Eth/316 Ethical Perspectives Paper

Ethical Perspectives
Joseph Weah
ETH/316
June 4, 14
Ms. Ashanti South

In this paper the writer will discuss cross-cultural perspectives and how this affects a global organization. The chosen global organization will be Nike Inc. Nike is a global retailer of clothing, footwear, sportswear and accessories. The company was founded by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight in 1964 and has a current stock price of $76.18 as of June 4, 2014. Nike’s headquarters is located in Beaverton, OR but manufacturing of its products takes place all over the world. In the retail apparel market Nike is considered to be a retail giant. As with any business that conducts business globally, Nike must deal with the issue of ethics and ethical perspectives across
a global organization. Ethics play an important role in the business world and to each of us individually. Ethics basically refers to a person’s morals and sense of right and wrong. Each of us has our own ethical perspectives and our upbringing and what we were taught and accepted to be right or wrong influence this. In a business environment, however, a company must take into consideration what would be considered an ethical course of action based on the culture of the people where they are conducting business and the ethical perspective of the company as a whole. Nike Inc. has a code of ethics for all employees called inside the lines. It defines the standards of conduct Nike expects their employees to follow and includes a range of topics on employee activity, ethical behavior, safety, legal compliance and use of resources ("Nikebiz.com", 2014). Every year all employees of Nike are required to acknowledge they have read and understand this code of ethics. In addition, Nike also has a code of conduct that must be adhered to by all contractors who manufacture products for Nike. Nike’s code of ethics covers topics such as respect for fellow employees, environmental hazards and safety, social responsibility, protection of intellectual property, fraud, theft, conflicts of interest, compliance with laws and antitrust to name a few. The code of ethics opens with this statement "Nikebiz.com" (2014),“NIKE’s good name and reputation result in large part from our collective actions. That means the work-related activities of every employee must reflect standards of honesty, loyalty, trustworthiness, fairness, concern for others and accountability. We are expected to be sensitive to any situations that can adversely impact NIKE’s reputation and are expected to use good judgment and common sense in the way we all conduct business. This Code of Ethics applies to NIKE and its subsidiaries worldwide.” However, being a global organization means that Nike may not be able to enforce this code of ethics in the same manner in all countries.
Hence why Nike has developed a code of conduct for their contractors to adhere to. Even still, this code must be enforced with regard for what is considered legal or illegal in each country. For example, in Nike’s code of ethics the section titled Matter of Respect states that employees should refrain from acting in a manner that would be considered unlawful harassment or discrimination. It also states that employees must treat others as they would like to be treated and respect the diverse workforce that Nike enjoys. Nike’s code of ethics refers their contractors to the code of conduct, which addresses issues with different wording and in a different manner. One of the reasons there is a separate code of conduct is because ethical perspectives can vary from one culture to
another. To illustrate, it may be considered ok for a person to eat with their left hand in American culture but it may be viewed as disrespectful for a person to either eat or serve someone food with their left hand in another culture.
Likewise, what is considered ethical by American standards may be considered unethical in another culture and vice versa. In America it may not be viewed as disrespectful if one does not shake a coworker or superiors hand at every greeting but in some cultures this action may be viewed as not showing respect for that coworker or superior. Things such as discrimination and harassment have to be considered according to the culture of the people that reside in that particular geographic location. What may be considered harassment by one culture’s standards may be the norm in other societies. Women, for example, are viewed as property and therefore owned by their husbands in some cultures. These women are not allowed to show their face or even speak to another male without their husbands consent. A simple act such as saying hello could be viewed as disrespectful and warrant severe consequences in this type of culture. While taking a 2-hour lunch period without gaining prior approval from one’s superior would be considered unethical by American standards this is considered customary in some other cultures. Things such as labor laws differ from one culture to another. American labor laws do not allow for children under a certain age to hold a job and even
those who are old enough to work are limited in the amount of hours they may work in one day and in an entire week. These laws do not exist in some other parts of the world. While women are allowed to work and afforded the same rights as men in the United States, they are not allowed to hold secular jobs nor do they posses the same rights as men in other cultures. One could argue that this is unethical but these are examples of how ethical perspectives can differ from one culture to the next. In conclusion, ethics and ethical perspectives are, to say the least, a challenging issue to address in a global business environment. This issue is important and must be addressed by any organization that conducts business globally. It is imperative that a company have a clear and easy to understand code of ethics and that all employees abide by this code. However, a company’s code of ethics may vary from one area of the world to another due to the fact that business operations must also take into consideration the ethical perspective of the people and culture of each individual area. Therefore, conducting business in a global environment can be rewarding but also comes with a certain degree of challenges.
References
Boylan, M. (2009). Basic ethics: Basic ethics in action (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Nikebiz.com. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.nikebiz.com/crreport/content/about/1-4-3-ethics-and-conduct.php?cat=governance-accountability