Group Project: Fortune 500

Companies

By: Cody Johnson

MAN3353 MGT THEORY/PRACTICE-4103

 Introduction

Fortune 500 companies are well known corporations that

have excelled at earning revenue year over year. But this is just the

tip of the iceberg: a company cannot be successful if they do not

adopt ethical business practices every single day. It is a privilege o

be a part of the top companies when ranked against many inspiring

corporations, and it is a goal for many stakeholders to see their

company performing well. The Fortune 500 is an annual list

composed and published by Fortune magazine, and they list the

company that made the most of their fiscal year at the very top.

The list includes all companies in the United States from privately

owned to large corporations (obviously all records would be

required to be public to be included). In this project, we will

discuss four of the Fortune 500 great companies which include:

Amazon, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson and Bank of America. We

will discuss what each company does in addition to evaluating the

ethical systems of each compared to the others on our list. One

other important aspect to how a company excels is their goals for

giving back to the communities. There is a reason these companies

are in the top 500 in the country, so they will have a very diverse

reputation from the media, but they show that they can withstand

publicity.

History of Business Ethics

The term business ethics is used in many ways, and the

history of business ethics will vary depending on how one

uses/describes it. As it states “Norman Bowie dates the birth of

business ethics as November 1974, with the first conference in

business ethics, which was held at the University of Kansas, and

which resulted in the first anthology used in the new courses that

started popping up thereafter in business ethics.” (htt5) The main

meaning of the term ‘business ethics’ refers to the “application of

everyday moral or ethical norms to business”. There didn’t seem to

be a lot of focus on any ethical behaviors among companies until

the U.S Civil Rights Act of 1964. This legislation started a

movement where people began paying attention to the values of a

business and how people were treated. Several years later

“business ethics” became a common term and by the 1980’s many

corporations adopted ethical training as part of their curriculum for

all employees and the term “code of ethics” became popular. It was

this focus on legal and ethical practices that shined a light on the

need for government intervention, called the Sarbanes Oxley Act

of 2022. This legislation created oversight over financial reporting

and financial control. “Sarbanes Oxley promises a variety of long-

term benefits. Investors will face a lower risk of losses from fraud

and theft, and benefit from more reliable financial reporting,

greater transparency, and accountability”. (Coates, 2007) It was

clear that companies were not being transparent about their

finances, and stakeholders and investors had a right to be

concerned. Today’s environment is much more transparent and

allows employees, stakeholders and the public to have a clear idea

of what a company’s ethical practices are, which in turn will foster

trust and loyalty.

Amazon

Amazon is the world's biggest online retailer, generating

huge revenues from selling basically anything you can think of:

books, music, housewares, electronics, food, and many other

goods, either directly or by allowing third party retailers (or

people) to sell things on their site. Amazon has millions of

customers all over the world. Amazon is not exactly known for

having ethical practices. Environmental concerns, discrimination

and tax evasion seem to have made it in the news a lot for a

company that was just created in 1998. Amazon allegedly gets

around not paying taxes in some countries by funneling money

through its holding company. Amazon has been regularly sued by

its own employees for workplace abuse, discrimination, and

maltreatment after workplace accidents left former employees

homeless and without income. One report stated, “During the past

three years at one Amazon site, ambulances were called 115 times”

whilst a similar-sized supermarket warehouse nearby had only

eight call-outs". (htt6) The environmental responsibility seems to

be a future focus, although it hasn’t been addressed very well to

date: “Does its effort to get customers goods quickly offset the

increased greenhouse gas emissions and pollutants resulting from

speedy shipping? Of course, it doesn’t. Amazon knows this and

indicates it wants to make half of its deliveries carbon neutral

within the next decade.” (htt7) Aside from the seemly lack of

focus on positive community impact, Amazon does have a

‘Business Code of Ethics and Conduct’ This code talks about

periodic certification of the code of ethics, ensuring proper

procedures are followed, and that illegal and unethical findings are

reported.
 Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a research and development company

for the most part, in addition to manufacturing/selling a range of

products in the healthcare field. Some well known products include

Band-Aid bandages, baby products, Neutrogena skin and beauty

care, Tylenol and Acuvue contact lenses. It was created in 1932 by

The Johnson Family (Robert Wood Johnson was the first CEO).

The Company operates through three segments: Consumer Health,

Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices. The company lists a Position

on Ethics and Compliance on their website, and states “As the

world’s largest and most diversified healthcare company, Johnson

& Johnson requires clear, comprehensive and robust guidance for

ethical behavior across our global corporation to provide an

aligned and consistent framework for employees and contingent

workers”. (htt9) They include principles they follow as well “At

Johnson & Johnson, we are committed to maintaining ethical and

compliant conduct with the highest level of integrity. As stated in

Our Credo: “We must provide highly capable leaders and their

actions must be just and ethical … We are responsible to the

communities in which we live and work and to the world

community as well … We must be good citizens …” Additionally,

our firm commitment to ethical and compliant conduct is

embedded in both Johnson & Johnson’s Code of Business Conduct

and Procurement Code of Conduct.”. (htt9) Their website discusses

a Robust Organizational Structure for Managing Ethics and

Compliance, with each Johnson & Johnson company exercising

compliance oversight. Impact community: The Global Community

Impact (GCI) organization—with funding from Johnson &

Johnson Foundation and other functional divisions and operating

companies across the three Johnson & Johnson business segments

—drives programming for our community giving, social impact

and other philanthropic initiatives around the world.

 Microsoft

Microsoft was created in 1975 by Bill Gates and childhood friend.

This company is now known as a leading developer of personal-

computer software systems and computer applications. The

company also publishes books, creates computer hybrid tablet

computers, e-mail services, and excels in electronic game systems.

The ethical system it follows is pretty standard, “We built our

compliance and ethics program on three pillars: Prevention,

Detection, and Remediation. We continually evolve our programs

to meet these goals.” (htt10) The website includes a Microsoft

Standards of Business Conduct - our Trust Code that outlines the

expectations around ethical behavior: “Our commitment to

building and maintaining a culture of trust, ethics, and integrity

depends on our employees and representatives telling us if they are

aware of, or have a concern about, compliance with our Standards

of Business Conduct, policies, or the law.” (htt10) This code

includes a non-retaliation approach to allowing employees to

escalate concerns with unethical behavior. Responsibility for

ethical conduct starts at the top and is evaluated through reporting

and communication transparency across customers, investors,

employees and government. Bill Gates is a huge supporter of

communities where Microsoft has a footprint. Microsoft’s

Corporate Citizenship strategy focuses on challenges in

communities around the world. This is important for the

company’s global business, where they believe they can strengthen

economies, promote a healthy online ecosystem, and continue to

operate responsibly. Bill Gate and his wife started The Gates

Foundation in 1994 to improve philanthropic endeavors that

address global health and community needs. They were joined by

Warren Buffet as a director in 2006 after donating $31 billion in

stock as a supporter. They care currently the world’s largest

philanthropic organization and continue to grant money to improve

global health, development, and education.

 Bank of America

Bank of America is a multination investment bank and is world

renowned for its financial services. The company was created by

merger in 1998, and its headquarters reside in Charlotte, NC.

There is an array of services provided by the company based on its

many mergers and acquisitions, including banking services for

individuals, small- and middle-market businesses, large

corporations, and governments. Some services include financial

assistance/banking, investment management and offering financial

and risk management products and services. The ethical system of

Bank of America is pretty simple based on the Business Practices

statement on their website “Our responsible business practices

have a direct, positive impact on two areas critical to our growth:

our strength and stability as a global financial institution; and our

capacity to meet the financial needs of our clients in all phases of

their lives”. (htt11) This company creates an environment, both

internally and externally, for their employees, customers and

community, that includes promoting diversity and equality, driving

economic and social progress, and environmental sustainability.

The company works with local non-profits to support community

development. “Internally, this is core to being a great place to

work, hiring and recruiting diverse talent to ensure strong

representation in our workforce, and aligned policies and

accountabilities. Externally, this is core to our client-driven

approach, delivering products and services that meet the diverse

needs of our clients, and investing our resources to support our

communities and the issues affecting them.” (htt11) Since there is

a Bank of America around almost every corner, the investment in

communities is far-reaching. Moral principles are the guide for

many processes and procedures within Bank of America day to day

operations. There are internal audits to assess and report out on if

new and existing processes are following proper code of ethics.

Employees are requir3ed to complete yearly ethics, compliance

and quality assurance training along with many procedures in place

for each line of business to follow for full end to end assurance that

ethical practices are being followed. There is also a yearly

Associate Survey where employees can anonymously share

concerns with processes and overall treatment within the company.

Conclusion

Three of the four companies seem to do well with ethical practices

and following a code of ethics for both internal and external

relationships. Bank of America, Microsoft and J&J were valued by

their employees and customers much higher than Amazon. The

Amazon website as well as multiple sources focused on customer

satisfaction with product rather than a priority on upholding ethical

standards. The three companies all had multiple sections within

their sites concerning associate wellbeing, community outreach

importance and overall high expectations for their company to act

responsibility and keep stakeholders in mind with decision making.

Works Cited
(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/company-profile/amaoncom-inc

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/company-profile/amazoncom-inc

(n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.scu.edu/ethics/focus-areas/business-ethics/resources/a-history-of-

business-ethics/#twelve

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.jnj.com/about-jnj/policies-and-positions/our-position-

on-ethics-and-compliance

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/legal/compliance

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://about.bankofamerica.com/en/our-company/business-

practices

Coates, J. C. (2007). The Goals and Promise of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. 91.