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January 05, 2005
What does it really mean?
What does it mean to "reflect society?" I'm not going to get deep or philosophical here, just point out an interesting Ad I saw in a magazine today. It was an Ad by Altria, the Parent company of Kraft Foods, Philip Morris International and Philip Morris USA.
I have to retype the Ad in it's entirety to show what I mean. You decipher it yourself and see what they are really saying. What is the purpose of this Ad?
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"THE EVOLVING RESPONSIBILITY OF BUSINESS TO REFLECT SOCIETY
by the parent company of Kraft Foods, Philip Morris International and Philip Morris USA.
What makes a responsible company? Over years and even decades, the answers from society to this question have evolved considerably.
At Altria Group, the ways in which we are striving to meet societal expectations also continue to evolve. An important element is our commitment to listen to all sectors of society, including our companies' critics. Not just to detect shifts in society's expectations, but to respond honestly and positively when we hear them.
We know that the right structures and processes must be in place throughout our companies so that the letter and spirit of laws are followed. But even more than this, the right values and skills must be instilled in our people. Each of our companies is working so that these things are in place.
As a company that is the parent of both food and tobacco companies we know we have a role to play. Our commitment to employees, shareholders, our companies' consumers, regulators and society as a whole is to continually make progress as we move forward.
Our name is the Altria Group."
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Wow. I guess they really are a responsible company that makes weapons of mass destruction. Hey it's not their fault that people use them. This article to me is so full of corporate spin that it's hard to tell what they are actually saying. For instance, "As a company that is a parent of both food and tobacco companies we know we have a role to play." That's nice but they don't elaborate what role or why.
Also, I really like, "Our commitment ... is to continually make progress as we move forward." Make progress at what? Playing a role?
This is the same way politicians win our hearts, by using key words like 'quality' 'commitment', 'progress', 'evolved', 'honestly', 'positively, 'responsible' and 'patriotic' without substantial meaning behind them.
Posted by carl1236 at January 5, 2005 11:44 PM | language