PRACTICE OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN THE BREWERY INDUSTRY

CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

Marketers should not only think of customers satisfaction as the key to profitability.  The marketer operates in an environment.  Where several forces are in a state of dynamic tension and these forces must never be under estimated by the marketer.  Socially responsible marketing recognizes that the organization is part of a larger society and as a result should be accountable to that larger society for its actions.

Okonkwo (2000:128) noted that social possibilities is the concerted efforts of business operators to initiate, formulate and implement policies and decision concerning the well being of the society by studying how their business actions and inactions affect the numbers of the society and taking corrective measures.

In the view of Adirika, Ebue and Nnolim (2001:29 – 292) some scholars argue that the responsibility of business is to make profit.  By doing so, the society benefits and peoples material needs are met.  However, other scholars are the opinion that the responsibility of a business is to satisfy the society.  Te firm belongs to the people and thus has an obligation to the different section of the society, suppliers, consumers, stock brokers, employees, local community, government and the general public.  The social responsibility of business is a logical extension of the societal marketing concept and social marketing.

Marketers social responsibilities flow out of their conception of business ethic.  Ethics is the study of right or wrong.  The conduct of most business people are highly unethical.  There are practices such as false or misleading advertisements, overpriced, shoddy goods, bribes to win business, industrial pollution and defective, dangerous and harmful products.

Berkowitz et al (1997:110) are of the opinion that social responsibility as meaning that organizations are part of a larger society and are accountable to that society for their actions even though like ethics agreement on the nature and scope of social responsibility is difficult to come by, given the diversity of values present in different societal business and organizational culture.

To Berkowitz et al there are three vasic concept of social responsibility.

1)                Profit responsibility: It holds that companies have a single responsibility and that is to maximize fit provided they operate within the rules of the game.

Those companies which charge very high prices for new HIV drugs believe so much on this

Stakeholders responsibility; This is a fallout of criticisms of the profit responsibility.  It focuses on the obligation an organization has to those who can affect achievement of its objectives, viz. customers, employees, suppliers and distributor.