Stakeholder Mapping

Introduction

Amazon is one of the first few companies that benefited the most from the early mover advantages in the dot com bubble in the early 2000s. It an online retailer that makes use of cloud computing to practice an integrated business model that allows it to function effectively in the advance, complex and ever increasing internet industry. Being a large company, Amazon has to address various underlying stakeholders (Saunders, 2001). Prime stakeholders that Amazon has to look after are: board of directors, investors, employees, customers, strategic partners and suppliers. Each stakeholder is not only affected by the company’s performance but in turn affects the company’s strategic decision making as well. The paper discusses the specific interests that each stakeholder has associated with the company and based on the objectives of the company, maps them on the Power Interests Matrix. The paper also examines in the light of the case of Amazon, how corporate social responsibility affects organisational strategy.

Stakeholder Interests and Stakeholder Mapping

Amazon’s stakeholder comprise of the board of directors, investors, employees, customers, strategic partners and suppliers.

The Directors and Senior Management

The board of directors and investors expect the company to grow and make more profits. The board of directors and the management expect to enhance the customer innovation and add cost efficiency in the business model that could boost the level o profits acquired.

Employees

The employees expect to secure jobs, make higher salaries and see the company grow that could aid in their career development.

Strategic Supply Chain Partners

On the other hand, the strategic partners and suppliers expect the company to grow and expand so that they could benefit in return from higher sales of their products; higher returns form the company and gain the benefits from brand association with the company.

Customers

Customers expect high quality products at cheaper prices from the retailers. They seek secure transactions, and ease of purchase. They expect their information to remain confidential and the website to conduct fair business practice with them at all times and address to their complaints and issues with the products promptly.

Community

Community constitutes the publics that are concerned with social well-being and social development. On the stakeholder map, community is low power and low interest. Amazon is, nonetheless, accountable for its carbon footprint especially with regard to the material used and disposed in packaging of the goods delivered to the customers and the means of transportation used. With the increasing green purchasing habits of customer, Amazon is now considering the impact that being responsible for the environment is crucial for the profitability of the company. Thus, this makes community a key stakeholder, considering the present situations, wherein, it constitutes high power and high interest with regard to responsible purchasers.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Strategy

Amazon takes community and environmental issues as least prior in making strategies. However, analysts and publics alike have raised ample concerns for the carbon footprint of Amazon in the making of Kindle and the packaging and delivery of the products customers buy online from the Amazon e-store. A source of concern is the fact that Amazon is yet to disclose its environmental impact reports. Such concerns are putting Amazon in a negative place in the minds of the ‘responsible’ consumers and thus, shaping a bad public image of the company. In order to avoid extenuating circumstances, Amazon will have to publish a CSR report in order to disclose its environmental impacts. This calls for taking into account the carbon footprint of the company and going ‘green.’ Thus, this indicates that CSR does not primarily affect the company but the company has stepped into a position where it will have to shape its strategy round CSR issues as a response to public appeal.

Conclusion

The stakeholders of Amazon are managers, directors, strategic partners, employees, customers and community, wherein, key are customers and community at the time. In line with environmental pressures, Amazon is most likely to be affected with social responsibility and will have to shape its corporate strategy to disclose its carbon footprint and go green to suit its responsible customers’ demands and make good its public image.