Business Ethics and Mba

In the world that I come from, socialism was the rule of the day until fairly recently. Among other things, my country looked upon private enterprise with a high degree of suspicion for which it has since been duly discredited. One central theme was suspicion about the moral aspects of business. Probably with some justification!

For instance, I was grieved to learn that several credit card companies had appointed local mafias to collect unpaid bills. Such companies, mostly multinationals, found this technique apparently more efficient than the traditional legal procedures. Also, the cellular providers started following this “efficient” strategy. I could clearly see an evil trend. But having worked in a company with business across several continents, I know also that the solution is not so simple. In this age of cutthroat competition, and constant pressure from the Wall Street to excel, ethics is a common enough sacrifice. In this world of result-oriented business, my biggest challenge will be to expand company business in such “tough” countries/conditions without unduly compromising my principles.

Ethical issues are intimidating and complex. Ethical relativism, though not an issue to be championed, is still a reality! One has to be careful though in using it in a world that is increasingly open. Commitment to employee empowerment and open communication is still another issue in this highly complex world simply because knowledge can be found anywhere and has to be recognized and respected. Brain