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What are the importance of culture
What are the importance of culture
Ethical values from culture
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Cultural environments that demand better understanding by global managers
With the ever increasing number of firms engaging in international business operations, cultural decision making has become an issue of necessity. Firms and particularly managers need to take into consideration the issues of cultural differences as well as variations in law and ethics to be successful. Cultural value systems are also closely linked to the understanding of moral or ethical issues and expectations regarding moral behavior, (Martin, Resick, Keating & Dickson, 2009). In addition, cultural differences explain the existence of different perceptions of what constitutes effective leadership, For instance, most people from individualistic cultures have a preference
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2006). Different cultural norms and ethical values generate differing expectations of what constitutes an acceptable or unacceptable leader behavior in any particular circumstance, (Resick et al. 2006). Such different expectations place restraints on the types of leader behaviors and characteristics that subordinates will regard as appropriate and desirable, (Martin et al. 2009). As Steers, Nardon & Sanchez-Runde argue (2013), if managerial intuitions can vary across cultures, so will the expectations of subordinates regards the appropriate managerial roles. Consequently, what individuals regard as effective managerial behavior will vary across different cultures, (Steers, Nardon & Sanchez-Runde, …show more content…
Cross-cultural-ethical conflicts arise whenever a company’s business practices contrast those of the foreign country’s practices in which it has set up operations, (DeGeorge, 2005). Wood et al. (2006) proposes that firms caught in a situation of conflicting ethical values should establish ways that are capable of accommodating the legitimate differences of the host countries. Molson Coors has managed to establish mechanisms that enable it to address situations of cultural conflicts. This scenario is particularly enhanced by the fact that Molson Coors had had extensive experience in operating across multiple cultures with operations across various countries. For instance, its ‘Beer Print’ tool enabled it to evaluate the impacts of its operations on the people and environment, (Kennedy Bruce 2014). In addition, its ‘Our Beer’ guided its organizational behavior. Incorporating ethical considerations into a company’s practices is desirable since in most instances, legal requirements and policies are not advocate ethical behavior, as they do not forbid all instances of unethical behavior. As a consequence, it is possible that some laws may allow or even oblige companies to engage in unethical behavior, (Hamilton, Knouse & Hill, 2008).
It is not adequate to comply with legal and social rules in order to avoid sanctions; firms should instead focus on incorporating
Constant technological and global changes create challenges that forces leaders to manage different cultures in different countries. People, goods, services, and ideas are moving today at greater speeds which mean our labor force is becoming more diverse and multicultural by the day. Effective leaders need to understand such global dynamics in order to successfully manage organizational cultures. The cultures of leaders and their core assumptions might be different from the values and assumptions of employees in a different country. Two managers working for the same global company might see things differently due to their backgrounds and cultural values. The different countries, in which the organization operates, will have different cultures depending on the social, economic, and political history of the country. Managing and understanding these differences need an effective cross-cultural thinking leader (Yukl, 2013). Some research questions that Yukl, 2013 suggests are: 1) how behavior differs across cultural values and for different countries? 2) How values and behaviors are influenced by personality across company and country? 3) What types of traits, skills, and experience are most useful to prepare a leader being assigned to a new country? 4) How does the fast-changing culture in developing countries affect and relate to
Caren, Siehl. Leading across cultures: China, 2004. Thunderbird, The Garvin School of International Management, 2004. (accessed January 14, 2014) (Caren, 2004)
An organization that lacks a true culture of ethical compliance can create problems with integrity issues with stakeholders and customers. When a major company such as Enron, was structured their approach to ethics on the surface appeared to oppose progressive innovation. The policies and ethics programs were set up to protect the company and its shareholders. According to author Berenbeim, The Enron company had a detailed code of ethics it was not enough the organization needed to incorporate ethics and integrity throughout their corporate culture. Enron had to focus on business ethics issues raised by the conduct of the company’s directors, officers, accounts and lawyers (Berenbeim, 2002).
The concept of business ethics refers to a set of guiding principles that encourage individuals in an organization to make decisions based on the company’s stated beliefs and attitudes toward business practices within its industry (Lisa McQuerrey., 2016). Ethical and Unethical business decisions have long been a predicament encountered by organisations, these practices are concerned with how the companies interact with the global business world, and to their one-on-one dealings with individuals (Garry Crystal, 2016.) The concept of ethics and social responsibility emerged into the business world in the early 1970s after the end of World War I, saw these organisations become more profit driven resulting in negative impacts on society at large.
The importance of having a code of ethics is to define acceptable behaviors and promote higher standards of practice within a company. The code should provide a benchmark for...
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.
In today’s global society, a Code of Ethics policy is used to label established, acceptable behaviors among that industry’s business associates, potential investors, and the corporation’s executive officers and employees, and most important, the consumer (Ethics Resource Center, 2003). In an attempt to promote an increased efficiency and productivity potential level, among employees and prospective clients, a corporation’s standard Code of Ethics should guide its members toward a more in-depth examination of their personal moral activity, and how these actions affect the people or acquaintances they encounter. A company should utilize this strategy as a model for the professional behaviors and responsibilities of its constituents, and proves the occupational advancement of that business. Ethics are important in every level of a corporation, but specifically in the day-to-day actions of its members, and the image the company broadcasts to its associates is fundamental in building a stable business foundation. These pledges are a vital communication tool used to covey the firm’s standards for business operations, and predominantly, its relationships with the surrounding communities (Ethics Resource Center, 2003).
Throughout the course of day-to-day business life, the business professionals come in contact with quite a sum of ethical dilemmas. There are various ways to handle these ethical dilemmas, but failure to follow the appropriate manner could result in an unethical outcome. The ethical guides related to the book definitely help students develop an ethical character that is sure to stand out for highly ethical companies. In addition, there are companies that test how ethical applicants are before hiring them, this in turn makes getting the job more difficult and costly. However, despite the high cost and difficulty said companies stay firm to ethics, guaranteeing they get top-of-the-line employees who will act in an ethical manner. Ethics is defined
The work emphasizes that having business ethics and a code of conduct can be a preventive medicine. The intended audience is the general public, management team, large businesses that have yet to create and develop a code of conduct, and businesses who are searching for a solution towards resolving ethical dilemmas in their workplace. The relevance of this work to our topic is it’s unique outlook on how the code should not only be developed with HR and the legal departments with the only intention of keeping policies legal but to see it being navigated by top management. It will also help us establish the usefulness of the code of conduct in relationships with stakeholders. A special feature of this work is the large-scale of sections it has on the topic of code of ethics. It contains a content section at the very top of the article that helps navigating toward sections easier. It also includes quotes from CEO’s, ethics professor Stephen Brenner form the Journal of Business Ethics, Twin Cities-based consultant Doug Wallace, etc. The writer of this article is Carter McNamara who has a MBA and PhD who specializes in organizational development and
Ethics in business is a highly important concept, as it can affect a company’s profits, salaries paid to employees and CEOs, and public opinion, among many other aspects of a business. Ethics can be enforced by company policies and guidelines, set a precedent when a company is faced with an important decision, and are also evolving thanks to new technology and situations that arise due to technology usage. Businesses have a duty to maintain their ethical responsibilities and also to help their employees enforce these responsibilities in and out of the workplace. However, ethics and the foundation for them are not always black and white. There are many different ethical theories, however Utilitarianism, Kant’s Deontological ethics, and Virtue ethics are three of the most well known theories in existence. Each theory is distinct in that it has a different quality used to determine ethicality and allows for a person to choose which system of ethics works best with both the situation and his or her personal ethical preferences.
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.
The Hofstede model of national culture differences, based on research carried out in the early seventies, is the first major study to receive worldwide attention. This influential model of cultural traits identifies five dimensions of culture that help to explain how and why people from various cultures behave as they do. According to Hofstede (1997) culture is Ù[ collective programming of the mind? This referring to a set of assumptions, beliefs, values and practices that a group of people has condoned as a result of the history of their engagements with one another and their environment over time. In this study, culture refers to a set of core values and behavioural patterns people have due to socialisation to a certain culture. The author̼ theoretical framework will be applied to compare differing management practices in China and the West. The five measurements of culture identified by the author are:
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.
Ethics is central for any organization in treating employees fairly and helping the organization advance its mission. There is no single best way for dealing with ethical challenges, but it is very important for managers to develop ethical policies and procedures for implementation. To minimize possible unethical decisions by staff members, it is important to incorporate written standards grounded in organizational values in the code of conduct.
The differences in other cultures vary from beliefs to ways of life, or norms, of the different societies. The importance of understanding and sensitivity to other countries’ differences is crucial to a business’ success. “Lack of familiarity with the business practices, social customs, and etiquette of a country can weaken a co...