Why An International Code of Business Ethics Would Be Good for Business

Many international business training programs present a viewpoint of cultural relativism that encourages business people to adapt to the host country's culture. This paper presents an argument that cultural relativism is not always appropriate for business ethics; rather, a code of conduct must be adapted which presents guidelines for core ethical business conduct across cultures. Both moral and economic evidence is provided to support the argument for a universal code of ethics. Also, four steps are presented that will help ensure that company ethical standards are followed internationally.     

Why NAMA Liberalisation is Good for Developing Countries

This paper reviews the criticisms that have been made of the view that trade liberalisation benefits developing countries. In particular, it focuses on mainstream NGOs’ criticisms of the NAMA negotiations. The paper firmly concludes that the belief that trade liberalisation hampers development opportunities is mistaken. Developing countries have a strong interest in a successful outcome to the NAMA negotiations and the Doha Round as a whole.     

New Plan is Good News for Foreign Investors

As people around the nation lookforward to sound economic policies heldin the newly-passed State plan for thecoming five years, foreign investors alsohave reasons to be cheerful.In a message delivered at the National People's Congress (NPC) conference which concluded in March inBeijing, foreign investment was assuredof continuing to play a key role in China's development.In his report on the outline of the10th Five-Year Plan (2001-05) deliveredon March 5, Premier Zhu Rongjistressed that …     

Mainstreaming Green Product Innovation: Why and How Companies Integrate Environmental Sustainability

Green product innovation has been recognized as one of the key factors to achieve growth, environmental sustainability, and a better quality of life. Understanding green product innovation as a result of interaction between innovation and sustainability has become a strategic priority for theory and practice. This article investigates green product innovation by means of a multiple case study analysis of 12 small to medium size manufacturing companies based in Italy and Canada. First, we propose a conceptual framework that presents three key environmental dimensions of green product innovation such as energy minimization, materials reduction, and pollution prevention as identified in the life cycle phases of products. Based on insights gained from in-depth interviews, we discuss firms’ motivations to develop green products, environmental policies and targets for products, different dimensions of green product innovation, and challenges faced during developing and marketing of green products. Results from the study are then synthesized and integrated in a toolbox that sheds light on various aspects of green product innovation and provides solutions to challenges and risks that are faced by firms. Finally, implications for managers, academia and public policy makers are discussed.     

Business Ethics is a Matter of Good Conduct and of Good Conscience?

The myth of an economy where nobody could have a predominant position, has lost its credibility. The presentiment of a high risk of social explosion makes companies undertake tentative moral legitimation. Thus, a new paradigm develops according to which the firm has to care for the satisfaction of public interest if “it wants to try to win forgiveness” for misbehavior towards the decorum rules of the atomicity of competition. Thus, there is a wave of “business ethics industry” building up. However, the stock exchange performances considered as ethical, are not different from others! The market does not seem to be able to say why it might be interesting to invest in stock considered as ethical. Moreover, opinion polls reveal a very significant discrepancy between the characterization of “the responsible company” as defined by itself or by notation agencies and, on the other hand, the hierarchy of criteria according to the answers of polled people. When companies and agencies favor sustainable development and good governance, rejecting child labor and so on, polled people consider that the paramount criterion of ethical conduct is personnel management. The problem is right here. Such is the view of a positively critical economist, situated at the point where macroeconomics meets corporate management.     

A New Era for Global Business

Asia Society is the leading global organization working to .strengthen relationship and promote understanding among the people, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the U.S. Every year the Society presents a high-profile Corporate Conference in a selected city in Asia to examine the implications of macroeconomic trends and geopolitical developments for the region and the world. It provides a leading forum for executives to meet the policymakers and business leaders who shape the Asia Pacific business environment.     

A New Era for Global Business

Asia Society is the leading global organization working to strengthen relationship and pro- mote understanding among the people, leaders,and institutions of Asia and the U.S.Every year the Society presents a high-profile Corporate Conference in a     

Virtue Is Good Business: Confucianism as a Practical Business Ethics

This paper argues Confucianism is a compelling managerial ethic for several reasons: 1) Confucianism is compatible with accepted managerial practices. 2) It requires individuals and organizations to make a positive contribution to society. 3) Recognizes hierarchy as an important organizational principle and demands managerial moral leadership. 4) The Confucian "golden Rule" and virtues provide a moral basis for the hierarchical and cooperative relationships critical to organizational success. The paper applies Confucianism to the H. B. Fuller in Honduras: Street Children and Substance Abuse case.     

Teaching the Common Good in Business Ethics: A Case Study Approach

This paper addresses the instructional challenges of teaching business ethics in a way shaped by Catholic Social Teaching (CST). Focusing on the concept of the Common Good in CST, I describe my use of a case narrative in classroom instruction to help students understand the concept of the Common Good and to perceive the variety of ways businesses can serve or undermine the Common Good in a small city. Through these pedagogical explorations, I illustrate the distinctive vision of business ethics that flows from CST.     

论外贸虚拟经营

日益开放的市场环境使计划经济条件下成长起来的专业外贸公司遇到空前的竞争与挑战。外贸流通行业作为一种社会分工的有机组成部分,在开放环境下不仅会继续存在而且还会得到更快的发展。专业外贸公司如果能够充分挖掘和巩固本身的“专业外贸”优势,充分运用现代电子商务技术,借鉴国际经验,大力开展“虚拟经营”,不失为一条可行的生存发展之道。     

Small Business Borrowing and the Bifurcated Economy: Why Quantitative Easing Has Been Ineffective for Small Business

In the early years following the financial collapse, federal officials and others believed that banks were not making loans to creditworthy small firms, who have accounted for most of the job creation in the United States in recent decades. Acting on this belief, a number of programs were created to increase bank lending to small firms. Overall, however, the data collected since the 2007/8 financial crisis suggest that the explanation for slow loan growth in the small business sector is not a result of supply constraints but rather a result of anemic loan demand among small firms. Thus, recent programs intended to increase small business borrowing through easing credit supply were doomed to fail. The weak demand for credit among small firms is representative of the sluggish performance of the small business economy postrecession, a marked contrast to the robust performance of larger firms and a reflection of a bifurcated economy.     

Business Groups and Corporate Responsibility for the Public Good

This paper analyzes the relationship between Business Groups as a distinct way of organizing economic activities and their relation to the public good. We first analyze the phenomenon of Business Groups and discuss some of their core features. Subsequently, the paper moves to analyzing the existing literature on Business Groups and corporate social responsibility (CSR) as the most common label for the topic of this Special Issue. Subsequently, specific peculiarities of Business Groups in the context of CSR and their contribution to the public good are fleshed out. Based on this analysis, the paper delineates some implications for the field of CSR and the wider debate on the nature of the firm. We close with some perspectives for future research.     

服务业的天之骄子--物流

物流一词最早出现在美国.1915年阿奇·萧在《市场流通中的若干问题》一书中就提到物流(Physical Distribution)一词,并指出"物流是与创造需求不同的一个问题".因为在20世纪初,西方有些国家已经出现生产大量过剩、需求严重不足的经济危机,企业提出了销售和物流功能的重新评价与认识问题.此时物流指的是销售过程中的商品流动.二次世界大战期间,围绕战争物资供应,美国军队有两个创举,一是建立了"运筹学"(Operation Research)理论,二是建立了"后勤"(Logistics)理论,并将其用于战争活动中.     

互联网+制造业商业模式创新何以可能

互联网作为新的生产要素和技术创新不断渗透、融合传统行业,引发了生产方式、组织架构的重大变化,出现了新的业态、新的模式,变革着商业逻辑,倒逼制造业变革思维、创新价值创造模式。那么,"互联网+"大环境下究竟出现了哪些新的商业逻辑,倒逼制造业产业创新商业模式?互联网+制造业创新商业模式的理论基础和实践机制何在?本文基于互联网工具理性属性和产业互联网思维,回答了互联网+制造业创新商业模式的压力机制、理论可能空间和实践可行空间。     

A Chain-Type Price Index for New Business Jet Aircraft

This paper presents a price index constructed to measure the real price and real output of corporate business jet aircraft. It employs a chained price index methodology to properly account for the effect of changes in aircraft quality and product lines on the price index. The index indicates that the average price level of corporate jets has significantly outpaced the general price level measured by the GDP deflator, nearly doubling the real price of the product over a 35-year period from 1968 to 2003, which could have negatively affected the demand for the product. Because the GDP deflator significantly understates the price increase in corporate jets, the industry’s real output is overstated when its nominal sales are deflated with a general price index. The paper suggests that an industry-specific price index allows more accurate analyses of real economic activity of an industry. The methodology used in this paper could be useful for other industries where product price movements vary significantly from the changes in the general price level. JEL Classification L160,L620     

FOCUS: A New French Course in Business Ethics

The Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Rennes has recently introduced a final year group-taught compulsory course in Business Ethics. Its organisers here describe and discuss their aims, methods and results. Michael Brent is Head of the Human Resources Department at Groupe ESC Rennes, 2 rue Robert-d'Arbrissel, 35065 Rennes, and has an MA in Philosophy and diplomas in business and marketing, as well as several years European consultancy experience. Susan Grinsted teaches production management and related subjects at Rennes, with a first degree in Metallurgy and a PhD in Engineering as well as several years UK industrial experience and a previous appointment at Warwick University, England.