Most of companies, had changed their strategies toward their workers and communities, by focusing on ethics and social responsibility, and we have noticed a huge progress on this norm, as an example of IBM the company that I’m going to talk about:

Based in New York, IBM is an American multinational technology corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, with operations in over 171 countries. The company began in 1911, founded in Endicott, New York by trust businessman Charles Ranlett Flint, as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) and was renamed “International Business Machines” in 1924. IBM is incorporated in New York, produces and sells computer hardware, middleware and software, and provides hosting and consulting services in areas ranging from mainframe computers to nanotechnology.

This year, IBM is celebrating 30 years of strong corporate policy on environmental affairs, a rich career in engagement with the communities where they operate.

The company requires its first-tier suppliers to create their own systems for establishing quantifiable goals for waste, energy, greenhouse gas emissions and making their results available to the public. As follow:

*Product energy efficiency: Product energy efficiency was formalized as one of the company’s corporate objectives when IBM established its product design for the environment program in 1991. Through the collaboration of IBM Research and the product development teams, they have combined hardware and software technologies to improve the energy efficiency of IT equipment and in turn, data centers.

*Product recycling programs:  IBM’s voluntary environmental goal is to reuse or recycle end-of-life products such that the amount of product waste sent by their operations to landfills or to incineration for treatment does not exceed a combined 3 percent by weight of the total amount processed.

In 2020, IBM processed more than 16,900 metric tons of end-of-life products and product waste, with 96.5 percent (by weight) reused, resold or recycled, 3.0 percent sent to waste-to-energy for final disposition, and 0.5 percent sent directly to landfills or incineration for treatment.

*Water and materials conservation:  Preserving water resources and safeguarding watersheds are important environmental protection priorities. IBM’s first water conservation goal was established in 2000 and has evolved over time as the company has transformed into a hybrid cloud and AI platform company. The current water use is primarily associated with cooling and humidity control at offices and data centers, domestic consumption at the workplace, testing of building fire protection systems, and landscape irrigation.

Also, IBM has set some ethical norms for their workers and society, by infusing a long-standing principles and ethical thinking, the Board is one mechanism by which IBM holds the company and all IBMers accountable to their values.

*Greening the blue economy: “World Ocean Day celebrates how amazing and fantastic oceans are but it’s also a rallying point for action to protect our oceans” said Mhairi McCann, founder & CEO of Youth STEM 2030 and a member of the World Ocean Day Youth Advisory Council. As the UN Decade of Ocean Science kicks off “we’re at a key point to be able to make the difference that we need to be able to protect this valuable resource for generations to come.”

*2,000 U.S. Students Start Summer Workplace Learning with IBM: on the summer of 2021 IBM has hosted nearly 2,000 U.S. students for an invaluable workplace learning experience because they believe that student work experiences are still crucial for career development and addressing the global skills gap.

Finally, the recommendations that I have to create a more ethical, socially responsible, and/or sustainable business are:

1. Establish a social mission.: by creating a social mission. All companies have their own mission and vision statements, but you should incorporate a third one that emphasizes how your company will actively seek to help the community.
2. to Establish realistic goals: After you set up your mission, you should start thinking about what you are going to do and exactly how the company will help by creating a list of goals that you are going to achieve in the next three to six months. The goals should be realistic objectives that can be accomplished without causing major disruptions to your day-to-day operations.
3. Educate the employees: is one of the best ways to encourage such feelings, because people simply become more confident when they have more to offer. They can even use some of that knowledge in their personal lives (increased digital literacy, a new language, etc.), which leads to both personal satisfaction and improved work morale.

4- Ethical labor practices:  by treating your employees with respect and dignity, Value their work and give them opportunities within your company, also Provide fair compensation for their services and create a safe and healthy work environment.

Reference:

https://www.ibm.com/us-en?ar=1

https://www.ibm.org/?lnk=hpmex_buab&_ga=2.265364232.626884080.1632448453-1334337714.1632448453&_gac=1.72459521.1632448453.c148ad0b25f01eb669a8cc460a4e1e7b

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/294421