A Managers Responsibility Should Be to All Stakeholders and Not Just Shareholders

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“A manager’s responsibility should be to the shareholders alone.” Discuss this view (12 marks) Corporate social responsibility refers to a business choosing to go above its legal obligations relating to society and the environment; this can be done by including factors such as Fairtrade or good working conditions for employees. However, some people argue that managers should only consider shareholders when making decisions and thus avoid CSR. In recent years, CSR has becoming increasingly revered on a global scale and therefore it’s becoming much more significant. For a business such as Greggs to breakthrough in foreign countries they would need to maintain their brand image to maximise success and therefore they should consider their other stakeholders such as employees and suppliers. This could be approached by making sure that their retail outlets in other countries are attractive and have good working conditions for their workers. In addition, they may choose to include things such as Fairtrade for their suppliers so that there is no conflict with pressure groups; this would also enable Greggs to establish good relationships with suppliers which could eventually lead to perks such as cost savings, e.g. economies of scale. This would result in satisfied suppliers and employees. A second reason that managers should not only be responsible for shareholders alone is because their goal may be to maximise sales. If consumers are aware that Greggs are willing to benefit the environment by using CSR then they may feel more inclined to purchase Greggs products (USP); this will inevitably result in larger profits and sometimes even greater brand loyalty; both important factors for companies. Moreover, this would benefit shareholders in the long-term. On the other hand, Greggs is a corporation and therefore CSR may not necessarily be important to them as it goes
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