Corporate governance
Corporate Governance: the examination of relationship within the organisation, those involved in the management of the organisation and external stakeholders: The section should include such things as:
Internal Corporate Governance Mechanisms: structure, substance, and purpose (e.g., board effectiveness, the role of non-executive directors, and remuneration structures)
External mechanisms, especially the role of institutional investors.
Shareholder and stakeholder perspectives in an ethical context
Employees and Ethics
(approx. 500 words- 15 Marks)
Evaluate the corporate governance failures and weaknesses that have led to problems of the chosen company (HSBC) and the consequences of weak corporate governance experienced.
(approx. 750 words 25 Marks)
(This section should be related with the short report below. Please note that this report is once submitted as part 1 of the assignment and don’t repeat it:
HSBC Holdings is a public limited corporation based in England. HSBC has its headquarters in London and stock market listings in Bermuda, New York, Hong Kong, and London. The HSBC group comprises companies that offer a wide variety of financial services. Nevertheless, after being determined to have breached U.S. sanctions and admitting its facilities were utilised to commit fraud for crime syndicates, including “$881 million for Mexican drug cartels, HSBC paid $1.9 billion (£1.3 billion) and entered a deferred prosecution deal with the U.S. Department of Justice” As of December 2020, the bank had a total asset of US$2.984 trillion. Therefore, it is Europe’s second-biggest bank.
In 1991, the “Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation” founded its current form to serve as a fresh group holding corporation; its name is derived from the letters of that corporation (Colombo, 2020). In the 2019 vs 2020 financial report, Higher ECL (expected credit losses), other credit asset impairments and reduced revenue, was partially offset by reduced operating costs, which resulted in a 30 percent drop in reported profit after tax to $6.1 billion and a 34 percent drop in stated profit before tax to $8.8 billion. A “$1.3 billion impairment of technology intangible assets were recorded in 2020, whereas a $7.3 billion impairment of goodwill was declared in 2019” (Colombo, 2020). Thus revenues fell 8 percent to $50.4 billion after adjustments. Subsequently, Commerzbank, Standard Chartered, and Lloyds Banking Group are among HSBC’s main rivals. Nonetheless, HSBC utilises a strong brand image and a customised strategy to offer clients an individual experience, whether they need investment services for their business or a personal mortgage, to gain a competitive edge.
Critically evaluate the different responses to corporate governance and the role of government regulations in responding to issues raised by an examination of the ethical issues impacting upon the business organisations that have encouraged corporate governance reform worldwide: The section should include such things as:
Comparative Corporate Governance systems – Europe, USA, Asia
Globalisation issues including International corporate governance and comparative analysis
Leadership, Values & Managing Ethical Behaviour
Ethics & Corporate Social Responsibility in a Global Context
(approx. 1500 words- 50 Marks)
2 750 words, excluding reference list and bibliography
Knowledge
Discuss and critically evaluate key corporate governance and ethics concepts.
Evaluate different theoretical perspectives on corporate governance, understand their assumptions about key actors, motives, and control mechanisms.
Explore an international comparative perspective of corporate governance, focusing upon the system found in the UK and contrasting this with a range of different corporate governance systems in countries around the world.
Skills
Construct critical thinking about a range of approaches and options for corporate accountability and ethics requiring the organisation of thoughts, analysis, synthesis, and critical appraisal.
