Meeting the ethical challenge of leadership - MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Meeting the ethical challenge of leadership. Answer: Introduction Over the years, the social, political and economic aspects in the global framework, have changed considerably, which in turn have significant effects on the overall way of living of people across the world and on their personal and professional domains. These changes, obviously have affected the workings and operational frameworks of the business organizations operating in the global framework, the same facing considerable dynamics over time (Abouzeedan Hedner, 2012). In the last few decades, the business organizations in the international framework have changed considerably in terms of their objectives, goals, production process, operating framework, area of operations and others. With contemporary economic and social phenomena like Globalization, Liberalizations and other similar incidents, more and more organizations and business enterprises have been going global, by expanding their domain of operations in different countries and exploring varied opportunities of venturing in different types of markets (Powell DiMaggio, 2012). The corporate culture and the work environments of these organizations are also experiencing considerable changes with the inclusion of multi-cultured and multi-specialty workforce. Keeping the above situations in the global business framework into consideration, the concerned assignment tries to discuss the challenges these contemporary business enterprises face in the aspect of profit maximizations, their long term and short-term goals as well as the corporate social responsibility of these organizations (Awadh Alyahya, 2013). The assignment tries to highlight the ethical issues faced by these organizations in the aspect of achieving their goals, profit expectations and I the aspect of corporate social responsibility. Operational framework: Organizational Challenges of contemporary business organizations The operational framework of the commercial institutions, showing the overall structure, strategic framework, productive operations, employee structure and social commitments of the same, is the backbone of any organization. This is primarily because the sustainability, profitability and long-term prospects of any organization highly depend on how efficiently the same carries out its functions and responsibilities. The companies also need to take into consideration not only the maximization of its profit, but also the maximization of welfare of the people attached to the company as well as of the society as a whole (Wirtz et al. 2016). In the earlier periods, the operational frameworks of the businesses used to be simple and unilateral, with the core objective being maximization of its own profit, by accruing as much market share and clientele as possible and targeting maximum productivity in minimum cost. However, with time and an increasingly integrating global business environment and with these businesses venturing different domains, both geographical as well as operational, their mode of operations has also been changing significantly (Symon Cassell, 2012). The business organizations are no longer viewed as solely profit maximizing institutions but are expected to fulfill several responsibilities towards their employees and towards the society as a whole. This in turn, gives rise to several challenges, which the businesses face, in term of Corporate Social Responsibility, Profits and Goals. These are explained as follows: Challenges in Corporate Social Responsibility As discussed above, the global business environment has been becoming more integrating with more companies venturing into different areas and product and service markets. The demand patterns of the customers across the world have also experienced immense dynamics, much of which can be attributed to the change in the life styles globally. This, in turn indicates towards the increase in both the demand and the supply side dynamics in the global commercial scenario. With more inclusion of supply side players, the business scenario has become far more competitive and dynamic (Tai Chuang, 2014). On the other hand, there is a constant increase in the awareness regarding the threats which the environment and societies are facing, due to the concerning global phenomena like Global Warming, excessive carbon emission, destruction of natural resources and damages done to mankind as a whole. Much of these destructions and negative implications on the society can be attributed to the less restri ctive working methods of the businesses in the earlier periods. Keeping these aspects of competitiveness as well as environmental and social welfare in concern, it becomes the responsibility of the businesses operating in any corner of the world to carry out their operations and productive activities, keeping into account their duties towards the society as well as towards the welfare of the workers and the stakeholders (Schneider Schmidpeter, 2012). Thus, the term Corporate Social Responsibility refers to the continuous commitment of the commercial institutions in the global framework, to work towards corporate sustainability, by contributing to the economic development of itself as well as of the society. It falls under the Corporate Social Responsibility of the organizations to emphasis not only increasing their production and profit, but also to do so in an ethical framework, thereby improving the overall quality of living of the workers and other stakeholders as well as the society at large. Thus, it can be asserted that under the corporate social responsibility, in the contemporary global scenario, the companies not only need to be publicly accountable on their commercial performances but they also need to be accountable in the social, environmental and ethical aspects too. The companies need to promote sustainable development, human rights, democracy and improvement in community in their operational framework (Crane, Matten Spence, 2013). Among the different responsibilities and challenges falling under the domain of CSR, are the following: a) Economic Responsibilities- To produce the goods and services for the purpose of earning profit b) Legal Responsibilities- To earn profits within the legal framework c) Ethical Responsibility- To operated and produce with the goal of earning profit, incorporating ethical aspects of production and welfare maximization in their operational framework d) Discretionary responsibilities- To involve in other philanthropic activities thereby working for the benefits of those people who are not directly related to the company as a whole Thus, from the above discussion, it can be clearly stated that in the contemporary commercial situation, the commercial organizations do not only work for the purpose of increasing their individual profit but also are bestowed with ethical, social, economic and philanthropic responsibilities, towards the increase of the greater welfare of the society as a whole (Brammer, Jackson Matten, 2012). However, while catering to those responsibilities the contemporary commercial organizations often face challenges and conflicts in their operational framework, which primarily includes trade-off between their personal profit maximization and their responsibility towards the increment of the social welfare, in an ethical framework. Challenges faced by business organizations in terms of profit Given the fact that corporate social responsibility is one of the factors of immense importance in the contemporary business scenarios, which enforces the commercial institutions to work in an overall ethical framework, the following are the primary ethical challenges, which are faced by the firms in their commercial operations. These dilemmas are directly linked to their profit and the welfare manifested by their actions: Employee management One of the primary challenges, which the contemporary organizations face in the global scenario, is how they need to manage their employees. The fastest way in which any company can maximize their individual profit is by reducing the cost of production and slashing the expenses they bear in terms of the maintenance of their employees. The profit of the organizations can be easily increased by taking away the benefits, which the employees of those organizations enjoy additionally apart from their salary packages (Lau, 2015). However, if this measure is undertaken, then this can lead to immense ethical issues by causing poor morale among the workforces. Thus, the primary challenge, which the company faces in terms of profit maximization, is the ethical dilemma of sacrificing the welfare of their workers. Thus, in the contemporary global context, profit maximization strategies of the companies need to incorporate the ethical issues of employee management also (Ulrich Sarasin, 2012). Environmental aspects Another challenge, which the business organizations across the world experience, in terms of profit maximization, is in terms of restoration of the environmental aspects. The production of all goods and services have environmental impacts to some extent, in terms of pollution and contamination of natural resources, which in turn have negative implications on the society as a whole. However, in order to incorporate environmental sustainability in the production process, the firms need to incur several costs, which in turn increase social welfare aspects. However, by incorporating the same in the operational framework, the firms can stay ethically correct and excel in terms of their social responsibility, thereby gaining positive popularity in the market and sustainability in production. Quality Considerations The most significant trade off which the companies face in terms of profit and social welfare tradeoff is the quality aspects of their products. While compromising in the quality levels the firm can reduce cost and increase productivity, however, in the global competitive framework, the emphasis on better quality can help them satisfy their ethical requirements and stay ahead of their competitors. Challenges in organizational goals From the above discussion, it is therefore, evident that the goals of the organizations in the contemporary business framework have also changed significantly and there arises several challenges, which the same face in terms of attainment of those goals. a) Changing Strategy- In the competitive business framework, the primary challenge of the organizations is to keep on changing and improvising their strategic framework in order to compete with their rivals in an ethical framework. b) Decision making process- The goals of the organizations becoming increasingly complex, with the incorporation of social welfare along with personal benefits, the business organizations face the challenge of taking the right decisions, which cater to both the needs (Johnson, 2017). c) Perceived priority- The complex and multi-dimensional responsibilities of the business organizations, it becomes a consistent challenge for the same to decide on their priorities, taking into account the positive and negative implications of both profit and social welfare maximizations (Cavusgil et al. 2014). Conclusion Keeping the above discussion in consideration, it can be asserted that with the significant dynamics in the global business environment, the operational framework and the production process of the business institutions across the world has also been experiencing considerable changes. The structure of the organizations is becoming complex and multi-dimensional and the ethical aspects are coming in lime light. The business organizations, therefore, in the contemporary periods, faces challenges regarding their profit dynamics, achievement of goals and corporate social responsibilities, which in turn have considerable influences on their changing priorities and overall operations management. References Abouzeedan, A., Hedner, T. (2012). Organization structure theories and open innovation paradigm.World Journal of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development,9(1), 6-27. Awadh, A. M., Alyahya, M. S. (2013). 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