Bribery and Corruption

1500 Words3 Pages

The existence of bribery and unethical behavior is rampant in the world market and may not change overnight. The question of bribery has been distilled in business literature as a question of ethics. In this situation at the airport with the customs officer, it is important to distinguish between business ethics and personal ethics. In a business ethics situation, the Foreign Corruption Practices Act would prohibit offering any bribe to the custom office – for example to free a shipment of goods that was lost in red tape (Pitman & Sanford, 2006). Most companies also have policies against bribery as well. In this situation, however the main issue at hand is that of personal ethics. When in a situation where your company is unknown and there is no business being conducted, normal business ethics and laws (including FCPA) do not apply only personal ethical standards.

In West Africa, bribery is socially accepted. In a situation such as this, it is also expedient. If we consider fundamental negotiating theory, the customs officer has nearly all of the bargaining power because the power associated with being “right” does not exist, according to the prevailing norms of that country. Combined with the time constraint under which you are operating, you have no real bargaining power in this negotiation. In the absence of applicable laws, the moral imperative is defined only by one’s own personal ethical standards. If one deems it worthwhile to miss the airplane on principle, then that is an option. However, this has consequences in that you miss the plane but you should also do nothing to prevent future incidents of bribery. The bribery stems from ineffective, likely bankrupt government, which means passport control officers are paid next...

... middle of paper ...

...cular market. Companies that conduct market research normally save a lot of money by understanding what type of product or service is needed, other than entering the market blindly without knowing what to expect.

Works Cited

Keegan & Green. (2002). Global Marketing Management, 6th ed. New York: Prentice Hall.

Neal, W. & Bathes, S. (1996). Using the value equation to evaluate campaign effectiveness. ARF

Advertising Tracking and Campaign Effectiveness Workshop. Retrieved June 16, 2010

from http://www.sdrnet.com/article6.html

Pitman, G. & Sanford, J. (2006). The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act revisited: Attempting to

regulate “ethical bribes” in global business. Journal of Supply Chain Management. Vol.

30 (3) 14-20.

QuickMBA.com (2007). Marketing research. QuickMBA.com. Retrieved June 16, 2010 from

http://www.quickmba.com/marketing/research/

Show More
Related

  • International Anti-Bribery and Fair Competition Act of 1998

    780 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bribery has always been a controversial issue, especially in the business world. Many argue that bribes are a necessary cost of doing business while others view them with distain, claiming that they are antiquated and create an unfair advantage. In the late 90’s, the problem reached a boiling point. Although laws such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act made bribery illegal in the United States, it still remained an international issue. Numerous skeptics claimed that violators of the act slipped through loopholes and that the law was not properly enforced. This law only applied to the United States, but bribery had become a worldwide concern. In 1998, the International Anti-Bribery and Fair Competition Act was enacted. The Act became law on November 10, 1998, however; it did not take effect until May 1, 1999.

    Read More

  • Bribery Case Study

    878 Words  | 2 Pages

    When operating in a different country/culture businesses should refrain from making any definite assumptions or judgements. The issue is that is it easy to make assumptions/judgements about countries whose livelihoods that business is not even familiar with. Then when the business actually gets to that country, they will find that their assumptions/judgements fail to live up to the complexity of that country/culture. For example, in the case of bribery that occurs in certain countries, a company may mistakenly assume that because officials partake in this act that this act is thereby morally permissible. If anything that is far from the truth. Historically, bribery has often been considered wrong in many countries worldwide. When that company

    Read More

  • Mo' Money, Mo' Greed & Corruption

    1800 Words  | 4 Pages

    The American dream: a spouse, a few children, a lucrative job, a nice home, and of course, some material luxuries. Those who are able to realize this goal have my respect and they should be proud of their accomplishments. However, my beef arises with the very few Americans who greatly surpass this dream. Yes, I mean the multi-millionaires and billionaires of America.

    Read More

  • White Collar Crime And White Collar Crime

    1054 Words  | 3 Pages

    Bribery occurs when money, services, goods, information, or anything else of value is offered with intent to influence a person’s actions, decisions, or opinions of the accuser. Charges can be brought against an individual, whether they offered the bribe or accept it. Bribery and public corruption cases frequently make headlines new stories daily. Bribes can take the forms of gifts or payments of money in exchange for favorable treatment like awards of government contracts (Mince-Didler, n.d.). Government officials tend to gain a huge incentive with bribery while serving their term. Other forms of bribes may include privileges, services, various goods, property and favors. Bribes are always intended to influence or alter the actions of individuals with political and public corruption (Mince-Didler, n.d.).

    Read More

  • Politics: The Hidden Puppeteer of Small Businesses

    1501 Words  | 4 Pages

    “I’m not a businessman I’m a business, man, so let me handle my business damn” Jay-Z. In today’s society, politics tend to control how the world runs, which is corrupting the way Americans live their lives. Many small businesses fall into politicians’ hands, resulting in a practically government ran business. As politics continue to dominate the human population, corrupting many small businesses economic status, a result in a decline of their overall net pay is guaranteed. This is not fair for the many entrepreneurs that work hard to run a small business. If this is not stopped, politicians will continuously take advantage of small businesses.

    Read More

  • Corruption In America

    980 Words  | 2 Pages

    Living in America has many meanings to so many different people. For some it’s a safe haven while for others it’s a second chance at life. America was made to give hope, freedom, and another chance. Everything that America once stood on tall and strong, is falling down in the hands of evil corruption. If a person was asked what they think about America today, their response would be negative. Why would a country with so much meaning be looked down upon?

    Read More

  • What Is Wrong with Bribery?

    1606 Words  | 4 Pages

    To make a payment in exchange for special consideration where the recipient has a duty to offer equal consideration to all (more commonly referred to as bribery) is morally reprehensible on three distinct grounds. Not only does it violate inherent principles of justice and equality by enabling one to use their wealth in order to attain or reinforce influence, it also provokes the recipient to violate the positional responsibility that they have tacitly agreed to uphold (this duty is therefore contractually binding): namely that he or she will perform their role in a manner that adheres to the rules of the organisation in question. The covert nature of the bribe is also problematic; once a bribe is uncovered, the vitality of the entire organisation is endangered because people will inevitably question the integrity of all prior actions undertaken by the affected institution. I shall argue that bribery is wrong regardless of whether the bribe has any impact upon the actions of the recipient, for the motivation that underlies an action is as important as the action itself. Only when one knows institutional corruption to rife can bribery be deemed common practice; in this case, one has a moral right to violate the duties of their position, for their duties require them to engage in corrupt practise.

    Read More

  • Corruption International Business Essay

    714 Words  | 2 Pages

    The development of a country depends generally on the work and values of its society. The image of a country can be severely damaged by certain actions and behavior of their citizens, like bribery. When a country is known as a corrupt nation, not only will the facade of the country be affected, but also the economy. Establishing measures to eradicate corruption are urgently necessary. Corruption has been around since the begging of time, but currently is more common in business, more specifically, international business. Although some organizations have been formed, and conventions have been signed in order to end it, corruption is still one of the mayor problems around the world. An ethical view might bring more insight to why bribery and corruption is not a moral act and why more severe measures should be taken into consideration.

    Read More

  • The Ethics of Bribery

    1797 Words  | 4 Pages

    Bribery is wrong, and it would be almost instinctive to point at the benefits of impartially functioning public servants and incorrupt corporations to our democratic society as justification. However, in this imperfect world where bribery is rife in varying degrees, is it possible to express this notion convincingly? Certainly 'because the UK Bribery Act says so' is far less persuasive to a council planning office in Shanghai than in London, and indeed in compliance with section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010 which relates to commercial offences, it is essential that this question is engaged with on a corporate scale and without assertion through dogma. Accordingly, this essay will argue that elements wrong with bribery are inclusive of both moral and economic considerations. Moreover, in conjunction with international mandates, advent of aggressive legislation such as that of the UK Bribery Act 2010 is representative of global efforts to eliminate bribery. Hence, it follows that bribery can never be considered a normal part of business because it is economically unsustainable in the long term.

    Read More

  • Corruption in colombia

    520 Words  | 2 Pages

    Colombia is west of Venezuela and north of Peru and Ecuador. Colombia borders the Caribbean sea and is located in south America.

    Read More

  • Corruption & Destruction by Power

    633 Words  | 2 Pages

    Authority in a society is a necessary evil which when unfettered, results in the abuse of power. Power has long been considered a corrupting and a disrupting force in function and in influence. Underlying motives and greed fuel those who seek to gain and or abuse this power. The Crucible examines this twisted force as it corrupts societies’ clergy, blinds its justices, and empowers those who seek to abuse it. Arthur Miller shows how power can be a corrupting influence and how it can blind the judgment of authoritative figures.

    Read More

  • The Morality Of Corruption, By Immanuel Kant

    1679 Words  | 4 Pages

    The procedure of giving and taking bribe is called ‘corruption’, and almost in all countries around the world it is forbidden; as a result, participating in this procedure leads to some punishments. Kind of punishment may vary depending on countries’ law; therefore, in one country it can be some monetary fine, while in other

    Read More

  • Marketing Research Literature Review

    1253 Words  | 3 Pages

    Briefly it is a systematic design, collection, analysis, and reporting of data and findings relevant to a specific marketing situation facing the company, allows management to make the changes necessary for better results through adopting a proactive approach. Therefore, if a company wants to know what type of products or services would be profitable it should make a market research. Furthermore, a comprehensive research will enable the company to know about the product imperfections (if there are) and to know if it has been able to satisfy customers’ needs. It attempts to provide accurate information that reflects a true state of affairs. Due to market research the company can formulate a viable marketing plan and estimate the success of its existing plan. There are two main sources of marketing research information:

    Read More

  • Corruption In South Africa Essay

    973 Words  | 2 Pages

    Conceptualizing Corruption in South Africa Conceptualizing Corruption in South Africa Amr Taha El Baba Lebanese American University SPECIFIC PURPOSE: To persuade my audience that corruption could cripple the progress in South African societies. Crime and corruption are not relevant to the degree of poverty present in a country as some of you might think. Corruption is a social phenomenon that every society deals with, regardless of the level of development in the country. What makes corruption a dangerous social phenomenon is its ability to adapt to the conditions present in any country.

    Read More

  • Corruption and Globalisation

    5204 Words  | 11 Pages

    Corruption and Globalisation - Both of them have been so pervasive in recent years. According to a BBC survey, corruption ranked as the second biggest problem people concern in the world and globalisation ranked first. Are there any links between the two? To what extend they are related to each other? And what effect do they have?

    Read More

More about Bribery and Corruption

Open Document