business ethics and csr

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

A business's responsibility to communities, stakeholders, and the environment, not just shareholders.

Formula of Humanity in business

Companies must never treat employees or customers purely as a means to an end.

Formula of Universal Law in business

Business practices are only ethical if they can be universally applied without collapsing trust.

Utilitarianism basis

A teleological theory focusing on the greatest happiness for the greatest number.

Cost-Benefit Analysis

A utilitarian business tool weighing financial and social "good" against "bad."

Whistleblowing

Reporting illegal or unethical practices within a company to authorities or the public.

Kantian view on Whistleblowing

Supports it, prioritizing duty to truth over loyalty to a corrupt company.

Utilitarian view on Whistleblowing

Justified if preventing a major disaster outweighs the short-term harm of exposure.

Good Ethics is Good Business

smiths claim that companies ultimately benefit from moral practises

Kantian view on "Good Ethics is Good Business"

Rejects it; acting ethically for profit reduces morality to a marketing strategy.

Utilitarian view on "Good Ethics is Good Business"

Supports it; outcomes matter, regardless of whether motives are selfish.

Globalization

the interrelation of businesses, people media and culture across the world

Utilitarian defense of Globalization

It lifts millions out of poverty and lowers prices for global consumers.

Kantian critique of Globalization

It often treats workers in developing nations purely as cheap tools to cut costs.

Friedman's CSR view

The sole social responsibility of business is to increase its profits.

Friedman's "taxing" argument

Spending company money on social causes unfairly "taxes" shareholders without consent.

Kantian critique of Friedman

His view encourages treating society purely as a means to financial gain.

Capitalism

Economic system based on private ownership of means of production operated for profit.

Socialism

Economic theory advocating community or state ownership/regulation of production to ensure equality.

Ethical Egoism in business

Normative position asserting corporations should act solely in their own self-interest (profit-maximization).

The "Symbiotic" Nature of Business

The concept that business and society are mutually dependent for survival and progress.

Consumerism

An ideology encouraging acquisition of goods, reframing personal well-being around consumption.

Ethical consumer market growth (1999 to 2012)

Grew from £13.5 billion to £47.2 billion, proving ethics can drive profit.

Keynes's 15-Hour Work Week Prediction

1930 theory that technological advancement would reduce work hours; blocked by consumerism and corporate capitalism.

Adam Smith's localized economy assumption

Assumed capitalists would keep capital local and feel natural empathy for fellow citizens.

Jonathan Glover's critique of the "invisible hand"

Psychological distance in global business blinds the invisible hand to distant harms.

Sports Direct Warehouse Scandal

Used hyper-surveillance and restricted toilet breaks, treating workers as mere conveyor belt cogs.

Volkswagen "Defeat Device" (2015)

Software that cheated emissions tests, emitting toxic pollutants up to 40 times legal limits.

Freedom to Speak Out Report (2015)

NHS review showing whistleblowers faced extreme institutional bullying, isolation, and severe psychological trauma.

Snowden case study

Leaked NSA documents, highlighting the clash between contractual loyalty and duty to global public, getting exiled to russia in the process

Rana Plaza Collapse (2013)

Garment factory collapse in Bangladesh killing 1,134 workers forced to enter despite structural cracks.

Utilitarianism's fatal flaw in global economics

Relies on unquantifiable long-term consequences and tolerates exploitation of minorities for cheap goods.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) benefits

Fosters trust, builds brand loyalty, and can improve financial performance.

Transparency in Business Practices

The practice of being open and honest in financial reporting and operations.

Environmental Sustainability in Business

Adopting business practices that meet the needs of the present without compromising future generations.

Corporate Governance

The system of rules, practices, and processes by which a company is directed and controlled.

Social Entrepreneurship

A business model aimed at solving social problems while being financially sustainable.

Greenwashing

Misleading claims made by a company about the environmental benefits of a product or service.

Impact Investing

Investing with the intention to generate positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return.