We will now address whether Haagen-Dazs is an ethical company that abides by the rules and regulations that it is suppose to. We will also see how Haagen-Dazs is doing with their corporate social responsibilities.
Lawrence Kohlberg's Stages of Ethical Reasoning
Lawrence Kohlberg's Stages of Ethical Reasoning
Haagen-Dazs seems to fit Stage 5 of Kohlberg's Stages of ethical reasoning. Stage 5: Social Contract Legalistic Orientation can be defined as a person being focused on individual rights and the development of standards based on critical examination. In simple terms its determining if something is right or wrong based on the scrutiny it withstands within the society where principles are accepted.
Haagen-Dazs puts out its Luxury Ice cream flavors and waits to receive feedback from the customers in the area in which they distributed the flavor. If it is scrutinized and not accepted the flavor was wrong, but if the flavor was accepted then the company was right with that flavor. Haagen-Dazs decides what flavors are right and what ingredients are right based on what the society tells the company is right and wrong.
Haagen-Dazs puts out its Luxury Ice cream flavors and waits to receive feedback from the customers in the area in which they distributed the flavor. If it is scrutinized and not accepted the flavor was wrong, but if the flavor was accepted then the company was right with that flavor. Haagen-Dazs decides what flavors are right and what ingredients are right based on what the society tells the company is right and wrong.
Haagen-Dazs' Code of Conduct
Haagen-Dazs is currently owned by General Mills and Nestle. Since General Mills owns Haagen-Dazs, Haagen-Dazs is to abide by General Mills Code of conduct. Also because Nestle oversees Haagen-Dazs' distribution throughput the United States, Haagen-Dazs is to also abide by Nestlé's Supplier Code. So Haagen actually abides by two different code of conducts.
Nestlé's Supplier Code is a very thorough and extensive document. Its major
focuses and topics include Business Integrity, Compliance with applicable laws and regulations, Improper Advantage, Sustainability, Labor Standards, Safety and Health, Environment codes, supplying farmers, and audit and termination of the supply agreement. The General Mills code of conduct is also a very thorough and extensive document. Its major focuses include Do what's right everyday, Treating employees well, Protecting our people, Maintaining consumer trust, Managing finances and assets carefully, communicating appropriately, our communities our world, competing fairly and legally, building successful relationships, doing business around the world, upholding global standards, and Maintaining corporate integrity. Haagen-Dazs is expected to uphold and abide by not only General Mills code of conduct but also by Nestlé's Supplier conduct.
Levels of Function for Haagen-Dazs
Haagen-Dazs is currently owned by General Mills and Nestle. Since General Mills owns Haagen-Dazs, Haagen-Dazs is to abide by General Mills Code of conduct. Also because Nestle oversees Haagen-Dazs' distribution throughput the United States, Haagen-Dazs is to also abide by Nestlé's Supplier Code. So Haagen actually abides by two different code of conducts.
Nestlé's Supplier Code is a very thorough and extensive document. Its major
focuses and topics include Business Integrity, Compliance with applicable laws and regulations, Improper Advantage, Sustainability, Labor Standards, Safety and Health, Environment codes, supplying farmers, and audit and termination of the supply agreement. The General Mills code of conduct is also a very thorough and extensive document. Its major focuses include Do what's right everyday, Treating employees well, Protecting our people, Maintaining consumer trust, Managing finances and assets carefully, communicating appropriately, our communities our world, competing fairly and legally, building successful relationships, doing business around the world, upholding global standards, and Maintaining corporate integrity. Haagen-Dazs is expected to uphold and abide by not only General Mills code of conduct but also by Nestlé's Supplier conduct.
Levels of Function for Haagen-Dazs
I think that the function that receives more attention of the discussion of 3 levels is the manufacturing function. The ethics in the manufacturing function of Haagen-Dazs is of utmost importance to the company. It is part of their philosophy and culture to use quality products to produce their ice creams.
Haagen-Dazs is very big on what materials are used in production of their ice creams. They want natural good quality ingredients for their ice cream, it's has been this way since 1961. The manufacturing function is expected to be at Level
3: post conventional. They are to do what is right based on the expectancy of the philosophy and culture of the company.
Haagen-Dazs is very big on what materials are used in production of their ice creams. They want natural good quality ingredients for their ice cream, it's has been this way since 1961. The manufacturing function is expected to be at Level
3: post conventional. They are to do what is right based on the expectancy of the philosophy and culture of the company.
Human Resources
Human resources is at level 3: Post conventional, In Lawrence Kohlberg's Stages of Ethical Reasoning, in the Haagen-Dazs company. Haagen-Dazs values their employees and their happiness. They believe that making their employees happy will in turn lead to more customer satisfaction. So Haagen-Dazs set up a new way of training and celebrating employees with the help of Disney.
Haagen-Dazs learned to celebrate their employees and help their employees learn about and appreciate the company and it's history. Employees received new information about Haagen-Dazs, which helped employees become passionate about the company. Haagen-Dazs is not only concerned about employee satisfaction but also their safety. As they also abide to General Mills code of conduct to provide employees with safe work environments.
Conflict of Interests within Haagen-Dazs?
Conflict of interest is a situation in which one relationship or obligation places you in direct conflict with an existing relationship or obligation.
Personally from researching this company I have yet to see any conflict of interests. The company seems to stand by it's philosophy and culture and not go
against it.
The company itself does not speak of any conflict of interests. They tend to abide by the rules and regulations and try to always stay true to their
philosophy. Nothing is mentioned on conflicts of interests for Haagen-Dazs.
Haagen-Dazs' Triple Bottom Line
Triple Bottom Line is the adaptation of companies annual reports to reflect a triple bottom-line approach, for which companies provide social and
environmental updates alongside their primary bottom line financial performance. The primary bottom line is basically how much money is left over after all the bills have been paid from the revenue generated from the sale of the product. So basically triple bottom line is how much money is left over after the bills to put towards social programs and environmental programs.
Haagen-Dazs doesn't mention a triple bottom line in their annual reports. Haagen-Dazs does however donate to an environmental cause to save honey bees. They donate to Universities and research foundations. Although Haagen-Dazs does not mention the triple bottom line they do give back to the community.
Corporate Social Responsibilities
Human resources is at level 3: Post conventional, In Lawrence Kohlberg's Stages of Ethical Reasoning, in the Haagen-Dazs company. Haagen-Dazs values their employees and their happiness. They believe that making their employees happy will in turn lead to more customer satisfaction. So Haagen-Dazs set up a new way of training and celebrating employees with the help of Disney.
Haagen-Dazs learned to celebrate their employees and help their employees learn about and appreciate the company and it's history. Employees received new information about Haagen-Dazs, which helped employees become passionate about the company. Haagen-Dazs is not only concerned about employee satisfaction but also their safety. As they also abide to General Mills code of conduct to provide employees with safe work environments.
Conflict of Interests within Haagen-Dazs?
Conflict of interest is a situation in which one relationship or obligation places you in direct conflict with an existing relationship or obligation.
Personally from researching this company I have yet to see any conflict of interests. The company seems to stand by it's philosophy and culture and not go
against it.
The company itself does not speak of any conflict of interests. They tend to abide by the rules and regulations and try to always stay true to their
philosophy. Nothing is mentioned on conflicts of interests for Haagen-Dazs.
Haagen-Dazs' Triple Bottom Line
Triple Bottom Line is the adaptation of companies annual reports to reflect a triple bottom-line approach, for which companies provide social and
environmental updates alongside their primary bottom line financial performance. The primary bottom line is basically how much money is left over after all the bills have been paid from the revenue generated from the sale of the product. So basically triple bottom line is how much money is left over after the bills to put towards social programs and environmental programs.
Haagen-Dazs doesn't mention a triple bottom line in their annual reports. Haagen-Dazs does however donate to an environmental cause to save honey bees. They donate to Universities and research foundations. Although Haagen-Dazs does not mention the triple bottom line they do give back to the community.
Corporate Social Responsibilities
I would categorize Haagen-Dazs' corporate social responsibility as ethical. Haagen-Dazs is currently involved in a major environmental issue. Haagen-Dazs is involved in not only bringing awareness but also donating to help saving the honey bee population. The honey bee population over the past five years has gone down by one-third nationwide because of Colony Collapse Disorder. Not only is it important to save a species but honey bees also provide us with a very important natural resource service. Honeybees pollinate one-third of the foods we eat, including hundreds of crops of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Without honey bees we would surely run out of certain crops!
Haagen-Dazs has set out on a mission to bring awareness to people to help save the honey
bees. They have developed a website to bring awareness of what's happening to people and to help people understand why honey bees are so important. Haagen-Dazs has also donated more than $700,000 to honey bee research. They donate to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at the University of California, Davis, which is the largest and most comprehensive state-supported apiculture facility in North America. Haagen-Dazs has also created a Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven–a bee friendly demonstration garden on the UC Davis campus. Haagen-Dazs also created an ice cream flavor dedicated entirely to bring awareness to people about the Honey bee crisis. When you buy that ice cream flavor you automatically donate to help honey bees they also give you information on how to directly donate to help the honey bee cause.
Haagen-Dazs has set out on a mission to bring awareness to people to help save the honey
bees. They have developed a website to bring awareness of what's happening to people and to help people understand why honey bees are so important. Haagen-Dazs has also donated more than $700,000 to honey bee research. They donate to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at the University of California, Davis, which is the largest and most comprehensive state-supported apiculture facility in North America. Haagen-Dazs has also created a Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven–a bee friendly demonstration garden on the UC Davis campus. Haagen-Dazs also created an ice cream flavor dedicated entirely to bring awareness to people about the Honey bee crisis. When you buy that ice cream flavor you automatically donate to help honey bees they also give you information on how to directly donate to help the honey bee cause.
Evolution/Revolution
Haagen-Dazs reached level three when it began and it was founded. Reuben Mattus made it clear and established the company based on his vision. Reuben wanted the company to use quality products to make quality luxury ice cream. He wanted to make people indulge in the taste by using great fresh quality products. His ice cream and brand became huge without even the help of advertisement.
When he sold the Haagen-Dazs company, he wanted to make sure that the company would always stay true to the philosophy. Which the company always has, it uses quality products until this day. The company developed a little when Pillsbury purchased the company because that brought it to International levels. With International levels came more codes and rules which Haagen -Dazs was expected to abide by. Haagen-Dazs abides by a code of conducted provided by General Mills and a Supplier code provided by Nestle for Haagen-Dazs' domestic distribution of products. The Company still stays true to its philosophy but it has acquired codes and regulations which it now follows.
Corporate Governance of Haagen-Dazs
I do see evidence of corporate governance for Haagen-Dazs, the Haagen-Dazs company actually shares its board with general mills and the nestle company. Haagen-Dazs has lots of managers and CEOs are very much involved in the overall company functions and products. Haagen-Dazs has managers making sure that the production of their ice cream is up to par with not only the code of conduct they are demanded to abide by, but also the philosophy upon which the company was built. Managers it seems are mostly focused on certain functions in the company.
The main focus seems to lie with R&D department, manufacturing, and customer service. Customer service is huge to Haagen-Dazs, they research what the customers want in what areas of the Globe. If majority wants moon cake flavored ice cream in China, Haagen-Dazs will provide it to the customers. Not only do they get you what you want but Haagen-Dazs also makes sure that the product is quality.
The company as a whole is good and the people on the board and the managers are also good and do what they are expected to do. The board makes sure everything is going the way it is suppose to go, they make sure the managers are doing their jobs. The managers follow all regulations and procedures needed. The finance of Haagen-Dazs is also kept up to par.
Walter Salmon's 22 Questions:
1. Do your directors routinely speak to senior managers who are not represented on the board?
Yes, directors do routinely speak with managers.
2. Is your Board the right size? (8-15)
No, Because Haagen-Dazs in the U.S. and Canada shares Nestles Board and General Mills Board so the size well exceeds 22. General Mills alone has a Board size of 33 people.
3. Do you take the right measures to build trust among directors?
Yes General Mills states in their code of conduct that directors are to believe in each other as well as the company.
I think that it is dangerous for Haagen-Dazs to share their board of directors with two separate companies it could bring about severe confusion. I think they should probably create their own Board as to eliminate confusion and make the running of the company much smoother.
Haagen-Dazs reached level three when it began and it was founded. Reuben Mattus made it clear and established the company based on his vision. Reuben wanted the company to use quality products to make quality luxury ice cream. He wanted to make people indulge in the taste by using great fresh quality products. His ice cream and brand became huge without even the help of advertisement.
When he sold the Haagen-Dazs company, he wanted to make sure that the company would always stay true to the philosophy. Which the company always has, it uses quality products until this day. The company developed a little when Pillsbury purchased the company because that brought it to International levels. With International levels came more codes and rules which Haagen -Dazs was expected to abide by. Haagen-Dazs abides by a code of conducted provided by General Mills and a Supplier code provided by Nestle for Haagen-Dazs' domestic distribution of products. The Company still stays true to its philosophy but it has acquired codes and regulations which it now follows.
Corporate Governance of Haagen-Dazs
I do see evidence of corporate governance for Haagen-Dazs, the Haagen-Dazs company actually shares its board with general mills and the nestle company. Haagen-Dazs has lots of managers and CEOs are very much involved in the overall company functions and products. Haagen-Dazs has managers making sure that the production of their ice cream is up to par with not only the code of conduct they are demanded to abide by, but also the philosophy upon which the company was built. Managers it seems are mostly focused on certain functions in the company.
The main focus seems to lie with R&D department, manufacturing, and customer service. Customer service is huge to Haagen-Dazs, they research what the customers want in what areas of the Globe. If majority wants moon cake flavored ice cream in China, Haagen-Dazs will provide it to the customers. Not only do they get you what you want but Haagen-Dazs also makes sure that the product is quality.
The company as a whole is good and the people on the board and the managers are also good and do what they are expected to do. The board makes sure everything is going the way it is suppose to go, they make sure the managers are doing their jobs. The managers follow all regulations and procedures needed. The finance of Haagen-Dazs is also kept up to par.
Walter Salmon's 22 Questions:
1. Do your directors routinely speak to senior managers who are not represented on the board?
Yes, directors do routinely speak with managers.
2. Is your Board the right size? (8-15)
No, Because Haagen-Dazs in the U.S. and Canada shares Nestles Board and General Mills Board so the size well exceeds 22. General Mills alone has a Board size of 33 people.
3. Do you take the right measures to build trust among directors?
Yes General Mills states in their code of conduct that directors are to believe in each other as well as the company.
I think that it is dangerous for Haagen-Dazs to share their board of directors with two separate companies it could bring about severe confusion. I think they should probably create their own Board as to eliminate confusion and make the running of the company much smoother.