How Successful is The Co-operative Banks Ethical policy?

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  1. Front Page
  2. Contents
  3. What are business ethics?
  4. How can a firm benefit from having an ethical policy?
  5. About the Bank.
  6. The Policy- Targets.
  7. The Policy- Targets.
  8. Where’s the Evidence?
  9. Profits and Share Price.
  10. Profits and Share Price.
  11. Can you be Ethical and Profitable?
  12. Public image.
  13. What I Think.
  14. Conclusion.

Ethics is a large area of philosophy that has been debated for thousands of years.  The dictionary states that ethics ‘is a system of rules and principles that should govern the moral behaviour of human beings.’

Basically ethics tell us what is right or wrong.  

Business ethics are a set of values, or a morel code that governs the behaviour of a company. A strong ethical policy would have several implications on the running of a firm.

  1. The product itself would have to fit with that policy                                 e.g. a company which is against animal testing would not sell a product that has been tested on animals.
  2. The way products are made would have to be considered, as the inputs from the product would have to support the policy.
  3. How a firm treats its staff, a company with a good policy would give its staff good working conditions and good pay rates.
  4. The accounting practices of the firm, it would have to keep its accounts accurate.
  5. Environmental policies:
  1. They would have to take responsibility for any negative externalities.
  2. It would have to take responsibility for specifically pollution.
  3. The company would have to make a positive contribution to the environment.
  4. They would have to sell environmentally products.
  5. It would have to insure it used energy saving devices.
  1. The firms pricing policy would have to offer value for money, and they would have to compete fairly

There are several benefits of a firm having an ethical policy:

  1. Firstly, employees will feel more motivated as a result of two factors, both of which make he employees more motivated and therefore more productive:
  1. They will feel they are a part of a firm that is trying to make the world better.
  2. A good ethical policy would mean that staff would have better pay and conditions.
  1. It also helps avoid legal problems as they will be well within the law, and fair in terms of competition, this helps avoid investigation by the competition commission.
  2. This kind of policy helps maintain customer loyalty as consumers feel that they belong to a group that is helping other people, this would make customers feel guilty about leaving the firm.
  3. A strong policy helps to attract new customers. If they see that a company is ethically minded, they will be more likely to use that firm because most people want to feel that they are doing something positive with their lives.
  4. The public image of the product/company will be helped as the consumer would recognise their intentions and work and like them
  5. The firm could use this as a unique selling point for the product/service.
  6. Ultimately it will improve the bottom line of business, which is to make a profit. It will do this using all the advantages described.
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The Co-Operative bank is a part of the Co-Op group which is involved in several areas of business, some of which include; insurance, food retailing, farm care, food services, property and development, funeral services, and manufacturing.

The bank itself was established in one form in 1872. It is now a large bank with well over a hundred stores nation wide; it is now also involved in Internet banking with www.smile.co.uk. The following time line, taken from the company’s website, shows the history of the company, including the introduction of their ethical policy.

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