Where Do Companies Do Their Business?
In the Markets or in the Society? It is an undisputed fact that a company’s survival does not depend upon its consumers alone, but a diverse set of stakeholders like the government, religious leaders, social activists, NGOs, media, etc. Hence, earning the satisfaction of these segments is also as imperative as they add to the power of the brand by word of mouth. The social concern adds to the strength of the brand. Corporates that embraced the deepest social values, have been successful in building powerful brand, and, eventually, robust customer relationship. The area of corporate social justice fall under two broad categories. The issues such as the nutrition of children, child care, old-age homes, amelioration of hunger, offering aid to those affected by natural calamities, etc. needing instant attention with humanitarian perspective, comes under the first category. The issues that contribute to making society a pleasant place to live in the long run, may be grouped under the second category. The issues which come under this category are health awareness and aid, education, environmental protection, women’s employment and empowerment, preventing unjust discriminations (on the basis of caste, community, religion, ethnicity, race, and sex), eradication of poverty through employment, preservation of culture, values, and ethics, contribution to research, etc. Procter and Gamble’s (P&G) philosophy is that it should lead the industry in implementing a global environmental programme. P&G is one of the first companies in the world to actively study the influence of consumer products on the environment and introduce concentrated products, recycled plastic bottles, and refill packages to the industry. P&G contributes to sustainable development and addresses environmental and social issues connected with its products and services.
Issues such as nutrition of children and disaster relief fall under the first category because they:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Require immediate humanitarian intervention
Option (1) Are primarily profit-driven initiatives — Incorrect. Feeding children or helping victims of a calamity is done for humanitarian reasons. The passage does not describe these issues as a way to earn profit.
Option (2) Require immediate humanitarian intervention — Correct. The passage places in the first category the issues that need instant attention with a humanitarian perspective: nutrition of children, child care, old-age homes, relief from hunger and aid to those hit by natural calamities. A hungry child or a flood victim cannot wait, so help must come at once.
Option (3) Are long-term developmental goals — Incorrect. Long-term issues, which make society a pleasant place to live over time, form the second category: education, health awareness, environmental protection and the like.
Option (4) Are regulated by corporate law — Incorrect. The passage divides the issues by the attention they need, not by any law.
Note: The passage is the NCERT case study ‘Where Do Companies Do Their Business?’, which has been reproduced by NTA in the exam. This one opens the Marketing chapter. Give the first page of every chapter a proper read, and not only the questions at the end.
NCERT (2026-27 Edition): “Where Do Companies Do Their Business? In the Markets or in the Society? … The area of corporate social justice fall under two broad categories. The issues such as the nutrition of children, child care, old-age homes, amelioration of hunger, offering aid to those affected by natural calamities, etc. needing instant attention with humanitarian perspective, comes under the first category. The issues that contribute to making society a pleasant place to live in the long run, may be grouped under the second category. …” |