whether it is in his interest to accept one or the other of
the alternatives hypothetically, from the theoretical or the practical point of view. Hence
the question no longer is as to whether perpetual peace is a real thing or not a real
thing, or as to whether we may not be deceiving ourselves when we adopt the former
alternative, but we must act on the supposition of its being real." The presupposition of

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God, soul, and freedom was then a practical concern, for "Morality, by itself, constitutes
a system, but happiness does not, unless it is distributed in exact proportion to morality.
This, however, is possible in an intelligible world only under a wise author and ruler.
Reason compels us to admit such a ruler, together with life in such a world, which we
must consider as future life, or else all moral laws are to be considered as idle dreams.

Kant drew a parallel between the Copernican revolution and the epistemology of his
new transcendental philosophy. He never used the "Copernican revolution" phrase
about himself, but it has often been applied to his work by others.

Kant's Copernican revolution involved two interconnected foundations of his "critical

philosophy":

 The epistemology of transcendental idealism and

 The moral philosophy of the autonomy of practical reason.

These teachings placed the active, rational human subject at the center of the cognitive
and moral worlds. Kant argued that the rational order of the world as known by science
was not just the accidental accumulation of sense perceptions.

Conceptual unification and integration is carried out by the mind through concepts or the
"categories of the understanding" operating on the perceptual manifold within space and
time. The latter are not concepts but are forms of sensibility that are a priori necessary
conditions for any possible experience. Thus the objective order of nature and the
causal necessity that operates within it depend on the mind's processes, the product of
the rule-based activity that Kant called, "synthesis." There is much discussion among
Kant scholars about the correct interpretation of this train of thought.

The 'two-world' interpretation regards Kant's position as a statement of epistemological

limitation, that we are not able to transcend the bounds of our own mind, meaning that
we cannot access the "thing-in-itself". However, Kant also speaks of the thing in itself or
transcendental object as a product of the (human) understanding as it attempts to
conceive of objects in abstraction from the conditions of sensibility. Following this line of
thought, some interpreters have argued that the thing in itself does not represent a

8
separate ontological domain but simply a way of considering objects by means of the
understanding alone – this is known as the two-aspect view.

The notion of the "thing in itself" was much discussed by philosophers after Kant. It was
argued that because the "thing in itself" was unknowable, its existence must not be
assumed. Rather than arbitrarily switching to an account that was ungrounded in
anything supposed to be the "real," as did the German Idealists, another group arose to
ask how our (presumably reliable) accounts of a coherent and rule-abiding universe
were actually grounded. This new kind of philosophy became known as
Phenomenology, and its founder was Edmund Husserl.

With regard to morality, Kant argued that the source of the good lies not in anything
outside the human subject, either in nature or given by God, but rather is only the good
will itself. A good will is one that acts from duty in accordance with the universal moral
law that the autonomous human being freely gives it self. This law obliges one to treat
humanity – understood as rational agency, and represented through oneself as well as
others – as an end in itself rather than (merely) as means to other ends the individual
might hold. This necessitates practical self-reflection in which we universalize our
reasons.

These ideas have largely framed or influenced all subsequent philosophical discussion
and analysis. The specifics of Kant's account generated immediate and lasting
controversy. Nevertheless, his theses – that the mind itself necessarily makes a
constitutive contribution to its knowledge, that this contribution is transcendental rather
than psychological, that philosophy involves self-critical activity, that morality is rooted in
human freedom, and that to act autonomously is to act according to rational moral
principles – have all had a lasting effect on subsequent philosophy.

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Child Labour

Child Labour its mean the employment of children in an industry or business, especially
when illegal or considered exploitative.

Around the world, around 211 million children are under 15 jobs. Child Labour surpass
Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, although there are 2.5 million children
working in developed countries. Asia has the largest number of children, which is 60
percent of the world's total.

In India, one of the world's fastest-growing economies, the UN estimates that child labor
accounts for 20 percent of gross national product. The government bans child labor, but
with the lowest official estimate of children involved in hazardous work that amounts to
12.6 million, India still has the largest number of child laborers under the age of 14 in
the world.

Children are found to work in many export-oriented industries, including clothing and
footwear, glass manufacture, tannery, quarry, and gems. Many jobs are unacceptable
for hours, often in unsafe situations or with respect for their rights.

Their labor plays an important role in increasing their family income. One of the main
reasons for the high prevalence of children is the debt burden, which forces families to
send their children to work. Low literacy rates continue to cope with this problem.

Why children work

 Lack of good work for adults.

 Large families need a variety of income to feed their members.
 Agricultural work pays with the number of selected results. This encourages
families to bring more children to the field to help collect farm produce.
 It is cheaper to pay small children because they are less likely to complain than
adults. The poor family can’t afford to send their children to school.
 Many families around the world do not know the rights of their children and
consider it acceptable to send children to work.
 Families think that schools will not help their children survive
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  Foreign children do not live in one place long enough to attend school; instead
they work in fields with their parents.

Challenge to detect child labor

The main challenge for retailers in dealing with child labor is the way to track whether it
exists or not. The reasons for this include:

 Where child labor exists, it tends to be in subcontracting or under the supply

chain, where it is more difficult for retailers to track and where their commercial
influence is to improve the weak situation;
 In many societies, people may not know their true age - birth dates are not
always officially recorded;
 Because employers often realize that company auditors are looking for child
labor, they are often good at hiding the issue - for example, asking children to
come home when they know the auditor is coming.
 Child workers themselves may also want to protect their work - practice like using
fake ID is unusual.

Some of the strategies that our members use to detect child workers while conducting
job checks include searching for vacancies during site visits, checking production
records against official numbers, and combining on-site and offsite checks.

Answering child labor

If companies find that children are involved in making products, they expect them to
take quick action to protect the interests of children and ensure their immediate shift
from work to quality education. Challenges in achieving this can be important. For
example, only demanding that children sent home may mean losing the only source of
income for the whole family. Provision of local education may be poor or can’t be bought
- of course, this is probably one of the reasons why children do not attend school.

11
The company should also seek the commitment of the supplier concerned that it will
terminate the hiring of children and work towards full compliance with the ETI Policy
Code.

We are aware that some issues will take time to complete. If the supplier fails to make
adequate progress from the agreed corrective action plan, or introduce serious
employee welfare issues, the company should consider terminating the business with
the supplier. On the contrary, where suppliers have employed children but take the
necessary steps to address this problem, the company should continue to do business
with them.

Signs of change

At the end of 2006, we published key findings of the impact of ethical trade ethics on
ETI members. The Sussex-based Institute of Development study found that the
incidence of child labor and young workers at the supply site of ETI members has
dropped.

ETI members also make progress to help make the workplace safer, encourage
suppliers to pay their statutory rights workers, and reduce the number of overtime
employees. However, we have yet to see substantive progress in some critical areas,
including protecting workers' rights to organize themselves and collectively with
management.

Frequently asked questions

Is child labor acceptable?

Child labor is not acceptable. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
(1989) and the ILO Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labor (1999) clearly
distinguish between child labor, which refers to a hazardous form of work that denies
children's chances for fulfilling the rights of others, such as education, and child labor, is
unlikely to spoil education opportunities. This type of work may include children who
help their parents.

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What is the ETI Base Code?

Article 4 of the ETI Base Code defines the following:

4. CHILD WORKER IS NOT USED

4.1 There will be no new kidnapping.

4.2 The Company will develop or participate and contribute to policies and programs
that provide transitions to any child found working children to enable them to attend and
remain in quality education until they are no longer children; "child" and "child labor"
specified in the appendix.

4.3 Children and young people under the age of 18 may not work at night or in
dangerous situations.

4.4 These policies and procedures shall comply with the provisions of the relevant ILO
standards.

Child labor with numbers

 211 million children around the world are child laborers

 73 million children work less than 10 years
 126 million are estimated to work in the worst form of child labor - one in every 12
out of five to 17 years in the world
 8.4 million children are trapped in bondage, trafficking, bondage and other forms
of forced labor, forcible intentions for armed conflict, prostitution, pornography
and other illegal activities
 2.5 million children work in developed countries
 22,000 children die each year in work-related accidents
 127 million children work in the Asia-Pacific region.
 Nearly a third of children in Sub-Saharan Africa work

Source: International Labor Organization (ILO)

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QUESTION 2

2.Noblesse Oblige

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is defined as "the Corporate Conscience.

Citizenship. Social performance or sustainable responsible business and is a form of
corporate self-regulation integrated into a business model. CSR policy functions as a
built-in. self-regulating mechanism whereby business monitors and ensures its active
compliance with the spirit of the law, ethical standards, and international
norms."Wikipedia, s.v. "Corporate social responsibility." last modified February 17.
2011. accessed February 22. 2011. littp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

• CSR emerged more than three decades ago and it has gained increasing strength
over time as companies seek to generate goodwill with their employees, customers and
stakeholder. "Corporate social responsibility encompasses not only what companies do
with their profits. but also how they make them. It goes beyond philanthropy and
compliance and addresses how companies manage their economic. social, and
environmental impacts. as well as their relationships m all key spheres of influence: the
workplace. the marketplace. the supply chain. the community. and the public policy
realm."

•"Defining Corporate Social Responsibility- Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative.

Harvard Kennedy School, last modified 2008. accessed March 26.

20 11.littp://www.hks.harvard.edu/m-rcbg/CSRI/init_define.html.

• Companies may support nonprofit causes and organizations, global initiatives, and
prevailing themes. Promoting environmentally friendly and green initiatives is an
example of a current prevailing themes. Coca-Cola is an example of global corporation
with a long-term commitment to CSR. In many developing countries, Coca-Cola
promotes local economic development through a combination of philanthropy and social
and economic development. Whether by using environmentally friendly containers or
supporting local education initiatives through its foundation. Coca-Cola is only one of
many global companies that seek to increase their commitment to local markets while

14
enhancing their brand, corporate image, and reputation by engaging in socially
responsible business practices. "Sustainability." The Coca-Cola Company, accessed
March 27. 2011. http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/citizenship/index.html.

• Companies use a wide range of strategies to communicate their socially responsible

strategies and programs. Under the auspices of the United Nations, the Global Compact
is a strategic policy initiative for businesses that are committed to aligning their
operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human
rights. labour, environment and anti-corruption. "United Nations Global Compact
website, accessed January 9. 2011, http://www.unglobalcompact.org.

• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) means being responsible to serve the

community and society they operate in through social, cultural and economic actions. It
is the practice of "Noblesse Oblige" - the inferred responsibility of privileged people to
act with generosity and nobility toward those less privileged.

•The World Business Council for Sustainable Development defines CSR as

"The continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to
economic development while improving the quality life of the workforce and their
families as well as of the local community and society at large. " The European
Commission advocates CSR as “ Being socially responsible, which means not only
fulfilling legal expectations but also going beyond compliance and investing more into
human capital, the environment an1 relations with stakeholders."

• Simply put, CSR expects a company to :

• Treat its employees well
• Preserve the environment
• Promote human rights and cultural diversity
• Engage in social action
• Implement fair trade
• We can help you. Are you ready to be responsible?

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• Do you know what it means to be responsible? to society? globally? Is your business
being responsibly run?

• Full Responsibility allows you to do business good and responsibly.

•https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noblesse_oblige

•https://maryachor.wordpress.com/2008/02/14/the-real-meaning-of-noblesse-oblige/

•https://medium.com/@MaxMediaGroup/noblesse-oblige-a-historical-perspective-on-
philanthropic-pursuit-part-1-historical-perspective-2eade8c821bb

•https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2946609/Noblesse-oblige.html

• https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/noblesse-oblige

•https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanmcpherson/2018/01/12/8-corporate-social-
responsibility-csr-trends-to-look-for-in-2018/#6a8e9e4040ce

•https://www.thegivingmachine.co.uk/corporate-social-responsibility-simple-guide/

•https://www.out-law.com/page-8221

• https://www.grantthornton.co.uk/insight/trends-in-corporate-social-responsibility-2014/

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Here are two examples of leading companies that have implemented Corporate Social
Responsibility.

Introduction

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is an increasingly important element in Malaysia

business world. The first impression is the business take advantage of users and
communities. In their mind they think business is all make profits, and they are less
concerned about the issues of society, the environment, and human rights. They are
not much contributing to society. In fact, many entrepreneurs want to erase corporate
negative images embedded in people's minds and prove that by their actions. Trend
companies involved in responsible social activities are increasing. Business including
small and medium-sized companies, are now working hard to set up various programs
and strategies which can balance both areas of profit and social responsibility.

In the following section, I will define corporate social responsibility and discuss it
the importance of being a responsible corporate citizen. I will explain the components of
the next component corporate social responsibility. After introducing conceptual
information, I will show what company has done to contribute to the world by comparing
and distinguishing Apple and Microsoft, two multinational companies are well known in
the information technology industry which has a huge impact on the world. Lastly, I will
conclude and formulate its importance corporate social responsibility through case
studies of both companies.

Definition of Corporate Social Responsibility

The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) definition varies across the globe and
evolving over time. This concept may seem abstract. To facilitate and summarize the
core idea, CSR is about "the responsibility to the outside community that makes profits
for shareholders" (Quak, Heilbron & van der Veen, 2012, p.3). In the early 1970s, Dr.
Davis, a professor in Malaysia
Arizona State University and a CSR undergraduate, emphasized the importance of
CSR. He mentioned, "CSR refers to the firm's judgment and response to issues beyond

17
the narrow economy, technical requirements and law firms "(Sharma & Mehta, 2012,
p.2) He states it businesses need to carefully consider the impact of their activities and
policies on society. It is It is also important to contribute to the community rather than
focusing on profit. Archie Carroll, a CSR named CSR in a more comprehensive way by
building a CSR model

Value of Corporate Social Responsibility

Many people question the value of practicing corporate social responsibility. Some
people may not be aware of their long-term impact on the company. An economist,
Milton Friedman, making controversial statements in his book, Capitalism and Freedom,
"is the only one business social responsibility - to use resources and engage in planned
activities to increase its benefits as long as it remains in the rules of the game, which
means, engaged in the opening and the free competition without fraud or fraud
"(Friedman, 1970, p.6) Friedman believes strongly that the responsibility of a company
is solely for profit; a company has no obligation to carry out social responsibility to
society. However, many research studies have been proven who practice CSR actually
benefits the company significantly when they implement it effectively in the long run.
First, CSR helps to improve the reputation of the company and increase brand
awareness (Kotler & Lee, 2005, p.14). The company became more prominent than
others in the same situation industries even though they share the same price and
quality of the product. This also increases sales as customers are more likely to choose
which addresses the issues they care more about.

Microsoft
The list of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens CR, conducted by Corporate Responsibility
The magazine is known as "one of the three most important business positions in
America" and "the The world's top corporate responsibility ranks based on information
publicly available. " ("Corporate Responsibility Magazine", 2014, para.1) They put the
company on individuals
CSR aspects include environment, climate change, human rights, and labor relations,

18
corporate governance, philanthropy and finance. Microsoft ranks in top 10 positions in
most areas except climate change (rank 19), and labor relations (rank 82). It gets to the
top of both corporate governance and philanthropy while second position in the list for
human rights (p.2).

Based on Microsoft's citizenship report in 2012 reported in the Marketing Week,

Microsoft "provided more than $ 900m in cash and software to non-profits worldwide
over the past year, reducing its carbon emissions by 30 percent per unit of revenue, and
making the largest company investment in total employee compensation "(O'Reilly,
2013, para.4) Reputation CSR Reputation Institute Reputation 100, this is the second
year owned by Microsoft was chosen to be the top company with a well-implemented
corporate social responsibility program world-famous. The Institute concludes that the
top four companies include, "Microsoft, Walt Disney Company, Google, and BMW all
have a strong perception of it come to Citizenship, Governance, and Workplace "(" CSR
RepTrak100 ", 2013, p.13). Microsoft is committed to conducting their business equally,
ethically, and publicly. For example, Environmental sustainability director Josh Henretig
mentioned that the company voluntarily disclosing information through the Carbon
Disclosure Project (Lajoux & Soltis Martel, 2013, p.6). The company always ranks high
in CSR position. It also receives the top spot reputation in three regions, including North
America, Latin America, and Asia Pacific (Smith, 2013, p.25). Microsoft represents a
consistent, socially responsible company and adhere to its CSR commitment.

Apple
In contrast, Microsoft's competitors in the IT industry, Apple, are recognized as the most
numerous innovative company in Global Reptrak 100 2014 ("Reputation Institute" study,
2014, para2). However, in addition to high-tech products that attract the attention of the
whole world, Apple does not famous for their CSR practices. It is not in the list of 100
Best Corporate Citizens for 2013. Apple is also ranked ninth in CSR 2013 RepTrak 100,
which ranks lower than Microsoft ("CSR RepTrak100", 2013, p.13).

19
Apple assigns supplier responsibility reports every year. However, the credibility is
Their reports are much lower as the media is constantly exposing the news about the
problems it finds in their supply chain and labor abroad ("Testing Apple Core", 2012,
p.7). Apple refuse to disclose their carbon emissions and take part in them altogether; it
is the world's largest IT Corporations who are incapable of participating in the Carbon
Disclosure Project, which is an international, nonprofit organizations that measure and
disclose company environmental information (Blanchard, 2012, p.22). They also ignore
the terms and standards of their supplier's work. It is revealed that over half of the
workers in the Apple supply chain worked more than 60 hours a week and many
suppliers do not follow standard security. They have a bad reputation in regulating or
monitor their supply chain other than environmental issues (h.22). Students and The
Ulema Group Against Violence (SACOM) argues that "maximizing profits is the ultimate
corporate principle, in which the glory and well-being of workers is not a concern "
after a four-month underground investigation at the Foxconn Factory, the largest
provider Apple products. They also mentioned that working conditions existed '' without
life dignity ''. Many young workers can not withstand such a terrible situation and commit
suicide (Luke, 2013, p. 92). These issues have increased public awareness, and they
have questioned

Apple's CSR Practices ("Checking the Apple Core", 2012, p.). After Apple's Chief
Executive Officer, Tim Cook, taking over from Steve Jobs in 2011, he has brought
positive changes, including improvements supply chain transparency, introduction of
employee donation matching programs, and other welfare contributions (Tyrangiel,
2012, p.64). He also tried to persuade the public that Apple is making continuous
improvements to other aspects, particularly on labor practices in the supply chain.

Philanthropy
Microsoft is one of the most famous philanthropic companies in the world. It's first
position in philanthropy in 100 Best Corporate Citizens List 2013 ("100 Best Corporate
CR Citizens 2013 ", 2013, p.2). The company demonstrates action-oriented examples,
where they are committed to serving the community and educating future generations.

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They work with technology learning centers in communities around the world. Microsoft
set up Unlimited Potential Program (UP) in 2003. They have received cash, the
software provided, on technical terms support and training to millions of illiterate
computers through the program. Business Global Corporate Affairs Director aspires to
"make computer literacy a reality because of lack of attention communities around the
world "(Kotler & Lee, 2005, p. 165). It aims to improve the technological skills, expand
digital entry, and help create more job opportunities. This global initiative as well in line
with Microsoft's mission, "to enable people and businesses around the world realizing
their full potential "(p.16). UP has provided $ 50 million to nonprofits in more than 45
people country in the first year. In recent years, the UP program has been steadily
growing and growing next. It collaborates with Digital Divide Data (DDD), a social
company that educates young people people on basic computer skills required for
outsourcing work in third world countries, and have donated software worth $ 250,000
to DDD (Newsmakers, 2011, p.6).

In comparison, Apple, a world-renowned company, is not known as philanthropic

corporation. Some internal Apple people say that Apple's former CEO, Steve Jobs was
mentioned in a meeting he held to give money (Vascellaro, 2011, p.1). However, Tim
Cook, a successor to Jobs as Apple CEO, has taken a different approach in managing
and running a company; he has been looking for a way to become more charitable and
building a reputation for generosity. According to internal meetings in the fourth quarter
In 2011, Cook announced that Apple had raised $ 50 million to support Africa's AIDS
research and poverty organizations through RED Product funds, which originated in
2006 (Patel, 2012, para.1). Apple has donated over $65 million as of 2013.

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Conclusion

Microsoft has gained a high position in various global corporate social responsibility
positions for years; the company shows a great example that is consistent with it CSR
Program. They receive high reputation in CSR in other countries. Microsoft has Famous
brand images of CSR practices. Microsoft has done a lot of work and contributing to the
world for decades to get to this stage today. They were reserved for charitable work and
all social obligations; they have also started some green strategy to minimize their
environmental impact. However, there is no perfect company in their CSR program.
Microsoft also has some areas they need to collaborate but they still can serves as a
role model for other companies to learn. In comparison, Apple is one of the world
leaders in electronic devices and technology sector. Although Apple's high-tech
products have captured the world attention, negative news and bad reputation of their
supply chain left the crowd the negative impact of brand image. Since Tim Cook has
taken over Steve Jobs' position at 2012, there are some changes in how Apple
operates. Cook has been gradual change the company, especially to be a socially
responsible multinational company.

They have participated in several philanthropic activities, producing more products

environmentally friendly, increased supply chain transparency, and more. Apple has
recognize the importance of CSR and have made progress in this practice recently
year. Businesses including Apple and Microsoft are trying to profit as ultimate Goal.
Being profitable is undoubtedly important. At the same time, the company is expected to
come out exceeding profits, conducting business ethically and responsibly. Company
must obey laws and regulations. They must also act ethically to all stakeholders.

Finally, companies should operate as good corporate citizens in their communities or

even world. In today's business world, more companies are finding ways to achieve
these four simultaneously and contribute to the well-being of society while retaining
profit. Many of them have worked hard to change the corporate structure and merge it
strategy to create social responsibility corporate social responsibilities

22
corporate citizens, because they understand this will benefit the company, the workers
and society long-term. It will also help build reputation and leave a good impression.
The famous Investor American billionaire Warren Baffet once said, "It took 20 years to
build a reputation and 5 minutes to damage it. "It takes time, effort, and determination
to set up a reputation and reminding the company's positive image into the minds of
people. Therefore, more companies take their role as a serious CSR leader to be more
profitable, sustainable, and prominent corporate citizenship.

References

Abels, P. B., & Martelli, J. T. (2012). What is CSR all about?. Global Conference On
Business &
Finance Proceedings, 7(2), 86-90.
Apple Green Report. (2012) Greenpeace. 1-4. Retrieved from
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/climate/2012/
GuideGreenerElectronics/APPLE.pdf
Apple Recycling Program. (2014) Apple.com. Retrieved from
http://www.apple.com/recycling/gift-card/
Blanchard, D. (2012). Corporate Social Responsibility in the Supply Chain. Industry
Week/IW, 261(5), 22-26.
Corporate Responsibility Magazine’s “100 BEST CORPORATE CITIZENS LIST”.
(2014).
Corporate Responsibility Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.thecro.com/100-
bestcorporate-citizens-list Craig, S. (2013). Building Better Business With Generosity.
American Salesman, 58(3), 24-28.

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