Environmental and Ethical Issues Essay

The main issue that is reverberating these days throughout the world is of Sustainable Development. Sustainable development is â€Å"the development in way that meets the requirements of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs† (IAEA, 2005). It has three main dimensions: Social, Economic, and Environmental (Stevens, 2005). The ratio of pollutants whether they are liquid, gaseous, or nuclear are being dumped into the natural resources that are water and air, is increasing sharply. This concern is considered to very crucial since the environmental degradation is on its way, or in other words the process of global warming is on its way. The ice caps are melting, ozone layer is depleting, and the degree of naturalness in the environment is decreasing. Though there are many sectors and industries that need to be rectified, but airline industry is the one over which the paper would emphasize on. Moreover, discrimination has become a part of many organizations where minorities or women are discriminated in terms of sexual harassment, glass ceiling, and low salaries. The paper would discuss about the how KLM Royal Dutch Airlines communicates its Ethical and moral principles and through what channels. Airline Industry Airline industry is one of those industries that have been under severe criticism by the critics. The reasons are quite simple; the airline industry is held responsible for the emission of huge amount of greenhouse gases into the air by the airplanes that damage the quality of air, and as well as deplete the ozone layer. When such gases are emitted into the air they cause the temperature to increase, which further results in the melting of ice caps and rising up of sea levels. KLM’s Ethical Principles KLM Royal Dutch Airlines does consider such ethical and moral issues in conducting its business and has shaped its business culture, procedures, and policies in line with the moral and ethical principles that need to be appended with the business activities. KLM has a strong vision and mission that highlight the core of their business i. e. Corporate Social Responsibility. Not only this, the airline company also have other ways of communicating those values and principles such as, Code of Conduct guide, employee’s manual, and supervisor’s manual of responsibilities. Let’s discuss its mission and values that are designed for abiding by the CSR and ethical principles of conducting business. Company’s Aim The aim of KLM is to â€Å"achieve profitable growth that contributes to its own corporate aims as well as to economic and social development† (KLM, 2010). Strategies Adopted â€Å"The company offers a reliable and health dose of Dutch pragmatism, where innovative and safe products that are efficient, and also paying proactive attention to the environment and corporate social responsibility† (KLM, 2010). Not only this, it also gives special attention to its employees by providing them mobility, flexibility, better working conditions, better health, and equal opportunities. Corporate Social Responsibility KLM has shaped its policies that not only benefit the customers, but also the employees, environment and overall society. It strives to become leader in the airline industry in terms of CSR. Since KLM flies all over the world so it considers it mandatory to function in a sustainable fashion. Optimal health, security, and safety measures are taken for the passengers and employees; moreover, KLM works with charity organizations to serve the community as well. As far as the code of conduct is concerned, ‘the company values and prioritizes ethically responsible activities and honest conduct’ (KLM, 2010). Communication of Ethical Principles The company communicates its corporate values and principles through several ways such as, it has embedded the Corporate Social Responsibility principles in its business culture that is totally based on providing the customers, community, and employees with quality products/ services and working conditions. The vision and mission of the company along with some core values are communicated through organizational communication channels such as, wall hangings, symbols, slogans, success stories, newsletters, and quarterly guides to the employees working within the organization (Robbins & Judge, 2007). When it comes to communicate such ethical and moral values to other organizations, press releases and newsletters are issued that build and maintain the image of the company. Those press releases and newsletters often emphasize on the business practices adopted by the company and the achievements made through them. As far as the general public or customers are concerned, they are made aware of these principles and values through website where comprehensive information regarding the business practices and values is given; moreover, those who subscribe them with KLM services often receive brochures and newsletters that keep them aware of all the happenings. Community or other areas of the country also get to know about KLM, since the company takes an active role in offering charities to and participating in charitable programs. When employees are hired, they are provided with extensive guide to study that talks about the fundamental values, norms, beliefs, and practices that should be abided by when working for the company. Moreover, quality surveys are also conducted from the passengers or potential customers regarding the quality of service level and other aspects of the company through research tools such as, questionnaires, focus groups, and informal interviews (Zikmund, 2006). Room for Improvement Although the company does its best to implement by the social, cultural, legal, and other international laws along with business practices that are suitable for the customers and environment, but still some improvement can further be made. New technologies related to aircrafts and other software solutions must be introduced. If efficient fuel that costs lesser and fuel efficient technologies are used, there would be many advantages of doing so. The industry would have to bear low costs of fuel, better fuel management, and high revenues due to increased sales that would result due to low fare prices. Policies of the companies towards the environmental sustainability should be rigid and must ensure the due care for the customers and the environment as a whole. The company must ensure that it abides by almost all the ethical principles such as, utilitarian principle, distributive justice, Kantian rights, due care theory, etc. (Velasquez, 2006). Benefits That Can Be Achieved Introducing and implementing such environment-friendly and ethical principles within the organizational practices and business activities would definitely result in lucrative outcomes. The company would gain appreciation from the side of government, grab attention of the investors who would invest more, gain customer loyalty which would increase market share and sales, and eventually result in huge profits and opportunity to expand the business. Implementation of Improvements If I were a leader of KLM, I would bring on some improvements by signing contracts with certain IT outsourcing companies for the implementation of better networking and software structure. Utilizing efficient-fuel would be my second strategy that could save huge amount of costs and also prevent the atmosphere from getting contaminated. Another change that I would have made was to bring on base the overall business on the environmental-friendly and sustainable practices. Better customer service would be ensured by keeping in touch with them and taking feedback after flights. As far as the organizational structure is concerned, I would have ensured equal opportunity for everyone in every job-related aspect, and improving the internal processes, management, strategies, and measures of performance to maintain the environment. And finally, contracting or partnering with other organizations – whether in the same industry or not – that specialize and possess mastery in sustainable development and providing modern solutions to meet the requirements of this dynamic environment. Conclusion Therefore, sustainable development has become a vital requirement for the businesses to incorporate in their policies. The airline industry can adopt certain measures that favor going green; this will not only benefit the industry but also the environment and society as a whole. References IAEA. (2005). Energy Indicators for Sustainable Development: Guidelines and Methodologies. August 4, 2010. From http://www. oecd. org/dataoecd/60/41/35407580. pdf KLM. (2010). Corporate Social Responsibility. Retrieved on August 4, 2010. From