About Corporations

What Kind of “Person” Should a Company Be?

Although a corporation is regarded as a distinct legal person or entity, the question of what kind of “person” a company ought to be emerges. The interests of a company’s stakeholders should come first because with tremendous power comes great responsibility. This is known as stakeholder theory, and it primarily focuses on making sure that, in the quest of steady and optimistic financial performance, the interests of the company’s stakeholders are satisfied first. Stakeholder theory also highlights the need for the business to perform its operations while taking into account other stakeholders, such as the general public. This is essentially emphasized with the fact that corporations exist in industries that have competitive players.

The Pursuit of Profitability and Ethical Considerations

This motivates them to look for any possible way in which they can achieve profitability, gain market share and dominate the market. The question remains how far should corporations go in the pursuit of profitability leading to the application of ethics in carrying out business operations. Corporations should avoid seeking illegal profit margins and seek to employ ethical principles within their corporate culture. In this way, every member of the organization from the director to the lower-level employees are able to take part in creating an ethical workplace.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Protection

It is also imperative for corporations to protect the environment in which they operate. This is part of corporate social responsibility where an organization is expected to take responsibility for its effects on the environment and participate in social wellbeing. Most organizations have such a significant carbon footprint that the world is currently under threat of global warming. Corporations are therefore expected to preserve the environment, contribute to the community in the form of donations, and create a sustainable futuristic environment (The Corporation, 1).

Works Cited

The corporation. Dir. Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott. 2003., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2017.