OPRAH'S ETHICS & SOCIAL RESPONSIBLITY
Oprah’s have stated that “She have never planned one thing ever. She has been led by strong instinct, and have made choices based on what was right for her at the time”. Oprah’s approach towards business has taught her some hard lessons, as a result of her nontraditional approach to business. Harpo Productions, Inc. started out with only five employees and no management controls or development programs putting a strain on the production company. She operated the production company like a family. Oprah have stated “After a while, you can’t see everybody; you can’t talk to everybody. Oprah deciding that she needed more people to run Harpo Productions, Inc. She hired a consultant to establish a clear business process and develop an organization alignment within the Harpo Productions, Inc. Oprah’s approach towards ethical behavior in her business is “It’s all about attracting good people”. She has always surround herself with people who are smarter in ways she not. She encourages input from her colleagues and staff. Her ethical guidelines for the Harpo Productions, Inc. she have stated “I don’t yell at people, I don’t mistreat people. I don’t talk down to people. She wishes no one in her vicinity, has the right to do it”. Her philosophy is that not only are you responsible for your life, but doing the best at that moment put you in the best place for the next moment. She feels that real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know if you did it or not. This is why she has built a strong foundation and is accountable for her actions, having a sense of pride in effort to do the right thing, even if she is the only one to know it. Oprah’s social responsibility for her production company is her communication, leadership, and motivation skills.
When we look at workplace ethics, let understand the benefits of ethics in the workplace. An organization that has established code of conduct and ethics always functions better, and has a great image among the employee. When the code of ethics has guides there are employees who make challenging decisions. This is quality also maintains complete professionalism in the workplace. It enforces a strong group ethics which turn ensures the quality of the product and services provided by the organization, as none of it is compromised due to a lack of ethics. This is the role of ethics in the workplace, a role so essential to ensure optimum functioning of the organization.
Oprah’s
consumers are her viewers that have been very dear to her for the past
twenty-five years. When Oprah Winfrey first national show was on aired on
September 08, 1986, her topic was “How to Marry the
Man or Woman of Your Choice”. She only had an audience of less than twenty-five
viewers. Oprah pursuance
her own audiences to come see her shows, she recruited herself to the streets of
Chicago giving away free tickets to her show. Little did anyone would have
known she would become a household figure? The viewers have stated that “Oprah
Winfrey career, was believed that Winfrey’s success was rooted in her ability
to cater to middle-class white women—a significant segment of her viewing
audience. Given the popularity of her show—it’s been the highest rated program
of its type for two decades—there was an expectation that Winfrey would weigh
in more forcefully on issues that directly affected African-Americans”. Her topics always provided viewers with
positive, spiritual uplifting experience. She also had compelling interviews,
and self-improvement segments. Over the past twenty-five years Oprah has
thanked her viewers in some many ways. In 2004, every person on the set of the
Oprah Winfrey show was given a new car (donated by General Motors). Every
episode Oprah has always given away gifts. On the episodes of “her favorite
thing” which was always the biggest give-away. The only year or season that
Oprah did not give-away was in 2009, because of the economy. Her total cost of “Oprah Favorite Things” was
about $23.8 million dollars over a span of twenty-five years. Oprah has always told her viewers “Even the wildest dreams have to
start somewhere. Allow yourself the time and space to let your mind wander and
your imagination fly.”
