Business Ethics in a Global Economy

Question 1

Global Culture, Value and Practices

Answer 1

Country cultural values: Are specific to countries, regions, sects or groups
National culture: Everything in our surroundings that is made by people
Both tangible and intangible
Each nation has a cultural belief about acceptable business activities
Subcultures can be found within many nations

Question 2

Classifying Cultural Differences

Answer 2

Geert Hofstede identified four cultural dimensions that impact the business environment
Individualism/collectivism
Power distance
Uncertainty avoidance
Masculinity/femininity 
Time Orientation
Restraint/Indulgence

Question 3

Self-Reference Criterion (SRC)

Answer 3

The unconscious reference to one’s own cultural values, experiences, and knowledge
The idea that “we” differ from “them”
Common in international business
We react based on our knowledge
Accumulated over a lifetime
Grounded in culture of origin

Question 4

Cultural Relativism

Answer 4

The concept that morality varies from one culture to another
Believes ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ is defined differently by each culture
Can be a rationalization for straying from one’s cultural values

Question 5

Global Common Values

Answer 5

Shared across most cultures; often based on religion, reflected by law
Desirable common values
Integrity, family and community unity, equality, honesty, fidelity, sharing, and unselfishness
Undesirable common values
Ignorance, pride and egoism, selfish desires, lust greed, adultery, theft, deceit, lying, murder, hypocrisy, slander, and addiction

Question 6

Economic Foundations of Business Ethics

Answer 6

Economic and political events and natural disasters can affect the global ethical decision making environment
Many ethical issues emerge in coping with crises
The last global recession caused massive public distrust
People are now discussing, and even revising, some fundamental capitalism concepts and assumptions

Question 7

Business for Social Responsibility (BSR)

Answer 7

Many MNCs have joined this globally based resource system
Tracks emerging issues and trends
Provides information on corporate leadership and best practices
Conducts educational workshops and training
Assists organizations in developing practical business ethics tools

Question 8

Ethics and the role of international Institutions

Answer 8

The IMF
The World Bank
The International Labor Organization
The United Nations
The World Trade Organization (WTO)

Question 9

Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact

Answer 9

Human Rights• Principle 1: Businesses should support and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights; and
• Principle 2: make sure that they are not complicit in human rights abuses.

Labour• Principle 3: Businesses should uphold the freedom of association and the effective cognition of the right to collective bargaining;
• Principle 4: the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labour;
• Principle 5: the effective abolition of child labour; and
• Principle 6: the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.
Environment
• Principle 7: Businesses should support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges;
• Principle 8: undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility; and
• Principle 9: encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies.
Anti-Corruption• Principle 10: Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.

Question 10

Ethical Risks

Answer 10

Dumping
Bribery
Antitrust Activity
Internet Security and Privacy
Human Rights
Labor and Right to Work
Compensation
Consumerism

Question 11

Ethical Decision Making in Global Business

Answer 11

Ethical decision making is essential to successfully operating a global business
Some MNCs have created officers/committees to oversee global compliance issues
Successful implementation of a global ethics program requires extensive employee training
Global firms must tailor programs to international markets
Global ethics is not “one size fits all”

Question 12

Defining Ethical Leadership

Answer 12

Leadership is the ability or authority to guide and direct others toward a goal
Ethical leadership creates an ethical culture
Have the power to motivate others and enforce the organization’s norms, policies, and viewpoints
Positive relationship with the organizational citizenship of employees and a negative relationship with deviance or misconduct

Question 13

Defining Ethical Leadership

Answer 13

Leadership is the ability or authority to guide and direct others toward a goal
Ethical leadership creates an ethical culture
Have the power to motivate others and enforce the organization’s norms, policies, and viewpoints
Positive relationship with the organizational citizenship of employees and a negative relationship with deviance or misconduct

Question 14

Seven Habits of Strong Ethical Leaders

Answer 14

1. Ethical leaders have strong personal character.
2. Ethical leaders have a passion to do right.
3. Ethical leaders are proactive.
4. Ethical leaders consider all stakeholders’ interests.
5. Ethical leaders are role models for the organization’s values.
6. Ethical leaders are transparent and actively involved in decision making.
7. Ethical leaders take a holistic view of the firm’s ethical culture.

Question 15

Ethical Leadership and Organizational Culture

Answer 15

Compliance-based approach emphasizes obedience to rules and regulations and sets processes in place to ensure compliance
Integrity-based approach views ethics as an opportunity to implement core values
Take responsibility for the firm’s ethical culture and hold employees accountable for practicing ethical behaviors and core practices

Question 16

Managing Ethical Conflict

Answer 16

Ethical conflicts occur when there are two or more positions on an ethical decision
Will not be brought to management’s attention without effective mechanisms for transparent communication
Employees themselves should be trained to handle conflict situations

Question 17

Communication for Becoming A Better Leader

Answer 17

Have the tough conversations that you’ve been meaning to have, including telling people what they need (and not necessarily want) to hear.

2. Stop talking and listen more.’
3. Pick up the phone or walk down the hall to actually talk with someone rather than relying on more impersonal emails.
4. Communicate bad news in the same way, with the same zest, as good news.
5. Share performance feedback with others regularly so that others know how they can improve.
6. Be purposeful and thoughtful in how you communicate.
7. Ask for feedback so you can improve your skills.
8. Work on your blind spots in your leadership abilities.

Question 18

Four Categories Of Communication

Answer 18

Interpersonal Communication
Small Group Communication
Nonverbal Communication
Listening

Question 19

Ways to Avoid Groupthink in Small-Group Decision Making.

Answer 19

1. Emphasize to each team member that he or she is a “critical evaluator” with the responsibility to express opinions and objections freely
2. Eliminate leadership biases by refusing to express an opinion when assigning tasks to a group
3. Set up a number of independent groups to work on the same issue
4. Encourage each team member to express the group’s ideas with someone he or she can trust from outside the group
5. Express the need to examine all alternatives
6. Invite outside experts into group meetings, and allow members to interact with these experts
7. Assign one person to be “Devil’s advocate”

Question 20

Power Differences and Workplace Politics

Answer 20

Ethical leaders can mitigate power differences through frequent communication with workers
Organizational politics is often perceived as trying to achieve one’s own ends even if it means harming others in the organization
Gossip, manipulation, playing favorites, and taking credit for another’s work
There is a difference between having a high degree of office politics and having good political skills
Political skills can be used to promote organizational goals and help rather than hinder other employees

Question 21

Feedback

Answer 21

Most companies recognize the need for organizational leaders to provide feedback to employees
Informal methods like simple conversation or through more formal systems such as employee performance evaluations
Need for organizational leaders to get feedback from their employees
Employee feedback can be generated in many different ways, including interviews, anonymous surveys, ethical audits and websites

Question 22

The RADAR Model

Answer 22

When ethical misconduct or issues arise, the leader should have plans in place to answer stakeholder concerns and recover from misconduct.

Question 23

The acronym RADAR is used to describe an ethical leader’s duty to:

Answer 23

Recognize ethical issues
Avoid misconduct whenever possible
Detect ethical risk areas
Answer stakeholder concerns when an ethical issue comes to light
Recover from a misconduct disaster by improving upon weaknesses in the ethics program