The Corporation is a Canadian documentary film written by Joe Bakan, a law professor from British Columbia University and directed by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott in 2003. Many issues related to the corporate world were discussed in the film including corporate social responsibility (CSR). CSR is generally quite a new concept being within the corporate industry where the recognition of the need to implement such theory within the business operations has only been widely practiced in recent times. Developed countries like France, Canada, United States and United Kingdom all have different interpretation of what’s CSR actually means due to their social and cultural differences while most of them seem to recognize the significance of triple-bottom …show more content…
This is of course is not an applicable concept is we refer to the Non-Profits Organizations (NGOs) who devoted their life to the cause of doing good for the environment, society or even animals. The problem with maximization of profits is business sometimes decided to externalize the costs in the efforts to minimize their operation costs hence maximizing the profits. This is called externalities, as shown in the movie, where the effects of carrying out one transaction which then had to be borne by a third party who have no part in the transaction at all. For example, a paper mill might decide to reduce operation costs by dumping the chemical waste of its factory into the nearest river and in doing so polluting the environment which then will impact the living organism within the river compound and affect the residents within the polluted radius. The dumping of the waste is obviously against the law and conflicted with the economic theory being proposed but this has come out from the result of profit maximization intend. This will be further discussed in the following …show more content…
It can be said that the movie has provided examples of where corporations have questionable moral standards when it comes to making, selling and maximizing financial returns to the shareholders. From a moral minimum perspective, the corporations have failed to live up to the theory’s expectations.
The Strategic Sustainability Model
The Strategic Sustainability Model states that the future financial well-being of each company is directly depends to the questions of how that company impact and being impacted by the natural environment. The company’s financial target should well-adjusted against, and maybe in some cases over-ridden by environmental considerations (DesJardins, 2014). As preached by Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface in the movie, The Corporation:
It is our plan, it remains our plan to climb Mount Sustainability, that mountain is higher than Everest, infinitely higher than Everest, far more difficult to scale. That point at the top symbolizing zero footprint (Achbar & Abbott,
It's difficult not to be cynical about how “big business” treats the subject of ethics in today's world. In many corporations, where the only important value is the bottom line, most executives merely give lip service to living and operating their corporations ethically.
The importance of profit is a central theme of the novel that demonstrates a disregard for morality. Corporations
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is the way a corporation achieves a balance between its economic, social, and environmental responsibilities in its operations so as to address shareholder and other stakeholder expectations. In general, when firms hold this wider encouraging role on the public by being engaged with stakeholders, a variety of profit can be produced for both company and the stakeholders. A key inclination is the combination of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) into the organization strategy, culture, mission and communications. By incorporating corporate citizenship into the company it is no longer an additional “nice thing to do” or something made to obey laws or regulations. Instead, corporate responsibility has become something business leaders and workforce want to engage in, frequently because executives who believe in the long-term see business profit. The four types of social responsibilities a...
Released in 2017, the movie “Company Town,” emphasized the link between economic consequences of racial discrimination and the increased risk of cancer. After watching the movie, Susan Gubar was led to the conclusion that the “wretched statistics on cancer mortalities are also linked to racial inequalities” (1). The movie depicts a community dependent on an industry that they believe just may be killing them by contaminating their environment. The majority of those who suffer from cancer in the area are African American. “Company Town” pushes forward a passionate protest on behalf of unnoticed and oppressed victims of corporate negligence and greed. According to the American Cancer Society, African American men are twice as likely to die from
...rs, will last for the foreseeable future. Challenges will always confront us but it is by the way we confront them now that we can see a brighter future. As President Abraham Lincoln said, “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today” (Deseret News, 2013). We have a responsibility to the earth.
An organization’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) drives them to look out for the different interests of society. Most business corporations undertake responsibility for the impact of their organizational pursuits and various activities on their customers, employees, shareholders, communities and the environment. With the high volume of general competition between different companies and organizations in varied fields, CSR has become a morally imperative commitment, more than one enforced by the law. Most organizations in the modern world willingly try to improve the general well-being of not only their employees, but also their families and the society as a whole.
When Bill first met his supervisor, the supervisor did not want to offer him a job because “he walked weird” and did not see anyway Bill could handle the salesman job.1 He also called him a “cripple” and said the job was too physically demanding for him to complete. It was not until Bill insisted that he could do it and offered to take the neighborhood that no one wanted, that the supervisor was willing to hire Bill. He did almost let him go after just one week because he did not think Bill was selling enough, but Bill insisted that he give him until the end of the month the make more sales. Later in the movie, the supervisor retired and talked very highly of Bill.
The Wolf of Wall Street produced and directed by Martin Scorsese tells a story of Jordan Belfort, a stockbroker living a luxurious life on Wall Street. Due to greed and corruption, Jordan falls into a life of crime and abusive activities. Belfort made millions of dollars by selling customers “penny stocks” and manipulating the market through his company, Stratton Oakmont, before being convicted of any criminal activity (Solomon, 2013). Jordan reveals behaviours and impulses all humans have, however, on an extreme level. This movie illustrates “why ethics is another tool whose importance cannot be overstated” (Delaney, 2014). Without ethics and morality, individuals can never truly live an honest and happy life.
Shaw, W. & Barry, V. (2010). Moral issues in business (11th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage
Without doubt the XXI century has changed our priorities, especially when it comes to the way we do business. Popular sustainable business models, as advertised in the media, have evolved into much more than a moral obligation or an external requirement to generate money. Essentially, are forcing companies to reinvent the systems and approaches with which they generate value and profitability to the company.
BUAD2172 Movie Reviews For each of the assigned movies, you will complete a Movie Review and turn it into GA View by the time designated in your Course Schedule. 1. Summary of the Movie. a. The movie Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room is a documentary about how the seventh largest company went from $65M in assets to bankrupt in a month. The story generally focuses on the masterminds at the top that created this smoke show, knowing what they were doing was illegal and usually at the cost of the average American. They didn’t care because greed, arrogance, and pride fueled them. The main focus of this story is on Chairman and CEO Kenneth Lay and COO Jeff Skilling. The film shows video footage of these men on trial, secret footage of business
It is known that corporations play a large part in making the world go around. Many times we read, hear or see stories on companies and why something was done a certain way. The film “The Corporation” has given a whole new insight to not only how businesses operate but what motivates them and their decisions that they make to keep their businesses thriving.
It seems obvious that large corporations have a tendency to ignore the negative effects of their actions in favor of profit. This example, although sensationalized, still says to me that with power comes responsibility. It affirmed my belief that a corporation’s goal cannot be just to provide profit to shareholders, but there must also be an element of social responsibility.
While the concept of an individual having responsibility is commonly recognized, modern views have lead to the emerging issue of corporate responsibility. Business Directory.com defines corporate social responsibility as, “A company’s sense of responsibility towards the community and environment (both ecological and social) in which it operates. Companies express this citizenship (1) through their waste and pollution reduction processes, (2) by contributing educational and social programs, and (3) by earning adequate returns on the employed resources.” But such a concept has been much disputed since at least the 1970’s.
The sustainability of the ecosystems on which the global economy depends must be guaranteed. And the economic partners must be satisfied that the basis of exchange is equitable” (World). This quote demonstrates the complexities of sustainability. Another thing corporations should focus on when trying to be sustainable is their environmental impact.