Ethics for Global Citizens:
Three Approaches

Companies and individuals working in a cross-border context struggle with the question of how to blend good ethics with good business. This challenge merits fresh attention in the wake of domestic corporate scandals in organizations that have been household names. A number of firms have raised the profile of ethics in their leadership development programs. What advice is most helpful for executives and for ordinary employees who work with customers and counterparts in different countries?

Approach #1: Follow the Rules

Ethical rules are enforced through a combination of national regulations and corporate policies. Lists of do's and don'ts are provided to employees.

Many global companies have become increasingly explicit and forceful in sharing their version of the worldwide rulebook. This is usually a combination of national laws and corporate policy. Employees are solemnly instructed to follow the rulebook no matter what. National regulations tend to focus on issues such as graft or bribes paid to foreign officials, while corporate policies provide supplementary coverage of areas such as giving or receiving gifts.

Organizations that take a progressive stance towards preparing their expatriates or business travelers for overseas contacts may also provide lists of local do's and don'ts for countries that these individuals will be visiting. The items on such lists range from those with a more explicitly ethical tone (e.g., social and environmental responsibilities in the host country) to matters of local custom that are elements of good manners (e.g., don't show the sole of your foot or pass documents with your left hand) to local practices or superstitions that still have a broad following (e.g., the use of auspicious or inauspicious numbers or dates).

Advantages: The biggest advantage of this approach is that it is clear and straightforward. One can learn the rules by reading a publication or two in the plane on the way over, and it is not necessary to spend a lot of time thinking about the best course of action. Choices can be made quickly and efficiently.

Disadvantages: Among the drawbacks of trying to stick to a specific set of rules is that the longer a person is in another country, the more he or she is likely to encounter areas that appear to be ambiguous or are simply not covered in the rulebook. Worse yet, sometimes one rule appears to be in contradiction with another one: for example, corporate policies on gift-giving may be in direct conflict with well-established local business customs that call for regular gift exchanges according to an elaborate set of protocol.

Approach #2: Increase the Range of Choices

Ethical dilemmas are addressed by generating creative alternatives that do not violate national or corporate rules and still make business dealings possible.

This second approach allows for greater creativity when the rules contradict one another or one faces an unacceptable choice. For instance, what is the best course of action if you have a corporate policy that strictly prohibits bribery, and yet you are working in a country where bribery is an accepted way of doing business? This dilemma could be interpreted to mean that you either have to break the rules or give up on doing business in the country.

A number of useful writings have suggested that there are other ways of framing ethical dilemmas that can lead to acceptable solutions. Rather than either succumbing to the demand for a bribe or simply walking away, a company can consider mutually acceptable alternatives such as donating money to build a hospital or educational facility in the host's name, or offering to fund a legitimate training session at the corporation's headquarters that can be accompanied by sightseeing and entertainment.¹ A more recent approach is for corporations to band together and try to reshape the local business environment through shared standards for ethical practices, or agree to use tactics such as the one described by a high-tech company executive: "I tell the officials I meet with what a pleasure it is to be in a country where one isn't constantly shaken-down for bribes. It is very difficult for them to raise the issue after that."²

Advantages: Increasing the range of choices can provide solutions that are not available in any rulebook, and may produce an alternative course of action that affords greater mutual benefit.

Disadvantages: Time and effort are required to formulate and explore alternatives. There is also the potential for error, as creative attempts at solutions could result in serious mistakes along with damaged careers or charges of corruption. (E.g., what happens if the money intended for the hospital vanishes without anything ever being built?).

Approach #3: Cultivate Ethical Imagination

Active understanding of local ethical perspectives creates opportunities to satisfy both sides.

There is normally an inner logic to the actions of customers or colleagues abroad that is based upon a mix of factors which differ from place to place: historical narrative, religious beliefs, and the economic environment. Another factor with direct ethical implications is the relative priority attributed by a country's residents to various ethical considerations such as the law, loyalties to family and friends, patriotic duty, or social causes.

A person who invests sufficient energy and empathy to fathom this local logic will experience new insights into why people act in a particular manner. The sensitivity of negotiation counterparts about issues of technology transfer, for instance, may be related to a history of foreign domination and a fervent desire to achieve economic self-sufficiency. It could even turn out that this is regarded as a deep-seated ethical issue by one side in the negotiation (Are you willing to help us erase the tragic legacy of colonialism?), while the other team initially sees it as a question of practical efficiency or a possible bargaining chip.

By the same token, the ethical perspectives of counterparts that flaunt the rules of one's home country - e.g., cavalier attitudes about piracy of intellectual property - may begin to take on a more comprehensible light when seen through local eyes: "Why should a poor country like ours further enrich the world's wealthiest corporations and their owners when we have so little and our needs are so great?"

Such understanding frequently opens up avenues of conversation that inspire mutually satisfactory solutions: "Are there ways in which you could benefit from protecting this intellectual property as well? How should we protect the new property that we create together here?"

Advantages: By exercising ethical imagination we are better able to appreciate and predict the actions of customers and counterparts. When we begin to grasp the inner logic of their actions, it becomes possible to offer solutions that meet their deepest needs while cementing lasting business relationships.

Disadvantages: Appreciation for other cultures tends to beget a more critical perspective with regard to one's own background. This can be a significant source of fresh learning and professional maturity. If taken too far, however, empathy for one's local hosts may lead to a position of one-sided advocacy that causes a loss of credibility back at headquarters. A person who is seen as having "gone native" is no longer able to function as an effective intermediary between home and host cultures.

The most desirable ethical approach depends upon the amount of effort we are ready to commit and the depth of our involvement with another culture. Many of us will resort to all three approaches at some point in our careers. Knowing that several paths are open to us is the first step in developing an ethical perspective broad enough for us to become both effective international businesspeople and candidates for global citizenship.