Monthly Archives: November 2014

” If the United Nations was fully funded why would we need the Arc or social enterprise”?

Unlike charities and other non-profit organizations, social enterprises aim to give back to the community by solving social, economic or environmental issues while generating profit. Without social enterprises, a lot of social groups would be supported and social problems would not be addressed. In addition, it is often more impactful if the problems are being addressed by local sources who understand the severity of the situation.

Though the United Nations does aid several social and environmental organizations and groups, there is not enough time in the world for one organization to find solutions for all of the world’s problems, even if they become fully funded.

Because they are also profitable businesses, Social enterprises are more sustainable than non-profit organizations and do not hinder the nation’s economic growth. However, unlike most businesses, their main objective is to benefit and improve the well-being of the people as opposed to maximizing profit. Furthermore, due to the current emphasis on social responsibility, consumers are willing to pay more for positive impacts, such as the Toms One for One slogan.

With the aid of social enterprises such as the Arc Initiative, smaller social enterprises are given the opportunity to learn the skills to run their business while addressing closer-to-home, less well-known social issues.  By educating others and help to serve the greater good, the Arc Initiative and social enterprises are one step closer to making the world a better place.

Photo: http://mbanogmat.com/files/2014/05/socialEnt.jpg

In response to my fellow classmate Luc’s earlier blog post; I find it interesting that he selected a topic that we recently discussed in class. He stated that it was important “to get in contact with a displeased customer as soon as possible after the bad experience between the producer and consumer” and believed that “in the future there will be companies that will provide this service to firms”, thus creating a new standard. However, what if it were a better idea to prevent the situation from happening altogether?

Instead of dealing with the aftermath of poor customer service, companies should implement a customer satisfaction standard within their employees. During the class on Organizational Behaviour and Human Resources, we learned that it was equally important to create a good and positive working environment for the employees, especially the ones working in customer service, as demonstrated by Zappos. By doing so, the better working conditions will reflect on customer service, resulting in happier customers, lower costs, and higher profits. Rewards systems or giving bonuses are generally not as reliable, since workers will work towards the reward instead of being intrinsically motivated and wanting the customer to be happy. An example of attempts to increase employee conditions include several other companies that are letting employees work fewer days or taking breaks so that they will be more motivated on the job.

Having unsatisfied customers is a common issue for every company and can lead to several problems in the long run such as limited customer loyalty, increased costs, and decreased profit. Therefore, I think that companies should focus on preventative measures to increase employee satisfaction, which will positively reflect on the future customer retention and satisfaction rates

Link to the original article: http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7058-disappointed-customers.html
Photo: http://www.blr.com/html_email/images/WIR/HRDA/epinion-angry-screaming-phone.jpg