Stakeholder Values and Ethics – Major Assessment (Group)This is a team based assessment. A maximum...

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Stakeholder Values and Ethics – Major Assessment (Group)
This is a team based assessment. A maximum of four team members Once teams are formed, they are locked in and cannot be changed without the approval of your lecturer.
It is each team member’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of what their role is within the team. Confidential peer review will form part of your individual mark. If an individual does not contribute to the task they can expect to be awarded a zero for this assessment.
What if I have a problem within my team?
If you have any concern/s about a team member’s contribution to the assessment task, you are recommended to approach the lecturer and state your concerns.
To help substantiate performance issues, you should keep a diary of all groups activities. Include emails sent to team members supporting agreed outcomes of meetings, etc.
You should highlight concerns well well before the due date (defined as at least 2 week before the due date).
Your Task
Select an organisation that you are either familiar with (you may, or may have, worked there) or have researched. Ideally choose an organisation within the professional services sector (eg: Financial, Legal, insurance, medical, etc). You may choose to focus on an organization in another industry but you should seek advice from your lecturer first.
For this organisation, identify ethical issues or aspects from a range of areas covered in the lectures. These include:-
1. Ethics at the Individual Level
2. The dynamic of Groups and Ethics in the organisation
3. The Organisational Ethics Construct (How does the organisation ensure ethical behaviours?)
In your response you should:-
A. Identify and define the Stakeholders and their stake.
B. Determine the key issues facing management when managing these stakeholders.
C. Evaluate the Stakeholder value management response. This may include:-
(i) rational, process and transactional levels
(ii) stakeholder inclusiveness and relationships
(iii) stakeholder power: awareness, knowledge, admiration, action
(iv) monitoring and communicating with stakeholders
(v) winning stakeholder support
(vi) tangible and intangible resources to deliver stakeholder value
D. For the following Stakeholders, identify, discuss and evaluate the organisation’s ethical construct.
(i) Shareholders
(ii) Customers
(iii) Employees
(iv) Suppliers
(v) Community (Publics)
(vi) Determine associated accounting constrains and enabling processes
You may decide to take on the role of a consultant and conduct an ‘ethical health check’ of the organisation incorporating the above elements.
Another approach may be to identify a ‘star performing’ organisation or Strategic Business Unit within the organiastion and use it to benchmark the industry.
Make appropriate recommendations based on your findings.
You are required to prepare a report based on the above incorporating relevant theory and additional readings when analysing your chosen company.
4,000 word written report demonstrating critical ethical analysis benchmarking relevant organisational strategy against best practice. You will be required to analyse and critique financial forecasting techniques in your report.
You will be required to choose an organisation in the Professional Services sector. You must seek approval from your lecturer for your chosen organisation.
You must identify and choose your case study by Week 6. Bring a detailed brief to class on this date. Tutorial time will be spent addressing any key issues or any problems you may have.
This assignment is due Friday of Week 10 (upload on moodle).
3,000 words, appropriately referenced using the Harvard style of referencing.

Robert · Accepted Answer

Stakeholder Values and Ethics
Stakeholder Values and Ethics 17
Running Head: STAKEHOLDER VALUES AND ETHICS
Stakeholder Values and Ethics
Name
Institution
Table of Contents
31.0 Introduction
42.0 Calvert Investment Management Inc
42.1. Ethics at the Individual Level
52.2 The Dynamic of Groups and Ethics in Calvert investments
63.0 The Organisational Ethics Construct
74.0 Calvert Investments Stakeholders and their Stake
84.1 Shareholders and Creditors
94.2 Customers
94.3 Employees
104.4 Regulatory Bodies and Players in the Money and Financial Markets
105.0 The Key Issues Facing Management when Managing these Stakeholders
105.1 Conflict of Interests
115.2 Privacy and Confidentiality of Investor Information
115.3 Market Structure and Operations and the Role of Other Players
126.0 Calvert’s Stakeholder Value Management Response
126.1 Rational, Process and Transactional Levels
126.2 Stakeholder Inclusiveness and Relationships
126.3 Stakeholder Power: Awareness, Knowledge, Admiration, Action
136.4 Monitoring and Communicating With Stakeholders and Winning Stakeholder Support
136.5 Tangible and Intangible Resources to Deliver Stakeholder Value
137.0 Conclusion
148.0 Evaluations of and Recommendations for Calvert Investments Ethical Construct
148.1 Shareholders
148.2 Customers
148.3 Employees
158.4 Community
16References
Stakeholder Values and Ethics: A Case Study of Calvert Social Investment Fund
1.0 Introduction
Recently, organisations have laid a lot of emphasis on value and ethics. There has been a frequent communication of value in production and selling practices of businesses across all industries such as increasing value to customers and shareholders. Increased popularity of corporate social responsibility is also pegged on the idea of stakeholder value and ethics. It has become important for a business to take into consideration how they relate with their customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders and most importantly the public. Stakeholder values and ethics are shaped by a myriad of factors depending on the nature of the industry. For instance, accounting firms will have different values from manufacturing firms (Lopez & Rimbau-Gilabert 2012).
This concept is centred on the stakeholder theory that goes beyond shareholders or stockholders as the focus is on value and ethics, to include other parties such as government, public, suppliers and employees. Stakeholder theory is a concept addressing the morals and values in organizational management. Edward Freeman developed it in his book “Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach”. Stakeholder ethics and values have gained wide popularity in strategic management as Freeman detailed models of a corporation’s stakeholders. He devised and recommended ways and means that management can use to address various interest groups within the stakeholder’s umbrella (Freeman 2010).
Various frameworks such as the legal system, Professional ethics and code of conducts, social responsibility, market or business environment as well as a moral obligation and accountability guide stakeholder values and ethics. It then becomes an instrumental theory that incorporates a resource-based approach, market-based approach and a socio-political aspect (Lopez & Rimbau-Gilabert 2012). A company involves different stakeholders who have conflicting interests that necessitates formulation of guidelines or frameworks to address each of them. Businesses have had to scale down on some aspects of capitalism to factor in these stakeholder’s interests. Some investors go beyond profitability to consider social responsibility, ethics and values of the company. Investors are looking for a company that includes stakeholders in decision-making and shares information regularly.
2.0 Calvert Investment Management Inc
Wayne Silby and John Guffey established Calvert Investments in 1976 in Bethesda, Maryland after the launch of the first variable rate fund; and Calvert is managing more than$12 billion on assets. Calvert investment fund is an investment management company whose clients include organizational and institutional investors, workplace retirement plans, financial intermediaries and their customers. The company provides over 40 equity, bond, cash and asset allocation strategies. The strategies have incorporated environmental, social and governance research as their approach to money goes beyond the conventional financial analysis to unearth investment opportunities having better long-standing potential (Calvert Investments 2012a). Calvert boasts as the leader in the sustainable and responsible investments (SRI) or ethical funds in the US market. Socially responsible investments are form of investment analysis that incorporates environmental, social or organizational variables in decision-making.
2.1. Ethics at the Individual Level
Individuals working at Calvert investments are investment analysts, financial analysts and consultants in various fields that touch on socio-economic disciplines. Investors rely on information from analysts at Calvert for decision-making. There are facts and opinions when arriving at an investment decision and the analyst is allowed to give both to the client. It is required that the analysts distinguish between facts and opinions either verbally or in a report to the investor. There is a policy at Calvert that calls for all analysts to carry out objective research and give recommendations that are supported by research and investigation. Free flow of information must be upheld between investors, analysts and corporate issuers. Stock traders working at Calvert take pledges not to entertain market-timing practices that may affect portfolio management.
Analysts must always uphold the confidentiality of the investors’ information. In Calvert, employees have restricted access to shareholders or investors’ information in addition to adhering to confidentiality regulations. It is unethical for an analyst to disclose account t or financial details of the client. Above all, employees must uphold principles of accountability, fairness and transparency. They are also required to extend their analysis to social, Environmental and ethical issues surrounding the investments. Employees are also required all information regarding latent risks and losses associated with every investment opportunity.
2.2 The Dynamic of Groups and Ethics in Calvert investments
Group dynamics can be described as the glue that binds an organization together by minimising conflicts and ethical dilemmas. Ethics have significant impacts on group dynamics. Ethics govern moral judgements, the rightness or wrongness of a conduct and decency or depravity of an action (MacKinnon 1995; Shaw 1991). Calvert encourages its teams and individuals to measure success beyond financial figures. The most unethical practices seem more lucrative financially but with immense costs to the society and long run well-being of the company. Calvert aims at discovering reasonable returns for their investors using unconventional measures that ensure taking on companies with sustainable value along with responsible corporate traditions. Calvert has ensured that its services are based on integrity and principles of ethical investments that can be trusted to hold $ 12 billion worth of assets (Calvert Investments 2012a).
3.0 The Organisational Ethics Construct
The fact that Calvert Investments is in the investment industry especially the markets, bonds and shares makes it very crucial and sensitive company in any economy. There have been investment companies that stimulate speculation in the market and manipulate stocks to their advantage or those of the clients (Renneboog et al 2008).

Stakeholder Values and Ethics – Major Assessment (Group) This is a team based assessment. A maximum of four team members Once teams are formed, they are locked in and cannot be changed without the...

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