Apple Inc
Apple Inc under the leadership of Tim Cook has focused on social responsibility at a level that it did not under Steve Jobs. Under the former leader, the company was alert of its environmental impact as seen in its product approach, which 87% is driven by renewable energy (Klein 1). However, Tim Cook has focused on a more overarching social responsibility doctrine. For one, Cook has introduced a new code of conduct for its suppliers after joining the Fair Labor Association. The new guidelines include more frequent supplier audits and increased levels of operational transparency between the company and its suppliers.
The approach has changed how campaign groups perceive the company implying a new and better affiliation with communities. The company also supports technological developments that measure and contribute to social change, such as innovations in education, disease, and food distribution. Tim Cook is changing Apple to an organization that is famished for its social purpose thus slowly turning the company into one of the world’s most valuable firms in terms of CSR.
Alphabet (Google Inc)
Google in the last seven years has made great strides in improving its CSR including diversity of its employee base, energy combustion, and carbon emissions. A recent study undertaken by Forbes and JUST Capital Foundation concluded that Google Inc is the leader in social responsibility compared to other Internet-based organizations (Henry).
The survey was based on what Americans rank as important, which included pay, workplace culture, the creation of jobs and non-discrimination in recruitment. The company had strong scores for time off policies, supply chain impact, worker pay and benefits and commitment to labor laws (Henry). Google offices lead in terms of energy consumption as all are Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified (Dudovskiy). In terms of water consumption, the organization’s data centers achieve 100% landfill diversion, which also sums up to 52% waste reduction.
- Henry, Zoe. ‘Google’s Alphabet Is the Most ‘Just’ Internet Company, Says Study’. Inc. 22 June 2017, https://www.inc.com
- Dudovskiy, John. ‘Google Corporate Social Responsibility.’ Research Methodology, 8 June 2017, https://research-methodology.net/
- Klein, Paul. ‘Where is Apple’s Social Purpose?’ Forbes, 12 August 2012, https://www.forbes.com
