MBB7071M Business Ethics and Sustainability Assessment Brief - Critical Essay

MBB7071M Assessment Description:

Business Ethics and Sustainability in a Globalized World

You should prepare a 4500-word critical essay examining, evaluating, and discussing how contemporary business ethics and sustainability practices are applied within one publicly listed company from the FTSE 100 or FTSE 250.

Your task is to analyze how at least four topics covered in the module on business ethics and sustainability are relevant to your selected company.

The topics covered during the lectures include:

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

• Ethical Decision-Making in Business
• Sustainable Business Practices

The Role of Business in Society

• Stakeholder Theory vs. Shareholder Primacy
• Greenwashing and Ethical Marketing

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Criteria

• Circular Economy and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• Business and Human Rights

Ethical Supply Chains and Fair Labor Practices

In your report, you should select one publicly listed company from the FTSE 100 or FTSE 250 and critically analyze how the company addresses business ethics and sustainability. 

You should consider:

The company's ethical and sustainability challenges.

• How the company implements ethical and sustainable business practices.
  The effectiveness of the company's approach in relation to theoretical concepts from the module
• Potential areas for improvement and future challenges.

MBB7071M Structure

MBB7071M Your assignment could follow this format:

Executive Summary (max 150 words, not included in the word count) Provide a concise overview of your essay, highlighting the key topics, relevant theories and frameworks, and findings.

Introduction (approx. 700 words)

Introduce the selected company and provide background information.Explain why this company is relevant for analysis in business ethics and sustainability. Highlight the specific research question and its relevance.

Main Body and Literature Review (approx. 2300 words)

• Provide an in-depth discussion of the selected business ethics and sustainability topics. Analyze how these topics are applied within the company.

Critically evaluate the company's ethical and sustainability strategies, using relevant theories and frameworks.

Discuss any controversies, challenges, or criticisms related to the company's ethical and sustainable practices.

Recommendations (approx. 1000 words)

• Provide recommendations for how the company can enhance its ethical and sustainability practices.
Suggest policy changes or strategic initiatives the company could implement to improve its impact.

Conclusion (approx. 500 words)

Summarize key findings and provide a critical reflection on the broader implications for business ethics and sustainability.

Reference list

• There should also be a full reference list at the end of the essay, following the correct YSJU Cite Them Right Harvard reference guideline.
• Students sometimes seem to underestimate the importance of this - please use the information provided in this document and on Moodle to ensure that you follow the correct citation and referencing processes that are required for this type of assessment.

Please note: the Reference List is not included as part of the word count.

The essay should develop a clearly structured and academically-supported argument and include an introduction and summary conclusion of key points.

Students must read widely to ensure their knowledge and understanding is deep and comprehensive. The course reading list is an important starting point in this regard and the resources and articles referenced during each week of the module
Note - Word count: Please note that the word count is taken from the start of the Introduction to the end of the Conclusion, 4,500 words (+/- 10%).

The 'Additional Information' outlines the types of content expected in each of these sections. Please devote some time to read through the information carefully. Upon writing their critical essay, students must also read through and follow closely the 'Assessment Regulations' visible below.

Learning Outcomes of MBB7071M 

• Understand the principles of business ethics and sustainability and their role in contemporary business.
• Critically review and evaluate a range of models and theories that explain ethical decision-making. corporate social responsibility (CSR), and sustainable business practices, as well as their impact on businesses and stakeholders.
• Apply theoretical understanding gained in this module to real-world business contexts by analyzing and evaluating ethical and sustainability challenges faced by publicly listed companies, demonstrating a critical appreciation of complex corporate responsibility issues.

MBB7071M Advice and Guidance

It is important that content should be underpinned with relevant academic theory, concepts, and models where appropriate. These should be referenced throughout.

The essay should be presented in one Microsoft Word Document.

The Cite: Them Right Harvard Referencing system (https://citethemrightonline.com/). For a quick guide, please also see this link.
should be used

Try to develop a cohesive and coherent piece of work in an academic style. Use the assessment details, marking criteria and support throughout the module to achieve this.

Formatting Advice:

• A front cover sheet (provided on Moodle) should be attached to the beginning of your report.
• Font should be either Times New Roman or Arial, font size of 12. Spacing 1.5 and normal margins.
• The assignment should be Microsoft Word processed for submission.
• Pages must be numbered.
• The report should be written in third person.
• You are required to add the following statement on page 2 of the assignment: I declare that I am the sole author of this assignment, and the work is a result of my own investigations, except where otherwise stated. All references have been duly cited".

Submission Information:

• Work should be submitted to the requested link available on Moodle.
• The individual written assignment must be submitted on Moodle by 10 June 2025 by 12:00 noon UK time.
• Please note that all information regarding dates and time is in Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). If you are in another time zone, please take this into consideration.