Otto - A German and International Csr Leader

Seminar paper from the year 2004 in the subject Business economics - Business Ethics, Corporate Ethics, grade: 2.0, Dublin City University, course: Business Ethics, 55 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: In the recent years, there has been a rapid surge in interest among companies, consumers and governments in CSR. The number of - especially large - firms issuing separate social or environmental reports has been rising every year and an entire draft of CSR initiatives has also been launched by e.g. the EU and the UN. Surprisingly the creation of those reports and initiatives has been followed by actions, like e.g. increasing numbers of working condition audits, training sessions with suppliers and breaking of contracts with those unable to meet code of conducts, and thus there has been evidence of progress on some major CSR issues (Harrison 2003; CSR Europe 2003). The factors motivating companies to recognise the need for CSR policies and take according actions are numerous and complex. Some years ago, in the early stages of globalisation, with barriers to cross border trade disappearing and global economies converging (Hill 2003), a company would have been able to set up a production site and release externalities - such as unwanted air, water or noise pollution - without anyone noticing (Sloman 1999 p325; Poloz 2004). Today, as a result of advances in IT (especially the emergence of the Internet) and extensive media reach, corporate abuses, even in the most remote corners of the world, are much easier revealed and much quicker made visible/broadcasted (Smith 2003). Companies such as Royal Dutch Shell (human right abuses against Ogoni people and environmental damage in Nigeria), Enron (unfair acquisition of land and environmental damage in India), Unocal (abuse of Burmese peasant by the army- forced labour, rape, torture, etc.) and Nike (sweatshop labour conditions in its subcontractor operations in Asian LDCs), who have been exposed, have le