Chick-Fil-A: On Vision and Ideology
- ardybad
- Feb 19, 2017
- 7 min read
Original Title: Chick-Fil-A and The Media
Authors: Achmad B. Djauhari, Chun-Jan Fan, Haelvy Kiung, Rahul Sharma
Date: February 19, 2017
Course: People and Organization
Instructor: Dr. Paul Rossman
Chick-Fil-A and The Media
Chick-Fil-A is one of many food chain restaurants such as Cracker Barrel that had an issue regarding ethics. The company is under private family ownership who is considered active on Christian biblically-based value in running the business. No restaurant opened on Sunday and workers are motivated to involve in religious services as well.
In addition to its business practice, this company has an exclusive business model. It franchises the business by selectively take its franchisees with around five-thousand-dollar investment fees; yet, the company remains as ownership of every location. The firm also involves several philanthropy actions, including education, food donation, and the local community; the activities tend to serve Christian values and institutions. With the value belief in its organization culture, Chick-Fil-A was suspected of backing up several institutions that are anti-gay marriage by donating nearly five-million-dollar.
As a result, the company was criticized on social media and news. The firm also received a rejection to open a new location in Boston though Chick-Fil-A has demonstrated that it honors and respect via its Facebook post along with support from a former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate. Accordingly, addressing the Chick-Fil-A’s issue, this paper will discuss its company culture, social media effect, and the leader’s view that impact the company’s value.
The Company Perspective on Discrimination
Cracker Barrel was one of the companies that faced social discrimination as Chick-Fil-A did. It fired 11 employees because they did not represent a value of normal heterosexual in 1991. Chatel (2013) found that the CEO admitted that the circumstance was a policy mistake; however, the firm attitude towards the value stayed similar. Additionally, Cracker Barrel had no discrimination rule against identity or expression within the corporate policy. Comparing to Chick-Fil-A, both corporates did not implicitly support the same-sex married couple. The companies were owned by family businesses who strongly believe in biblical definition, which looks gay marriage as not a right matter. The fact is that the southern area of the US is known where most people believe in religion and disapprove of LGBT activities. In addition to companies’ beliefs, both Cracker and Barrel and Chick-Fil-A had encountered an issue regarding the public controversy. A schedule option and humanitarian actions showed Christian biblical principles. Both corporates do not run the business on Sunday so that their employees may go to church.
The protest on LGBT community discrimination issue would have been filed against Chick-fil-a because same-sex marriage or LGBT was not legal in most of the states. Even though the supporters tried to make awareness of this issue, they were not successful because there was no evidence and the law to prove the guilt. In 2016, however, The United States passed the federal law that protects LGBT communities. Underemployment discrimination law, employers cannot discriminate employees base on “race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, and genetic information, as well as reprisal for protected activity” (Sex-Based Discrimination, n.d.).
As a result, if Chick-Fil-A was proven against LGBT communities, the firm may be sued for discrimination against LGBT employees. In fact, the corporate did not discriminate against them. It was pursuing its right to contribute to charitability organizations. Additionally, in terms of hiring, promotion, and other business processes, the firm has never violated any rules or laws regarding discrimination issues.
Social Media Effect
Chick-Fil-A did not have evidence for discarding the LGBT group of people as Cracker Barrel had. Cracker Barrel’s issue, however, was not reinforced by the social media era. Social media has played an important role, including spreading negative news, on Chick-Fil-A, which magnifies the personal speech in the Baptist press in 2011 (Harvey and Allard, 2015). Indeed, the owner of Chick-Fil-A never gave a public statement from the corporate point of view. That is because they do not harm the LGBT community. They consistent implement their corporate values, and people in the community accept this different options as well.
Currently, many people get information from electronic media, including social media. Social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Blogs, acts as media for everyone who has Internet access to express opinions, ideas, or news. In this case, social media plays a significant role in spreading and influencing either issues or news via electronic devices. In fact, Shareholders have recognized influential voices and messages which were viral among the users rapidly across the nation. Also, viral posts eventually influenced and shifted public views on the business brand and products as well as the government (Botha & Reyneke, 2013). Chick-fil-a suffered from its brand image because of this public view. Social media had created “flag” to the firm and jeopardized the company’s brand and reputation that would potentially impact customers to buy the products (Haddock-Fraser, 2012).
Additionally, social media has been used by many celebrities, which created awareness of issues, to show disapproval of Chick-Fil-A culture. Actor Ed Helms, talk show host Jon Stewart, comedian Roseanne Barr, and Glee actor Grant Gustin took up the cause to spread awareness. It helped these people spreading voice as well as comment on other people or public opinions.
Furthermore, a former governor of Arkansas, Huckabee, used social media. He urged people across the country by stating that “affirm a business that operates on Christian principles and whose executives are willing to take a stand for the Godly values we espouse” by showing up at the chicken chain on August 1, 2012 (Melissa Jeltsen, 2012). Because of social media, the reason that the Cracker Barrel boycott was not successful due to a lack of influence from social media. Yet, many people still believed that their policy of hiring and firing employees was justified in terms of equality matters.
The Leader’s Influence on The Business Value
Albeit a person’s personal choice should not influence a corporate decision, the owner’s view will most likely influence the company’s brand image. When the owner, Dan T. Cathy, did not support the anti-LGBT idea, the company would not have shown its support for the opinion. In this issue, because of Cathy’s personal belief, all the employees, franchisees, vendors, and customers suffered collateral damage. It is, therefore, not ethical to influent the corporate social mission. Cathy should have thought about risks and his accountability to whom the company does business with; because his value damages the company brand, he should have kept his opinion personally. The bottom line is that CEOs should be wary of making controversial personal statements when they are standing for the business.
Moreover, a business owner is a leader in the corporation. A leader is a person that brings out the corporate’s vision and mission and acts beyond management rules for the future. Michael Porter (1980) agreed that personal value and aspirations are the critical components of companies in creating a competitive strategy. As Cathy is the leader in the business, he has the responsibility of the business profit and loss. This role includes developing the business strategy (Lichtenstein, 2012). Lichtenstein (2012) believed that business leaders value would impact them on actions which shape behavior as well as decision and drive them in creating value.
Furthermore, all the social cause influent, which made by the corporation is based on corporate leaders’ beliefs and values (Harvey & Allard, 2015). Therefore, personal value is the underline factor that makes social contributions and creates a competitive advantage for the company. A firm with active social missions has competitive advantages on differentiating from other competitors, create consumer preference, and attract talent.
Moreover, what Cathy had done to his company was not limited to the way he brought the company to ethical behavior. According to Table 1, ethics can be divided into three categories, including deontological, teleological, and caring. Deontological observes processes, obligations, and duties as a faith. Within his universal application, Cathy said that family is essential, and it follows the biblical definition of the family that is being one male and one female as his universal principle. Cathy’s faith stands for his business and code of conduct that considered as his self-actualization.
Besides, Chick-Fil-A also focused on the outcome. When the firm put effort into education for teenagers, enhance family, and return the profit from society, it built a substantial endeavor and glorious brand image to most people. Representing the caring theory, Chick-Fil-A also made contributions are properly love and humanity. Nonetheless, the company should have viewed the success of the company not only from brand and profit bust also social environment towards communities as well as protect its stakeholders (Abdul, 2015). This treatment will ensure particular care on the social relationship is built solidly.
Accordingly, Cathy’s actions based on ethical theories in Table 1 somewhat are not understood by opposed communities. Adapting religion in business might be difficult for governance. Religious value associates in perceive as arrogance due to no tolerance to the firm nonreligious norms. Regarding individuality, religious will influence the decision-making process towards nonreligious workers within the organization. Those who are not seen as the similar religious value will be unprotected from discrimination government structures (Abdul, 2015). Clearly, Cathy should have addressed his belief to what risks that would have happened when he remained to defend his concept. For respected communities, his faith opposes the idea of equality, which they expected to be implemented by most people or organizations.
Summary
Chick-Fil-A is a company that has a company culture that has a strong influence on Cristian believe. Having a quite similar issue on the discrimination issue as Cracker Barrel. While Cracker Barrel fired its employees due to LGBT perception, Chick-Fil-A was accused of not participating in one of many LGBT foundations because of its strong belief. Besides, because of the perception of LGBT communities, the company started to get criticism from the public, especially social media. The criticism had struggled the corporate to reestablish the company’s brand in several areas of the US such as Boston and New York.
As a matter of fact, the company did not violate the law because there was no evidence regarding discrimination in business processes such as recruitment, promotion, or compensation. The appearing issue that the public could not accept was the company’s social responsibility programs that never let LGBT communities participate. Assuming the high corporate value on the religious belief, Chick-Fil-A could have better to evaluate its value between religious and general matters to be more ethical to the public.
References
Abdul, K. A. (2015). Morality and religion: Complementing or complicating corporate governance. Journal of Religion and Business Ethics, 3(1)
Botha, E., & Reyneke, M. (2013). To share or not to share: the role of content and emotion in viral marketing. Journal of Public Affairs (14723891), 13(2), 160-171. doi:10.1002/pa.1471
Chatel, A. (2013, October 16). 7 Companies That Don’t Support Gay Rights. The Huffington Post. Retrieve from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/16/anti-gay-companies_n_4110344.html
Haddock-Fraser, J. (2012). The Role of the News Media in Influencing Corporate Environmental Sustainable Development: An Alternative Methodology to Assess Stakeholder Engagement. Corporate Social Responsibility & Environmental Management, 19(6), 327-342. doi:10.1002/csr.282
Harvey, C. P., & Allard, M. J. (2015). Understanding and managing diversity: Readings, cases and exercises (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
Jeltsen, M. (2012). Chick-Fil-A Has 'Record-Setting Day' While Embroiled in Anti-Gay Controversy. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/02/chick-fil-a-has-record-setting-day-anti-gay_n_1733697.html
Lichtenstein, S. (2012). The Role of Values in Leadership: How Leaders’ Values Shape Value Creation. Retrieved February 16, 2017 from http://integralleadershipreview.com/6176-the-role-of-values-in-leadership-how-leaders-values-shape-value-creation/
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (n.d.). Sex-Based Discrimination. Retrieved February 17, 2017 from https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/sex.cfm
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