Strategic Management Case Study on Creating a Learning Organization

and an Ethical Organization

By: Agacita | Amoin | Bano | Misa | Monroid | Tabar

New Belgium Brewing:

Ethical and Environmenta

l Responsibility

CASE STUDY

HISTORY

Belgium is known for

its ales

Bicycling trip through

Belgium

Jeff Lebesch, an electrical

engineer

If he could produce high – quality beers

Acquired special strain

of yeast

Began experimenting in Colorado

Decided to market them

Opened for business in 1991 – tiny basement

Technological innovations

Paradigm of environmental efficiencies

Ad campaign targets men ages 25 - 44

“Follow your folly - Ours

is Beer

ETHICAL CULTURE

Corporate social responsibility

Gains momentum beyond the courtroom to the far

more powerful marketplace

current and future manager of business must

realize that business ethics

not so much about the installation of compliance

codes and standards

Necessity for Ethical, values-driven company

CORE BELIEFS

Mission statement

• To operate a profitable brewery which makes our love and talent manifest

Core values and beliefs

• Producing world-class beers• Promoting beer culture and the responsible enjoyment of beer• Continuous, innovative quality and efficiency improvements• Transcending customers’ expectations• Environmental stewardship: minimizing resource consumption, maximizing energy efficiency, and recycling• Kindling social, environmental, and cultural change as a business role model• Cultivating potential: through learning, participative • management, and the pursuit of opportunities• Balancing the myriad needs of the company, • staff, and their families• Committing ourselves to authentic relationships,• communications, and promises• Having Fun.

EMPLOYEE CONCERNS

Recognizing employees’ role in the company’s success

paid health, dental insurance and retirement plans

employees get a free lunch every other week

Free massage once a year

Can bring their children or dogs to workEmployees who stays for five years can earn a paid trip to Belgium to study beer cultureemployees can earn stock in the privately held corporation

New Belgium’s employees now own one-third of the growing breweryOpen book management lets employees see the financial costs and performance

ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

first fully wind-powered brewery in the United States

employing a steam condenser that captures and reuses the hot water that boils the barley and hops in the production process to start the next brew

using “sun tubes,” which provide natural daytime lighting throughout the brew house all year long

reducing waste through recycling and creative reuse strategies

gives its employees “cruiser bikes”

agreed to participate in the United States Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environment Design for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) pilot program.

SOCIAL CONCERNS

donated more than 1.6 million dollars to organizations in the communities in which they do business.

For every barrel of beer sold the prior year, NB donates $1 to philanthropic causes within their distribution territory

“human-powered” sports that cause minimal damage to the natural environmentevent sponsorships, such as the Tour de Fat, NBB supports various environmental, social, and cycling nonprofit organizationsbenefit more than five thousand local people with multiple sclerosisimproving parks and bike trails

ORGANIZATIONAL SUCCESS

1• What environmental issues does the New

Belgium Brewing Company work to address?

• How has NBB taken a strategic approach to addressing these issues?

• Why do you think the company has chosen to focus on environmental issues?

2• Are New Belgium’s social

initiatives indicative of strategic philanthropy?

• Why or why not?

3

• Some segments of society vigorously contend that companies that sell alcoholic beverages and tobacco products cannot be socially responsible organizations because of the nature of their primary products.

• Do you believe that New Belgium Brewing Company’s actions and initiatives are indicative of an ethical and socially responsible corporation? Why or why not?

• What else could New Belgium do to foster ethical and responsible conduct?

QUESTIONS

1. What environmental issues

does the New Belgium Brewing

Company work to address? How

has NBB taken a strategic

approach to addressing these

issues? Why do you think the

company has chosen to focus on

environmental issues?

New Belgium Brewing strives to reduce its impact on the

environment. NBB invested in a wind turbine, making it

the first fully wind powered brewery in the United States.

NBB has also incorporated a steam condenser that

captures and reuses hot water used for boiling barley

and hops to start the next brew. The steam is also

redirected to heat the floor tiles and de-ice the loading

docks during winter. NBB has also incorporated sun

tubes that help to light the brew house with natural

daylight, along with many other energy saving

processes. We believe that the company has

chosen to focus on the environment because

of the owner’s love of the out-doors.

In addition to their environmental responsibility, New

Belgium Brewing treats its employees and the surrounding

community in an ethical manner. They operate on an open

book basis and sponsor community events. In its mission

statement, the New Belgium Brewing Company mentions the

important of “kindling social, environmental and cultural

change as a business role model.” The measures that New

Belgium Brewing has taken to be environmentally and

socially responsible conclude that this company is a role

model for others, and it has been recognized as such. “It’s a

great honor to be recognized as a company where people

love what they do and truly enjoy coming to work. One of

New Belgium’s core values is having fun, and that’s a very

important and fulfilling piece of our culture. At New

Belgium, we will always look to the far horizon for ways of

improving our systems, minimizing our impact and helping

other business follow their own path

toward more sustainable practices.” The path towards

sustainability will always be a learning process. New

Belgium is

committed to examining each choice; we face to find the

way that

best honors both our human stakeholders and the Earth.

New Belgium focuses heavily on the use

of environmentally friendly

technologies. It’s costly to implement,

but they benefit not only the

environment, but New Belgium saves

money in the long run. They are totally

dependent on wind mill power, which

save an enormous amount of money on

electricity. They have begun recycling

their own waste and using the ethanol

extracted to generate power. Their

practices for cooling and

natural lighting make them an example

for

all large power users to emulate, all the

while

saving them money.

2. Are New Belgium’s social initiatives indicative of strategic philanthropy?Why or why not?

We believe that this is a case of strategic

philanthropy. The owner of organization

introduces that type of business which is

harmful for environment. Then he takes some

steps to reduce this impact in environment. It is

not a philanthropic work for society. It is a one

of a kind of advertising. Because of they take

this all action from making profit from NBB’s. So

1st they making profit from an unethical

business then they use their profit in some

activities which will reduce their negative

impact from environment. Like selling tobacco

this is harmful for public health, it pollutes our

air, crop, cultivation, water and so on. Then

alcohol is another dangerous

toxin what can take a man in door of dead

easily.

From use of alcohol people affected by

cancer, liver diseases, brain diseases and so on.

Many business owners and managers see

corporate social responsibility (CSR) as

something that’s nice to do but not really

connected to growing the business and

profits. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is

a form of corporate self – regulation

integrated into a business model. CSR policy

would function as a built – in, self – regulating

mechanism whereby business would monitor

and ensure its support to law, ethical

standards and international norms. Social

responsibility is an ethical or ideological

theory that business should not function

amorally but instead

should contribute to the welfare of their

communities

and an entity whether it is government,

corporation, organization or individual has a

big responsibility to society at large.

The need to be socially responsible is

because to recognize the healthy and

vibrant communities, who are key to our

ability to attract, retain and develop

talented employees, and to operate a

successful and growing enterprise. The

quality of the community’s educational

system is key to the skills of our

employee force and the vibrancy of the

community as a good place to live is key

to our being able to attract and keep the

best

employees. Most importantly, we are

socially

responsible because it is clearly the

right thing to do.

Although most of the companies frequently

cited as examples of ethical and socially

responsible firms are large corporations, it is

the social responsibility initiatives of small

business that often have the greatest impact on

local communities and neighborhoods. These

business create jobs and provide goods and

services for customers in smaller markets that

larger corporations often are not interested in

serving. Moreover, they also contribute money,

resources and volunteer time to local causes.

Their owners often serve as community and

neighborhood leaders, and many choose

to apply their skills and some of the fruits of

their success

to tackling local problems and issues that

benefit

everyone in the community. Managers and

employees become role models for ethical and

socially responsible actions.

The company has chosen to include

drug and alcohol awareness

programs in their mix of charitable

causes. These two points are

convincing in a way that they are

aware of this trend and are working

to control potential problems as well

as perceptions of the public. They

recycle and reuse solid, through

process plant wastewater and give

away their

barley and hops grain to farmers

who

need only to pick it up themselves to

use for feed.

3. Some segments of society vigorously

contend that companies that sell alcoholic

beverages and tobacco products cannot be

socially responsible organizations because of

the nature of their primary products. Do you

believe that New Belgium Brewing

Company’s actions and initiatives are

indicative

of an ethical and socially responsible

corporation? Why or why not? What

else could New Belgium do to foster ethical

and responsible conduct?

People will purchase alcohol and tobacco

products regardless of who is manufacturing it.

Just because a company manufactures alcohol,

which is legal, does not make them

irresponsible. The consumers are the ones that

ultimately act irresponsibly. If they are

promoting responsible drinking and

discouraging the sale of alcohol to minors, then

I believe that they are being ethically and

socially responsible. If they can go into

business, being environmentally friendly in their

manufacturing and be socially responsible and

keep another company from succeeding, then it

will be better all around. Whether it is NBB or

some else just looking to make a

profit at any cost, someone will be there to

manufacture alcohol and tobacco. We should

applaud

the companies that make genuine efforts to do

the right things ethically, environmentally and

socially.

Tobacco and brew products are harmful for society

and environment. Alcohols have a dangerous effect

for human body. Blood cancer, liver cancer and many

other deadly diseases are attack because of using

alcohol. Disadvantages of alcohol are: source of

energy in the diet but with no other nutrients. In high

concentrations or with repeated use can be toxic and

cause liver damage. It can cause poor judgment,

concentration, balance and coordination. Driving with

significant blood alcohol can lead to accidents, arrest

and imprisonment. So, their business is unethical

from our view point and not of law. In ethics, we learn

“Ethics and Law are not the same.” But the company

is appreciable for taking some steps to save

environment where other companies are silent. New

Belgium’s

social responsibility has built its brand. Beer drinkers

base their choice on taste. But there’s also plenty of

evidence that they want to support a company that’s

doing good things. For New Belgium that sense of

purpose includes a commitment to sustainability.