Ethics in business; values for value?
February 24, 2010
Firstly, Seidman talks about the risk of not behaving ethically as a company. He argues that true and honest behaviour is crucial for companies as the rise of of information technology has made good behavior more important because it has become increasingly hard to hide bad behavior. Especially now unsatisfied customers, employees or neighbours can ruin a company in a split second through a blog, youtube-posting or e-mail. Seidman concludes that because of these developments, it's becoming much harder to manage reputation the old-fashioned way."
But moreover, Seidman believes that ethical behaviour creates a competitive advantage. As stated in the interview: "Globalization has made it increasingly difficult for companies to differentiate themselves based on their products alone. Whatever your product or service might be, chances are that someone on the other side of the world can copy and sell it for less money. And if money is the only bond between you and your employees, they will quit the moment another firm offers them more cash. All the more important, then, for companies to compete at the level of behavior: crucially, how they treat customers and employees."
Well, the exact same arguments apply to sustainability. While environmental and social issues were at first mostly a (reputational) risk for companies, we currently see an increasing number of companies understands that these elements directly affect their economic performance. And thus smart companies use sustainability to increase their competitive position by developing new sustainable products, approaching new markets, innovating their production process.
It's interesting to see that it doesn't really matter from which angle (business ethics, sustainability, corporate governance, etc.) you look at a company's position in its environment, but the message is clear; the world around you is changing and you better prepare yourself. And if you do it well, it will even make you a better company.
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