They are not primarily directed towards a specific company policy, but to try and use media attention and the ensuing public outcry to force changes in industry-wide practices. As an example consider the recent attack on Nike's global labor practices. Because businesses are becoming the dominant source of social change they are held accountable by standards other than legal constraints or financial performance. These developments are accompanied by changes in consumer preferences and governmental action. More and more consumers are willing to pay a higher price for a garment that has been manufactured in a worker friendly environment, shampoo that has not been animal tested or for food that is certified as organic.
Politicians are more than willing to follow consumer outrage with regulatory measures.
As an example consider the 1996 Apparel Industry Partnership, after Nike and Reebok had been targeted by activists. Existing research and management education is ill equipped to help businesses deal with these challenges. Too often these concerns are analyzed from the normative viewpoint of traditional business ethics alone without integrating them with the concepts of strategic management or theories of organizational behavior. On the other hand, strategic management or marketing classes rarely incorporate social concerns. Managers need to anticipate potential problem areas in all areas of management from product design to labor practices to marketing.