A Marketing Strategy is very important for any business and it is imperative for any business to succeed. First of all you might want to know what a Marketing Strategy is and why you actually NEED one. Basically a Marketing Strategy defines the way you are going and to if your business/website is going in the right direction or not. It helps defines objectives and goals to keep your business on track. Many people think they do not need a Marketing Strategy but there are many reasons to why you need a Marketing Strategy. In this article we will look at the different types of strategies you can use and why you need a strategy.
Having a good Marketing Strategy in place helps your business go in the right direction. It also helps you focus on the correct thing. It helps you find out who your target audience are and therefore serve your customers/clients better. To succeed it helps to know who your target audience are. Knowing your audience helps you market better towards them.
To develop a great Marketing Strategy for your business it is necessary to answer these questions. These questions help you define your business. You should answer questions like:
Who is your target audience and How do you Market to them?
Do you post good content and What kind of Content do you post?
What Resources does your business use and What kind of resources do you have access to?
Set KPI's (Key Performance Indicators - A KPI helps you understand if your business is actually reaching your business objectives and monitors your performance)
Answering these questions will help you understand your business better and therefore market your products better and make higher profit.
Do not follow the normal rules, Break the Rules
Market Segmentation
Market Segmentation helps choose a broad target market audience for your business and helps you segment or narrow down it down into different groups who have mutual needs, so it is easier to market to the groups of customers. Market Segmentation is the process of splitting a larger target market into a smaller more focused target market.
There are many smaller target audience segments you can split them up to. For example you can split them up by Demographics, Geographic, Behavioural, etc. So for example you could market to all the people in a certain country like New Zealand. Or you could market to people of a certain age range like 18-25 year olds.
When choosing a Market Segmentation for your business there are some things you need to consider. You would need to consider some things like your target market being large enough to make profit from. It must be able to be consistent and something that your chosen market segmentation must be interested in and be responding well to.
Nelson Mandela, aged at 95 has died. Nelson Mandela was one of the greatest African leaders. He fought for racial equality and was a key figure in the South African apartheid. Mandela focused on tackling major issues such as poverty, inequality and racial issues. He also received countless amounts of awards and honors including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Award. Nelson Mandela was truly one of the greatest people to live and during his time he has said may inspiration and memorable quotes. This article will be a tribute to Nelson Mandela and will feature some of his most remarkable quotes and sayings.
Nelson Mandela on getting things and showing nothing is impossible
"It always seems impossible until its done."
A quote about freedom and how is not easy and the road is long and hard however with persistence and focus, anything is achievable.
"There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires."
Nelson Mandela hated racism, this is just one of the many things he stood up against.
"I detest racialism, because I regard it as a barbaric thing, whether it comes from a black man or a white man."
A great quote about success and how to achieve it.
"Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will."
Another thought provoking and inspirational quote.
"Does anybody really think that they didn't get what they had because they didn't have the talent or the strength or the endurance or the commitment?"
Mandela talking about freedom and how you should never give up.
"Let freedom reign. The sun never set on so glorious a human achievement."
You should never give up on your goal, like Nelson Mandela who wanted freedom for South Africa.
"If there are dreams about a beautiful South Africa, there are also roads that lead to their goal. Two of these roads could be named Goodness and Forgiveness."
Equality should be for everyone.
"Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all."
A message to the leaders of the world, less bloodshed and more peace.
"In countries where innocent people are dying, the leaders are following their blood rather than their brains."
Children should be growing up in a loving and peaceful environment, not one filled with diseases
"Give a child love, laughter and peace, not AIDS."
Nelson Mandela on how he has not fully experienced life. Nelson Mandela did spend a majority of his life in prison.
"Sometimes, I feel like one who is on the sidelines, who has missed life itself."
Mandela talking about the USA and how they should not just invade any country or nation they feel like.
"The United States has made serious mistakes in the conduct of its foreign affairs, which have had unfortunate repercussions long after the decisions were taken."
He was a born leader and was destined to be a great leader.
"By ancestry, I was born to rule."
Nelson Mandela was very passionate about his cause and was prepared to do anything for his cause and country, even die for his country.
"I started to make a study of the art of war and revolution and, whilst abroad, underwent a course in military training. If there was to be guerrilla warfare, I wanted to be able to stand and fight with my people and to share the hazards of war with them."
A memorable quote about failure and how every time we fail, we should just lift ourselves up and go for it again.
"The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall"
Nelson Mandela does not condone violence and expresses his outrage at oppression and exploitation.
"I do not deny that I planned sabotage. I did not plan it in a spirit of recklessness nor because I have any love of violence. I planned it as a result of a calm and sober assessment of the political situation that had arisen after many years of tyranny, exploitation and oppression of my people by the whites."
One of his best quotes on how to overcome fear and gain courage. Nelson Mandela was a very courageous man who fought for what he believed in.
"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."
One of his best quotes. He speaks the truth
"A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination."
A quote about freedom and how it is necessary to have freedom and respect each other.
"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others."
We should always strive for more and should always strive for excellence. Whatever we do we should be passionate about it.
"There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living."
We hope you enjoyed this tribute to Nelson Mandela and hope this article has inspired and made you think. What is your best and most memorable Nelson Mandela quote? Did we miss any out? Please include them in the comment section. Remember to share to this article if you enjoyed it.
Donald Trump is one of the most successful entrepreneurs of his generation and he has amassed a wealth that many people would only wish they could achieve. Donald Trump was born in mid 1930s and was born in Queens, New York in America. Mr Trump is one of the most well known business magnates, investors and TV personalities of his time. Among owning the most extravagant buildings and businesses in the world, he is also a renowned author and has many business books such as Trump University Real Estate 101 and Trump: How to Get Rich.
Donald has been on countless number of rich lists and his net worth is estimated to be around $10 billion. Here are some of his tips on how he got successful and how you can implement them into your business and life as well.
Keep Consistent and Never Give Up
Donald Trump never gives up when it comes to anything. Whether it comes to his business or personal life, he never gives in. He is the rich ultra successful guy because he never gives up and he always works towards his goal, one step at a time.
Ignore The Naysayers
You will always get people out there who say stuff like "You can't do it", "Why are you even trying" or "You're just going to fail".You have to ignore those people because those kind of people only say things like that because either they can't do it, or they want to see you fail. Donald Trump does not care what people say or think about him. He just does what he does, and this is the type of attitude you are going to have to develop
"Money was never a big motivation for me, except as a way to keep score. The real excitement is playing the game."- Donald Trump
Do What You Love
This is one of the things most successful people do. Following your passion and doing what you love is very important when it comes to business, or anything else. If you follow your passion, success will follow you. It is very important to follow your passion because you will enjoy what you do. Business and Real Estate was Donald's passion. Whats yours?
Be Optimistic
Whatever you do always keep a positive outlook on life. Never think negative and always try to keep negative thoughts as far out of your head as possible. The Donald always thinks positive, that is why he is so successful. For more information on optimism and developing the mindset, check out the Law of Attraction and The Secret.
It's Never Easy
The Road to success is never an easy path. You will get obstacles in the way, and you will face challenges and hardships. But if it was that easy everyone would be successful. Do whatever it takes to get successful and never stop. Donald Trump faced many challenges in his life such as getting bankrupt a numerous amounts of time. But he still turned his life around and is now a multi-billionaire.
Think and Dream BIG
Finally we would like to leave you with the final point of Trump's success; Always have BIG dreams and always think BIG. The bigger you think the better. Never place any limitations on yourself. Always be pushing yourself and never settle for any less.
Thank you for reading the article and we would like to wish you all the best in your journey to becoming successful. If you have any of your own tips, please include them in the comment section. Be sure to Follow us and Like us on Facebook.
Technology is everywhere we look nowadays. There’s technology in our smartphones, our
TV’s and even our doors. It has helped us achieve many things. However there
have been many issues regarding multinational technology companies falling out.
One of the major stories involving two of the biggest technology firms is South
Korean company Samsung and America Corporation Apple. There are many lawsuits that these two
companies have put against each other for the design of their respected phones
and tablets. The first lawsuit began in the spring of 2011 and by August 2011
Apple and Samsung were litigating 19 on-going cases, in nine countries. In July 2012 the two companies were involved
in a staggering 50 lawsuits between each other, with billions of dollars of
damages claimed against each other. While Apple won a ruling in its favor in
the U.S., Samsung won rulings in South Korea, Japan, and the UK. Apples first
lawsuit was because of the comparison between the Apple iPhone 3GS and the Samsung
Galaxy i9000 which Apple provided comparison photos. Later on these photos were
found to be tampered with to match dimensions and style.
Recently Taiwanese firm HTC and Apple had a very public dispute
between each other. Apple accused HTC of ‘cloning products’ and coping features
such as ‘pinch to zoom’. After a lengthy court case they reached a global
settlement that included the dismissal of all current lawsuits and a ten-year
license agreement. The license extends to current and future patents held by
both parties. According to the document, Apple main concern was the alleged
cloning of iPhone's slide-to-unlock prompt at the bottom of the screen as
something that "could qualify as a distinctive Apple user experience;
however, a different animation (for example, a bubble slider) or an animation
at another location ... would not be considered substantially similar and would
not consitute a cloned feature."
Apple sued Samsung over simlarlities over the iPhone 3GS and Samsung S i9000
The terms of the settlement are confidential. During a press
conference CEO of HTC, Peter Chou said “HTC is pleased to have resolved its
dispute with Apple, so HTC can focus on innovation instead of litigation.”
After the court case, CEO of Apple Tim Cook stated “We are glad to have reached
a settlement with HTC,” said Tim Cook, CEO of Apple. “We will continue to stay
laser focused on product innovation.”
Moving away from smartphones, Social Network giant Facebook
has also faced many lawsuits over privacy issues and what they do with personal
information of its users. Another one of Facebook’s company Instagram, has also
faced its fear share of court cases. In its Term of Services it stated
"may share User Content and your information (including but not limited
to, information from cookies, log files, device identifiers, location data, and
usage data)" with Facebook. This court case is going to keep on going and
who knows when it’ll stop.
People sue other people for the stupidest reasons nowadays
Technology companies seem to get into quite a few lawsuits.
They get into legal trouble over the silliest such as Google getting sued over
giving bad directions and a Dutch woman trying to sue Pentium over allegedly
being allergic to processer.
Do you have any unusual stories about lawsuits? We would love to hear about your experiences and views. Please consider leaving a comment. Did you enjoy this article? Please share it with your friends and let everyone know how great it was!
When people hear the word Cold Calling a lot of people just do not like doing it. Some people even have fear of cold calling. Most people think that cold calling involves the same, monotonous work that does not produce no outcomes at all and is useless. Cold Calling can bring in a lot of clients for your business if done correctly.
Cold calling has many other different names; telesales, telemarketing, prospecting among a few. There is a lot of information available on the internet about cold calling but none are better then this guide.
When you purchase this guide you will learn how to call potential clients, know what to say to the clients, who to say it to, what to say and also what to do after the call. This guide will help you overcome any nerves you are having with cold calling and bring more confidence in yourself and your calling abilities.
Ceridwyn Ruenheck the author of this guide is a successful telemarketer and entrepreneur who has years and years of experience of telemarketing. Ceri Ruenheck is the owner of telemarketing firm Its Your Call. How many times have you failed to land a contract because of your cold calling skills? What if you actually had to ability to close near enough any call and get the sale? Wouldn't that be great! Well with this guide you can. You can view this book on any smartphone including any iPhone and Android device as well as any Windows Phone. You can also view it on any ebook reader, laptop, tablet, and most other electronic devices. This book is very effective and you will most definitely learn new things. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for anyone starting of in telemarketing, wanting to use telemarketing in their business or just want to improve on their existing skills.
If you would like to purchase the guide please Click Here!
In this
article we will look at the Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics of
Northern Rock. Northern Rock was a bank based in the United Kingdom that fell
into a major financial crisis in 2007. Customers were worried they would lose
their money so they queued outside the bank and tried to protect the capital
that they had invested in the firm.
This
article will discuss and analyse the different ethical and moral theories of
Corporate Social Responsibility. The article will also provide an insight on
the importance of applying ethical concepts and strategies to a business as
well as discuss the future for CSR and make some reasonable predictions.
First you might want to know abit more about CSR and what it is. Corporate
Social Responsibility aims to ensure that businesses do everything in an
ethical manner. This means they should consider their social, environmental and
economic impact as well as their influence on human rights.
It is a view of the corporation and its role in society that assumes a
responsibility among firms to pursue goals in addition to profit maximisation
and a responsibility among firm’s stakeholders to hold the firm accountable for
its actions
CSR ensures
that businesses focus on what is ethically and morally correct for the business
and its employees while also maintaining a high level of social responsibility.
Ethics looks to examine what should and can be done. There is no guarantee that
ethical behaviour will be used in a business that uses CSR.
Customers queuing up to take their money out
Who to blame for the failure of the bank?
Over forty years’ ago an economist named Milton Friedman,
also winner of the Nobel Prize for his contribution to economics, argued that “there is one and only one social
responsibility of business – to use its resources and engage in activities
designed to increase its profits”. Many
individuals and companies share the ethos that Friedman had, as do Northern
Rock. The directors have been taking a large salary for themselves thus leaving
Northern Rock in a difficult situation. The large salaries of the directors are not
possible as the inflation rate at the time was 28%.
The huge salaries of the directors were one of the reasons
that the bank, Northern Rock had collapsed. This relates to egotism as the directors are
taking salaries for themselves and not thinking about the company. Egotism is
when an individual shows self-interest as a trait and does not think ethically
or about others. The major directors of Northern Rock thought that their
salaries were justifiable and they were using this salary and position of power
to fuel their ego. Many customers of Northern Rock had lost their money
invested in the bank and for many customers this was a substantial amount.
However the bank did not just collapse because of the salaries of the
directors, other factors which contributed towards the collapse were the
continuous rise of inflation, gross domestic product and the government
borrowing deficit reached 10% and the government had to go to the International
Monetary Fund for a loan to see it through the predicament.
Executive pay is the total amount of pay or financial
compensation an executive officer or director receives with a company.
Executive pay can include or be a mixtures salary, bonuses, shares of the
company stock, benefits, rewards and any other incentive paid out to the
executive officer.
During the mid-1990s to 2006, Northern Rock were providing
loans or mortgages to people who either because of their income, or lack of
assets could not obtain a loan or mortgage. This lead to a large amount of debt
being bought together for the individuals, another problem also occurred; they
could not pay back their loans. This is a classic example of deontology as the
banks did adhere to their obligations and duties when analysing a dilemma. This
means that someone will do what they have to because it is they are ethically
responsible to do so, in Northern Rock’s case they were giving out loans and
mortgages to everyone.
CSR diagram
Utilitarianism is a factor to consider as to why shareholders
should take into account the actions of the directors. Utilitarianism is when a
firm will do anything to do good regardless of the outcome or how many people
it will have a negative effect on. For example; someone who sacrifices their
life to save a train full of people is fulfilling an obligation to society. In
Northern Rock’s case they were giving loans to everyone regardless of their
situation.
Although the collapse of Northern Rock was not entirely the
director’s fault and a number of factors did contribute towards it such as the
large loan pay-outs to customers who could not afford to pay back their loans. On
the other hand because of the director’s large salary and the egoism from the
directors, the bank collapsed.
A shareholder is someone who has invested resources into a
particular company to receive equity in that specific firm. It is then up to
the company to issue dividends to the shareholders. Dividends are a sum of
money which is usually distributed by a company among its shareholders
regularly. This is typically paid out quarterly during the financial year.
Time for Northern Rock ran out
To stop the directors from receiving such a large salary,
shareholders could have intervened and either elected new directors or put a
limit to the directors salary. If they were to do this then Northern Rock,
would not be in as much financial trouble.
Maintaining Regulation for Northern Rock is very important
for the bank. Regulation is a law, order or rule which is prescribed by an
authority and especially to regulate conduct. It is important for banks to
follow regulations set by higher authority, banks have to comply with the laws
and regulations set.
Many firms have doubts about ethics and whether what they
are doing is correct. Business Ethics in terms of issues of right and wrong,
and quite naturally question whether there is any way difference from the law.
The words ethics and morality are often used interchangeably, although many
academic writers have proposed clear differences between the two terms (e.g.
Crane 2000). Ethics represents an attempt to systemize and rationalise
morality, typically into generalised rules that offer a solution to situations
of moral uncertainty.
Directors may have deserved to earn such a large salary
because they have worked themselves up over time. The Directors think they have
earned such a high salary because they do that a lot of work around Northern
Rock and this justifies it. They see the day to day running of the bank and
they represent the shareholders, who can just as easily elect new directors if
the currents ones are not performing to a good standard. On the other hand,
higher authorities should put a cap on their earning potential and limit how
much they can earn yearly. If the directors cannot justify such a high salary,
then it is pointless and a waste of money to allow them to earn that much.
Corporate Social Responsibility proposes to ensure companies
act on their business actions in a more ethical way. This means a company would
have to take account of social and economic impacts as well as consideration of
human rights.
There are many different opinions concerning the use of CSR.
Friedman claims it is the responsibility of the business to make as much money
as the business can without any regard for ethics. However Sternberg states that
business ethics is based on the result of the business selling their products
and services within the law and to behave ethically.
The shareholders for Northern Rock could take action against
the different directors because they are partially responsible for getting
Northern Rock into such financial trouble and their arrogance caused the bank
to go into a crisis. However the directors have also worked their way to their
position and deserve to earn however much they earn.
What about Northern Rock's customers?
Savers of Northern Rock should have their savings guaranteed
by the government because if they were not, savers would lose all their money.
This would be very unethical and unfair for the savers. There are various stakeholders involved with
Northern Rock and the bank. A
stakeholder is someone who is affected by the business in anyway. A major
stakeholder of Northern Rock were the shareholders as they would want the best
possible dividends paid out to them regularly so they would remain happy with
the company. The shareholders would want the share prices to increase, so they
can gain more capital. As the shareholders also invest money into the bank they
would want an increase in return capital.
Customers are one of the bank’s key stakeholders as they
have savings with Northern Rock and use their services such as taking a loan or
mortgage out. During the banking crisis savers were behaving very unethically
as they were just thinking of themselves, this is considered as egoism. In
2008, a major financial comparison site estimated 1 in 10 adults in the UK
spend more than they earn in a month. In a ten year gap between 1997 and 2007
the number of credit cards increased from 36 million to an astonishing 71
million. These statistics support the fact that customers just wanted money so
they could finance a certain lifestyle. In September 2007 many first time
buyers were borrowing more than 90% of the cost of the house they were
purchasing. Most of the customers could not afford to repay the loan payment
thus the reason for the bank’s collapse.
The Financial Services Authority would also play a
stakeholder for Northern Rock as they have to approve and authorise everything
that Northern Rock would have to do. Customers are also a key stakeholder in
the bank as they are the users. As the
bank was a pivotal part of the community, the customers would be affected as it
was a Northern bank and the community would be proud of Northern Rock. Shareholders could have capped the director’s
salary.
Employees are affected by the business and are one of the
main shareholders of Northern Rock. When the employee starts work with Northern
Rock they have a contract of Employment which states the employment conditions,
rights, responsibilities and duties. Employees follow the deontology theory
which states that people should follow and adhere to their obligations and
responsibilities. During the banking failure 1/3 of the banks employees lost
their jobs.
The local community is another stakeholder in Northern Rock
because they used to provide financial support and funding for the local
community. Without the support of the bank the local community would suffer in
terms of financial support.
The government is involved in the business and is a major
stakeholder. The government are affected by them as they fund the bank and
authorise some of the transactions that are made by the bank. Without the
authorisation of the government, Northern Rock would not be able to complete
their transactions with their customers and they would not be able to give out
loans and mortgages. Employees are affected by the bank because they work for
Northern Rock and without people working for them, Northern Rock would not be
able to run.
The Financial Services Authority is a stakeholder in
Northern Rock as they would want the fair treatment of customers. The Deposit
Guarantee Schemes Directive (DGSD), which was first adopted in 1994, governs
the operation of deposit guarantee schemes all over the European Economic Area.
This meant that if the bank was the
collapse customers would have their savings saved and they would not lose
everything.
The government displayed signs of justice when they
privatised Northern Rock to take them out of the banking crisis. They were
trying act ethically while maintaining fairness and interactional. They made
sure the investors in Northern Rock, including the customers, had compensation
for the banking failure.
Northern Rock were regulated and by the Financial Services
Authority (FSA). This means all of the loans and mortgages that Northern Rock
issue, had to go through the Financial Services Authority (FSA). The government protect up to £85,000 of the
customers money that is deposited within Northern Rock by customers. They are
being socially responsible and are applying CSR to their actions and they are
doing what is ethically correct. The government have implemented virtue ethics
and utilitarianism as they were trying to do the greater amount of good for the
greater amount of people. They protected some of the customer’s money and
behaved ethically and morally correct.
This video explains what CSR is
The bank collapsed in 2007 when Northern Rock ran into
trouble. There are many people that are responsible for the failure of the
bank. There are various stakeholders
involved in the bank. The Bank of England is one of the firm’s main
stakeholders. The Bank of England issues Northern Rock with all the monies
needed for financial transactions. The Bank of England could be responsible for
the failure of the bank as a problem could have occurred because the Bank of
England does not have enough money to support the transactions.
Moral Responsibility is when a person praises, punishes or
rewards for an act for which a person is morally responsible. In Northern
Rock’s case there are many people who are morally responsible for the failure
of the bank. One of the reasons for the failure of the bank is the government.
The government’s actions can be linked to Utilitarianism as they were issuing
out loans and mortgages to customers who could not afford to pay back their
loans.
Loans were provided to people, who, because of their job or
income and the lack of assets or the property that the customer wanted to
purchase, for this simple fact they could not obtain a loan or mortgage. Due to
the booming property market from the mid-1990s to 2006, banks including
Northern Rock, allowed much riskier lending to happen. This led to multiple
debt problems for the people that took these loans out and they were not able
to pay back their initial loan. It could also be seen as Deontology as they
followed the rules, irrespective of the outcome.
Shareholders are partially to blame for the banking crisis
as well. As shareholders could have capped the director’s salary or limited
their salary to make sure they were not earning above a certain amount. However
as they never did this, it lead to further predicaments and decline for
Northern Rock.
Customers are also morally responsible for the failure of
Northern Rock as they carried on taking out loans and mortgages regardless of
knowing they would not have enough money to pay them back. They were trying to
maintain and live a lifestyle that was out of their financial reach. This could
be seen as Egoism as the customer would be taking out loans for their own
personal self-interest regardless of the consequences.
Teleology is another ethical theory that can apply to both
Northern Rock and their customers, this is when someone suits themselves and
disregards any laws/behaviours and regulations which may prevent their
behaviour.
US Economist
Milton Friedman stated, "There is one and only one social responsibility
of business-to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase
its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say,
engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud." Friedman
states how a business should use everything in its power including its
resources, to increase its profits as long as it is legal and not deception or
fraud. This is exactly what the shareholders job is to do within the company. This
could be seen as Egoism as the business would just want to maximize its profits
and have self-interest.
The directors of Northern Rock also contributed to the
banking failure. The directors were taking an astronomical salary for
themselves and not thinking about ethics or the bank itself, however the
directors were performing their job and trying their best to keep the bank
afloat. Egoism does contribute for the director’s high salary and teleology as
the directors did not think about any laws and regulations in place and just
did what they wanted. An ethical theory that applies to the directors in this
case is teleology as they suited themselves while disregarding any laws and
regulations in place which may prevent their behaviour.
Banks went ahead and allowed much riskier lending and did
not contemplate the economic down turn was distressing everyone; this could be
due to greed or not have proper control of finances.
They went ahead and started lending out loans which are they
could not afford to give out, this resulted in way more customers coming to
Northern Rock for a loan. Northern Rock were willing to lend customers up to
£180,000, for those whose income was only at £30,000 while most other banks
would not risk that much money.
Future of CSR and Northern Rock
Business Ethics is how companies manage the business
processes to produce an overall positive impact on society. The banking situation has not improved by
much over the years since Northern Rock’s collapse.
Corporate Social Responsibility has grown to the status of a
career and is being discussed on the world stage. Companies which plan to be,
or are, leaders in corporate social responsibility are faced by rising public
expectations, increasing innovation and increased social problems. They are
forced to chart their CSR course and document their actions.
Over the years the financial market has seen a massive
meltdown due to the simple fact of over lending, poor regulation and over
borrowing. Northern Rock is a prime example of how failing to act in accordance
with CSR can not only upset the business but it can also jeopardise the
relationship of the customers, shareholders and stakeholders. Due to their
irresponsible behaviour and their lack of concern of what may happen due to
their actions, Northern Rock faced their punishment in the mass financial
crisis in 2008.
There are many lessons to be learned from Northern Rock’s
mistake and their lack of acknowledgement for CSR. One of the main lessons to learn
from the failure of the firm is to not lend money to customers who cannot
afford to pay the payment back. Most Customers were just taking credit out to
finance their lifestyles rather than needs according to Standard Life bank.
This is also the case for the directors of Northern Rock as they were getting
paid huge amounts of money and not justifying the amount they were getting
paid. The massive salaries were another reason of the bank’s collapse;
directors were just trying to fund their lavishing lifestyle regardless of the
outcome.
Politically, there were always those people who wished the
bank was to fail. Massive salaries were being to business executives and this
lead to the view that things should be sorted out. Television pictures
portraying angry depositors and savers of Northern Rock instigated major
political problems for the government.
Firms have to think about their shareholders when they are
developing new strategies for their business. The stakeholder approach was
designed as a model for improving the efficiency of the firm.
Northern Rock were willing to provide customers with higher
loans while other mortgage lenders were not prepared to do this. The firm made
loans that were not valued much and an increase in repossessions followed
nationally.
In the future, CSR optimists predict that a number of
companies and firms will be convinced to implement a CSR strategy into their
operations. An increasing amount of businesses see CSR as increased
competitiveness and profitability. Corporate Social Responsibility is part of a
search for a new social contract between business and society. This new
contract will not necessarily make a new set of rules but a new set of norms
arrived through experimentation.
Conculsion
Many pessimists believe that CSR will not be clear
enough for firms to take it up, unless it is legislated or there are other
added incentives. They also believe that CSR will not be in the public eye and
there won’t be clarity to what CSR is and why it is so important for a business
to implement Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics. It will become
labelled as surplus to requirements and increasing the costs of running the
business. Companies who once implemented and embraced CSR will lose interest
and pursue other interests and objectives.
Even though there is a major contrast in views of social
impact and whether corporate responsibility works, the majority of researchers
agree that in 5 – 10 years from now CSR will become much more main-stream with
businesses. CSR in the future will become part of a business’s basic model and
not an add-on. Most of the progress and commitment to CSR may be slow progress
but it would increase the over time within a 5 – 10 year time frame.
Careless loans and mortgages were given to people
who showed no means of paying the loan back; this showed how Northern Rock
neglected CSR. For this reason, firms try to do everything to make sure that
they do not suffer the same fate as Northern Rock, and they try to make their
business ethically correct. If businesses were to perform an analysis on how
they impacted and influenced society, it would lessen the problems for some
businesses. This article has been pretty long and if you have read the whole article I would like to thank you. I would appreciate you leaving a comment and if you could share this article I would be very grateful. Don't forget to sign up to the RSS Feed and like us on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter .
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