The Stakeholder Theory

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
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Task 1
According to Edward Freeman, a stakeholder is "any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organization's objectives"(Freeman 2010, pg.46). The stakeholder theory explains and predicts how various organizations function concerning the influencers and relationships in their environment (Rowley 1997). The stakeholders' theory is characterized by ethics based or normative, descriptive value, and instrumental perspectives. The stakeholder theory's instrumental approach holds the idea that stakeholders should result in the business goals achievement and the various advantages acquired between the stakeholder and the organization built based on cooperation and trust. (Jones, T.M. and Wicks 1999, pg.208). The normative approach assumes that all stakeholders have inherent value, and it relies on the concept of what is morally acceptable and just to the stakeholders. The descriptive policy to stakeholder theory describes various corporations and their system of working. It analyses The Corporation as having intrinsic values. Stakeholder theory tends to shed light on various organizational phenomena such as value maximization and communal responsibility. There are two categories of stakeholders: internal, part of the academic community, and external stakeholders, who are considered outsiders. External stakeholders, such as the government, invest in higher education to acquire changes that could benefit their interests. Educational institutions have the task of forging a productive partnership by carefully selecting stakeholders. External stakeholders are essential to higher educational institutions since their contribution to the institution aids in it being more responsive to the outside environment. Educational institutions' responsiveness to the environment legitimizes the internal affairs of the institution. According to Mitchell, Stakeholder salience involves the degree to which various managers prioritize competing stakeholder's claims (Mitchell et al. 1997, pg.868). The diverse network of relationships in which some stakeholder groups in the educational institutions are situated contributes to the level of responsiveness attributed to them by higher educational institutions.
The guiding principle of the international business School is to impact society through research, teaching, and engagement in the community. The main stakeholders at the International Business School Suzhou ( IBSS) include the students and their various families. Students at International Business School Suzhou are perceived as definitive stakeholders since they contribute to the internal quality assurance and influence in the IBSS. Students are the direct beneficiaries of education in the IBSS. International students at the IBSS contribute to balancing the teaching strategies for the institution's various programs. Students also aid in the improvement of the problem based learning by providing feedback. Students at IBSS constructively criticize multiple projects at the institution and, therefore, contribute to curriculum design. As stakeholders, the students are actively involved in the institution's internal committee and board, the institution's course evaluations, and review of its programs. In terms of legitimacy, students are considered legitimate partners in internal quality assurance. Furthermore, they have urgent claims in ensuring the safeguarding of quality in IBSS. Students pay tuition and fees to the IBSS as an investment, which would benefit both the educational institution and the students. The rates of return for the students investing in IBSS include students acquiring new knowledge, and the IBSS shapes them into top-quality graduates.
A significant stakeholder in International Business School Suzhou is the government. The government collaborates with the institutions to formulate effective policies and practices. The government also supports the lecturers in helping the students achieve maximum positive outcomes. The government also collaborates with other non-governmental agencies to devise effective programs for the students and the lecturers. The government also provides financial support to low-income students at the IBSS, therefore offering education. The government majorly sets the strategic direction for the educational institution to follow. The government has also set aside different initiatives and policies to stop excluding economically disadvantaged students at the IBSS. The students will be able to pay the fees and receive assistance to stay in the institution. The government also encourages further development and research by increasing the resources of the International Business schools Suzhou. The business community of China also acts as a stakeholder to the International Business School Suzhou. Various business organizations collaborate with IBSS to formulate various effective programs that allow graduates to learn further through work-related projects. Business organizations such as International Business School Suzhou offer scholarships and bursaries for both the teachers and the students. Regarding the business community, various business people provide support to the IBSS in cash or kinds.
Moreover, teachers are key internal stakeholders in the international business school Suzhou since they link all the stakeholders. As stakeholders, they constantly work in shaping and improving the quality of education in IBSS. The teachers implement the school's curriculum, and they ensure it is successful and that it meets all the student's needs. The teachers as stakeholders participate in the designing of the curriculum by offering their feedback. Teachers at IBSS engage in lesson study, which has been essential in improving students' mathematical knowledge at the IBSS. Teachers also observe lessons demonstrated by their fellow teachers in IBSS, a key part of development. Through observing, teachers at IBSS improve the self-awareness of further growth in their skills. Observing other teachers also helps the teachers reflect on what they observed and collaborate with the other teachers at IBSS, thus improving educational quality. Teachers at IBSS make the time to participate in discussions after class to assist and improve students' understanding who were unable to grasp some concepts in class. Teachers also record discussions and prepare reports for continuing professional development. Teachers at IBSS through CPD can track and document the knowledge, skill, and experience that they gain both formally and informally through their work at the institution. In collaboration with other facilitators, teachers also create effective CPD meetings at the institution. Teachers at the institution also play a vital role in increasing students' motivation, confidence, and commitment by demonstrating actively and clearly in their lessons. Teachers in IBBS also implement acquired skills in their classrooms that they acquired through attending various stakeholder workshops.
Corporate social responsibilities are essential for the future development of IBSS. To deal with fast-rising competition in higher learning, the IBSS will need a strong corporate social responsibility strategy. Through Corporate social responsibility, the IBSS will develop a positive reputation and differentiate itself from the competition. CSR positively contributes to the social, economic, and environmental elements that help in long-term sustainability, which will prove to be successful in the future. CSR helps in attracting skilled labours who will be useful in establishing IBSS in future, and it will also attract best students which will promote its social performance in future. CSR will help the IBSS maintain high recruitment and employee retention standards, which will prove useful in future employment programs. Through various corporate social responsibility practices, it will ensure the designing of courses related to social responsibility. The implementation of social responsibility at the IBBS by the CSR will promote social inclusion values and human rights among the students and the IBBS staff members.
Task 2
Alibaba Group is an advanced e-commerce company that focuses on providing technology infrastructure and marketing services to facilitate business activities between merchants and customers. TaoBao.com and Tmall.com are Alibaba's consumer portal. TaoBao.com is a subsidiary corporation under Alibaba Group with features similar to ebay.com. Whereas, Tmall.com retails products for Chinese consumers locally and internationally. These platforms accommodate a hundred million sellers and buyers with hundreds of million product listings. The company’s corporate values are reflected in its mission to facilitate business anywhere. Alibaba positions itself as an online market to assist enterprises in China in accessing global markets and participating in the sustainable development of people. The company also engages in welfare innovation initiatives to help developing countries to cultivate talents.
Alibaba Group has incorporated a third party formal payment, Alipay, which functions based on massive data analysis (Alibaba Group, 2020). This payment model provides value to the company since it offers a safe and transparent payment environment for customers' confidentiality matters. Moreover, Alibaba also has various logistics companies that handle huge sales volumes. The reliability of the logistics company determines the volume of online sales. These logistics companies under Ali Baba are bound to ensure that customers receive their products on time, influencing customer loyalty to the company. Alibaba offers Advertisement insurance and logistics, among other services, to their partners. TaoBao.com incorporates analytics for massive data and technology that ensures effective trading in large cities and remote areas. This approach helps to support new brands and increase the volume of orders on these platforms. Furthermore, this platform incorporates real-time content updates that enable customers to obtain relevant information about various products (Alibaba Group, 2020)....