The Best Buy’s social responsibility efforts impact

Posted: October 17th, 2013

The Best Buy’s social responsibility efforts impact

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The Best Buy’s social responsibility efforts impact

Social responsibility is one of the factors that dictate the success or failure of a company. Big companies take it upon themselves to be socially responsible in order to maintain their customers and increase sales. This is usually only possible through the efforts of the company and its employees in trying to give back to the community in which it operates. Different companies and organizations go about social responsibility differently. Best Buy is a customer-centered company and one of its main goals is to be able to understand its customers’ needs and maintain the relationship they have with their consumers, shareholders, stakeholders and suppliers.

Best Buy started their electronics-recycling program after consumers asked them to find ways of recycling electronics and hence use less energy. This program has gained them a lot of recognition and has currently had it considered the number one socially responsible company in the world. This initiative has ensured that electronic junk is safely recycled and has made their customers buy more electronics from them knowing that after using it, they cam always take it back, sometimes at a fee.

Their customer service is continually improving. These services are offered in all their stores, at home and through the internet. They offer free repair services, which are usually exceptionally fast. These services are also available to small and medium sized companies. They include information technology services, data services and broadband voice. The customer service staff is available 24 hours a day to solve any problem there is. This has increased their customer satisfaction over the years and given it an advantage over its competitors in the market place.

Best Buy also has scholarship programs for students who cannot afford to pay for their college tuition. This initiative has gained it more customers and shareholders, as many people want their children to be able to attain college education. It is for this reason that many young American students were able to enroll in different colleges around the country. This has in turn, given hope to many of its employees, customers and stakeholders. This kind of commitment is considered uttermost social responsibility in any kind of organization.

Because of its eco-friendly practices and productions like the electric bicycle, the company has been able to form partnerships with other companies like Energy Star. It also provides charging stations for Ford’s electric cars. This has provided for more sustainability. Other companies like SmartWay Transport have also collaborated with Best Buy with the aim of plummeting waste and becoming more energy efficient. These collaborations have brought them more suppliers and customers worldwide.

Best Buy started enforcing principled and sustainable practices amongst its suppliers. They have the Suppliers Compliance Standards that must be adhered to by all its suppliers, failure to which these faulty suppliers are thoroughly dealt with and those that do not show improvement are let go. Best Buy’s constant human rights audits ensure that their suppliers respect their workers’ rights. This is why it has the best suppliers in the world for growth and sustainability.

In its bid to save its customers’ cash on energy costs and help the environment, Best Buy started selling energy-efficient products in the market. This was through their collaboration with Energy Star. Their employees were trained on how to answer customers’ questions about these new products; this showed their continued commitment to saving energy. This initiative won them the ‘Energy Star Excellence Electronic and Appliance Retailing’ award in 2009. Their energy saving products, which range from printers to laptops to refrigerators, saved their customers an estimated $91 million in utility bills.

Best Buy has recycling kiosks in all its stores countrywide. They also offer haul-away services for large products. This means that when a customer buys a new television set from them and would it delivered, the company will offer to haul away the old television set and recycle it free of charge. This shows the company’s dedication to recycle material and reduce environmental degradation through pollution. It has improved customer responsiveness about the significance of recycling. It has also increased shareholder value in the company.

The relationships they have built with their customers have permitted them to deliver sustainable and pioneering solutions, which has led to more products that help their customers to stay connected. Their store employees and customers are part of communities that they support through contributions and volunteer efforts. They have volunteered more than 140,000 hours in their communities and they are planning to give almost $8 million through community grants and store donations. These donations will allow teenagers to decide on how to invest $1 million in their communities.

Best Buy is a leading world producer of environmental friendly products. Moreover, in its efforts to continue with this noble cause, it is constantly engaging in talks and discussions with different stakeholders about improving sustainability. These talks have bore fruits as many stakeholders want to work in collaboration with them in order to make the environment a better place to live in. some of these investors include the ‘Environmental Protection Agency’, ‘Sustainability Consortium’, ‘Alliance to Save Energy’, etc.

Best Buy has made numerous investments in their stakeholders and they try to involve them in every decision that requires their involvement. Just last year, they formed the Stakeholder Advisory Board. This was done through their relationship with Ceres. The board is made up of human rights representatives from top NGOs, social responsibility investment companies and environmentalists. This board shares ideas, gives suggestions and comes up with solutions to challenging situations. Although it is a budding effort, it is expected to produce great results.

Best Buy store in El Paso, Texas, in collaboration with the Texas Department of Transportation and a local medical center, established a program that would fight the high child fatality rate in the area due to lack of sufficient car seat restraints. Bet Buy’s Geek Squad agents inspected several cars in the area and they have been able to inspect more than 250 cars. This dedication displays their concern in trying to solve a serious issue in their community. It also shows they actually care about their community by and helps in building customer trust and loyalty.

Best Buy, through their numerous stores throughout the world, has also collaborated with Red Cross and Mercy Corps. This partnership is called the United Way program and disaster relief. This program comes in handy especially in areas where disaster strikes and in times of need throughout the world. They have been called upon to offer their expertise in worst hit areas for example during the Katrina hurricane in New Orleans. Through these efforts, they have been able to help save thousands of lives and in so doing; they have gained continued stakeholder trust and loyalty.

Reference

Ferrell, O. C., Fraedrich, J., & Ferrell, L. (2013). Business ethics: Ethical decision making and cases. Mason, OH: South-Western/Cengage Learning.

Paetzold, K. (2010). Corporate social responsibility (CSR): An international marketing approach. Hamburg: Diplomica-Verlag.

Pride, W. M., & Ferrell, O. C. (2008). Marketing. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.