Business Values Assessment: P&G and Reliance in India

Desklib provides past papers and solved assignments. This report analyzes P&G and Reliance's CSR in India.

Business Values Assessment Report

Introduction
This report focuses on the corporate social responsibility of the two companies i.e., P&G and Reliance in
India. The two companies are very popular for their business activities and products. The two companies
always follow the corporate social responsibilities effectively to deliver the consumer the best products
and services. The targets of the corporate social responsibility of the companies are set high and proper
strategies are taken to execute the goals. It also includes the social development goals of the country that
should be achieved to improve the society and communities of India. The companies have started many
initiatives towards the welfare of the society, environment and people. The companies are focusing on
many products and services in different countries. The corporate social responsibility of the companies is
evaluated on the reports on their websites.

A. Identify and describe the two companies you have researched; their core business activities
and the countries and/or industries in which they operate.
Overview of the two companies
 P&G: The Procter and Gamble company is the company which operates in different countries in the
world. The company was incorporated on May 5, 1905. they produce the branded consumer
products and goods for the consumer all over the world. The main segments of the company are
health-care, beauty, home care, family care and grooming products throughout the country. They
deal with all the merchandise through their departmental stores, distributors, baby stores, pharmacies
and drug stores. The business activities are mostly concerned with consumer products to improve
their lives. They operate in more than 160 countries in the world(Dutta and Singh, 2013).
 Reliance: The Reliance industries are the Indian based industries having their headquarters in
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The company operates in different industries and products that are
exported from India to different parts of the world. They have more than 100 subsidiary companies
and 10 companies that are associated(Jayakumar, Anbalagan and Kannan, 2012). The major areas of
the Reliance industries are Reliance retail products which deal in consumer goods and products,
Reliance Life sciences, reliance Logistics and Reliance solar. The countries where the Reliance
operates are US, UK, Singapore etc.

 B. What differences are evident between the two companies in terms of the range of issues
dealt with in their social reports and the depth of coverage on specific issues?
The two companies focus on different aspects of society and the environment. The P&G focus on the
cost reduction of their production plants with the installation of the renewable sources of energy into the
organisation. The P&G also works for the improvement of the poor and needy children who are not
having access to the health and education sector(Filatotchev and Stahl, 2015). The ‘parivartan-whisper
school program’ is an initiative towards the corporate social responsibility of society. They also focus on
the development and change in their products to improve the lives of the consumers. They also work to
contribute to the communities through their vision and mission of the company. They set their product
and operations strategies to achieve environmental sustainability. The Reliance focus on different areas
of the country where there is a need for improvement and development. The focus areas of the Reliance
corporate social responsibility includes the rural transformation. The company focuses on addressing the
major issues of the country like hunger, poverty and malnutrition. The environment sustainability is
focused through different initiatives like conservation of natural resources, promoting renewable energy
sources, maintaining the ecological balance. The company also focuses on human development and
improvement in the education system. The two companies have different social policies to provide their
corporate social responsibility. They also use different methods for the achievement of their social
responsibility like the Reliance company also uses sports activities to bring positive change and
development. The reliance also works for the rehabilitation and relief of the communities affected by
natural disasters. They also try to develop expertise and resources to respond to the natural calamities.

C. Discuss which of the Sustainable Development Goals you believe are most relevant to these
companies, their industries and the countries in which they operate. Discuss the extent to which
these SDGs were addressed, explicitly or implicitly, in the CSR/Sustainability reports of your
companies?
There are several sustainable development goals that are described in the business world which should
be focused by the companies in their operating countries. The &G and Reliance operating in India should
focus on the sustainable development goals for the improvement of the Indian economy and society. The
sustainable development goals include the eradication of poverty, hunger, health and education of the
people in the country. These problems are very persisting in India. India is experiencing a high rate of
poverty, hunger and illiteracy rate from a long time(Griggs, et, al., 2013). These developed and high
profit-oriented companies can prove to be an aid to the societal and economic problems of the country.
The sustainable development goals also include the goals of gender equality, sanitation and health
facilities, economic growth and infrastructure development. India has the potential for great
infrastructure development and economic growth. the companies should help by their initiatives in the
country to promote quality education, sanitation and health facilities. The corporate social responsibility
reports of the companies have shown that they have focused and initiated different methods for the
attainment of the social development goals. The companies have launched several programs and policies
for the poor children in India to get the right to education and food. The companies have also started
several schemes under which the children and adults are trained and provided the required skills to earn
their living and have a better life(Wilburn and Wilburn 2013). The P&G has launched several schemes
that will help in providing the poo with sanitation, education and health products for free. There are
several educational and training centres of the Reliance to educate the people and help the economy of
the country to grow.

D. Assess the apparent quality of the social accounting approach utilized by each company
according to Zadek et al.’s (1997) criteria.
In 1997, Zadek et al.'s have provided eight key standards of quality which helps organisations to evaluate
the level of social accounting. These standards enable P & G and Reliance to signify whether the
organisation is reporting and auditing to a required level. It also assists both associations in terms of
determining pressures, upcoming risks and stakeholders thus to reach the appropriate level of
transparency and accountability. In order to fulfil corporate social responsibilities in the required manner,
it is essential for organisations to disclose their accounting reports among customers so as to build up
their faith or trust. Along with this, self –reports of Reliance and P&G upon social responsibilities
represents that both the associations are focusing on developing a level of social adaptability by
managing accountability and transparency(Zadek, 2012). The major motive behind this their products
and services can be adopted by customers or the whole society. In this relations, the organisations are
integrated their business activities in the same context and generate social accountability. Along with
this, schedule of both companies towards Zadek standards on social accounting represents that Reliance
and P&G are fairly analogous while developing its corporate social strategies or policies. Although, the
external verification is not done properly thus the comparison is quite difficult. Due to these issues, one
company awarded a gold medal whereas other is facing reporting issues.

E. Discuss the extent to which the social reports provided by these companies reflect their stated
values.
It has been determined that Reliance and P&G, both are a customer-oriented company by having a
driving force to being an effective provider of consumer goods or services. In India, Reliance is a
growing company which always provides its annual CSR report to customers so as to manage social
accountability and sustainability. In order to operate their functions in a more effective and efficient
manner, Reliance and P&G require huge capital or investment. It would generate a sense of managing
equity and profitability by ensuring social accountability for the long run. Along with this, the
organisations also provide some information about its employees and training activities are conducted by
the company for them. In India, P&G and Reliance are organising various activities or events which aids
company to move forward by ensuring all ethics or values of clients. Along with this, both organisations
are worked in oligopoly market thus producing social reports highlights that the companies value of its
customers’ and working constantly for increasing social sustainability over a certain time period.
Chairperson of Reliance and P&G stated that they are trying to improve their strategy of social
sustainability so as to respond positively towards unforeseeable social threats or challenges as well as
environmental constraints that may arise in future. Reliance and P&G have outlined its values on their
official website which signifies that they will follow fairness, honesty and general concern for local
communities in order to improve ethicality over the social environment.

F. Briefly reflect on your groups’ discussions of these companies. In what ways did the ideas
presented by your group confirm your own conclusions, influence your thinking and/or present
another perspective to you?
During the group discussions, we began the discussion by focusing on the corporate social
responsibilities of the company P&G and Reliance in India. The corporate social responsibility reports of
the company were showing the positive actions and outcomes in the country. The schemes and programs
of the company that were planned and implemented in India were centrally focusing on the education
and health system of the country. India has high poverty and poor health services and condition. There
are several communities which are deprived of the basic sanitation and health facilities. The company
have launched many programs that focus on providing people with quality education, health access and
skills development to improve their life(Baumgartner, 2014).
We also discussed the implementation and success of the programs launched by the company in the
country. The P&G launched the ‘Shiksha' program which helped in providing the poor children with
education. They also provided the sanitation and health products to the girls with the membership of a
company. The Reliance also launched several schemes including the ‘Drishti’ which focuses on
providing assistance to the blind people. Reliance has also combined with the sports clubs and
organisations to provide positive change in the people through sports and games. Several environment
programs and initiatives also have contributed to their responsibility towards the environment.

Conclusion
This report concludes that the two companies, P&G and Reliance have worked well and strong in
providing the responsibilities towards the people, environment, country and economy. There steps and
programs have created a change in the country economy and communities. There are several
communities which have been benefited by the schemes and actions of the company. The programs and
centres of the company in India provide free health-care, sanitation and educational facilities to the poor.
The social goals of the company are well defined and attainable. They have proper strategies and policies
working for economic development, ecological balance, environment preservation and social welfare.
The social development goals are also focused by companies to achieve the society and economy goals.

References
 Dutta, K. and Singh, S., (2013). Customer perception of CSR and its impact on retailer evaluation
and purchase intention in India. Journal of Services Research, 13(1).
 Filatotchev, I. and Stahl, G.K., (2015). Towards transnational CSR. Corporate social responsibility
approaches and governance solutions for multinational corporations. Organizational
Dynamics, 44(2), pp.121-129.
 Griggs, D., Stafford-Smith, M., Gaffney, O., Rockström, J., Öhman, M.C., Shyamsundar, P., Steffen,
W., Glaser, G., Kanie, N. and Noble, I., (2013). Policy: Sustainable development goals for people
and planet. Nature, 495(7441), p.305.
 Jayakumar, A., Anbalagan, G. and Kannan, L., (2012). CSR in India-a vision for the future. The
Business & Management Review, 2(1), p.94.
 Wilburn, K. and Wilburn, R., 2013. Using global reporting initiative indicators for CSR
programs. Journal of Global responsibility, 4(1), pp.62-75.
 Zadek, S., (2012). The civil corporation. Routledge.
 Baumgartner, R.J., (2014). Managing corporate sustainability and CSR: A conceptual framework
combining values, strategies and instruments contributing to sustainable development. Corporate
Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 21(5), pp.258-271.
 P&G sustainability report. (2011). [ebook] P&G. Available at:
https://www.pg.com/en_IN/downloads/sustainability/reports/PG_2011_Sustainability_Report.pdf
[Accessed 4 Jan. 2019].
 Reliance Annual Report 2015-16. (2019). Retrieved from http://www.ril.com/ar2015-16/csr.html