There are so many new social needs facing corporations in
the recent years and it is interesting to watch as companies begin to adapt to
and make changes to their culture, policies, and products. Over the years, we
have become so driven on work, fast, quick, and fulfilling immediate needs. You
are now starting to see the social needs shift back to family, work-life
balance, health, and wellness. With families needing to rely on two incomes to
survive, more women are in the workforce and therefore, the need for equality and
work-life balance is needed. This is one social need that hit homes to me as I
am a working mom.
The article talks about companies such as Google, Johnson
& Johnson, and Nestle as having a hard-nosed approach to business but they
are also at the forefront of company culture and created a shared value. They
have cutting edge products and are leaders in their industries. I feel that
they are able to do this because they have the best of the best working for
them. They provide societal benefits that helps them to attract and retain top
talent. Working in the same building as google, I get to see the social value
that they are adding to the organization. They are provided many perks such as
three well-balanced meals daily with special dietary options available, free
haircuts, bring your pet to work, day care, free parking, and free gym
memberships. Nestle and Jonson & Johnson have recently been in the news due
to their recent change in maternity and paternity leave benefit; they are
giving new parents an additional 8 weeks of full pay leave. President Obama has
been making a push for the US to start adopting practices of other countries in
order for families to be able to manage two working parents.
I know myself, it is hard. I do not have the perks of
extended leaves and social values and I can tell you that it is a struggle daily
for me to balance work and family. My husband had no time off and was unable to
push his vacation time allotted for the birth of our child however that is the
Steel Industry and presents a whole other topic of social values. I think that
we still have a ways to go for things such as extended maternity and paternity
leaves to be the new norm for the US as we are still trying to manage equality
for women in the workplace.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/01/johnson--johnson-parental-leave_n_7188708.html
