Monthly Archives: September 2014

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-28051656

Nike has heavily relied on marketing and exposing their brand name through Big Name players and Big Name Events. This past world cup happened to be the reason for the company’s large profit jump.  Nike’s risk of spending loads of money on advertising and marketing during the world cup paid off. Nike for the first time sponsored more national teams than any other competing rival.  The company’s net profit rose 23% and total revenue rose 15% during the same period. Nike globally is ranked within the top 20 for its brand recognition and overall performance. This world cup even boosted them higher putting them next big name companies such as Apple and Google. Nike is known for its innovation and quality, and I truly believe in what they do as most of my shoes and clothes are Nike branded. The style of always innovating new products has attracted customers from all around the world. The world cup was just a showcase for these products such as the new GS soccer cleats. Nike is globally a top brand in all categories and is classified as a top level company in today’s world.

http://www.economist.com/node/21551498

Working conditions have always been an issue in factories based in Asia. Alan Hassenfeld, a driving force behind the International council of Toy industries, says that a challenge of practicing a business ethically is the fear of corruption. In this case, businesses discard the values of others and focus on the values and benefits for the shareholders, similar to what Friedman states in his article. However, over the past decade; companies such as Nike and Apple have been working towards improving harsh conditions and hours. Nike is the largest advocate in improving working conditions in factories based in china. They believe its approach of good labor and environmental practices boost profits. Criticism and pressure from the public proved to be beneficial for both the companies’ social responsibility and profit.

This article directly relates to the concepts explained by both R. Edward Freeman and Milton Friedman. The Stakeholder Theory suggests that the purpose of a business is to create as much value as possible for shareholders while keeping the interests of customers, employees, suppliers, communities, and shareholders. The key for a business to make profit and still maintain it’s social responsibility is to find a medium between the values of a shareholder and those of the employees, communities, and suppliers.

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