Business policy,ethics and society

This section will cover (a) definition of business policy: strategic decisions in the enterprise; (b) ethical behaviour above and beyond the requirements of the law: what might this involve e.g. in respect of products and markets in which the business is prepared to operate? (c) does business have a responsibility towards ‘society’? For example, should businesses decide without being legally required to do so, to undertake activities which they think are in the national interest even if this may appear to conflict with strictly commercial interests? (d) if ethical/social decisions are required, who is to make them — at what levels of an enterprise — e.g. does the board make them all or are they also expected below board level? This section will also cover: (e) practical examples in the light of changing attitudes towards business and market behaviour in the 1980's and 1990's; (f) implications of attitudes towards corporate crime and of behaviour which may not be illegal but which may be regarded as ‘unacceptable’: this will be discussed with examples from experience in Australia and other countries. The section will first explain the meaning of the phrase ‘business policy’ and will briefly outline the kinds of strategic decision which have to be made in business enterprises. It will go on to consider whether there are things a business ‘ought’ or ‘ought not’ to do even if they are within the law. The section will illustrate these problems with examples in the light of changing attitudes towards business policy and market behaviour in the 1980's and 1990's. It will take into account some recent cases of corporate crime in Australia and elsewhere and also of behaviour which while neither against the law or outside the power of the board, might be thought ‘inappropriate’.     

Dividend policy and capital structure of a defaultable firm

Default risk significantly affects the corporate policies of a firm. We develop a model in which a limited liability entity subject to default at an exponential random time jointly sets its dividend policy and capital structure to maximize the expected lifetime utility from consumption of risk‐averse equity investors. We give a complete characterization of the solution to the singular stochastic control problem. The optimal policy involves paying dividends to keep the ratio of firm's equity value to investors' wealth below a critical threshold. Dividend payout acts as a precautionary channel to transfer wealth from the firm to investors for mitigation of losses in the event of default. Higher the default risk, more aggressively the firm leverages and pays dividends.     

An integrative model for understanding and managing ethical behavior in business organizations

Managing ethical behavior is a one of the most pervasive and complex problems facing business organizations today. Employees' decisions to behave ethically or unethically are influenced by a myriad of individual and situational factors. Background, personality, decision history, managerial philosophy, and reinforcement are but a few of the factors which have been identified by researchers as determinants of employees' behavior when faced with ethical dilemmas. The literature related to ethical behavior is reviewed in this article, and a model for understanding ethical behavior in business organizations is proposed. It is concluded that managing ethics in business organizations requires that managers engage in a concentrated effort which involves espousing ethics, behaving ethically, developing screening mechanisms, providing ethical training, creating ethics units and reinforcing ethical behavior. W. Edward Stead, Ph.D., is Professor of Management at East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN. His research interests include ethical behavior, cancer in the workplace, social strategy implementation, the ethical implications of cost-benefit analysis, and managing professional employees. His articles have appeared in Psychological Reports, Personnel Journal, Business and Society Review, and the Journal of Accountancy among others, and he has published cases in leading business policy and social responsibility texts. Dan L. Worrell, Ph.D., is Professor of Management and Department Chairperson at Appalachian State University, Boone, NC. He has published articles in such Journals as Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Management, Business Horizons, and Psychological Reports among others. His research interests include managerial succession, ethical behavior and social responsibility. Jean Garner Stead, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Management at East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN. Her research interests include ethical behavior, cancer in the work place, social strategy implementation, and the ethical implications of cost-benefit analysis. Her articles have appeared in Psychological Reports, Personnel Journal, Business and Society Review and the International Journal of Management among others, and she has published cases in leading business policy and social responsibility texts.     

Power,policy networks and planning: the involvement of major grocery retailers in the formulation of Planning Policy Guidance Note 6 since 1988

This paper explores a neglected issue in the study of retail strategy and store location by considering the nature of policy networks operating at the interface between retailers and central government. It argues that informal networks, coupled with the economic power of retailers and the legitimization of their activities with reference to the 'consumer interest', have served to provide retailers with an influential avenue through which they can exert power over the nature of the regulatory environment within which they operate. The paper considers the limited extant 'evidence' of the operation of such networks before moving on to outline the results of a case study. The case study reflects on new store development in the UK grocery sector since 1988 as a backdrop to an analysis of the form of policy networks operating at the interface between government departments and retail organizations. It also explores the role of other stakeholders in this process. The existence of a number of such networks is described and their role explored with reference to the involvement of retailers in the formulation and evolution of Planning Policy Guidance Note 6 on retail development.     

Predictors of satisfaction with the succession process in family firms

Recent theoretical developments suggest that satisfaction with the succession process in family firms is enhanced by the incumbent's propensity to step aside, the successor's willingness to take over, agreement among family members to maintain family involvement in the business, acceptance of individual roles, and succession planning. Data from incumbent leaders and successors provide strong support for these relationships. Incumbents and successors disagree, however, about the importance of each other's role. This implies a need to align these strategic stakeholders' perceptions in the family firm. Our research methodology also highlights the importance of considering multiple stakeholder groups in conducting family firm research.     

Persistent Unemployment and Policy Uncertainty: Numerical Evidence from a New Approach

In the recovery from the United States’ 2009 recession, unemployment has proven resistant to both aggressive fiscal policy and expansionary monetary policy. A possible explanation is the policy cost uncertainty hypothesis. This holds that managers of private firms have been rationally avoiding hiring workers in the years after 2010 because of the risk of higher future costs imposed by government policies. However, such a hypothesis cannot be directly tested in standard models of firm behavior. Thus, to formally test the policy cost uncertainty hypothesis, we use a novel “value functional” or “recursive” model of firm behavior, in which managers maximize the value of the business rather than its profits. Using this approach, we demonstrate that policy cost uncertainty affects the hiring decisions of firms, that the response to policy uncertainty is higher in some industries than others, and that the scale of the firm also affects its sensitivity to policy risk. This approach has potentially broad application within business economics, particularly in evaluating investment and hiring decisions; real options; and other aspects of uncertainty, fixed costs, and managerial flexibility.     

The making of the modern retail market: economic theory,business interests and economic policy in the passage of the 1964 Resale Prices Act

This article makes a critical examination of the economic case made for the prohibition of individual resale price maintenance (IRPM) in 1964. The Resale Prices Act had major implications for the future structure of British retailing and was lobbied for by multiple grocery retailers. This article demonstrates how a government enquiry which preceded the legislation privileged one side of the debate and marginalised other – arguably more rigorous – analysis. The article endorses a central role for the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) and is a case study of the role of economic theory in business–government relations and the development of economic policy.     

Reflections on management style and corporate social policy

Corporate social policy can be viewed as three legs of a tripod: efficient production, stable employment, and a social and political environment that promotes high performance of both workers and managers. Social policy process consists of achieving a balance of corporate interest with other interests in the society. Each policy position taken by the firm alters its relationships with all other interests and creates a new balance. This entails the risk of creating unfriendly interests and losing the support of others, depending on the issue and shift in power. The substance of policy affects this balance according to varying degrees of risk ranging from low to high: provision of good pay and working conditions, and justice; participation in local community affairs, charitable and cultural contributions, corporate lobbying, and electing candidates. Social policy formation is, thus, the search for a balance of public policy and private interests. It is an experiment in governance; in mediating differences over values between public and private interests.     

Ethical Transparency and Economic Medicalization

This article introduces the concept of economic medicalization where non-medical problems are transformed into medical problems in order to achieve the objective of corporate shareholder wealth maximization. Following an overview of the differences in ethical norms applicable to medical ethics and business ethics, the economic medicalization of medical research practice and publication is examined in some detail. This motivates a general discussion of the problems involved in the ethical approval process for medical research that balances the interests of both business and government in the market for medical products and services.     

Ethical reasoning in business‐to‐business negotiations: evidence from relationships in the chemical industry in Germany

This article explores managers’ ethical reasoning for behaviors in price negotiations using evidence from 15 in‐depth interviews conducted with sales and purchasing representatives in the chemical industry in Germany. Applying transaction cost economics, we find that negotiators in commoditized market‐like exchanges either refer to deontological norms such as not to lie, or they neglect a role for ethics, arguing that distributive negotiation is per se opportunistic. In contrast, exchanges of products with higher asset specificity lead to stronger informational integration which is supported with teleological justifications. Some negotiators use teleological justification to build business on trust rather than on economic safeguards as their firm norms would require. For negotiators, our results suggest considering institutional context and adjusting ethical reasoning to the negotiation situation. Firms need to recognize and find ways to address the potential conflicts of their internal norms with their frontline managers’ attempts to act in the firms’ best economic and ethical interests.     

EU's competition policy and the GE‐Honeywell merger fiasco: Transatlantic divergence and consumer and regulatory issues

This article discusses and analyzes the European Union's (EU's) competition policy and the 2001 General Electric‐Honeywell merger fiasco within the areas of global business and transatlantic issues. Based on a brief literature review of marketing, competition policy/antitrust law, vertical/horizontal integration, and global business, the article tries to explain those conditions that led to this failed merger. It is expected that in the coming years, the EU's competition policy and the United States' antitrust law will continue to differ and may create problems for those multinationals seeking large‐scale mergers and acquisitions in North America and Europe. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

In search of ethical profits: Insights from strategic management

This paper expands the focus of ethical analysis to look at the basic approaches to strategy used by business firms. Using a set of criteria historically used to judge ethical issues, three strategy paradigms are evaluated in terms of their likely effects on society as well as the firm. From this analysis, recommendations are offered regarding the ethical pursuit of profit and suggestions made for future research into the relationship between strategy and ethics.Grant Miles is currently completing work on his doctorate in Business Administration. His research and teaching interests lie in the area of strategic management with particular interests in exploring adaptive strategies which may benefit both firms and the larger society.     

The role of a consumer interest group in new product development: a case study of Canadians for home equity conversion

Since the mid-1960s there has been a significant increase in the number of public interest groups in Canada and the United States. Representing environmental, social and consumer interests, these groups serve as focal points through which consumer, business and government sectors interact. In the area of housing and community planning, public interest groups have been able to influence housing and planning policy to reflect the interests of housing consumers. Never, however, has a senior's advocacy group arisen with the purpose of attempting to influence the public and private sectors in the field of mortgage finance. Canadians for Home Equity Conversion (CHEC) is a grassroots advocacy group that represents exactly this cause. It is the purpose of this paper to describe the evolution of CHEC in order to broaden our understanding of the role of consumer interest groups in new product development. Home equity conversion will be discussed in the context of consumer, business and government interaction, and will serve as a case study that illustrates the public interest movement.     

Ethical Commitment,Financial Performance,and Valuation: An Empirical Investigation of Korean Companies

A variety of stakeholders including investors, corporate managers, customers, suppliers, employees, researchers, and government policy makers have long been interested in the relationship between the financial performance of a corporation and its commitment to business ethics. As a subject of research, the relations between business ethics and corporate valuation has yet to be thoroughly quantified and investigated. This article is an effort to amend this inadequacy by demonstrating a statistically significant association between ethical commitment and corporate valuation measures. Consistent with anecdotal evidence, we have found a significant association between the ethical commitment of Korean companies and their valuation on the Korean stock market. However, the result reveals that the association between ethical commitment and financial performance is not significantly supported. Tae Hee Choi received Ph.D. from the Ohio State University, Ohio, USA. Presently working as Assistant Professor in accounting at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management. Research interests are business ethics, capital market, financial accounting, managerial accounting, and valuation. Jinchul Jung received Ph.D. from Kent State University, Ohio, USA. Presently working as Assistant Professor of Business Administration Department in the College of Business at Chosun University. Research interests are business ethics, family-supportive program, and organizational commitment.     

Complementary Resources and Capabilities for an Ethical and Environmental Management: A Qual/Quan Study

Managers’ commitment to contribute to sustainable development holds the key to their long-term business success and may be a source of competitive advantage. The managerial perception of business ethics is influenced by the level of moral development and personal characteristics of managers. These perceptions are also shaped by forces existing in the environment of the firm, including available resources, societal expectations, sector, and regulations. The resource-based perspective can thus contribute to the analysis of ethical issues offering important insights on how they can influence the environmental strategy of the firm. The findings of this study show that firm resources have a strong influence on business managers’ ethical attitudes. In addition, the application of resource-based rationales to ethical issues can be justified in the following several ways: it influences a managerial perception of natural environment as a competitive opportunity, it requires investments of financial and human resources, flexibility and speed in the adaptation to environmental changes, and it creates new resource-based opportunities through changes in prevention pollution technology, policy process, and market forces.     

State,firms and technology. The rise of multinational telecommunications companies: ITT and the Compañía Telefónica Nacional de España, 1924–1945

This article addresses a major topic in business history: the strategies used by multinational telecommunications companies to establish themselves on the world stage. It seeks to explore two interconnected issues: how a new entrant–ITT–used the immature market of Spain in its strategy for expansion, and how Spanish national institutions and government regulation influenced this process. With the backing of the US banks and government, ITT created a Spanish firm–the Compañía Telefónica Nacional de España–in 1924 to keep European competitors at bay and to win a licence to modernise and operate the telephone system in a backward country. The Spanish government granted ITT a monopoly concession, which remained unaltered for 20 years in spite of political changes. This was the first step in ITT's conquest of the world market and in its conversion into a multinational. Company strategy, government institutions and technological innovation played a crucial role in ITT's implantation on a worldwide scale.     

Technology acquisition choices for newly industrializing countries: The case of Taiwan

This article examines the determinants of technology development and acquisition for companies based in a newly industrializing nation. The actual selection of a method for acquiring a technological capability has to be analyzed at the firm level and is influenced by attributes of the technology in question, as well as by the attributes of the technology-receiving organization. This article demonstrates that the selection of a technology transfer method has to be done on a case-by-case basis and provides several criteria. These criteria are, however, conditioned by the economic environment faced by the company, and government policies. Taiwan is chosen as an illustration in this article because it is a country trying to formulate a technology policy for its economy. Its days as a low-cost producer of relatively unsophisticated goods are almost over. Yet the small scale of much of Taiwan's industry, growing technological protectionism, as well as changes in marketing and business organization in principal overseas markets, are some of the constraints on the ability of its companies to reach the cutting edge of technology in most industries. The article concludes by examining the role of the Taiwan government and indicating some policy directions. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The US government dual banking regulation levels,transaction costs and HSBC's strategy in acquiring Marine Midland Banks,Inc., 1978–80

This paper undertakes a case study of HSBC acquiring Marine Midland Banks, Inc. (MMBI) in the US between 1978 and 1980, a historic incident that had a catalytic impact on the whole debate about foreign banking in the US and re-examination of the restrictions on the US banks' inter-state operations. This paper explores the impact of the US government's financial regulatory structure on HSBC's acquisition and how HSBC dealt with difficulties caused by the US government regulations. We find that the structure of the US government financial regulation caused political hazards which further influenced HSBC's contractual hazards and business transaction costs. We have established that the different attitudes of the federal and state regulatory authorities toward HSBC's acquisition were closely related to their interests, regulatory capability and resources. Our analysis also confirms that HSBC's commitment strategy did help it to earn the federal regulatory authorities' support and MMBI's cooperation, which facilitated the conversion of Marine Midland Bank (MMB), a principal subsidiary of MMBI, to the status of a national chartered bank and allowed HSBC to circumvent the NYBD's regulation.     

A Social Contract for International Business Ethics

This article begins with a detailed analysis of how the choice situation of a social contract for international business ethics can be constructed and justified. A choice situation is developed by analyzing conceptions of the multinational firm and the domain of international business. The result is a hypothetical negotiation between two fictional characters, J. Duncan Grey and Elizabeth Redd, who respectively represent the interests of businesses and communities seeking to engage in international trade. The negotiators agree on ethical principles governing wages, the environment, and compliance social and cultural norms. These principles are then shown to rest in wide reflective equilibrium with considered moral judgments on international business ethics, which are drawn from international agreements, such as the UN Declaration on Human Rights, and voluntary business initiatives, such as the Global Sullivan Principles and the UN Global Compact.     

The value of official business group affiliation: Evidence from a change in Korean chaebol designation policy

The Korean government doubled the total assets threshold for its large business group (chaebol) designation policy in 2016. Exploiting this policy change, I examine the value implications of a firm's chaebol affiliation. I show that firms affiliated with business groups that had become non-chaebols because of the policy change experienced substantial decreases in value and investment. Further analysis suggests that these results are partly driven by corporate governance features and increased financial frictions. Short-run stock market reactions to announcements regarding the policy change did not predict its long-term value implications.