Business Society

Corporations dominate our societies. They employ us, sell to us and influence how we think and who we vote for, while their economic interests dictate local, national and global agendas. Written in clear and accessible terms, this much-needed textbook provides critical perspectives on all aspects of the relationship between business and society: from an historical analysis of the spread of capitalism as the foundation of the 'corporate' revolution in the late nineteenth century to the regulation, ethics and exclusionary implications of business in contemporary society. Furthermore, it examines how corporate power and capitalism might be resisted, outlining a range of alternatives, from the social economy through to new forms of open access or commons ownership.

This book is about promoting corporate responsibility in its original meaning: businesses should have a positive impact on society, and society should not only be a lever of making a profit. When we treat social responsibility as an external function of the core business, we are exposed to the worst. Business for Society seeks to redress the balance and promotes the original idea of corporate responsibility. This first book in the series of the same name sets the scene and presents the key theories across the various management disciplines to answer the following questions: 'How, why and under what conditions can business act for society?' The book narrows and discusses examples of businesses which are making impressive strides in delivering positive impacts for society as well as their bottom lines; but as the concept of corporate responsibility has become more mainstream in recent years, many organisations have adopted the term and reduced it to a marketing message. Areas covered include a historical perspective on the hijacking of business responsibility towards society, management knowledge and value, the Business for Society project against hijacking, accounting for society, finance for society and governance for society and democracy. The book will be of interest for scholars and students in the fields of corporate social responsibility, business ethics and governance.

With an emphasis on psychoanalytic theory, Business, Ethics and Society: Key Concepts, Current Debates and Contemporary Innovations provides a clear, concise introduction to the field of business ethics, while addressing contemporary issues and debates around the impacts of artificial intelligence, social media, the gig economy and populist politics on business and society. The book features mini-case studies from a variety of contexts and companies, including Gillette, Nike, Dove, British Airways and Microsoft, as well as thought-provoking questions throughout. Also included are: - Learning objectives - Chapter summaries - Recommended reading Business, Ethics and Society: Key Concepts, Current Debates and Contemporary Innovations serves as an ideal introductory text for students of undergraduate business ethics-related courses. Lecturers can access a range of online resources for use in their teaching, including an instructor’s manual, PowerPoint slides and SAGE Business Cases.

This book brings together leading scholars in the field of stakeholder management to bring to light new and cutting edge perspectives on this important field. It is intended as a resource for both emerging and established scholars to create innovative advances in stakeholder management.

"Technology is transforming how we work and live, making the relationship between business and society more integrated than ever. Business and Society: Ethical, Legal, and Digital Environments is a fresh new text that prepares students for the modern workplace by exploring the opportunities and challenges they will undoubtedly face in today's global society. Chapters on Social Media and Citizen Movements, Big Data and Hacking, and Privacy in the Digital Age provide indepth coverage of all the ways technology affects businesses, employees, and consumers. Authors Cynthia E. Clark, Kabrina K. Chang, and Sean P. Melvin discuss legal and ethical issues in every chapter and use real-world cases to provide students with an interesting, holistic understanding of business and society"--

In this concise book, feminist thought is made accessible and relevant to both students and management practitioners. An empowering introduction to an often-overlooked key idea, this book illuminates how feminist thinking can liberate our understanding of work and management. Feminism: A Key Idea for Business and Society boldly challenges assumptions about both feminism and business. It offers a primer on feminism for business and explains feminist interventions including adding women’s voices, pushing for equality, and practicing feminist values to make businesses more successful and more just. It analyzes the obstacles organizations and individuals face in their efforts to address gender inequality, and demonstrates how feminist interventions have changed the terms of business conversations around topics such as defining work, centering the economy around care, how jobs work and wages are gendered, violence in the workplace, horizontal and peer-to-peer organizational structures that don’t depend on dominance, enlightened leadership models, and power. As this book demonstrates, feminism has already had a profound impact on business, with many of its key tenets incorporated into business thinking. As one of the first books to offer feminist insights and critiques of business to the practicing manager, business student, and non-academic, this book offers a fresh, positive vision that is remarkably relevant.

As consumers, our access to—and appetite for—information about what and how we buy continues to grow. Powered by social media, increasingly we look at the companies behind the products and are disappointed when their actions do not meet our expectations. With engaged citizens acting as 24/7 auditors of corporate behavior, one formerly trusted company after another has had their business disrupted with astonishing velocity in the wake of what, in the past, might have been written off as a bad media cycle. Gone are the days when a company could hide behind “socially responsible” branding or when marketing controlled the corporate narrative. That control has shifted to engaged stakeholders in the new social landscape, requiring a more radical change to company practices. James Rubin and Barie Carmichael provide a strategic roadmap for businesses to navigate the new era, rebuild trust, and find their voice. Reset traces the global decline of trust in business at the same time that the public’s expectations for business’s role in society is increasing. Today, businesses must bridge this widening gap at a time when online stakeholders are committed to holding business accountable for its behavior, with unprecedented internal and external scrutiny. This requires strategic solutions anchored in a critical outside-in understanding of the stakeholder footprint of the business model. Reset offers case studies of reputations lost and found, suggesting fundamental strategies to mitigate risk and build the corporate brand. In this new era of instant transparency, corporate behavior has become the proof of corporate character for recruiting and retaining both customers and the next generation of talent. Offering essential advice for managing brand, reputation, and risk, this book is a guide to navigating the pitfalls and taking advantage of the opportunities of the reset.