THE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE

The market economy has become increasingly global. Leaders in business,
government, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) now see global
economic development as “the best way to increase prosperity within and
among countries, and to create opportunities for millions of people, especially
in the developing world, to secure a decent life for themselves and their
children.”6 The challenge is to find the right balance between emerging global
norms, values, and standards and local cultures, business practices, and
community needs.7
Businesses in emerging market economies face many challenges, as
discussed in more detail later in this chapter. For example, although no
society approves of paying or accepting bribes, in societies where workers
receive lower than subsistence-level pay, “expediting fees” (also known as
“bribes”) often become unapproved but accepted behavior under local custom.
In such societies, bribery is so common that even law enforcement
officials pay bribes to gain their positions.
While this manual describes processes reflecting emerging global standards,
the design and implementation of a business ethics program requires
extreme sensitivity to local norms, values, and standards. The program must
recognize that management policies, standards, and procedures will be open
to interpretation at all levels of the enterprise. For example, a superficial
approach to responsible business conduct condemns bribes and threatens to
punish those who pay or accept them. However, a business ethics program
takes a comprehensive approach. It recognizes such accepted behavior as
part of the challenges facing the enterprise and addresses such issues systemically.
In other words, it addresses them at their roots by examining hiring
processes, compensation schemes, and training and education; by instituting
monitoring, auditing, and reporting mechanisms; and by influencing
the legislative or regulatory processes.8
A business ethics program does not set up either the enterprise or its
employees and agents for failure. Rather, it strives to place the right people
in the right positions in the enterprise to foster and meet reasonable stakeholder
expectations as the surest means to improved business performance,
profits, and economic progress. It scans the relevant context of the enterprise
and its organizational culture to identify challenges and to develop responsible
ways to meet them. It starts from the assumption that enterprises are
integral parts of their communities. It encourages them to work within the
community to overcome the challenges of emerging market economies and
contribute to community-driven development.
Moreover, a business ethics program takes care not to mistake cultural,
legal, or religious differences for a lack of ethics. In Islamic countries, for
example, mudaraba (reflecting a Sharia law requirement that a lender charge
no interest) may result in forms of payment that could be mistaken by those
unfamiliar with the culture as inappropriate or unethical (that is, as “kickbacks”).
9 A common cultural difference is the attitude toward hiring relatives.
In some cultures, it is expected that owners and managers will hire relatives
as a matter of course. In others, hiring relatives, which is known as
nepotism, is discouraged or, in some circumstances, prohibited.