ethics case
November 26, 2013
Business Ethics
Kiloton Hotel's EarthCare Program
There are many stakeholders in this case. Michael Pace, Kimpton Hotel's West Cost Director of Operations and Environmental Programs, General Manager of another hotel in San Francisco and the main catalyst for implementing its EarthCare program. Kimpton Hotels, its board of directors, consumers, Tom LaTour, and Mike Dapatie were also directly involved and affected in this case. The benefits of Kimpton's environmental sustainability initiatives were bottom line savings. In addition to that there was the potential to generate new businesses. The costs were high and were really the only major issue with the program. Opportunities for reducing a hotel's environmental impact were plentiful. Things like reducing the laundering of linen to customer discretion saved so much that it spread to luxury hotels everywhere. Despite all this potential, environmental progress in the U.S. hotel industry was limited. Only a few were fully committed to it. Most hotels were not doing anything beyond the small things. Kimpton’s environmental sustainability initiatives have proven successful and beneficial both in terms of its environmental and business benefits. Environmental improvement is one of the benefits of diverting waste. Some of the benefits are exemplified in their rollout phases, including: introducing non-disruptive and cost-reducing operational practices such as a recycling program, non-toxic cleaning products, promotional materials printed on recycled paper, complimentary coffee that was organically grown, and their towel/linen reuse system. Investing in water and energy conservation, using organically grown cotton for their linens, and the most fundamental changes, renovating hotels or using these approaches in new hotels.
I would justify the EarthCare program to Kimpton's board of directors and stockholders as being a necessity for the company. This program saves money, reduces the impact on the
Business Ethics
Kiloton Hotel's EarthCare Program
There are many stakeholders in this case. Michael Pace, Kimpton Hotel's West Cost Director of Operations and Environmental Programs, General Manager of another hotel in San Francisco and the main catalyst for implementing its EarthCare program. Kimpton Hotels, its board of directors, consumers, Tom LaTour, and Mike Dapatie were also directly involved and affected in this case. The benefits of Kimpton's environmental sustainability initiatives were bottom line savings. In addition to that there was the potential to generate new businesses. The costs were high and were really the only major issue with the program. Opportunities for reducing a hotel's environmental impact were plentiful. Things like reducing the laundering of linen to customer discretion saved so much that it spread to luxury hotels everywhere. Despite all this potential, environmental progress in the U.S. hotel industry was limited. Only a few were fully committed to it. Most hotels were not doing anything beyond the small things. Kimpton’s environmental sustainability initiatives have proven successful and beneficial both in terms of its environmental and business benefits. Environmental improvement is one of the benefits of diverting waste. Some of the benefits are exemplified in their rollout phases, including: introducing non-disruptive and cost-reducing operational practices such as a recycling program, non-toxic cleaning products, promotional materials printed on recycled paper, complimentary coffee that was organically grown, and their towel/linen reuse system. Investing in water and energy conservation, using organically grown cotton for their linens, and the most fundamental changes, renovating hotels or using these approaches in new hotels.
I would justify the EarthCare program to Kimpton's board of directors and stockholders as being a necessity for the company. This program saves money, reduces the impact on the