Outline
This paper discusses the ethical challenges in European cultures as follows
- Introduction
- Business and economic implications of differences in culture and values
- Compare and contrast how differences in social culture influence values in the work place.
- Ethical issues and ethical dilemmas faced by international businesses
- What managers can do to incorporate ethical considerations into their decision-making.
- Conclusion
- Reference List
Introduction
According to Dafoulas & Macaulay, (2001) culture is the way of live of a particular society. It constitutes things like sets of rules on manners, dressing codes, language, religion, rituals, norms, and systems of belief. Culture of a society can be looked at as constituting four elements which are passed on from one generation to the next through learning as Dafoulas & Macaulay continues to say. These are values, norms, artifacts, and institutions. Values consists of thoughts about the important things in life as seen by a society, norms on the other hand are expectations of behavior of people in different circumstances. Cultural institutions are organizations of the society through which norms and values are handed on while artifacts are the physical things or materials which represent a society’s cultural values and norms such as buildings, a national flag, monuments etc. In a business organization it could be prizes won in challenges or the pioneer products of a company which have special meanings and there could be stories told about them. In a business organization, ceremonies and celebrations could be a cultural element where these actions are performed repeatedly in specific situations and hold specific meanings such as promotions and retirements, everyday events such as Christmas. An organization could also have heroes in its culture which are used as epitomes and idealized so the members can learn from them such as founders of an organization, or an officer who did a heroic act. Furthermore, attitudes are an important cultural aspect in an organization where members display certain beliefs that tell others where they belong (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Workforce Development Board, 2002).
Business and economic implications of differences in culture and values
In understanding the actions of business organizations in Europe or elsewhere in the world, culture is an important factor to consider. The language used in that particular culture is one element that has an impact on the business. Even people who use the same language such as English among the Americans and the British, it can still bring misunderstanding as illustrated by the story by Watson Churchill (Hill, 2008). The American and British soldiers were planning for the famous D-day in the WWII where the British wanted the issue to be talked right then and used the phrase “table it” which the American soldiers understood it to mean to postpone until later.
Another aspect is cultural values of different societies which has implications on business etiquette are expressions of agreement and disagreement which are different among different societies as Hill, (2008) continue to say. In western culture mostly among Americans and most Europeans a lot of argument follows disagreements with participants willing to express this verbally. This is different compared to most Asian and Chinese societies who find it hard to say no verbally even when the answer is no and their disagreement is expressed nonverbally.
Cultural values also affect the nature of business relationships that are likely to occur. In western culture again such relationships are easy to form, short termed and puts a lot of importance to written agreement rather than relationships. In Asian cultures such as Japanese, business transactions do not occur until a firm relationship is formed and written agreements are less important. They also last long. In western cultures also business meetings are based on time sense where being on time in starting and ending on time is important while in eastern cultures appointments are focused more on the purpose rather than time (Hill, 2008).
Compare and contrast how differences in social culture influence values in the work place.
Social culture refers to the ordering of social relationships between people in a society according to (Ralston, Holt, Terpstra, & Cheng, 2008). Differences in social culture of members of an organization can influence workplace values either negatively or positively.
Positive influences
Differences in social culture add enthusiasm to the workplace. Some cultures value hard work and their members are trained to go about their work with dedication and respect. When this is brought to an organization, a lot of enthusiasm and motivation is seen. Different social cultural aspects in an organization also gives it an international or global look which is good especially for those tied to the global economy or serving a varied customer base (Ralston et al, 2008).
Negative influences
Different cultural values and language barriers can bring misunderstandings in communication in the work place. Example is where in some cultures disagreements are not voiced verbally but expressed in actions such as silence. This can bring complications in effective communication in the workplace. This can also bring about the problem of biases and stereotyping among co-workers, supervisors, and managers. This can result in resentment and lack of effective communication which in turn affects productivity. Further, the difference in the cultural roles and status of people in the work place can also be a negative thing. In some cultures women are seen as subordinates to men where they should not speak or look at a man directly in the eyes. This brings problems in communication and interactions in the workplace (Dafoulas & Macaulay, 2001).
Ethical issues and ethical dilemmas faced by international businesses
Business ethics are moral principles or philosophies that guide an organization in its conduct in its day to day activities. It consists of how an organization deals with its customers, employees, and co-workers and the business practices it carries out (Yucel, Dagdelen, & Elibol, 2009). The first ethical dilemma a project manager in international business may face regards local laws and customs that are different from home ones as Yucel and colleagues points out in his article. These in many cases tend to be ambiguous and contradictory to the home one such as paying an official in a foreign country to get police protection. This may be seen at home as bribery while it is understood as facilitating fee. Another dilemma may be in laws existing in the foreign country that are unacceptable at home. Example of such law is the mandatory drug testing in USA for employees of a company and is not allowed in countries like Canada (Navran, 2004).
What managers can do to incorporate ethical considerations into their decision-making.
When faced with ethical dilemmas, it is important for the business managers to put their dealings within the right ethical and legal framework. The US has the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act-FCPA for international businesses which guides organizations conduct in foreign countries. Managers can also use the five question criteria or matrix outlined by Navran (2004) by asking themselves whether it is legal, whether any laws will be violated, whether the action or decision fair both in long term and short term, what it would feel if they were on the other parties shoes, and whether they are proud of the decision or action they are taking.
Conclusion
Culture is the way of life of a society. It is characterized element such as values, attitudes, artifacts, heroes and institutions. Culture has implications on the business organization in terms of the language used which can bring misunderstanding and the cultural values that have implications on business etiquette. Social culture on the other hand has positive such as a global outlook of an organization and negative influences on the workplace values such as stereotypes and biases among co-workers. International business faces many ethical dilemmas such as contradictory legal framework which managers have to deal with.
Reference List
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Workforce Development Board. (2002). Cultural and Language Barriers in the Workplace. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Workforce Development
Board.
Dafoulas, G., & Macaulay, L. (2001). Investigating Cultural Differences i Virtual Softwa
Teams. The Electronic Journal on Information Systems in Developing Countries , 1-14.
Hill, C. W. (2008). Global Business Today. McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Navran, F. J. (2004, March 15). Resources. Retrieved September 25, 2010, from Ethics
Resource Center: http://www.ethics.org/resources/article
Ralston, D. A., Holt, D. H., Terpstra, R. H., & Cheng, Y. K. (2008). The Impact of
National Culture and Economic Ideology on Managerial Work Values: A Study of the United States, Russis, Japan, and China. Journal of International Business Studies , 8-26.
Yucel, R., Dagdelen, O., & Elibol, H. (2009). Globalisation and International Marketing
Ethics Problems. International Research Journal of Finance and Economics , 93-105.
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