Deck 15: Sustainable Value Creation

Question 1

Research indicates that values-based businesses

A)are increasingly common.
B)are much less profitable than other businesses.
C)remain rare.
D)are much more profitable than other businesses.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Timberland is committed to its volunteer program because

A)the company's CEO saw the possibility of bringing about social change and the potential benefits this activism would bring.
B)Timberland saw the need for more of its shoes within its community.
C)it offers a cost-effective investment of tax-free dollars.
D)the company faced calls from its stakeholders to do more for the wider community.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

________ is the generation of a perceived benefit for an individual or a group,as defined by that individual or group.

A)The CSR advantage
B)The shareholder advantage
C)The stakeholder advantage
D)Value creation

Answer 3

D

Question 4

A ________ is a for-profit firm that is founded on a vision and mission defined by a strategic CSR perspective.

A)social enterprise
B)stakeholder-based business
C)sharia-compliant business
D)values-based business

Question 5

Employee volunteer programs benefit firms but NOT because they

A)produce greater loyalty among employees.
B)offer employees additional vacation time.
C)increase employee retention rates.
D)promote a favorable image of the organization within its community.

Question 6

Employee volunteer programs directly benefit employees in each of the following ways.However,they do NOT

A)expose them to a new environment away from their everyday position.
B)guarantee a real increase in salary over time.
C)allow them to feel pride in their company and its standing within the community.
D)lead to the development of new skill sets.

Question 7

Values-based businesses view CSR as ________ rather than as ________.

A)an opportunity; a way of doing business
B)a cost; an opportunity
C)an opportunity; a cost
D)a way of doing business; an opportunity

Question 8

The MBA Oath was written in ________ by a group of Harvard Business School students who wanted to develop a professional vow similar to the Hippocratic Oath taken by medical professionals.

A)1909
B)1939
C)1979
D)2009

Question 9

When we teach children not to steal,we are teaching them

A)ethics.
B)individual ethical decision making.
C)morality.
D)ethics and morality.

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT a reason the John Lewis Partnership program is successful?

A)The program is built around the value of fairness.
B)A significant percentage of the profits is distributed to the employees.
C)Staff turnover is comparable to that in similar industries.
D)The staff are more productive and the company is more successful during economic downturns.

Question 11

Who famously noted, "Profit for a company is like oxygen for a person.If you don't have enough of it,you're out of the game.But if you think your life is about breathing,you're really missing something"?

A)Peter Drucker
B)Milton Friedman
C)Charles Handy
D)Jack Welch

Question 12

With their ice cream firm,Ben and Jerry sought to

A)foster a culture of religious tolerance.
B)be a concerned and responsive employer.
C)pay top management and the owners many multiples of the lowest-level worker's pay.
D)support religious values by holding frequent prayer meetings.

Question 13

________,a values-based business,states that its goal is to "find new measures of success that do not depend on selling an ever increasing number of goods and services."

A)Ben & Jerry's
B)Patagonia
C)The Body Shop
D)Zappo's

Question 14

Focusing on organizational goals,such as quarterly earnings,rather than individual actions can lead to

A)greater short-term profits.
B)greater awareness of the ethical implications of actions.
C)a loss of awareness of ethical implications.
D)weaker short-term profits.

Question 15

What does "Ben & Jerry's law" do?

A)It requires that the company's ice cream use only non-GMO ingredients.
B)It gives the firm's directors the legal protection to reject a takeover offer based only on financial grounds.
C)It gives the firm's directors the legal protection to accept a takeover offer based only on financial grounds.
D)It requires that CEOs be paid no more than 20 times the average pay of all other employees.

Question 16

Since the 1930s,the average life (in years)of a Fortune 500 company has

A)increased slightly.
B)fallen slightly.
C)increased significantly.
D)fallen significantly.

Question 17

What is the primary focus of business ethics?

A)Macro perspectives of firm behavior
B)Individual behavior and decision making
C)Both the macro and micro levels of behavior
D)A comprehensive management philosophy of the firm

Question 18

Firms,like Enron,that ignore their ________,eventually are held accountable for their actions.

A)CSR threshold
B)CSR reporting
C)primary stakeholders
D)executive accountability

Question 19

To make better decisions while insulating themselves from potential threats,firms should

A)engage with stakeholders whenever possible and minimize the danger of stakeholder disillusionment.
B)focus on profit maximization over profit optimization.
C)recognize that some stakeholders are much more important than others.
D)establish a public relations crisis team.

Question 20

Enron is an example of a firm that

A)had a strong corporate social responsibility position that translated into ethical practices.
B)had a weak set of formal ethical positions but was an ethical firm nevertheless.
C)a strong set of corporate social responsibility positions that were just greenwash.
D)was the first firm to have a chief CSR officer.

Question 21

A strategic CSR perspective argues that employees shoud be treated as ________ rather than as ________.

A)family members; work acquaintances
B)costs; assets
C)assets; costs
D)partners; coworkers

Question 22

In your view,what does a values-based business look like? Think of an example you have seen or read about in the news: What makes you believe this firm is a values-based business? What do you think would be different about working for a firm like that?

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT a principle on which conscious capitalism is based?

A)Higher purpose
B)Stakeholder independence
C)Conscious leadership
D)Conscious culture

Question 24

John Mackey,founder and co-CEO of Whole Foods Market,is a leading proponent of

A)conscious capitalism.
B)stakeholder activism.
C)the gig economy.
D)values-based business.

Question 25

In 1989,Ben & Jerry's was the first major corporation to
a.allow an independent social audit of its business operations.
b.use only fair trade goods in all of its products.
c.be purchased through a hostile takeover for other than financial reasons.
d.introduce the concept of a living wage for all its employees.

Question 26

The success of the John Lewis Partnership is widely attributed to the loyalty and commitment of its employees,
a.k.a "partners."

Question 27

At Zappos,an online retailer of shoes and handbags,________ is the number one priority.

A)a fun workplace
B)customer service
C)employee ownership
D)low prices

Question 28

The ethics and morals of an organization start with the ethics and morals of the group of people in the organization.

Question 29

A stakeholder perspective is an integral part of a comprehensive,strategic approach to corporate social responsibility.

Question 30

The logic behind ________ is that they increase the likelihood that employees will be more committed to the firm and be more motivated at work.

A)employee assistance programs
B)employee ownership programs
C)employee pay incentive programs
D)minimum wage increases

Question 31

It is estimated that ________ of today's jobs could be automated in the next two decades.

A)27%
B)37%
C)47%
D)57%

Question 32

When Henry Ford offered a $5-a-day minimum wage for all his workers,he

A)broke a race barrier of the day.
B)created a virtuous circle.
C)created a larger market for his cars.
D)Henry Ford did all of these things with the $5-a-day minimum wage.

Question 33

The underlying principles of strategic CSR suggest that any problem with capitalism,as currently practiced,is the pursuit of profit over nonfinancial considerations.

Question 34

The W.L.Gore Company,maker of Gore-Tex,maintains a firm hierarchy in which an official chain of command is closely followed.

Question 35

In the United States,CEOs earn approximately ________ times the average employee's wage.

A)30
B)130
C)230
D)330

Question 36

What does it mean for an organization to be ethical? What is the difference between an unethical and an illegal act?

Question 37

One approach a firm may take is to pay employees as little as possible if unemployment is high enough that if one employee leaves,another can be hired.Another approach is to pay employees a living wage because it raises morale and productivity while decreasing turnover and the hiring costs associated with replacing workers.Which position do you take on this issue? Support your answer with specific examples.

Question 38

What is a fair wage? What does fair mean? What is the lowest hourly wage for which you would be willing to work? Think of some of the jobs you have done-would you have worked harder if your pay had been higher?

Question 39

What are some of the benefits to companies of an employee volunteer program? How can companies encourage employees to participate in such a program and avoid the suspicion that "by volunteering,they are potentially derailing their chances for a promotion because of the time they'll spend out of the office"?

Question 40

The term gig economy refers to

A)the reality that firms often get rid of employees through layoffs,downsizing,etc.
B)the Globalized Industrial Group of countries,which have steadily moved manufacturing jobs from developed to developing countries.
C)the growing number of artists,musicians,and other young people who are entering the job market.
D)the assignment of work tasks on a short-term basis that allows laborers to work when and where they wish.