Global Supply Chain Ethics Reflection Essay. Strategic leadership

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Global supply chain ethics
Introduction
Globalization has increased competition among companies by reducing the economic distance between them. To cope up with the competition, companies in industrialized regions have outsourced cheap labor and low tax rates from developing countries. Nestle grew by 10% annually through its Thailand subsidiary that benefited from cheap labor. However, the company’s seafood and cocoa supply chain in Thailand relied heavily on slavery and child labor practices. Based on Nestlé’s Supply chain in Thailand, this paper aims at discussing how leaders can create and maintain good organizational culture, ethics behind outsourcing, and why consumers buy fair trade products.
Creating and maintaining organizational culture
* Strategic leadership
Top managers are role models and employees observe how they speak and act, especially in tough situations. Therefore, the purpose of a leader is not just giving out instructions but also identifying with the cause of the business (Alvesson, 2015). In Nestlé’s case, top managers at the parent company failed to provide the right “cultural canvas” for the Thailand subsidiary. Strategic leadership is essential in creating organizational culture because it generates a setting that produces highly passionate workers that produce at climax levels.
* Human resource practices
Traditionally, hiring focused primarily on the applicant's skills and experience. However, with culture becoming a valuable part of business success, HR departments must not only select skillful people, but also people who are likely to embrace and promote the organizational culture. Nestle failed this part as it allowed minors without any identification with company to work in the cocoa and seafood supply chain. Therefore, while conducting hiring interviews, the HR department should create an accurate picture of the organization through a cultural fit interview.
* Emphasize on employee wellness
A business organization cannot promote a positive culture without a healthy workforce. Employees well being is related to their mental, physical, and emotional state both in the internal and external environment of the organization. This involves a good working environment, a competitive salary, adequate working resources, and enhanced communication among themselves and the managers. They should be motivated enough to work on their own rather than subjecting them to forced labor like in the Nestlé’s supply chain.
* Grow off the current culture
Creating a positive organizational culture does not mean that the company completely scraps everything and adopt new ways. It is more of selecting good ideas from the existing culture and integrating them with other new ideas. However, with increased globalization and competition, the company must continuously adjust its culture to reflect current business concepts. This involves frequent training of employees and adjusting policies and processes. In Nestlé’s case, after eliminating child labor, the company could continuously educate the local community about the hazards of child labor and emphasize that it does not employ...