Organisational objectives 3 On completing this chapter you should be able to: Know and understand

socially 
responsible business
. It has stated its aims as nothing less than to become ‘the leading 
multinational in economic, environmental and social responsibility’. Shell’s chairman 
has said that the reason for Shell’s conversion to environmental protection is: ‘We 
won’t achieve our business goals unless we are listening to and learning from the full 
range of our stakeholders in society.’
32 marks, 64 minutes
1.
Define the following terms highlighted in the article:
a.
business ethics 
[2]
b.
socially responsible business. 
[2]
2.
Analyse 
two
factors given in the article which could encourage a business to 
adopt
ethical and socially responsible objectives and strategies. 
[8]
3.
Discuss the likely costs and benefits for Shell of the company working towards 
being seen as ‘the leading multinational in economic, environmental and social 
responsibility’. 
[10]
4.
Examine whether businesses should change their strategies of corporate 
responsibility over time. 
[10]
ACTIVITY 1.3.5
VIRGIN’S ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES – GREEN OR JUST ‘GREENWASH’?
The Virgin Atlantic jumbo jet that flew between London and Amsterdam using a 
proportion of biofuel was a world first. This fuel was derived from Brazilian babassu 
nuts and coconuts and is much less polluting than ordinary jet kerosene. The airline’s 
boss, Sir Richard Branson, hailed this as a ‘vital breakthrough’ for the industry. Other 
well-publicised fuel-saving measures used by the airline are the towing of aircraft to 
the runways for take-off instead of using their own engines and offering first-class 
passengers train tickets to travel to the airport in place of chauffeur-driven cars. 
Unfortunately, very few passengers have taken up this last offer, and towing of aircraft 
has been stopped as it causes damage to the undercarriage.
Greenpeace’s chief scientist has labelled these efforts to make air travel more 
environmentally friendly ‘high altitude greenwash’ and said that ‘less air travel was 
the only answer to the growing problem of climate-changing pollution caused by 
air travel’. A Friends of the Earth spokesperson said that biofuels do little to reduce 
emissions, and large-scale production of them leads to higher food prices.