Posted: September 16th, 2017

Global supply chains and corporate social responsibility in MNEs

Global supply chains and corporate social responsibility in MNEs

THIS IS QUESTIONS FOR THE APPLE CASE

General questions for consideration
•?What are the implications for HR managers of outsourcing and offshoring aspects of the organisation’s business activities?
•?What challenges and opportunities do the emergence of global supply chains present to HR managers?
•?What can organisations utilising global supply chains do to improve their suppliers’ performance and workers’ quality of employment?

?Case study questions – Apple and the human costs of production
•??To what extent do you think Apple has responsibility for the working conditions in other companies that make and supply its products?
•??In light of the Apple case, how effective do you think the business case for CSR is at improving working conditions in factories like Foxconn?
•??Does CSR represent a real attempt by corporations to grapple with important social, ethical and environmental issues, or is it just window-dressing behaviour to appeal to consumer idealism and pre-empt governments from introducing regulations?
•??Should working conditions at Foxxconn be left to corporations to address voluntarily in conjunction with concerned stakeholders, such as labour rights organisations, or should governments take stronger action through regulation to set out the minimum standards that firms must adhere to?
•??What power do Apple’s customers have to influence the working conditions in Apple’s supplier factories?