Corporate social responsibility is about giving back to the society. Most companies embrace CSR in order that they help the needy and the vulnerable in the society. These could be people who are living below the poverty line. Companies in the USA for example, give a good percentage of their income to charitable and philanthropic organizations. Of importance though, is a CRS case study that I will discuss in detail. As a student from the FIU, I personally took part in giving back to the society. Among the initiatives I took part in were feeding the needy and poor in South Florida in the USA. On the material day, I visited an orphanage, where I donated some blankets and food. I believed this was in good faith and well intended. Later, during the same day, I moved to a factory that deals in food products. Here, I requested them to donate the left-overs from the company that they do not actually need. The same would be food to the less privileged and needy in the society. I reckoned that this would be the greatest thing to ever do. Different countries define poverty differently. In the USA for example, poverty is defined as lack of basic needs-food, shelter, good health and proper education.
ORGANIZATION
The Ritz Carlton Company is a key player in the luxury hotel industry. The company owns and operates more than 80 facilities in 26 countries. This is quite a significant establishment. With a budget that runs into billions of dollars, it among the top ten well-established hospitality and tourism destinations. Its main competitors are Starwood Hotels & Resorts and the Four Seasons Holdings Inc. The company is, however, constantly on the lead, although there is steep competition among the key players in the industry.
Corporate social responsibility is the prerogative of most companies today. It could also means participating in volunteer activities or programs. Some of these programs could be participating in volunteer programs like cleaning the environments, visiting children homes and visiting the sick in the hospital and speaking words of encouragement and hope. This helps to restore their confidence and give them new hope and meaning to life. The online course I am taking is designed to do a case study about a company of my choice.
I chose the Ritz Carlton hotel because of its size and heavy presence in most countries that are spread across the globe. It operates on a huge budget as well. It has strategic alignments that are in line with the hospitality and management in tourism or in tourist organizations. Since the course itself focuses on matters of hospitality and tourism, the initiatives that I wish to undertake will be lodging and feeding the less fortunate in the society. The sessions to be scheduled will accommodate the expectations of working students.
CAUSE
The Ritz Carlton participates in the following for the community:
Food Rescue:
this is where it participates in collecting food that is considered to be surplus. The surplus is collected from organizations that deal in food products. The Ritz Carlton approaches the organizations, tells them of their course and the need to help the community in terms of food. This food is then distributed to the less fortunate in the society. It can also be distributed to children home and orphanages. This way, it gives back to the society by helping the needy.
Food banking:
this is where the Ritz Carlton participates in sorting food or packaging them at local food pantry or banks. This helps to distribute food to the people, especially the needy in the society. It has participated in this activity for many years ever since it began its corporate activities. Packaging helps a great deal and it reduces the workload for people who should have done the work.
Food distribution:
this is another aspect that corporate organizations like the Ritz Carlton take part in. it collects the food from charitable organization, wraps them up well and distributes them to the needy in the society. It carries out adequate research about people who are worst affected by inadequate food, carries out massive campaigns about the need to help the needy in the family.
Once it collects enough food and packages them, it embarks on distributing them to the needy in the society. It also participates in preparation and delivery of the foods that it has collected. Through a group of volunteers it uses, it participates in heating, serving, plating, and participating in environment cleaning activities as well as giving shelter to the homeless in the society. It also participates in senior centers. These are places that are reserved for the needy and aged people in the society. Here, they are provided with shelter, food and health care. It also participates in welfare. The welfare receives the food to be distributed to the needy and less privileged in the society. It uses the foods to nourish children and the aged in such special homes. A beneficiary is the person who is receiving the aid from charitable organizations.
GOALS
It expects to be a leader in helping the needy and the vulnerable in the society to live a normal life, just like the others. It expects to be a leader in providing Corporate Social responsibility to the community. The Ritz Carlton participates in the food collection directly, or it lobbies for food collection and financial support for people who are needy in the society and need support. They could also liaise with government bureaus; they supplement whatever the organizations have to offer with what they already have. These are then distributed to the homes for the needy, and welfare as well as charitable organizations.
CAUSE PROMOTION INITIATIVES
Goals to be achieved
To volunteer to clean the environment and children homes as well. To offer to volunteer, without seeking so much help from the organizations they support. All they require is logistics like talking to the management of the homes that they have identified and wish to provide help to. Other areas of logistics that they need are transportation and distribution of the items that they have collected from the campaigns. Some of the campaigns are dubbed “donate a blanket to keep a needy child warm” and “spare some food for the less fortunate in the society. These help to spread philanthropic messages that charitable organizations like the Ritz Carlton wish to convey. The Ritz Carlton hotel group realizes that hunger is a major problem today. It works towards ensuring that it provides food security for the needy in the society. In fact, most charitable organizations towards achieving just that: food security. The Ritz Carlton is not just one of the many organizations that take corporate social responsibility seriously. Today, there are lots of talks about corporate social responsibility. It is all over the media these days and no organization wants to be left out.
Description of its initiatives
Social responsibility is a prerogative of each and every organization worth their salt. The Ritz Carlton is not only talking about it; it is actually doing it. Corporate social responsibility is not about the first one to start. It is about who has already started it. The Ritz Carlton has rolled up a number of corporate social responsibilities that are aimed towards helping the needy in the society. The Ritz Carlton only last year engineered fund raising for a group of women who had cancer. Through the initiative, they raised enough money to take some 100 women to the hospital to seek medical treatment. It dubbed “Annual Canadian breast cancer awareness and Run for cure. Another initiative that they rolled out was what they dubbed: “help Big sisters and big Brothers” here they provided structural engineering support to set up an office for the group. This office would help them carry out their day to day activities. There are so many ways to do some good to the society. This is what is commonly referred to as giving back to the society, and the Ritz Carlton has not been left behind. The C.E.O has severally recounted how they have helped kids to buy new clothes, shoes and accessories as well as food items for kids during Christmas and special days like the Easter and Good Friday.
In as much these are important dates in the lives of Christians, it is also an important opportunity to celebrate the life of Christ in a special way. The Ritz Carlton takes this opportunity to give back to the society. They pick items that they do not really need. Some of the items that they have already donated to the needy and charitable organizations are used mugs and scarfs. This idea came after the C.E.O decided they did not need used mugs and the scarfs. Some people needed them somewhere. These were the children in orphanage and old people in senior homes. The staff met with some officials from the Salvation Army. Here they grabbed the opportunity to give back to the society. From an angle tree, they grabbed 8 tags that they donated to kids for Christmas. They also bought gifts and presents for the Christmas. This followed the realization that these kids usually lacked such things during these important and ceremonious dates in their lives, as well as in the lives of many other people. In order to effectively establish corporate social responsibilities, the Ritz Carlton does the following to ensure that their programs run well.
They prepare social responsibilities about inventories that they wish to undertake. They focus on doing the right thing at the right time. They believe in helping a needy person today, as opposed to waiting for an occasion to arise. That is the key goal of the Ritz Carlton group of hotels. They donate their time and money towards the achievement of goals that they consider are appropriate and right. They do for good causes and charities. They have helped the youth, especially in the areas where they operate in, with capital to start recycling programs that are aimed to recycle non-biodegradable items like polythene papers. This has contributed to what they popularly call “the green initiative.” This helps in keeping the environment clean and safe as well as generates money for the youths that take part in such initiatives. This way, they create jobs and reduce idleness among the youth. It is common knowledge that idleness is associated with crime, so in a way the Ritz Carlton are also eliminating instances of crime among the youths that they support through the initiatives that they undertake. They enter into dialogue with companies that they hope can also contribute towards the good course of helping the needy in the society.
They promote initiatives like riding to work, and saving money that goes to the kitty of poor people in the society. It advocates for the idea of having people just use what is entirely necessary. They suggest that whatever the people have in excess should be given back the society. In order to effectively deliver their charitable services to the people they deem need them most, they establish relationships with the members of different communities, to see whether they have specific needs that the company can assist in. the Ritz Carlton ensures that the management of the company at all levels take part in the corporate initiatives that they have rolled out, from the top management, to the junior most employee at the company. They encourage as well as motivate all members in the company to take part in giving back to the society. They translate concrete plans of the company into actions that make the achievement of corporate responsibilities achievable. The Ritz Carlton ensures that it delivers on hospitality and tourism, being a hotel itself. In giving back to the society, the Ritz Carlton ensures that its social responsibility is not diluted by it’s the brand name it uses.
In order to ensure that the resources it uses sustain its budget, the Ritz Carlton places its priorities in order, starting with the ones that it considers most urgent, then follows them with the ones they deem are not as serious. The group of hotels chooses charitable organization that dovetails its core competencies in the charitable institutions it chooses to support. In order to effectively deliver on the promises it makes to charitable organizations, the Ritz Carlton ensures that it employs a workable plan that, a corporate social responsibility plan, a plan that ensures it delivers on the promises and the dreams it had for charitable organizations of their choice.
In order to ensure that the resources it uses sustain its budget, the Ritz Carlton places its priorities in order, starting with the ones that it considers most urgent, then follows them with the ones they deem are not as serious. The group of hotels chooses charitable organization that dovetails its core competencies in the charitable institutions it chooses to support. In order to effectively deliver on the promises it makes to charitable organizations, the Ritz Carlton ensures that it employs a workable plan that, a corporate social responsibility plan, a plan that ensures it delivers on the promises and the dreams it had for charitable organizations of their choice.
1. It promotes its causes through the media.
It builds brand awareness; this relates to how a customer recalls and recognizes its brands. Over the years it has been known as the chain of hotels that serves business executives and top elites drawn from all over the world. It is a habitat for humanity. It recently donated $ 20 million towards the building of housing for the homeless and needy. Over the last four years, it has donated about $ 40 million to renovate about 1500 homes. Other donations they have made benefit local schools. These are used to buy books and other teaching materials.
2. Cause-Related Marketing
It markets its causes through initiatives that are well-timed and well-intended. It also employs brand imaging. The Ritz Carlton brand image relates to what its customers have in mind about the company. It enhances its brand image through donating 5% of the total profits it makes. It gives this to local communities where the hotels are situated. The donations benefit, among other organizations, schools and the local communities where they are located. The Ritz Carlton recently announced having donated in excess of $ 25 million to nonprofit organizations.
3. Corporate Philanthropy
The Ritz Carlton group of hotels enhances credibility and participation in philanthropic activities in terms of trustworthiness, expertise, and likability; these are products of corporate social responsibility. It has for instance, donated more than $20 million to over 4000 schools that are located in different parts of the world.
Goals to achieve
It expects to donate about $ 1 million to assist Girls and boys clubs in American schools for repair facilities. Part of their focus, and I did mention this earlier, has been supporting remodeling and building stalled programs all over the country.
4. Community Volunteering
In order to achieve this, the Ritz Carlton affirms that positive feelings are associated with self-respect and social-approval. The do this; create brands that evoke the positive feelings that customers feel about themselves.
Goals to achieve
It will start a recycling program to reduce wastes and their effects on the environment. In 2009 alone, it gathered more than 70 million pounds devices (electronics) such as television sets, printers and computers. It also targeted electronic and cardboard recycling program. They were able to recycle old materials and create a ‘green’ environment.
5. Creating a Sense of Brand Community
This relates to how the Ritz Carlton establishes an affiliation with the brands it relates to. The feeling is seen as a sense of a moral responsibility within the communities. It donated volunteer hours and materials to its employees to help them build habitat-for-humanity houses.
Goals to achieve
It will sponsor about 2100 free days every year in theatres and museums all over the country. There employees have participated in about 1000 diverse projects in different parts of the world.
6. Socially Responsible Business Practices
Apart from being philanthropic, it participates in green initiatives, like encouraging recycling and re-use of materials that it considers are hazardous to the environment like non-biodegradable plastics and polythene bags. The Ritz Carlton has unrolled programs where they where employees work as volunteers in programs of their choice.
Goals to achieve
It will encourage the youth, and companies to practice safe disposal of waste products that they use or produce.
Analysis of the initiatives
The initiatives have been good, especially due to the fact that they have been geared helping the poor, the needy and the vulnerable in the society. However, a major challenge has been ensuring accountability of how the materials donated-or cash- have always been used. There is no framework put in place already to ensure accountability and transparency.
As a student who wanted to have a feel of what corporate social responsibility entails, I participated in the following:
In south Florida, i participated in distributing food and other items that wee donated to us by supermarkets and stores we had approached and informed of initiatives.
At Chapman’s Partnership, I participated in serving food to the homeless; starting with children first and later adults. Io also organized a food drive at the Biltmore Hotel. I work here. I talked to fellow employees who would donate food items and what they did not need. These would then be given to people who needed them most.
The 2014 CRS plan for the Ritz Carlton Group of Hotels (Timeline; 12-month calendar of activities)
Jan 5- Jan 12
The company will participate in feeding children and the old at the homeless in South Florida. Employees will be asked to volunteer in distributing the food. Part of the items will be donated by the hotel; the hotel will lobby for financial support as well from other organizations willing to take part in the initiative.
February 12-17
The organization hopes to visit selected football academies in the United States, and look into ways of assisting the academies to nurture young talents. The support is expected to be in finance as well as buying jerseys to the young players, as well as balls.
March 20-25
The management and staff will be participating in environment cleaning in selected areas. Here, they will pick litter; plant trees and motivate people to be conscious of cleanliness of the environment. It is expected that this will greatly help in cleaning the environment, and leaving it a better place for future generations.
April 10-15
The Ritz Carlton hopes to ask students who no longer need their books and uniforms, or those who have more than they need, to donate them. The organization will then participate in distributing them to selected schools to the needy children in those schools.
May 4-12
The organization shall participate in planting trees, as well as carry out massive campaigns about the need to plant trees to protect the eco-system and water catchment. Again, the employees and well-wishers are expected to participate as well.
June 1-10
The organization shall visit the Chapman’s partnership, and participate in serving food to the homeless. The target groups are the homeless children and the old. The food items will have been donated by supermarkets and food stores, following appeals to do so by the management.
July 23-31
The organization will visit the sick in selected hospitals that will be communicated through the media and social networks like the Facebook. Here they will feed the sick, encourage them and wish them quick recovery. They will also donate blankets and lean shits to the hospitals.
August 2-6
The organization will liaise with common figures drawn from the sporting world and entertainment industry. Since the youth already identify with them, they are expected to influence the youth to practice responsible sexual behaviors that will not put them at a risk to acquiring sexual diseases like the HIV and AIDS. The management will solicit support from health and behavior change organizations to contribute towards buying condoms that will then be distributed to the youth.
September 5-12
The organization expects to promote talent by supporting the youths who are talented in fields like entertainment. This is in realization that talent can be an equal opportunity employer for the youths who are talented. The talented youths will be identified and provided with the items that they need to perform their projects.
October the 13- 27
Employees of the Ritz Carlton and the management will be heading to South Florida for the second time, to feed the homeless and the poor. The hotel chains will provide most of the financial support and logistics like transportation and distribution of the items.
November 2-10
The hotel plans to enlist the support of other players in carrying out massive cancer awareness programs. This will help people, especially women, to carry out cancer tests and seek for early treatment. The management and employees will adopt the “doctors-without-boundary- approach” to preach the health message-the cancer awareness message.
December 2-7
The organization will be preaching to the youth who are affected by alcoholism and drugs to change their behaviors because of the risks associated with such addictions. It will work with related-bodies in prevention and treatment of such problems. It hopes to enlist the support of rehabilitation centers in achieving the same cause.
Justification for the dates
The activities that have been listed above are so extensive and they require ample time to carry out. Some of them needed as long as one week to conduct.
Conclusion
The company does not just focus on the profits it accrues from the chain of supermarkets. It participates in giving back to the society, as well. It participates in cleaning the environment and promoting socially responsible behaviors.