Do companies have business con
Do companies have business conOrganizational or corporate social responsibility refers to the obligation of a business firm to seek actions that protect and improve the welfare of society along with its own interests. Corporate social responsibility often challenges businesses to be accountable for the consequences of their actions affecting the firm's stakeholders while they pursue traditional economic goals. The general public expects business to be socially responsible, and many companies have responded by making social goals a part of their overall business operations (Hay, 1989). This paper will discuss four companies that have a conscience towards our today's society, and helped to create a better community for all of us, they are Johnson & Johnson, American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T), Herman Miller, and Procter & Gamble.
A crisis confronted Johnson & Johnson in the fall of 1982, when seven Chicago area residents died after taking Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules contaminated with cyanide. Not only was $400-million-per-year Tylenol the best-selling U.S. drug, but it was a product that symbolized the Johnson & Johnson reputation for quality, gentleness, and fine health care (Kreitner, 1990).
Despite the pressures of dealing with national media coverage, J&J executive immediately opened their doors to the press and took great pains to keep the public informed about the situation. It soon became apparent that the cyanide had been put into the capsules after they had left J&J's factories, and the problem seemed to be confined to the Chicago area. Nevertheless, Tylenol sales sank to 20 percent of their previous level, and an opinion poll showed that 61 percent of Tylenol users intended to stop using the product.
A major question that arose was what to do about the 31 million bottles of Extra-Strength Tylenol on drugstore shelves throughout the country. The FBI and Food and Drug Administration advised J&J managers not to take any drastic action. Even so, the managers promptly took the unprecedented step of recalling the unsold bottles, at a cost to the form of $100 million (Fortune, 1987). A few weeks later they decided to reintroduce Tylenol capsules in a triple-sealed, tamper-resistant package. In the months following the tragedy, the company established a consumer hot line and continued extensive cooperation with media. It also made a widely advertised refund offer to consumers for any pre-crisis capsules they still had, and its chairman, James E. Burke, appeared on the Donahue show. In an opinion poll taken 3 months after the tragedy, 93 percent of the public felt that J&J had done a good job of handling its responsibilities.
In considering these events, David R. Claire, J&J's president, said, "Crisis planning did not see us through this tragedy nearly as much as the sound business management philosophy that is embodied in out Credo." The Credo's first opening sentence is: "We believe our first responsibility is to the doctors, nurses and patients, to mothers and fathers and all others who use...
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