Severe shortages of critical medical supplies have prompted governments to compel private companies to fill the gap. In the U.S., President Donald Trump invoked rarely used powers to force General Motors to make ventilators, while the leaders of France, the U.K. and Japan have put pressure on companies to make more medical supplies.
But, judging by how many non-medical companies have voluntarily stepped up to shift their manufacturing might to produce health care supplies – including GM rival Ford – it seems hardly necessary.
Fashion brands such as LVMH, Chanel and L’Oreal are transforming their factories to mass produce face masks. Spirit and beer makers Anheuser-Busch, Diageo, Molson Coors and Bacardi are shifting some of their production and distribution toward hand sanitizer. And automakers Toyota, Volkswagen and Fiat Chrysler are leveraging their 3D-printing capabilities to produce face shields and are partnering with other companies to make ventilators.
In all, hundreds of companies across the globe have committed money, supplies and know-how to help with the COVID-19 response, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s corporate aid tracker.
Why are companies being so generous?
Altruism certainly plays a role for many of them, but it’s not the only motivator. Research on company behavior points to two others: bolstering reputation and avoiding regulation.
People expect companies to do their part.
In normal times, companies often undertake socially responsible initiatives to enhance their brand and build a stronger relationship with consumers, investors and employees.
What’s a socially responsible initiative? There are many definitions, but the way scholars like us think of it is it means taking voluntary action that is not prescribed by law or regulations.
Reputation Institute, a management consultancy, found that people’s willingness to buy, recommend, work for or invest in a company is significantly influenced by their perceptions of its corporate social responsibility practices. So doing something that benefits people in their community can lead to higher sales, increase the company’s valuation and keep good employees around longer.
But these are anything but normal times. The global crisis has created a need for an all-hands-on-deck response from everyone, including corporate America. People expect companies to do their part – and not appearing to do so could damage a brand’s reputation. A 2013 survey of citizens of 10 countries that included the U.S., France, Brazil and China found that 9 in 10 people said they would boycott a company they believed behaved irresponsibly.
And this is especially true of industries that are more directly connected to the crisis. For example, there’s been a shortage of hand sanitizer, which fashion companies that make perfume can easily produce. And manufacturers are, as we’ve seen, capable of repurposing their assembly lines to build ventilators.
Not doing its part could result in a long-term hit to a company’s reputation.
The other motivator is preempting government regulation, which becomes a greater risk during and after a crisis.
We saw more financial regulation after Wall Street’s behavior sparked the Great Recession, and lawmakers from districts that suffer from hurricanes tend to support bills promoting more environmental regulation.
So companies will often take proactive measures during a crisis in hopes of forestalling a more onerous government reaction.
At the moment, companies may be stepping up to avoid a more draconian response, such as when Trump invoked the Defense Production Act against GM.
Elham Mafi-Kreft is a clincial associate professor of business economics at Indiana University. Steven Kreft is a clinical professor of business economics and public policy at Indiana University. Distributed by The Associated Press.
