Corporate Responsibility.

Essay by k-to-the-cUniversity, Bachelor's October 2005

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In 2001, Business Ethics magazine listed Target Corporation one of the 100 corporate citizens of 2001. Target Corporation provides employment close to 300,000 people with an employee growth rate of 9%. The retail giant has grown to over 1,400 stores spread over 47 states. The success of Target Corporation is a result from the key planning of the company, (www.target.com, 2005). Part of Target's initiatives and plans include impacting employees, stakeholders, and the community as a whole. Target states on their website, "As the company evolves, we will continue to add and refine social policies to reflect the scope of our business." Being a socially responsible company is a big issue for many businesses. Social responsibility might sway the financial performance of the company either positively or negatively. The manager of a company has to be able to make an ethical decision in order to be socially responsible, (Donaldson, 1982).

Ethics help manage values associated with quality management, strategic planning, and diversity management to ensure that organizational behaviors are aligned with those values set, (Donaldson, 1982). Ethical thinking is essential to strategic planning for any business. Businesses have to consider themselves a part of the business community and society. The matter of ethical thinking should be a fundamental practice and a way of life. Professor Donaldson goes on to say that making money is not unethical, but money can not provide the source of ethical thinking in a business.

A company's reputation, together with the trust and confidence of all those with whom the company interacts, is a vital asset and protection is critically important. Commercial responsibilities involve running a business successfully, generating profit and satisfying shareholder expectations. Social responsibility, on the other hand, is being aware of the issues being presented in the community and the working environment. "Social...