Social Responsibility in the Spotlight

The term social responsibility is an amalgamation of two words, social and responsibility. Social is a word used about society while responsibility refers to the act of being accountable for something or someone. Generally, a society refers to a group of people not only living together but also interacting with each other. Therefore, social responsibility refers to the idea that individuals or organizations must prioritize benefits of the society first before personal gains in every activity that they engage in.

Social responsibility is the code that binds organizations and businesses to give pre-eminence to the society that they operate in before any other thing. So in this social responsibility essay, we seek to answer the question, “How do organizations carry out their social responsibility?”

How Organizations Carry Out Their Social Responsibility

Giving Donations to Society

Globally, organizations have used philanthropy as one of the critical ways of fulfilling their social mandate. This is not limited to financial aid but also includes the provision of services and free products to communities. For instance, Google Corporation is known to have donated hundreds of millions towards various charitable activities. In 2017, it launched a $1 billion grant to aid nonprofit innovators aiming at mitigating global challenges in their course. This sum is exclusive to the millions of dollars that it has donated in the past to educational activities globally.

Many other corporations can be quoted for their philanthropy when writing an essay on responsibility due to helping to handle societal challenges. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will go down in history as a foundation that champions for better living conditions and provision of better healthcare globally, including Africa. Warren Buffett is another business magnate known to carry out his social responsibility through donations to charity. So great is the social responsibility gene of the Berkshire Hathaway CEO and chairman that in 2006, he vowed to donate 85% of his wealth to charitable organizations!

Conservation of the Environment

Environmental preservation and protection have attracted the attention of myriads of corporations. Many global household names in the business industry have invested heavily in activities aimed at arresting ecological degradation. For instance, since 2005, the Coca-Cola company has developed Community Water partnerships in more than 86 countries. These projects include expanding access to drinking water and sanitation in various communities throughout the world.

Watershed protection, agricultural water efficiency, educational and awareness services are other examples of the corporation’s social responsibility acts. Google green initiative is the second example worth applause. The initiative focuses on efficient utilization of resources and supporting renewable energy provision.

Provision of Free Products and Services

Giant hospitals globally have been known to facilitate free medical camps and are a primary center of attention when coming up with an essay about responsibility. Medical schools have been in the forefront of providing personnel for such fields. Pharmaceutical companies have always donated drugs and other equipment needed for the success of such free medical fields globally. Cancer centers have always provided free screening and education to the community to raise awareness of the new pandemic.

Moreover, during calamities such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, and many other natural disasters, many corporations have always reached out to provide free products and services as a way of fulfilling their social responsibility.

Treating Employees Fairly

All companies have their workforce as members of a given society. Therefore, it follows that by treating its employees fairly, the company will be fulfilling its social mandate. Having better wages, better working conditions, providing its employees with opportunities to expand their careers and take care of their families all fall within the scope of fulfilling social responsibility for organizations.

Having seen the ways a company can fulfill its social responsibility mandate, what are some of the benefits of doing so? Let’s consider them in this responsibility essay.

The Benefits

Creation of Productive Working Conditions

Social responsibility is at the core of humanity. Humanity is defined by the act of caring for our fellow humans. Any company that engages in activities aimed at making the world a better place motivates its workers. Workers of such companies are inspired to do better work. They gain the satisfaction of being helpful to the society in general rather than just working for money. The result is improved productivity of the company.

Increased Output

Motivated workers do not need to be overseen to deliver their best contribution to the company. The overall creativity of the company employees is improved because the working environment is made conducive. Workers in such companies have no trouble putting in a little more time to finalize an assignment. This is only possible because they feel they own the company and not the other way round. Each employee that has seen the contribution of their company to the society aims at showcasing his/her contribution to the community through the company. The output of the company therefore increases.

Increased Profits

Participating in social responsibility acts is a great advertisement platform. By engaging in various community development activities, the society gets exposed to the organization and its products thus increasing the likelihood of better returns. In addition to this, the nation that has seen the benevolence of the organization in its social acts is likely to favor purchasing the organization’s products. By doing so, members of the community feel they are contributing to their development through the company resulting in increased returns and higher profit margins.

Better Social Standing for Individuals

Champions of social responsibility always end up with better social status than average citizens. World over, these are the men and women who comprise the Nobel Prize list. The prestigious prize is reserved for people who realized their mandate in the society is far much higher than personal profits. However, at the end of the whole process, they end up profiting enormously from their early sacrifice. Moreover, due to their excellent social standing, such persons are easily appointed to executive positions or elected to political offices. The society finds a special attachment to such people due to their selfless contribution to humanity.

The benefits of fulfilling social responsibilities are undoubtedly fantastic. Still, few companies have social responsibility at their core. Could there then be any obstacles towards the fulfillment of social responsibility?

Obstacles to Fulfilling Social Responsibility

Lack of adequate awareness of individual and organization’s social responsibility tops the list. It’s impossible to fulfill something you are not aware of. Knowledge is key to achieving this objective.

Inadequate staff to manage and focus on the organization’s social responsibility.

Availability of several options with resultant lack of focus on a particular area. Without crystal clear objective on how to fulfill this mandate, most organizations and individuals end up not making any contribution towards fulfilling their social responsibility.

High cost may be a significant limiting factor to organizations aiming at answering to their social responsibility call. This is primarily for small organizations which are not well financially endowed.

Lack of motivation among the managers to instill this noble responsibility in his/her subordinates.

Conclusion

Nevertheless, social responsibility is a good act that needs to be embraced by not only each person but also each corporation. Overall, it’s a commitment to making earth a little heaven even as we reap the benefits that come with it. With strict regulations and implementation, it’s an act that can be put into practice for the benefit of all humanity as has been shown in this responsibility essay example.