Thinking back to the negative connotations surrounding corporations, we can now see big changes being made in the industry. The soul-less, money-hungry robots are transforming as ethics rapidly grow in importance for all companies. Though some may argue that corporations promoting social responsibility are solely searching for a leg up in the market, some companies are beginning to execute game-changing plans. Making an impact this year, the drugstore chain CVS announced its termination of tobacco sales(1). This will result in great financial loss for the company (Approximately $2 billion per year), however it may greatly improve the company’s reputation for social responsibility and authenticity. Furthermore, CVS is paving the path for other drugstore chains such as RiteAid to re-evaluate its customers’ demands. CVS’s actions don’t stop there as they announce their future plans of launching a smoking-cessation program, which undoubtedly contributes to reinventing the company-consumer relationship. Not only does this demonstrate the insurmountable importance of ethics to a company’s identity, but it also shows the value of unity within a company. For a company to succeed, it cannot function as a collection of individual segments. CVS for instance, had to think beyond the financial consequences of the company’s activities and apply their morality to all divisions of the company. CVS is undeniably taking the idea of a corporation in the right direction and will most likely not be the only one to do so.
CVS stays true to their word, as depicted here (2)
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Sources
Image from: http://www.rewards4mom.com/cvs-deals-matchups-126-21/
(1) Strom, Stephanie. “CVS Vows to Quit Selling Tobacco Products.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 5 Feb. 2014. Web. 10 Sept. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/06/business/cvs-plans-to-end-sales-of-tobacco-products-by-october.html?_r=1>.