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The last couple of months have seen the world shaken by the coronavirus. Economies have plummeted and businesses have taken hard hits because entire nations are being forced into a state of lockdown as they try and contain the virus.
Keeping businesses alive in times of COVID-19 is no easy task, but some businesses are thriving due to the sector that they find themselves in. Other businesses have to resort to other creative means to stay afloat.
The corporate social responsibility of the companies who are thriving has become ever more important, not just so that they can save face, but because other companies and the future of commerce depends on it. Corporate social responsibility allows these businesses to conduct their business in such a way that they exact positive change.
They have implemented everything from improving labor relations to reducing their carbon footprint and incorporating charitable giving to help those companies in need. Here are some of the top trends that successful companies have invested in.
Focusing on re-training
The workplace is becoming very complex, and one must be very careful not to step on anybody’s toes. Some people might think that people, in general, have become over-sensitive and easily take offense.
Whether this is the case or not is irrelevant. It is important that business owners realize the importance of retraining their staff to deal with these complexities.
It has become imperative for a business to train their staff to conduct themselves in a new way. Corporate leaders find themselves in training classes for everything from combating sexual harassment, the promise of pay equity and sustainability more often.
One of the key benefits of this strategy is that the heads of the companies are staying abreast of current trends and policies. They also seem to be more in touch with their workforce, which builds trust and loyalty.
Because of the shift in focus on corporate social responsibility, more executive business programs like the one offered at Harvard Business School are incorporating formal programs to train new and aspiring executives.
Besides, there are some reputed academic assignment help services that help with their professional dissertation writers and provide custom papers, essays, thesis, term papers to students from all backgrounds, full-time or part-time. They tie-up with the companies to ensure that the employees who are undergoing educational course or training are able to complete their courses successfully.
The downside to this trend is that many executives come out of Generation-X. These guys aren’t always the best adopters of change and on the other hand, they think that the current generation is soft and lazy. These are the companies that will grow stagnant or die.
Realigning for customer needs
To say that the customer is always right has never rung more true than today. Today, customers want their needs to be met on an individual level. The internet has changed commerce forever as more brands are available to more people on a global scale.
Customers are also more knowledgeable about products and companies and tend to do more research before deciding to buy a product or service. Brand loyalty has become fickle, and companies have to spend much more time gaining customer trust than ever before.
One thing that more and more people are looking at is how a company gives back. They want to see that the corporate heads don’t just line their own pockets, but that they use some of those saved up millions to give back to the community.
Starbucks is one of those companies and they have built a good reputation by being socially responsible from the very beginning. Today, they are working with Ethos water to provide water to more than 1 billion people.
Community outreaches
As COVID-19 is running rampant, many communities have been struck with poverty and they are struggling to get back on their feet. Although the global pandemic is taking its toll, other issues will outlive the virus and companies need to get on board and do their bit to curb the degradation of our natural resources.
Not too long ago, the scarcity of water was posed as a worst-case scenario, today it is a reality and even the quality of our air is an issue that companies need to address.
If a company is to be successful, it needs to pay attention to worthy causes that will help sustain the environment. The ones who collaborate with scientists and civil society and show that they are fighting the good fight will continue to grow as the consumers look to them to save the planet.
On the other hand, companies like Microsoft, who are actively involved in developing countries to educate the poor, are also climbing the ranks in the heart of the consumer. Bill Gates is a well-known activist and is not shy to pour millions of dollars into uplifting the poor and downtrodden.
Setting the scene for Generation-Z
Generation-Z, the ones who were born after 1990, is now one of the biggest pools of employee power in the world. The problem is that many companies don’t know how to keep this generation satisfied.
A remarkable number of employers are unable to keep their young staff. It is, therefore, important for companies to invest in catering for Generation-Z, seeing that they make up around 40% of the consumers globally.
This generation is complex and they have high demands. Seeing that they are early adopters and digital natives, they demand better utilization of technology and flexibility in the workplace.
If there is one thing that the coronavirus has taught us, it is that the days of big corporate buildings and office jobs are nearing an end. It has shown that many sectors can thrive when employees can work from home. This falls squarely into the arc of Generation-Z and their need for workplace flexibility.
IT companies, college paper services that provide thesis writer and essay writer for academic writing work, and business consultancy firms are already contemplating the future of remote work and taking the work from home approach rather positively.
Product trust and transparency
With information on anything being available at the press of a button, it has become extremely important for companies to be transparent about their conduct to gain consumer trust. They want to know that the brand that they support is doing their bit to keep the environment safe and that they don’t try and sugarcoat their business.
If a product does not live up to the hype that the company claims, it tarnishes their reputation as people are quick to write a negative review about a product.
Not too long ago, Volkswagen was taken to the cleaners because of falsifying their carbon emissions data on their diesel cars. The truth came to light and the people were not impressed.
Their stocks fell dramatically and the company took a big hit in the process. They showed that being transparent is necessary even if the news is bad. At least the consumers will still trust you and be more likely to stay loyal because of that.
Conclusion
The main aim of a socially responsible company is to see how they can make money, but make the world a better place at the same time. You don’t have to be a multi-billion-dollar company to exact change. You can start small and build your reputation with your staff. When they are happy, they will tend to be more loyal and spread the message.
Your company’s name will start to circulate and when the pandemic has run its course, you will be stronger for it and your company will already be in the habit of being socially responsible.