StarBucks and Corporate Social Responsibility

IV. Decision Making
A. Decisions
There are potential business ethics and regulatory issues that could impact Starbucks by affecting the corporate strategy, brand development, and decision-making processes. One of the issues is diversity issues. Starbucks could also face ethical and regulatory issues in terms of integrity and trust. Regulatory issues that the company could also face are compliance and governance issues. Based on the prospective business ethics and regulatory issues aforementioned, there are business decisions that Starbucks will need to make. In addition, there are processes and practices that will be employed to make these decisions. To begin with, in order to ensure that legal and regulatory aspects are adhered to, Starbucks will need to instigate a code of ethics that will be adhered to by all stakeholders (Mamic, 2017). Businesses and companies have to conduct their operations within government, state, and local regulations and guiding principle. Taking this into consideration, ethical responsibilities may be epitomized by means of codes of conduct, civil rights, and social and satisfactory standards in numerous aspects. Several corporations endeavor to go further than the legal requirements. Businesses that make it their responsibility to make certain workers are safe, treated with self-worth and respect, and offered sensible work hours and wages are deemed to be ethically responsible (Mamic, 2017).
The processes through which Starbucks will undertake this is through the implementation of code of ethics and standards of practice. Basically, this takes into account the professional expectations and mannerisms that are expected from all employees and also other stakeholders such as suppliers irrespective of their role and the setting in which they may practice. The code of conduct outlined by the board of directors of Starbucks will delineate particular behaviors that are necessitated or proscribed as a condition of prevailing employment. Notably, the code of conduct may forbid unethical behaviors such as racial discrimination, sexual harassment, theft, and disregarding legal requirements. These codes in tandem with other measures are beneficial for the company to have a moral compass, avoid any form of scandals and also build a healthier work place climate and reputation. These codes and standards of practice will endeavor to embolden particular kinds of behavior by employees. Ethics guiding principles try to provide direction regarding values and choices to impact decision-making, whereas conduct codes of practice declare that a number of particular actions are suitable or unsuitable. These decisions delineate the company's yearning to attain a variety of satisfactory behaviors from employees (Collins, 2009).
B. Culture
The decisions and processes discussed above will impact business sustainability and elements of corporate culture such as corporate citizenship, philanthropy, community involvement, the environment, and causal support. The corporate culture determines the corporate climate and also the manner in which operations within an organization are conducted. The decision to incorporate diversity will significantly impact the corporate culture of Starbucks. The assimilation of diversity is purposed to make certain that each and every one included in the workforce has a complete sense of belonging within the company. As a business necessity, each individual at the organization has the culpability to create and maintain an environment that is inclusive. Notably, inclusion and diversity are imperative to Starbucks’ corporate culture and core values. The corporate culture should ensure that no individual ought to face discrimination simply owing to their differences, such as religion, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, and gender identity (Gordon, 1995).
The culture of the organization will also impacted by diversity awareness. This is purposed to aid individuals understand the advantages of working in tandem with a diverse and inclusive organization. Corporate culture will also influenced by corporate citizenship. This is an acknowledgement that the organization has social, cultural and environmental liabilities to the community, in which it pursues a warrant to operate, in addition to financial and pecuniary ones to its shareholders and close stakeholders (Matten and Crane, 2005). In this regard, Starbucks is dedicated to offering products that are of high quality, and are ethically purchased and responsibly produced. From the neighborhoods where its retail stores are situated to those where our coffee is planted, Starbucks is dedicated to generating and investing in prospects for persons across the globe. Bringing people together, facilitating in the provision of education and employment opportunities and making a difference in people's lives are part of Starbucks’ initiatives of being a good corporate citizen (Starbucks, 2018).
C. Stakeholders
The decisions established by the company are part of strategic management, which is delineated as the devising and execution of the main goals, objectives, and initiatives carried out by a firm’s top-level management in the best interests of the key stakeholders, centered on deliberation of resources and an appraisal of the internal and external environments in which the firm operates and competes in (Hill and Jones, 2005). Stakeholders are persons, corporations, groups, and even governments and their subsystems that cause and react to external issues, opportunities, and threats. Stakeholder groups will be affected by the aforementioned decisions and processes in different ways. These decisions will impact all stakeholder groups and therefore none of them will feel alienated. Managers, employees and suppliers as some of the key stakeholders will be expected to adhere to the established code of ethics and standards of practice. Employees are expected to ensure that their behaviors and mannerisms are in line with the code of ethics instituted by the corporation at all times. In the same manner, suppliers of Starbucks will be impacted by the decisions in that they will have to ensure that their transactions are transparent and ethical. As a stakeholder as well, the government is impacted by these decisions in the sense that the corporation adheres to the set rules and regulations. The consumers and community as a whole are impacted by being provided with suitable products to consume (Zu, 2008).
V. Impact
A. Community
The business ethics and regulatory issues that were earlier described will have an impact on the community that is served by Starbucks, basically where it conducts its business operations. Business ethics take into account responsibilities not only within the workplace setting, but also within the cultural, environmental and social structures of the community. One of the key issues discussed is diversity. In relation to the community within which the company operates, diversity results in greater social soundness and well-being. In particular, diversity makes all employees progressively more open-minded, not only at work but also at the community as a whole (Ferdman, 2013). An additional impact is that increased diversity diminishes the likelihood of discrimination. The disparities in relation to gender, age, ethnicity, culture, national background, educational background, race and language as well as work experience decrease any possibility of prejudice. The greater level of diversity within the company makes the employees more susceptible to socializing and working in tandem beyond and across ethnic and cultural obstacles. This is entirely dissimilar to what is usually perceived in companies that are dominated by either one or two ethnic or national identities. Such instances results in decreased cultural acceptance and lack of collaboration (Ferdman, 2013).
An additional key aspect of diversity in the workplace is greater exposure. A work environment that is diversified offers a greater level of exposure to personnel from varying cultures and upbringings. Employees learn and gain knowledge from colleagues whose approaches to work are dissimilar and whose outlooks regarding work is also dissimilar to their own. For instance, the personnel who are from the traditional era are able to gain knowledge regarding new technology and procedures. On the other hand, employees from the Generation X era are able to gain understanding on how to have a risk taking and self-assured work ethic (Mayhew, 2018).
Legal and regulatory issues will impact the community served by Starbucks. Starbucks is expected to not only be ethical but also follow rules and regulations set by the government and authorities. One of these particular legal and regulatory aspects is retailing products that are ethically sourced and also that are suitable for the consumption of the general public. Being an ethical company, Starbucks is devoted to aiding farmers overcome any difficulties facing coffee communities. The community benefits owing to the reason that Starbucks enhances productivity and sustainability by sharing their research and resources via their Farmer Support Centers. In the same manner, to ensure that it adheres to legal requirements of retailing suitable products, the company has made an investment toward funding for farmers, which permits them in renovating their farms and also pursuing practices that are more sustainable (Starbucks, 2018).
B. Global Environment
Globalization can be delineated as a process of international assimilation and its growth and expansion is owing to increased interchange of products, commodities, and services at a global level, in addition with impacts of other components associated to cultural and social setting (Sirugiu and Sirugiu, 2015). The business setting in the contemporary is significantly dynamic, encompassing evolving markets and industries where globalization has an impact on the distinctive development, decision-making and ultimately profitability. In the present day, corporations aspire to have the ability to gain accessibility to international markets, which may bring forth new prospects for business development (Sirugiu and Sirugiu, 2015).
Diversity and Cultural Issues
The business ethics and regulatory issues aforementioned will impact the global environment of Starbucks. In the contemporary setting, diversity significantly influences the global business environment. Globalization has substantially transformed the society and had resulted in a change in workplace demographics. Today's labor force is rightly an amalgamation of diverse races, ages, genders, ethnic groups, religions and lifestyles (Roberson, 2013). Numerous organizations have acknowledged that the workforce is fluctuating and they are working to generate a work setting in which diversity and disparities are valued and in which employees can work to their highest potential. Imperatively, the present day employees are more diverse and such a global workforce signifies a new approach of thinking about diversity and inclusion endeavors. In actual fact, diversity programs have had a positive influence on employee motivation and customer satisfaction for more than 50 percent of the corporations that have carried them out (Moran, Harris and Moran, 2007). Diversity will play a great role for Starbucks in determining its competitiveness in the global market. Diversity within the organization facilitates high levels of productivity. When management takes into account the wellbeing of its personnel by means of offering them suitable compensation, health care benefits and employee assessment, it enables them to have a sense of belonging irrespective of their cultural background by continuing to be devoted and hardworking which aids in increasing the company’s productivity and profit (Ramanenko, 2012).
Diversity also facilitates the interchange of a range of ideas and promotes team work. The inclusion of individuals from different expanses of the world makes it possible for an organization to prosper from the wide range of notions. Combining the diverse skills and understanding of culturally distinct personnel together can enormously benefit the corporation by firming up the receptiveness and productivity of the team to adapt to the changing conditions. In addition, diversity facilitates learning and growth. If the organizations allows the exposure of its employees to new cultures, conceptions, and perspectives, it can aid each worker to grow intellectually, have a more vivid acumen of their place in the global setting and hence their own surroundings (Brown, 2016). Furthermore, the more time spent by culturally diverse personnel can gradually tear down any psychological obstacles such as ethnocentrisms, thereby enabling employees to become more experienced members. Most of all, diversity can help Starbucks in terms of strengthening its association with its global consumers by making communication more efficacious (Barak, 2016).
Legal and Regulatory Issues
Legal and regulatory issues also have an impact on the global business environment. Imperatively, when conducting business in the global setting, Starbucks ought to ensure that they adhere to the global rules and regulations and not just the local ones. Ranging from tax implications through to trading regulations, circumnavigating legal requirements is a fundamental function for any prosperous global business. Suitability to trade is a substantial consideration, as are prospective tariffs and the legal costs linked with entering new markets. Global regulations are not similar to local regulations. It is imperative to note that employment as well as labor guidelines and requirements differ by nation. For instance, in the United States employees are not entitled to a minimum period of 14 weeks for maternity leave, as is the case in European nations. With the intricacy that is involved in global trade and employment legislations, making an investment in understanding these aspects can be significantly valuable for Starbucks and make a determination of its failure or success (Weiss, 2014).
Beyond adhering to formal legislation, engaging in global business more often than not necessitates abiding by other cultural guidelines that are not necessarily written. This can prove particularly problematic for companies such as Starbucks in emerging markets with poorly delineated regulations or prospective corrupt activities. In this regard, companies such as Starbucks with operations outside the United States have to abide by international regulations and ethical practices (Weiss, 2014). It is necessary for the business to perform and operate in a way that is in line with the expectations of government and legislation. From the ethical dimension, the society at large demands that organizations operate and conduct their business undertakings in an ethical manner. The organization must perform in a way in line with expectations of both societal and ethical norms, acknowledge and respect new or developing moral norms espoused by society.




References
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