A Study on The Impact of Corporate Accountability

21st Century Corporate Social Responsibility

The corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the most essential element in modern business and it highlights the responsibilities of an organization towards the society (Snider et al., 2003). The society is much concerned about how firms undertake their CSR. This has compelled many organizations in the business today to address their CSR effectively. The Microsoft Corporation is a multinational firm which ensures that their report on corporate citizenship is released annually. Their report provides details on how they give back to the society through their various programs and initiatives. The goal of Microsoft CSR is to address the social needs of the people in global perspective. The people which they serve include their consumers and stakeholders around the world. The company values their CSR because it enables them to succeed and attain their goals in globally. The company’s key to success includes providing various services such as coming up with intelligent cloud, establishing personal computing, and coming up with new inventions to boost their productivity and their business processes thus aiding them in their commitment in serving the society. The company’s commitment focus in addressing societal needs and proper management of their programs which plays a key role in building and maintaining trust between the between the company and their customers and also their stakeholders who are committed in making sure that the company attain their long term goals.

It is important for any business to build their reputation by earning trust from their customers. By building trust, the external image of the company will be improved (Snider et al., 2003). One of Microsoft key strategy is building trust with their customers. Building trust is the most essential consideration for any company which ensure that the company attain their goals of ensuring that their customers globally are empowered also to realize their visions. For a company to attain this objective, they must ensure that they earn trust among their stakeholders, governments and their customers by ensuring that there is shared commitment in regard to ethical behaviors and as well as ensuring that integrity in their business processes is maintained. This therefore implies that the ethical culture of a company must be established and the company must demonstrate their commitment in matters of integrity, behaviors and honesty when discharging their business activities. Microsoft has demonstrated their commitment when it comes to ethical standards in their management and business practices. Their business ethics serves the long term needs of company’s stakeholders by ensuring that there is transparency and accountability in various business activities and processes.

Microsoft values strategic philanthropy as a means of giving back to the society. Their strategic philanthropy encompasses many things rather than just monetary and software donations. Microsoft has proved their determination and what they are capable of in recent years by improving the lives of millions of people globally. Microsoft environmental policy is one of the most effective strategic philanthropy where the company has shown their commitment in the fight to reduce the carbon emission thus preventing environmental degradation in global perspective. Some of the measures which have been put by the company in conserving the environment are ensuring that their business activities which include processing and production are carbon free. The company has demonstrated their commitment by utilizing other renewable energy which is carbon neutral in their production and other business processes. Furthermore, Microsoft intends to achieve their environmental prevention strategy by ensuring that there is ethical supply chain management (SCM). The company also has ensured that their business conduct and activities does not infringe the fundamental human rights and freedoms of the people globally.

The company CSR also includes the cause marketing activities such as empowering nonprofits companies globally. Cause marketing can be defined as collaboration between an organization and nonprofit companies for mutual benefit. Microsoft Corporation has allocated huge funds which are channeled towards nonprofits organizations around the globe. Aside from monetary the company also has donated their software’s which is their major business products. Through these contributions to nonprofits organizations, Microsoft has been able to boost their cause marketing activities globally. The non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been the major beneficiaries of the cause marketing activities. The company’s donations have brought significant changes and as a result new innovations have been conceived which has aided in various humanitarian efforts and the fight against corruption globally. Also, the Microsoft cause marketing activities has facilitated the transfer of technical skills in the society which has since empowered the communities around world.

Shared value involves creating an economic value that is aimed at addressing the issues that exists within the society. Shared value is usually created when a company identifies an opportunity for innovation by taking advantage of the problems that exists in a society as a business opportunity. Microsoft works with socially responsible investors as means of ensuring that there is a shared value thus ensuring that there is their suppliers conduct themselves with transparency. Microsoft also works with their supplies by ensuring that technology is made to be accessible to millions of their customers’ globally.