Organizational ethics refer to a set of standards that express the values of an organization in relation to employees and other entities absent governmental regulations and the law in place. Ethics is central among other core issues that an organization strives and endeavors to uphold. Matters of ethics remain a global concern; various organizations and institutions seek to address and uphold the same. There is always a constant drive for organizations to set conducive ethical atmospheres that promote a healthy working climate that enhances the performance and reputation of the organizations. Ethics is critical as it helps the employees to develop an understanding of the differences between what is acceptable and unacceptable in the workplace.
Owing to the central role played by ethics in the management and success of business organization, this academic paper seeks to consider and analyze codes of ethics in beverage companies and identify the issues that remain critical as well as the rationale for appropriate mechanisms to address such critical issues. Just like in most companies and business organizations, Coca-Cola has a handbook on ethics that clearly stipulates the guidelines, rules, organizational standards, expectations, needs, core values, regulations, inter-personal relations and the laws that they are subject to. The Coca-Cola Company considers integrity as an essential element in the success and prosperity of the company in this competitive world. In their vision 2020, core values addressed in the Coca-Cola Company’s code of ethics include values of leadership, passion, accountability, teamwork; multiplicity and quality are the epitome of the vision.
The performance and the public reputation of any business organization rely heavily on the set of ethics on which the business is operated. Lack of ethics or having a substandard code of ethics usually sets a ground for a failure of the business. Normally, employees’ codes of ethics define the rules regarding expected outcomes and consequences that pertain to misconducts that arise from employees’ behavior.
The Coca-Cola Company’s code of ethics acts as the guide that drives the company’s objectives and mission. It stipulates what the company expects of its employees at all times. The behavior of the employees is always seen as a reflection of the company’s reputation in the public. In the company’s business code, the responsibilities of Coca-Cola Company to the customers, suppliers and the authority is well defined and, therefore, everyone under the company’s umbrella must act in accordance and in adherence to the company’s laws at all times.
In most cases, Coca-Cola principles of ethics seek to address certain issues that promote employees’ welfare, among other important aspects. Some of the key organizational principles of the Coca-Cola Company on ethics address on issues such as drug and substance abuse, sexual harassment, leadership structure, employee motivation, uniform treatment, social responsibility, financial ethics among other issues considered important by the organization in question.
Through the use of a standard ideal code of ethics, Coca-Cola Company provides rules and guidelines that control the use alcohol and other drugs that risk the life of an individual employee and the reputation of the organization at large. Drug and substance abuse has been an area of global concern and, therefore, business organizations through their codes of ethics aim to exercise control on their employees on the abuse of drugs. As such, depending on the organization in question, some penalties are laid to help regulate drug and substance abuse.
It is worth noting that sexual harassment is another grey area that every business organization seeks to address to help protect and safeguard the interest of their employees especially the junior female employees who in most cases fall prey and victims of sexual harassment in the hands of the senior male workers in such organizations. Through principle of ethics on sexual relations, the company is able to protect their employees from suffering the consequences of sexual harassment.
Considering the other beverage companies like Alcohol Beverage Company in Quebec, a lot can be identified. Alcohol, being an integral part of most cultural, social and economic references, various values like hospitality, responsibility and health are given utmost importance in the codes of ethics addressing on the same. Even though it is widely abused and misused, alcohol still remains important in many societal rituals and functions at various capacities. The products such as spirits, beer, and wine are consumed in globally.
The habits of drinking are actually meant to follow certain principles and guidelines that have been laid through the setting of code of conduct that guide on alcohol consumption. In most cases, drinking habits have been seen to adhere to the market laws, sociocultural systems and individual and collective values. A thin line is drawn on the pleasures and dangers that consumption of alcohol poses to human health. In fact, the devastating effects of alcohol have attracted much concern globally on how ethics can be liberated in alcohol consumption.
In Quebecer, the relationship regarding alcohol has been well defined. Even though they operate on an open policy, it sometimes appears complex and contradictory in nature. Alcohol is in most societies perceived as a great danger that people must be protected against at all times. In the open policy, alcohol use and abuse are in differentiable. Quebec Alcohol industry has a well spelt code of ethics that guides the operations of alcohol industries.
Among the core values addressed in the Quebec Alcohol Beverage Industry include the perception of alcohol consumption up the safe level consumption of alcohol. This means that consumption is considered safe only up to a certain limit. Moreover, it is in the in ordinate concern of the alcoholic beverage industry to have quality consumers as opposed to quantity consumers. This is in the belief that better few effective consumers that several customers that add little or no value to the company.
Another beverage company of interest as far as ethics are concerned is the Pepsi Beverage Company. The company had its Global Code of Conduct was reviewed in October 2012 to be able to take care of the dynamic laws that affect the business operations. Specific guidelines are therefore considered that provide the PepsiCo employees with fundamental guidelines to conduct their operations. All the employees of this company are required to always embrace the PepsiCo principles and the Code provided. In the code, the employees are supposed to show maximum respect at the workplace without violation of the laws upheld by the company at all time. Integrity in the marketplace, upholding ethics in business activities and performing work to the shareholders responsible are among the key issues that PepsiCo Code of Ethics endeavors to uphold at all times. The company considers the Code as their roadmap and direction that spells out the right ways of doing things.
Actually, Coca-Cola Company and Pepsi Company are the most admired beverage companies that produce and market soft drinks. The secret of this awe is all about the corporate values and codes of ethics that guide the operations of these giant companies in the global market. A comparative analysis can be done about the two companies in order to understand the reason why they remain one another’s competitor. The truth is that these companies have codes which are rooted on social, global and environmental facets of corporate social responsibility as well as availing services courteously to external interested parties beyond shareholders and internal stakeholders of the companies.
Comparatively, Coca-Cola Company and Pepsi Beverage Company remain as two companies that deal in almost the same line of products and tend to uphold nearly similar codes of ethics in the operation of their businesses. It is worth noting that the codes of these companies are more of codes of conduct other than code of ethics. In fact, they are more normative and control oriented. Social responsibility is not highly regarded in their codes. Instead they lay much emphasis on control of the employees conduct at the expense of promoting corporate social responsibility at all times. Most of the issues addressed aim at controlling the behavior and conduct of the employees other that promoting external and communal values. Compliance and adherence to the codes is highly upheld at the expense of corporate social responsibility. In fact, corporate social responsibility remains an issue that is scarcely addressed in these reputable company’s codes.
If these companies would map a strategy that aims to ensure corporate social responsibility, then much more success than ever witnessed can be realized. As has been seen in the Coca- Cola Company, it is very important to look beyond just the internal environment of the company but rather focus on other significant issues that have the potential to influence the operations of the business at any given time. For instance, the company should not only endeavor to put their employees on very strict controls under the subjection to rules that tend to belittle the employees capacity to deliver.
Global citizenship is promoted in various different ways. Such include, strategic grants and through employees involvement in voluntary community service programs. Through this, the company is able to encourage healthy lifestyle and promote job acquisition among communities globally with an intention of promoting business all over the world. Such global citizenship strategy is good for business the Global Citizenship vision guided by the philanthropic efforts of the company.
In a nutshell, it can be deduced that making it as primacies in the areas of strategic grant making, community service and volunteering, and disaster relief and humanitarian support augments performance with purpose to bring great performance in the business alongside prosperity in the global standards. The place of ethics cannot be overemphasized especially in the current business environment where the competition is cut throat; indeed, the need to cheat one’s way into winning markets is forever strong and it is only through an application of ethical conceptions that one may do what is right in the overall societal standing.
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