Trading in the global market means that transactions are done with businesses located in different parts of the world. There are quite a number of challenges that businesses and organizations face while doing transactions based on the CISG treaty.
By joining the United Nations Conventions on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), there are several organizations and businesses that have widened their ability to face these challenges with victory.
According to the argument posed by Flechtner (1), this consortium is one of the best in ensuring that businesses realize the required international commercial laws.
It is best known for helping its member businesses and organizations to avoid or reduce the legal obstacles connected to international trade and commerce. It unifies the laws and makes them easy to understand and interpret, and also redefines the whole contract.
The advantage is that the law is upgraded depending on the conditions of the global economy. The treaty does so in a bid to ensure that all businesses that are under it enjoy all the benefits associated with its membership.
Aliano (1) explains the implications for any business that wishes to operate within the countries that have not agreed to the United Nations Conventions on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). Ever since it was started in 1980, the treaty has succeeded in bringing down the high number of obstacles that businesses face in their quest for profits through the global economy.
Businesses enjoy benefits of fair international trade laws. The treaty demands no written laws. In as much as it acts as a union, there are challenges and hardships associated with it. It is complicated and may sometimes be the main reason why some countries have not yet adopted to it.
There is a tough implication especially for countries that attach more importance to their local laws. In some cases, these laws might not conform to what the treaty laws have stated. In this case, it is better for the business not to accept to trade under the treaty. Brazil, UK and South Africa are some of the countries that do not trade under CIGS.
Implications are that they are not protected by the CISG law and as such, they trade on their own. In addition, they have no treaty to aid in ratifying the international trade law. This makes sure that the laws of their mother countries do not contradict with the laws of the treaty.
In cases whereby the CISG laws are likely to interfere with the local trade laws for a certain country, it is the highest point that the businesses shift to other different treaties. According to Vollmers (1), the CISG laws apply only for transactions that are conducted internationally.
This implies that a business has the freedom to choose whether to adapt to the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. This gives room for organizations to trade without being forced into unnecessary laws. Businesses that are not bound by local law would rather choose to work under the CISG treaty.
This is due to the fact that it helps in closing the gaps that trade might bring to businesses, as well as the obstacles that businesses face in the course of trading. The latter scenario may be pronounced largely on a global scale.
Works Cited
Aliano, Tiffany. United Nations Convention on Contracts for The International Sale of Goods (Cisg). Socyberty, USA. 2011. Web.
The Middle Eastern region has always been the place of endless wars and local conflicts resulting in a great number of victims and triggering new skirmishers. Events which happen on these lands are not occasional and arise from the inefficient and unwise colonial policy used by countries that dominated in this region. They did not take into account peculiarities of local culture and mentality, acting in the way which made various oppositions even more complicated. Under the influence of the WWII, Europeans had to leave this very territory, given independence to a great number of new countries created regardless of the peculiarities of culture. This process could be taken as the starting point of all conflicts which happened there.
Lebanon is one of the countries which obtained independence from France due to the WWII. At that period of time the country was characterized by a great variety of cultures and mentalities of the locals. Being a multiconfessional state, Lebanon provided equal rights to all its citizens trying to guarantee its stable and beneficial development (Altman, 2013). The combination of this policy, advantageous geographical location and other facts promoted the rapid growth of the country which turned into the most important state of the region. The country was often compared with Switzerland because of its financial power and diversity. However, the period of peace and stable development was interrupted by the civil war and the chain of other military conflicts which ruined the infrastructure and led to the appearance of the need for some foreign aid (Nagel & Staeheli, 2015).
Speaking about the wars and conflicts which had a great impact on the country, it is possible to admit the role of foreign countries and United Nations in the attempts to make the compromise and renew development of the country. The Civil War resulted in a great number of civilian causalities and destruction of cities. Beirut, the capital of the state, lied in ruins and the infrastructure was destroyed. Financial power and stability were depleted and the country needed the help of the UN in order to recover from the effects of the war. However, it was not the last military conflict in the region. The weakened government was not able to resist various terrorist groups which managed to take some provinces under their control. This fact led to the 2006 Lebanon, or July, war. Being attacked by the terrorists from Lebanon, Israel started the military campaign aiming to protect its regions and eliminate the terrorist threat.
Analyzing the effect these wars have on the country, it is possible to outline several points. First of all, prosperous and powerful Lebanon changed into the devastated state characterized by a very unstable situation and a great terrorist threat. Traditionally attractive to tourists who guaranteed about 15% of the states GDP, Lebanon was not able to renew its image because of the destroyed infrastructure and inability to guarantee security to people arriving there (Abboud, & Muller, 2013). Besides, another very important consequence is the religious opposition between various faith communities which appeared after the Civil War (Pearlman, 2013). The given challenges introduced the necessity of the foreign aid which was taken as the only possibility to renew the state and establish peace in the region.
Resting on these facts, it is possible to say that the UNs interference in the policy of the state and its affairs seems to be a quite logical step. There are several aspects of the foreign aid provided to the country. First of all, it is the military assistance as the peacekeeping forces were brought to the territory in order to stabilize the situation and help to oppose the terrorist threat. However, it was not the main aspect in the relations between Lebanon and the United Nations. According to annual reports, by the end of 2014 Lebanon received about $710.2 million (UNESCO, n.d.). The main aim of these donations was to guarantee the stable development of the country and restore the infrastructure destroyed in the years of war.
With this in mind, it is possible to say that United Nations play an important role in the process of restoration of Lebanon. The USA and France, traditionally having the great interest for the given region, devote great attention to the current situation in the state (Schwalbe, 2015). They could be taken as the very active actors who are interested in the creation of powerful state and renewal of Lebanons financial power and stability as it could help to promote the influence on the other countries of the Middle Eastern region and fight with various terrorist groups. Suffering from a great number of economic problems, Lebanon, however, manages to continue its growth and development and has good perspectives.
Revolving around the development of Lebanon, it is impossible not to mention the actions of the government and its role in the given process. It should be said that because of the peculiarities of military conflicts, the government is divided into the adherers and opponents of relations with Syria (AbouAssi, 2015). The political system of the country is organized according to the confessional principle and, that is why, it reflects the opposition which exists in the country. However, despite the great number of controversies which exist between various political parties, the government managed to start the process of the restoration of Lebanon with the help of foreign donations, building the infrastructure and supporting the financial sector.
Besides, despite some successes in the sphere of economy, living conditions remain poor in Lebanon. According to statistics, about 28% of Lebanese people live under the poor conditions (UNESCO, n.d.). This fact means that the situation remains difficult and the state still needs humanitarian and financial help in order to guarantee good conditions for its citizens. United Nations continues to help the country, providing various programs aiming at the further development of the state. Nevertheless, the region remains unstable and there is much to be done in order to improve the situation and help Lebanon to renew its financial power.
Having analyzed the given facts, it is possible to make a certain conclusion. It should be said that nowadays Lebanon has a great number of various problems which result from military conflicts. The state is supported by the UN and receives foreign aid. The main goal of the sponsors is to renew the financial and tourist sectors that guaranteed stable income or the state and helped it to be a serious power in the region. Taking into account a great terrorist threat which exists in the region, it is possible to conclude that it is extremely vital to restore the power of Lebanon for it to be able to control the territory and fight against various terrorist groups.
References
AbouAssi, K. (2015). Special-purpose authorities: a welcomed alien to decentralization in Lebanon? International Review of Administrative Sciences, 23-75.
Abboud, S., & Muller, B. (2013). Geopolitics, insecurity and neocolonial exceptionalism: A critical appraisal of the UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Security Dialogue, 44(5), 467-484.
Altman, M. (2013). Understanding Development. Asheville, NC: Soomo Publishing.
Nagel, C., & Staeheli, N. (2015). Nature, environmentalism, and the politics of citizenship in post-civil war Lebanon. Cultural Geographies, 22. 26-76.
Pearlman, W. (2013). Emigration and Power. A Study of Sects in Lebanon, 1860–2010. Politics & Society, 41(1), 103-133.
Schwalbe, C. (2015). Visual coverage of the 2006 Lebanon War: Framing conflict in three US news magazines. Media, War & Conflict, 8(1), 141-162.
UNESCO. (n.d.). Lebanon Millenium Development Goals Report 2013-2014. Web
In modern stormy environment of organizations, change is becoming a core issue of business practices because the long term goals of the organization have to be redesigned every now and then. As a leader in this organization, I have a role to play in the process of driving transformation.
As an organization, we do not necessarily have to possess all of the positive attributes but we can use the little positive attributes and resources that we have to steer UN into great heights. This organization must be willing to adapt its structures if it is to meet its objectives in service delivery.
The Need for Transformation in the UN
The UN’s mission, vision, and goals are not adequately articulated. An organization should be in position to understand its internal capabilities in a proper way so as to communicate vision and mission to its workers (Wilson 12). There has been laxity in adoption to change in many aspects of UN’s leadership skills, training programs, and capacity building which has in turn affected the organization’s goals and strategies.
It is the role of the top management within UN to set goals and strategies to effect change. This can easily be done through the successful historical goal setting process.
The UN has unrealized past goals and poor communication within the lower ranks management, and a demonstrated lack of commitment from the top management all of which are hindering the change process. In many organizations in the recent past, goal setting has become an important part of agenda-building process in the walk towards organizational change.
Thinking about change, UN should lay emphasis on decisions about formal structures, processes, systems, roles and relationships. In transforming the organization’s mission and strategy, the organization’s form, charters, hierarchical ranks, specialization of jobs, training and other educational programs, centralization degree, delegation, and participation (Wilson 13).
The success of UN transformation will depend on the extent of the aspects of its system – its formal structure, information flows, reward and the recruitment process help in defining the new face of the organization.
To support new organization design, it will be necessary that appropriate technology is invested in (Appelbaum, St-pierre, and Glavas 1998). To arrive at this point, I carried out a readiness assessment to reflect those factors that affect the daily operations of the organization and how workers use technology in their job. The change readiness assessment revealed that UN workers are ready and willing to adopt and use new technology.
The assessment further highlighted the amount of effort needed in this worthy course. The assessment showed those workers who would require retraining in order to evolve in the new organization. Technology in this context is used to refer to; hardware such as machinery and equipment and software which is applied in transformation of materials; and arrangement of both hardware and software.
The degree to which this new technology will promote the change we want will rely on the way top managers at the UN optimizes the relationship between people and the technical aspect of this great organization (Hansen 2007). Special interest should be directed towards synchronizing the knowledge of work processes with the mode of operation.
There are several strategic models that UN could court in its quest for organizational change. However, it is Barney VRINE model that looks promising as it touches on improving key competencies by developing human capital and capabilities to improve on performance.
The VRINE model
VRINE model, developed by Barney in 1991, is an internal focus on strategy. It singles out organizations internal resources as the main source of achieving its objectives. The VRINE model’s basic assumptions are that organizations are heterogeneous in regard to their resources and that these resources are more or less static. Characteristics that make UN a successful organization are not similar to those that make it a failure.
The reason that I chose the VRINE model is to demonstrate the gain the organization will get through the implementation of a value creating strategy that may not be implemented by others. This is because other organizations in this field may find it hard to duplicate it. The strategy is important as it will help the organization to exploit and develop its heterogeneous resources.
Organizations should strategize on the basis of the resources and capabilities they are endowed with. A given organization’s resources and capabilities may not be as effective as that of another in the same field. UN has the ability to make use of its resources and capabilities so as to achieve its mission and meet its objectives.
The VRINE/VRIO strategic model summarizes the five basic features that UNEP may have to use in order to determine whether our resources and capabilities may indeed help us achieve our objectives. These characteristics are; value, rarity, inimitability, nonsubstitutability, and exploitability (Kirsch 2007).
Value -A resource or a capability is said to be valuable if it is in a position to help an organization take advantage of opportunities. The UN employs thousands of workers across the world. All UN employees are a bundle of resources or competencies. The value in these people can take any form, either IT expertise, financial services, interpersonal and team building skills.
The organization enjoys an advantage because of this human resource which is necessary for meeting its objectives. This resource is valuable as it enables the organization to take advantage in championing its mission. The optimal of this resource arises only when it is identified and utilized to the advantage of the organization.
If the UN does not make use of its worldwide presence and its human resource, then it won’t be making use of these resources to its advantage. Because the resources possessed by UN meets the VRINE criteria for value, the organization is at an advantage.
Rarity– this is the scarcity of a commodity relative to demand. Very few other organizations are endowed with high performing human capital and valuable resources like does the UN.
These resources are vital in ensuring that the objectives of an organization are met. If UN controls its valuable and rare human capital, it’s going to gain substantially in the accomplishment of its objectives. Sometimes, the geographic location of UN’s human capital can be used to its advantage.
Inimitability and non-substitutability-A valuable and rare resource is said to be inimitable and non-substitutable when it is impossible to replace or substitute it with other resources and capabilities and still accomplish similar benefits.
The UN has the top cream when it comes to the quality of its employees. These workers possess a wide range of knowledge and skills such that their exit would cripple the organization. Most of UN’s employees have no strategic substitutes
Exploitability-this is the last feature in the VRINE model. This criterion stresses that merely possessing these resources does not benefit the organization. UN must be willing to make maximum use of its resources. It must nurture and take advantage of both the capabilities, human and physical resources it possesses.
To exploit these resources, the UN must endeavor to implement strategies that will utilize these resources. This it could do by expanding its mandate in other areas of interest. It is also important that the UN recruit from countries in which the offices are located if it is to maximally utilize its resources.
By applying the VRINE strategy, the organization will narrow down on enhancing efficiency and value creation by focusing on human capital and capability to enhance performance (Hansen 2007).
Fig. 1 Graphical representation of UN’s VRINE model
Implementation: Human Capital
The human capital resource should be utilized to the maximum. UN has a large human capital in terms of education, experience, and skills. In each given skill, the organization has a variety of proficiency in its employees that would greatly improve outcomes.
The UN’s capabilities arise from the skills of its employees derived from long periods of practice that enable it perform its tasks. The UN has always provided its employees with opportunities for learning. This can be demonstrated by its present stock of skilled manpower.
According to Pathak, (2011), VRINE is an internal resource of the firm. This resource is intangible and invaluable and has the ability to use its experience and skills to the advantage of the organization.
I am proposing that in order for the UN to produce high performance human capital, it should educate and train its work force further. This move will give the workers a sense that they are valuable resource within this organization (Auw 2009).
Capabilities
Higher level of human capital will make UN more efficient in its mission. The organization should try cross-border skills to build international human capital. This cross border skills are important in expanding the service range. The cross border skills have proved in other organizations to be useful in creating a successful international-oriented team.
The UN will benefit from a global workforce by taking advantage of these labor pools and by exploiting cultural synergies of a diverse workforce. Research has shown that a high degree of UN’s human capital could be improved through its international capabilities.
The cross border skills could be used to fill positions for top managers as they could be possessing knowledge and skills necessary for tapping into UN’s resources and capabilities. Making use of the global labor pool will potentially increase UN’s decision making capacity.
Managers from diverse back grounds will bring different perspective to decision making than when they were sourced from just one country. However, the organization should foresee the difficulty that arises when integrating human resources at global level while at the same time striving to maintain uniqueness and heterogeneity (Morris, Snell and Wright 2005).
UN must strive to adapt its structure in order to achieve its mission. It has come to my notice that at the departmental levels, our controls are loose. Most of the departmental managers are not strict.
Sequential Process of Change
We all understand that these changes being proposed in this transformation will be implemented in phases. This strategy will go through a number of sequential steps before they are fully adopted. The reason for putting the matter in stages is because people, and not the innovation, will go through these steps.
In order to avoid uninformed, insensitive and indifferent implementation, these steps should be understood by all UN employees (Karsch 2007). These employees should be involved in planning and evaluation. Good communication among all key players is also important if misunderstanding is to be averted.
The answer to UN’s transformation is seen to lie in technology and training. Training and technology are essential in building efficiency. The advantage of VRINE model comes from organizing internally to gain advantage. This is achievable through internal restructuring, image management, and positioning.
Technology
Technological change needs a combination of technological and human relations aspects. On this path, top managers will be tasked with translating the vision of the organization through working out skills of direction, sorting out problems that may arise, and introducing the technological change through implementation.
Leaders will have the role of changing people system and this will depend on the ability and the attitude of managers in the middle level (Warner 2010).
Learning and Training
This will encompass learning to change, understanding the new visions and goals of the organization, its new design and technology and culture.
To be able to improve on performance, the UN must focus on its work force and other human resource functions i.e. structures, policies, and practices. It must build a culture of people with different and better skills than it has at the current.
When we build on the assumptions of resources being heterogeneous, stress should be laid on the contribution made by the workforce through skills and knowledge to enhance performance (Wilson 1992).
Building on VRINE model, we can argue that human capital – the whole pool of employees – is an exceptional source of advantage to an organization. This can be in form of rarity, value, inimitability, and nonsubstitutability.
The UN should also consider employing a balanced scorecard in order to align its activities to its vision, internal and external communication, strategy, and performance against its strategic goals. The balanced scorecard, developed by Drs. Kaplan and Norton, should assist the UN transform its strategic plan from merely attractive but passive to “marching orders” for the UN on a daily basis.
Strategy development processing using the balanced scorecard
Just like any other organization, the UN should follow a systemic strategy development framework by first reaffirming its mission, vision and values. Second, the organization should then determine which goals and outcomes that the vision will be represent.
Finally, the organization’s key issues such as external and internal forces that affect it will flow from these goals and outcomes. The UN should then formulate a new transformational strategy that will drive change in all its charters.
Our new transformational strategic change will address why we are there-our mission and vision. It will also give us the direction to which we are headed as an organization. This transformational strategy will finally address key issues and define how best we can achieve our goals-strategy formulation.
Step1: Crafting the UN’s mission, vision and value system
The UN’s mission should be crafted in such a way that it defines its fundamental purpose. It must portray what we give to the general public and what we as organization pursue. Majority of UN’s divisional mission statement do not elaborate on their purposes.
Many of these mission statements were crafted without proper consideration and have also lost their sense of purpose for the divisions they represent. There is a need to review overall UN mission to reflect on our true purpose and goals as an organization.
The organization’s value system should be revised. The new value system must reflect our character, culture and behavior. Our vision should be in line with our long-term goals. I am proposing that UN adopt an external and universally oriented vision; a vision that portrays how the world should perceive the UN.
Because the vision statements are a guide to strategy development, I am proposing that ours remain inspirational and aspirational. Most of the vision statements within UN are lengthy and too vague.
They provide no guidance for strategy development and lack measurable outcome and targeted value for our strategies. In summary, our vision statement should be crafted to depict the UN’s quantified success indicator, a definition of niche, and a time line for execution of strategy. Our mission statement should be our success measure (Kaplan, Norton & Barrows jr. 2008).
Step 2: The UN’s strategic goals
By quantifying UN’s vision statements, its vision’s quantified success factor becomes the reference point with which we can judge the applicability of our strategies. The UN will be able achieve a stretch of target objectives if it encompasses strong leadership.
This is a key ingredient for the UN to become better. After we have developed a stretch target for success, we can then define a value gap. This is the difference between what the UN would have achieved by maintaining its status quo and with the desired outcome. It is the difference between what UN aspires and the reality.
Step 3: Strategic analysis
Performing an external and an internal analysis come immediately after we have a clear picture of what we need to achieve. In this stage, I assessed the UN’s performance with the aim of understanding how it presently delivers value.
External analysis revealed that organizations performance in relation to other key player in the same field. Internally, the assessment revealed our own performance and capabilities using value chain analysis. These analyses showed that UN the organization needs to perform better in a number of sectors in order to achieve its vision statements.
Step 4: Formulating and launching the change strategy
The balanced scorecard indicates that if this process is fully followed, our organization will be ready to launch the change strategy
Process modeling: BPMN
To achieve the effects the above proposed changes, it will be crucial that the organization adopts a business process modeling notation that will capture the sequence of these changes and supporting information.
There are different levels of process models that the UN can adopt, these includes; process maps that feature simple flow charts of the proposed activities; process descriptions that contain flow charts combined with additional information; and process models characterized by extended flow charts with enough information to enable the whole process be analyzed, simulated and executed. A business processing model notation supports all the three levels of process modeling.
By applying BPMN, the UN will have a mechanism to generate an executable business process from its organizational level notation. The organization will engage business analysts to directly apply our developed change process into BPM engine. This will enable the UN avoid going through human interpretation and translations into all its languages.
Activities
Activities are performed within an organizational process. It can either be atomic or non-atomic. Within BPMN, an activity is presented as a rounded rectangle
Tasks
A task is an atomic activity included within a process. Several types of tasks exists within BPMN; sending, receiving or user based tasks
Sub-processes
Sub-processes enable hierarchical process development. BPMN exists in three basic types; private organizational models, abstract processes and collaboration processes.
Fig. 2 sample private (internal) organization processFig. 3 Sample abstract organizational process (public)Fig. 4 Sample BPMN collaboration process
Conclusion
Changing environment is forcing organizations to adopt a continuous, and an interactive process to keep them abreast. There is a need for change in the UN in terms of its mission and strategy, form, structure, and information flows. Several strategic models are applicable in designing organizational transformation. Organizational analysis and direction are necessary before a strategy is formulated and implemented.
Strategic control is important in aiding for an effective application of change. VRINE strategic model invented by Barney in 1991 focuses on an organizations capability and resources. It lays emphasis on human capital as the sole avenue in enhancing performance within an organization like UN. The model applies value, rarity inimitability, nonsubstitutability, and exploitability to characterize resources.
By applying VRINE model, it is possible to show how the UN is endowed with valuable human capital. Its greatest asset lies in the skilled, experienced and knowledgeable workers that are spread across the globe. The UN can use the global labor pool to tap on cross border skills and tap on cultural synergies of its workforce.
The process of transformation should be implemented in a sequential process, which should be focused on technology and training. The usefulness of any strategy will be applicable only if an organization has a high degree of autonomy.
The process of UN transformation can be complimented by careful application of a balanced scorecard. The scorecard successful enables strategy development by use of properly crafted organizational vision statement. By reviewing the UN Vision statements, it will be possible to develop the strategic goals.
An analysis of internal and external factors helps an organization map its weaknesses and competencies and therefore plan adequately. The use of BPMN is an essential stage that captures an organization’s sequence of change and supporting information. All these are essential in UN’s transformational process
Reference List
Appelbaum, H. S., St-Pierre, N., and Glavas, W., 1998. Strategic Organizational Change: The Role of Leadership, Learning, Motivation and Productivity. New York, Prentice Hall.
Auw, E., 2009. Human Capital, Capabilities & Competitive Advantage. International Review of Business Research Papers, 5 (5), pp. 25-36.
Hansen, J. R., 2007. Strategic Management when Profit isn’t the End: Differences between Public Organizations, Preliminary version presented at 9th National Public Management Research Conference. Eller College of Management, University of Arizona, Tucson.
Kaplan, R., Norton, D. & Barrows, E.,2008. Developing strategy: Vision, value gaps, and analysis. Harvard business school publishing.
Kirsch, K., 2007. Critically Review how the Resource-based View Has Developed Our Understanding of Strategy. Munich, GRIN verlag.
Morris, S. S., Snell, S. A., and Wright, P. M., 2005. A Resource-Based View of International Human Resources: Toward A Framework of Integrative and Creative Capabilities [pdf] Web.
Pathak, H., 2011. Organizational Change. New Delhi, Pearson Education.
Warner, A., 2010. Strategic Analysis and Choice: A Structured Approach. New York: Momentum press.
White, S. 2008. Introduction to BPMN, IBM software group.
Wilson, D., 1992. A Strategy of Change: Concepts and Controversies in the Management of Change. New York: Routledge.
The first principle in the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact (2010) is as follows, “businesses should support and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights”. It is a company’s responsibility and the violation of this rule may lead to unpleasant consequences. Additionally, this principle offers a great deal of responsibility a company should bear, especially such a huge and global one as the Body Shop. The Internet company does not mean to violate human rights as it does not matter how the company implements its services, human rights are to be supported. The responsibility to support human rights “suggests that business entities carry positive responsibilities to promote human rights” (Anton & Shelton 2011, p. 889).
Speaking about human rights as the priority for the company, it is essential to consider the specifics of company views in this relation. As for the Body Shop, “human rights refer to the basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled” (The Body Shop Foundation 2012).
The company which manages to meet the human rights requirement is considered as the company which deserves attention. It is obvious that the organization which supports human rights deserves special attention from the side of both customers and partners. Ethical conduct is essential in the modern world and having shown people the company takes care of the people will be able to respond with the same respect and support.
The Body Shop is a company that has been supporting human rights for many years. Several examples may be considered. The Body Shop has been assisting people for many years. Speaking about the destination of the company, 1990 may be remembered. It is the time when the Body Shop’s foundation increased for population, having stated about their support of human rights. 1998 is remembered for the company campaign against animal testing. 2003 is a year that reminds the Body Shop of its work against domestic abuse.
2007 is the year of an HIV-Aids campaign which was conducted with MTV. Therefore, the company’s decision to fund the human rights campaign in Pakistan in 2010 was not a surprise. It was just the continuation of the specifics of the company vision. Having declared in a live call from Dubai about their intention to help, Fredric Simon, an executive director of The Body Shop stated,
We have full confidence in the Pakistani market, with nine stores in four major cities across the country. The brand is successful because it highlights the needs of the people. [Hence] to communicate the vision, strengthen our hands of working for human rights issues, Pakistan needs to play a big role (Qamar 2010).
This is a principal position of the company and it is important to develop this specific position as being open to people, supporting them in complicated situations, and creating a positive environment, people are going to remember the company and its products. Moreover, many international companies assist those who promote human rights and especially those who are ready to support people. Therefore, if the Body Shop continues working in this direction, new markets and new countries are going to be opened for the customer’s needs.
L’Oreal
“The elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation” is the second principle in The Ten Principles presented in the United Nations Global Compact (2010). It is important to follow this principle as the world society has entered a new nondiscrimination era which presupposes equal attitude to all people no matter which race, income, or other qualities they possess. L’Oreal received the Diversity Label in France in May 2010 (Diversities are our priority 2011).
This specific label states that the company follows particular rules. The elimination of discrimination should become the priority of the company, “L’Oreal is a strong upholder of the principle whereby for one and the same job or for work of equal value in the same situation, equality of remuneration between men and women must be guaranteed” (Diversity at L’Oreal 2010, p. 14). The world society has already understood that all people are equal and acting unethically the companies may lose the clients.
For example, L’Oreal was fined for discrimination in 2009 (Samuel 2009). This situation was very complicated for the company as many customers and other companies refused to deal with it. People got used to the fact that all people are equal and facing discrimination in the modern world, the company loses its positive image and the support of others. Even though L’Oreal was disappointed with the verdict stating that it did not have any connection with the discrimination having said that the company “does not tolerate any form of racism or discrimination” (Samuel 2009).
However, the company image was spoiled. Many companies refused to deal with it due to the doubtful company reputation. To solve the problem, the company referred to the Minister of Immigration, Integration, National Identity, and Inclusive Development to receive the Diversity Label. Therefore, the company now has all the necessary labels which state that it has managed to reduce the discrimination and it is universally considered as the company which offers equal rights to its employees.
The company report devoted to the Diversity at L’Oreal (2010) states that one of the main goals of the company is to “promote respect for diversity and non discrimination out in the field, and to relay and monitor actions. This is all about exchanging and sharing information relative to the measures implemented to fight all forms of discrimination and to promote diversity and equality of opportunity” (p. 6). Therefore, equality at all levels of the company performance is one of the specific company goals which the company has included in its ethical code of conduct.
Therefore, I am inclined to think that the support and the development of non-discrimination and equality at the working place should become a priority for the company. Employees are to be informed about the countries where the company offers its services and products. Detailed instruction about the culture of the company which is to be equal no matter where the company performs its task should guarantee an equal attitude to all people.
Discrimination some particular minorities in the USA for example the company will be unable to work adequately in the country where an ethnic group has come from. Having chosen this principle of work as the primary one, the company is guaranteed to meet a number of purposes. Thus, for example, the employees are going to respect each other which will result in experience sharing. An international experience is very important, especially in such globally spread companies like L’Oreal.
Reference List
Anton, DK & Shelton, D 2011, Environmental Protection and Human Rights, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
‘Diversities are our priority: Our commitments’ 2011, L’Oreal. Web.