General Motors Social Responsibility Strategy.

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Management BUSAG2031 Adam Tilston 00302568

Management

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By Adam Tilston

                                Reg No 00302568


General Motors Social Responsibility Strategy

My chosen company is the General Motors Corporation. It goes without saying that they are one of the leading businesses in the world and could be the largest car manufacturer. Their models include such lines as the Opel, Chevrolet, Chryslers and other household names.

Due to General Motors being a large company, they have many Social Responsibilities. This is because they are at the forefront of motorcar manufacturing and need to set examples to the vast customers they have. Here is a list of the some of the issues that are put into their strategy: -

  • Advocate product and policy positions that help improve motor vehicle safety.
  • Increase child restraint and safety belt use.
  • Reduce crashes involving younger drivers
  • Reduce incidence of drunk and impaired driving.

These were found on the GM website and are included in their public policy. As you can see from these points, the business is showing that they are extremely willing and show concerns over the various problems associated with automobiles. It shows that the business has the potential to do good for the community. As the car industry gets more and more technical, and more people would sooner buy a safe car rather than a nice looking one, their actions will have an impact on social problems, If they are behaving responsible, they will set out to create the safest car on the market so people (and potential customers) can be safe. As you can see from these points that are addressed, they tackle all the key elements in what society believe to be dangerous. GM have outlined these areas and stated that they are trying to eliminate these problems. The business also looks like it shows a willingness to invest in the areas to help make the roads a safer place. This could have the impact of making the company more profitable in the long run. Extra spending now could lead to more riches later.

GM is an American company. This sort of behaviour is more likely of a company from the U.S. They believe that a business should help out in the local community and give a little back for all the help the customers have given to the business.

As the automobile trade is such a large industry as well, and that stepping into a car could be a potential risk of life, then it could be said that these responsibilities are unavoidable and are linked to rights. GM cannot just make a car that could have a half chance of exploding if it is not looked after. The business has to make sure that the car is safe to drive on the road and it is not a potential death trap.

The arguments that could be put forward against these responsibilities is that this business already has too much power and that other businesses could be manipulated by GM due to their vast wealth and size. Also, GM believes that there should be certain tax incentives for the company. They believe that there should be an incentive on electric cars so people buy them. Although this may seem like they are trying to help the environment, they are also looking at the higher prices that are charged for the likes of these vehicles and instead of reducing the price of them, they want the Government to reduce tax on them. Again manipulation could come into play here due to the sheer size of the business.

I believe though that GM is trying to do what is best for the people who buy cars and the environment instead of establishing themselves as world leader.

In my opinion GM motors are a Proactive company. A Proactive company is one in which looks at the relationships between its activities and interest of its stakeholders. The company then respond to these interests without pressure being applied.  They behave responsibly in relation to stakeholders and help to resist accusations of malpractice. GM considers themselves to be a pioneer and leader company. Many of the activities that they have proceeded with are all firsts. Here are a few examples: -

  • GM was the first auto company to conduct atmospheric research, dating back to the 1950`s and share its findings with the Government
  • In 1970, GM became the first auto company to announce that it would manufacture all of its passenger cars and light trucks to run on unleaded fuel.
  • In 1972, GM became the first corporation to establish and in-house environment audit function
  • In 1974, GM was the first company to install the catalytic converter in all cars sold in the U.S. They were also responsible for developing the catalytic converter.
  • In 1995, GM published the first industry paper on calculating recyclability of automobiles.
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(Other pioneers and leadership firsts can be found on the GM website. www.gm.com)

As you can see from these points, GM appears to be a leading manufacturer when it comes to safety for the environment. The company are responsible for creating the catalytic converter, the most recognized effective piece of emission control hardware ever developed. GM has noticed that one of the stakeholders in their business is the environment. They realised that automobile emissions were effecting and causing damage to the earth and investigated ways into which they could reduce pollution. This is an example of a proactive company. ...

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