Who among the following are most likely to be considered the external stakeholders of a firm check all that apply?

When individuals or groups play multiple stakeholder roles, this is called a(n)

The general systems theory is best described by which statements?

  • organisms interacting with their external environment
  • plants interacting with soil, light, oxygen, and moisture
  • organisms and their environment working together

all those that affect, or are affected by, the actions of the firm

a template for 21st century capitalism 

Arguably the most dominant institution in the world

any organization that is engaged in making a product or providing a service for a profit

human beings and the social structures they collectively create; segments of humankind, such as members of a particular community, nation, or interest group

first introduced in the 1940s argues that all organisms are open to, and interact with, their external environment 

Interactive social system

the closely intertwined relationships between business and society

Ownership theory of the firm

a theory that holds that the purpose of the firm is to maximize the long term return for its shareholders (also called property or finance theory of the firm)

Stakeholder theory of the firm

argues that corporations serve a broad public purpose: to create value for society; three core arguments:

  • descriptive
  • instrumental
  • normative

the stakeholder view is simply a more realistic description of how companies really work

says that stakeholder management is more effective as a corporate strategy; companies that behave responsibly toward multiple stakeholder groups perform better financially over the long run

says that stakeholder management is simply the right thing to do

means a person who exercises power on behalf of another, that is, who acts as the other's agent

those that engage in economic transactions with the company as it carries out its purpose of providing society with goods and services 

are people and groups who-although they do not engage in direct economic exchange with the firm-are nonetheless affected by or can affect its actions

Who are considered market stakeholders?

  • creditors
  • employees
  • suppliers

Who are considered nonmarket stakeholders?

  • community
  • government
  • nongovernmental organizations
  • business support groups
  • competitors
  • general public

are those, such as employees and managers, who are employed by the firm

are those-although they may have important transactions with the firm-are not directly employed by it

A customer posting a negative review of a purchased product is using which type of stakeholder power?

an analytic process used by managers that identifies the relevant stakeholders in a particular situation and seeks to understand their interests, power, and likely coalitions 

the organization from whose perspective the stakeholder analysis is conducted

Four key questions of stakeholder analysis:

  1. Who are the relevant stakeholders?
  2. What are the interests of each stakeholder
  3. What is the power of each stakeholder
  4. How are coalitions likely to form

the nature of each stakeholder group, its concerns, and what it wants from its relationship with the firm

the ability to use resources to make an event happen or to secure a desired outcome

Five kinds of stakeholder power

  1. voting
  2. economic
  3. political
  4. legal
  5. informational

the stakeholder has a legitimate right to cast a vote

suppliers, customer, employees, and stakeholders have this kind of power

governments exercise this power through legislation, regulations, or lawsuits 

stakeholders have this power when they bring suit against a company for damages, based on harm caused by the firm

stakeholders have this power when they have access to valuable data, facts, or details and are able to bring attention of the public or key decision makers 

alliances among company's stakeholders to pursue a common interest; generally are not static relationships 

causes a stakeholder to stand out as important and receive managers' attention based on power, legitimacy, and urgency

a graphical representation of the relationship of stakeholder salience to a particular issue

Boundary-spanning departments

departments, or offices, within an organization that reach across the dividing line that separates a company from groups and people in society 

Six dynamic forces that shape the business and society relationship

  1. Evolving government regulation of business
  2. Globalization
  3. Explosion of new technology
  4. Dynamic natural environment
  5. Changing societal expectations
  6. Growing emphasis on ethical values

The stakeholder theory of the firm is exemplified by which business activities?

  • professional training for employees
  • new and improved products for customers

On a stakeholder mp we see firms X, Y, and Z graphed in order from low to high. Which firm has the greatest salience?

A stakeholder's ability to use resources to make an event happen is measured by the amount and type of their:

The term stakeholder salience is correctly defined by which statements:

  • It refers to stakeholders standing out to managers when they have power, legitimacy, and urgency
  • the greater the salience, the more the stakeholder will be noticed

A fruit grower has received many complaints about its heavy use of pesticides. Which stakeholders would likely form a coalition to support the grower?

  • pesticide suppliers
  • competitors who use pesticides

The general systems theory states that businesses must do what to survive?

  • be willing to change and evolve
  • form an interactive social system with society

The term business is accurately defined by which descriptions?

  • any firm that provides a service for a profit
  • any organization that is engaged in making a product

In addition to saying it's the right thing to do, this argument for the stakeholder theory of the firm claims that all stakeholders contribute value to the organization

Some argue that managers are not stakeholders of a firm because they:

  • promote stakeholder interests, not their own
  • act primarily for the company

Some argue managers are stakeholders of a firm because they:

  • are employed by the firm
  • benefit from the company
  • are impacted by a firm's decisions

an issue that is of mutual concern to an organization and its stakeholders, sometimes called a social or sociopolitical issue

Performance-expectations gap

the perceived distance between what a firm wants to do or is doing and what the stakeholder expects 

a method managers use to gather information about external issues and trends, so they can develop an organizational strategy that minimizes threats and takes advantage of new opportunities

Environmental intelligence

the acquisition of intelligence gained from analyzing the multiple environments affecting organizations

Eight strategic radar screens 

  1. customer environment
  2. geophysical environment
  3. legal environment
  4. political environment
  5. social environment
  6. technological environment
  7. economic environment
  8. competitor environment

the systematic and continuous process of gathering, analyzing, and managing external information on the organization's competitors 

adaptation of an accounting term that focuses on the importance or significance of stakeholder for the firm 

the active management of public issues once they come to the attention of a business organization 

a five-step process where managers identify the issue, generate options, take action, and evaluate results 

The issue management process (5 steps)

  1. identify the issue
  2. analyze the issue
  3. generate options
  4. take action
  5. evaluate results

The European Academy of Business in Society (EABIS) identified the most effective global leadership skills as:

  • understanding the changing business context
  • skill to engage with external stakeholders using connectedness
  • ability to lead in the face of complexity

an ongoing process of relationship building between a business and its stakeholders 

Stages in business-stakeholder relationship

  • inactive
  • reactive
  • proactive
  • interactive

companies simply ignore stakeholder concerns; believe that they can make decisions unilaterally without taking into consideration their impact on others 

companies generally only act when forced to do so, in a defensive manner

companies try to anticipate stakeholder concerns; use environmental scanning practices to identify emerging public issues

companies actively engage with stakeholders in an ongoing relationship of mutual respect, openness, and trust 

Drivers of stakeholder engagement

  • goal
  • motivation
  • organizational capacity

conversations between representatives of a company and its stakeholders about issues of common concern

a connected assembly of concerned individuals or organizations defined by their shared focus on a particular issue, problem, or opportunity 

Stakeholder engagement can help consumers:

  • learn about society's expectations
  • draw on outside experience
  • generate creative solutions
  • win stakeholder support for implementing them

According to the eight radar screens, challenges to acquiring environmental intelligence can include:

  • organizational reporting relationships
  • cultural traditions in the workplace

Symantec's Stakeholder Materiality Matrix, the priorities of issues for stakeholders are shown:

vertically from the lowest priority on the bottom to the highest priority on the top

The properties of competitive intelligence include:

  • continuous
  • systematic
  • external information

Where can a company search for reliable stakeholder issues?

  • websites
  • 10-K filings
  • mission statements

According to the Foundation for Public Affairs, the majority of corporate budgets used for remediation of public issue since the mid-2000s' has:

increased slightly or stayed the same

Issues management at Publix is correctly described by which of the following?

  • each division has a media and community relations team
  • the corporate communications team handles internal communications
  • the customer care team manages client issues

the capability of corporations to influence government, the economy, and society, based on their organizational resources 

Iron law of responsibility

the belief that those who do not use their power in ways that society considers responsible will tend to lose their power in the long run

Corporate social responsibility 

the idea that businesses should act in a way that enhances society and their stakeholders and be held accountable for any of its actions that affect people, their communication, and their environment 

this term refers to the actions corporations take to put their commitments to corporate social responsibility into practice worldwide

Phases of Corporate Social Responsibility

  1. Corporate social stewardship
  2. Corporate social responsiveness
  3. Corporate/business ethics
  4. Corporate/global citizenship

Corporate social stewardship

  • Early in the 20th century, formally in the 1950s-1960s
  • Corporate philanthropy; acts of charity, managers as public, trustee-stewards, balancing social pressures
  • executive conscience, company image/reputation

Corporate social responsiveness

  • 1960s-1970s
  • social impact analysis, priority for social response, redesign and training for responsiveness, stakeholder mapping/implementation
  • social unrest/protest, repeated corporate misbehvior

Corporate/business ethics

  • 1980s-1990s
  • foster an ethical corporate culture
  • establish ethical organizational climate
  • recognize common ethical priniples

Corporate/Global citizenship

  • 1990s-present
  • stakeholder partnerships, integrate financial, social and environmental performance, identify globalization impacts, sustainability of company and environment

The benefits of publishing social audit performance results include:

  • helping businesses gauge social progress
  • improving the firm's overall performance
  • identifying stakeholder needs

The positive effects of corporate power can include:

  • useful technologies
  • economic opportunities
  • helpful products

CSR drivers related to Corporate Social Stewardship

  • Executive conscience
  • Company image/reputation

CSR drivers related to Corporate Social Responsiveness

  • Social unrest/protest
  • Repeated Corporate misbehavior
  • Public policy/government regulation

CSR drivers related to Corporate/Business ethics

  • Religious/ethnic beliefs
  • Technology-driven value changes
  • Human rights pressures
  • Code of ethics

CSR drivers related to Corporate/Global Citizenship

  • Global economic trade/investment
  • high-tech communication networks
  • geopolitical shifts/competition
  • ecological awareness/concerns

Enlightened self-interest 

the view that holds it is in a company's best interest in the long run to provide true value to its stakeholders

Arguments for Corporate Social Responsibility

  • Balances corporate power with responsibility
  • Discourages government regulation
  • Promotes long-term profits for business
  • Improves stakeholder relationships
  • Enhance business reputation

Arguments against corporate social responsibility 

  • lowers economic efficiency and profit
  • imposes unequal costs among competitors
  • imposes hidden costs passed onto stakeholders
  • requires skills businesses may lack
  • places responsibility on business rather than individuals

a business that explicitly seeks to blend its social objectives with its financial goals 

The stages of global corporate citizenship

  1. elementary
  2. engaged
  3. innovative
  4. integrated
  5. transforming

  • jobs, profits, taxes
  • legal compliance
  • lip service, out of touch
  • marginal, staff-driven

  • philanthropy, environmental protection
  • license to operate
  • supporter, in the loop
  • functional ownership

  • stakeholder management
  • business case
  • steward, on top of it
  • cross-functional coordination

  • sustainability or triple bottom line
  • value proposition
  • champion, in front of it
  • organizational alignment

  • change the game
  • market creation or social change
  • visionary, ahead of the pack
  • mainstream: business driven

a systematic evaluation of an organization's social, ethical and environmental performance

Six benefits of social audits

  1. help businesses know what is happening in their firm
  2. understand what stakeholders think/want
  3. tell stakeholders about achievements
  4. strengthen loyalty and commitment
  5. enhance decision making
  6. improve overall performance

Corporate social reporting

the public reporting of information collected by the organization or another party during a social audit 

clear public reporting of an organization's performance to various stakeholders

the combining of legally required financial information with social and environmental information into a single report 

The Global Reporting Initiative Guidelines are characterized by which of these statements

  • many global business representatives work together to define the Guidelines
  • The Guidelines provide common metrics for firms to compare their social results with other firms

The concept of providing stakeholders value that results in a firm's long run self-interest is called:

Enlightened self-interest

How did the US initially attempt to restrain corporate power

  • banking regulations
  • consumer protection laws
  • antitrust legislation

How does CSR improve stakeholder relationships

  • higher quality employees
  • more appealing products for customers
  • stronger community ties

The iron law of responsibility is defined as

those who do not use power in a socially responsible way will tend to lose power

Identify the difference between a B corporation and a benefit corporation

  • B corporations are certified entities, but benefit corporations are incorporated
  • B corporations must achieve a minimum performance score to retain their status, but benefit corporations self-report their progress

When a business applies resources to social programs, some argue that they risk lowering their:

  • profits
  • operating efficency

In the US, when did the idea of corporate social responsibility first begin?

How does corporate social responsibility differ from corporate citizenship

Corporate citizenship means taking social actions, and CSR obligates firms to be socially responsible 

Emerging trends in corporate citizenship management include:

  • recognizing that in the long run, stakeholder and community interests typically intersect
  • creating consolidated CSR departments that deal with all social issues

What criterion does Rating Research use to calculate a firm's reputation index?

A military dictatorship is accurately defined by which statements?

  • control through armed forces
  • authoritarian rule
  • restriction of human rights

According to the UN, this transnational firm had the largest amount of foreign assets in 2013

When a business starts operations in another country, what is the cost to workers in the home country

  • stagnant wages
  • lower wages
  • job insecurity

A strategy of acquiring or merging with a foreign firm in order to reduce corporate tax obligations at home is called:

When a firm relocates its operations specifically to avoid raising wages, this is called

a form of government in which power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or by their elected representatives

a repressive regime ruled by a dictator who exercises total power through control of the armed forces

a socioeconomic system based on private ownership, profit-seeking business firms, and the principle of free markets 

a socioeconomic system in which economic power is concentrated in the hands of government officials and political authorities; central government owns property that is used to produce goods and services, and most private markets are illegal

the world's poor; also refers to creative business actions to develop products and services that meet the needs of the world's poor

nonprofit, educational, religious, community, family, and interest-group organizations; social organizations that do not have a commercial or governmental purpose

Nongovernmental Organizations

organizations that do not have a governmental or commercial purpose, such as religious, community, family, and interest group-organizations; also called civil society or civil sector organizations

Who among the following are most likely to be considered the external stakeholders of a firm?

Understanding Stakeholders External stakeholders are those who do not directly work with a company but are affected somehow by the actions and outcomes of the business. Suppliers, creditors, and public groups are all considered external stakeholders.

Who are considered external stakeholders of a company?

External stakeholders include clients or customers, investors and shareholders, suppliers, government agencies and the wider community. They want the company to perform well for a multitude of reasons.

Which of the following would generally be considered an external stakeholder government shareholders customers managers?

External stakeholders are groups outside a business or people who don't work inside the business but are affected in some way by the decisions and actions of the business. Examples of external stakeholders are customers, suppliers, creditors, the local community, society, and the government.

What are the 4 types of stakeholders?

This article covers four types of stakeholders: users, governance, influencers and providers, which all together go by the acronym UPIG.