I. Introduction
In this era of globalization nowadays, business not only gives good news for people, but also gives bad news for some peoples. And not only carried out by the two countries but much better done by some countries develop country or developing country. On the one hand globalization could bring business fraternity, mutually beneficial bilateral relations, on the other hand can be catastrophic for a country, hostility, confrontation, even to bring up the war. In an increasingly complex international business also need to display ethical aspects. Many companies in doing business with other countries are expected to pay attention to morality. In this discussion we will discuss the moral issues related to international business.
II. Discussion
1. General Norm
As in the discussion of the theory of ethics, we have already discussed the problem of the theory of relativism which states the morality of different places have different morality. Thus it true? There are some argue that morality is otherwise universally applicable means that morality is everywhere the same (absolute). If this is the case what is the international business should follow the prevailing morality in which we carry out our business activities or follow the morality of our own where we do activities. To answer this De George suggests three answers, each answer has a point and there is nothing wrong, and thoroughly unacceptable.
a. In international business must adapt to the prevailing morality country where we conduct business activities. (Adjusting)
b. Emphasizing that we must do a morality prevailing in our own country, even though the business activities carried out in other countries. (Rigorisme)
c. Stressed that international business is not t...
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9. If the business Multinational builds dangerous factories, there must be adequate safeguards. Procedures and system safeguards should be clear to those who run / operate the plant. Systems and procedures should also be socialized. Security tools should be available and be monitored.
10. In the technology transfer of high-risk Multinational Business shall redesign a technology that can be operated safely. For developing countries are usually not ready in technology transfer at once. Before technology transfer must be submitted should be checked beforehand for security. Not to arise from unwanted.
III. Conclusion
After discussing about ethics in International Business that already writer say; now we know which best way how to create and how to behave in every business process. By this paper, reader can do the best way to be a businessman or businesswoman.
In the paper I will discuss how ethics is or is not related to one’s culture or personal beliefs. I will also touch base on relativism as a universal theory and what that means.
When running a business ethics plays an important role in the success of the business. “Ethics is the study of those values that relate to our moral conduct, including questions of good and evil, right and wrong, and moral responsibility” (pg. 2). Every individual will have a different set of moral codes. Moral codes are shaped by your personality, environment and religion. In this scenario and throughout this paper you will come to understand how our moral code of ethics plays a role in our daily decisions.
To many theorists, the philosophical stance embedded in moral relativism aims to understand morality in such a way that refutes an absolute truth. In other words, moral relativism confronts the idea that universal moral standards are inherent to the human species and in doing so suggests that these standards are merely culturally relative. An important aspect of the moral relativist argument includes the fact that cultures vary drastically around the world; and therefore, different cultures have different moral codes. Because a moral relativist distinguishes these differences, they would proclaim that no culture’s moral code can be characterized as “right” or “wrong.”
Cultural diversity is extremely important, and business managers cannot overlook the challenges of a multi-cultural workplace. What is ethical in one culture may not be ethical in another. Believing all cultures are the same ethically can create big problems in the workplace. When you force one’s ethics on a group of employees, it can lead to moral relativism (p. 682). Some managers opt to accept relativism in the workplace, while others do not. Melé and Sánchez-Runde (2013) add the opposition of moral relativism, which is moral universalism, supports Kant’s deontology, whereas right or wrong actions are objective, in that they do not depend on values or opinions (p. 684). A multi-cultural workplace can have many ethical differences and can be competitive in decision-making. It is critical to respect the rights of each culture and to work together to appreciate and understand each other. Melé and Sánchez-Runde (2013) conclude the respect of human rights is a perfect moral duty, and relationships, business and personal, are built upon one common human family (p.
Business ethics simply can be defined as the application of business values in the business practice of a company (Seawell 2010, p. 2). For a multinational company, business ethics is one of the critical aspects need to be taken into account in business decision-making processes. Failure to give attention on ethics may bring consequences on company’s reputation (Meyer & Jebe 2010, p. 159). The company is expected not only to pursue its own profits but also contributing to the environmental and social welfare of the community where it operates (Svensson & Wood 2008, p. 308).
According to this theory, there are no absolute right or wrong answers to ethical questions, only standards set in each and every unique culture. So one person cannot judge another person’s actions as morally wrong if those actions are acceptable to the other person’s culture. Within this theory, decisions about right and wrong only depend on the social norms in a culture, and these social norms cannot be imposed on people from outside one’s culture. No culture can be superior to another culture, and no culture’s practices can be judged immoral by comparison to other
Morals is a questionable subject on the planet today. It alludes to good rule that guide how an individual or association conducts exercises or undertakings. Each move that makes put in the business must have a component of morals in it. The general population anticipates that people and organizations will act in the most ideal way imaginable and in light of a legitimate concern for all partners. Diverse gatherings of individuals are dependably watchful for any endeavor to take part in deceptive practices, particularly by organizations.
Ethical standards that evolved over the history of Western civilization deal with interpersonal relationships. What is right or wrong? What one should do and not do when dealing with other people. Ethical behavior in a business environment has not been as clearly defined. When businesses were small and the property of a few individuals, traditional ethical standards were applied to meet different situations. However, as businesses became larger, the interpersonal ethical relations did not provide any clear behavioral guidelines. Likewise, the principles of ethical relationships were even less pertinent to the corporate environments.
Examine how a global company can delineate decision-making responsibility that balances a corporate code of conduct with regional cultural differences to achieve optimal business results.
There are different countries and cultures in the world, and as being claimed by cultural relativists, there is no such thing as “objective truth in morality” (Rachels, 2012). Cultural relativists are the people who believe in the Cultural Ethical Relativism, which declares that different cultures value different thing so common ethical truth does not exist. However, philosopher James Rachels argues against this theory due to its lack of invalidity and soundness. He introduced his Geographical Differences Argument to point out several mistakes in the CER theory. Cultural Ethical Relativism is not totally wrong because it guarantees people not to judge others’ cultures; but, Rachels’ viewpoints make a stronger argument that this theory should not be taken so far even though he does not reject it eventually.
In the business world there are many fundamental aspects and situations that can lead to several issues. In order to find an optimal and professional solution, business decision makers need to apply moral and ethical standards. And it is at that moment in which business ethics perform its role. Business ethics, which is in charge of examine how companies and individuals should act in business situations, is very essential in order to reach a common agreement and to work within the laws of business and solve an arisen dilemma. Working of the hand of ethical business companies, employees, investors, directors, and even individual officers can be beneficiated and obtain most favorable outcomes.
In conclusion, companies that seek to integrate into global markets usually encounter several problems because of the effect of globalization on business practices. The challenges originating from such integration is attributed to the differences in cultures in various societies across the globe. As evident in Google’s dilemma in China, there is no single set of universal ethics that are applicable to all settings and societies across the globe. Companies such as Google need to develop varying ethical standards that are relevant and appropriate to various nations and cultures in the world. This would enable the companies that are integrating into global markets to avoid ethical issues while maintaining effective business practices.
For Cultural Relativism, it is perfectly normal that something one culture sees as moral, another may see as immoral. There is no connection between them so they are never in conflict relative to their moral beliefs. However, within the context of Ethical Relativism there’s a significant difference. Normally, two cultures will possess varying proportions of the same normal and abnormal habits yet from a cross-cultural standpoint, what is abnormal in one culture can be seen as properly normal in an...
“One might logically think that a similar trend would be taking place with respect to the principles and practices of business ethics, however this is not the case” (Vogel, 1992). Despite the advances made in the way the world conducts business, business ethics has not yet globalized; the norms of ethical behavior continue to vary widely from country to the next. Globalization also brings increased competition, which means organizations must rapidly deploy products while also working to keep costs as low as possible. This will require businesses to focus more on profitability than anything else.
Anthropological cultural relativism often shows there are moral differences “only in belief[s], not in substantive moral principle[s]” (102). As Pojman points out, “[m]orality does not occur in a vacuum. [it] must be seen in a context, depending on the goals, wants, beliefs, history, and environment of the society in question” (102). Through understanding that we cannot judge and then impose our beliefs onto other cultures based on our own, we can see indirect similarities between moral principles across cultures that would otherwise appear immoral.