Critically analyse Debenhams's code of conduct and identify tree key Essay

Critically analyse Debenhams's code of conduct and identify tree key components that demonstrate the company's values and busine - Essay Example 14). Stonehouse (1991) defines the code of conduct as â€Å"a statement about practice, or what we will strive to do† (Stonehouse, 1991). Since conduct is different from aesthetics, therefore, a good code of conduct should not address such issues as those of self-presentation, rhetoric, and style. A good code of conduct covers more than just moral principles; it also refers to the ideals of the good; â€Å"an engineer might insist on load bearing standards well above what the law requires because of his commitment to the ideal of safety. Sanctions – sanctions applied in the context of an appropriate complaints and discipline system - ought only to be deployed in relation to minimum standards (morality) but not in relation to ideals (ethics)† (Miller, 2002, p. 4). Essentials of a good code of conduct Bowie and Schnieder (2011) emphasize the construction of a foundation of the code of conduct before a company can make one that it expects all of its employees to fol low and work in accordance with. Essential components of a good code of ethics according to Bowie and Schnieder (2011) are that it should be applicable to everyone, it should remain consistent even at times during which the market is inconsistent, it should promote accountability and transparency, and it should help the organization apply the core values to the developments in regulations, technology, and all other factors that can affect the conduct of employees on the job. It is vital for a code of conduct to have involvement of the staff, and the management of individual operations and disciplinary processes should be assigned to the staff members (Bowden and Smythe, 2008, p. 584). Codes of conduct should not be just described as rules that dictate what actions need to be executed and what must be abstained from as such a visualization of codes of conduct is quite narrow. A good code of conduct mentions virtues in addition to actions. Debenhams’s code of conduct On Debenha ms’s website, there are three sections under the heading of â€Å"corporate social responsibility†. These sections include supplier code of conduct, disabled access, and policies of environmental and ethical trading. Debenhams shows only the supplier code of conduct on its website. This supplier code of conduct comprises 10 sections in total including introduction, legal requirements, employment, the safety and hygiene of working conditions, environment, representation of the workers, monitoring, inspection and assessment, sanctions, and ILO conventions. Out of the ten sections, only the third section i.e. employment has eight sub-sections titled payment of living wages, working hours not being excessive, employment of children, employment being freely chosen, disciplinary practices, lack of discrimination, respect for the freedom of association and the employees’ collective bargaining right, provision of regular employment (Debenhams, 2012a). Under the heading â€Å"disabled access†, Debenhams commits of providing the disabled people with access to the problem older stores. By providing this service for the disabled people, Debenhams gains an edge over other street retailers that do not provide the disabled people with this access. Debenhams essentially wants to project the image that the disabled people have all the rights of access that the non-disabled people ha