An obsession with metrics has led to a business culture in many industries that is more concerned with meeting targets than the wider good the measure was intended to represent.
It used to be outside actors like NGOs and governments that forced companies to be environmentally friendly. But some are building their brand on their CSR.
Computers control much of an engine’s performance these days. And it’s surprisingly easy to tweak the software to bypass emissions controls, as done by Volkswagen.
Many professionals risk the wrath of their governing body if they act against any code of ethics. But not so the IT industry. Is it time for that to change?
Volkswagen’s command and control approach has not helped its global response to the emissions scandal, with Australian customers left waiting for more than two weeks.
The VW emissions scandal gives governments every right to increase their supervisory role beyond regulation and to involve themselves to a much larger degree in economic activity.
Governments are just as much to blame when it comes to letting car manufacturers get away with dodging regulation requirements, as the companies themselves.
It’s likely that many people knew Volkswagen was cheating on emissions tests, including the engineers who built the ‘defeat device’. But why did no-one at the car maker blow the whistle?
Volkswagen’s emissions cheat didn’t just anger owners and regulators; the cost to human health from violating air quality rules exceeds US$100 million.
Volkswagen’s emissions deception and a case of alleged price-gouging around pharmaceuticals are part of a troubling trend of businesspeople who operate with little regard for ethics.