Presentation of the course

The course addresses international business policy in an ethical perspective.

In recent years ethical issues have become increasingly manifest and pervading in the business world. In the future, managers will have to deal with ethical dilemmas in the course of their career. The course introduces participants to international business ethics and provides them with tools to effectively address business ethical dilemmas. Teaching is systematically illustrated with examples of real business ethical dilemmas.

The global context in which social and environmental issues have become a major issue for international business is analysed. The specific trade-off pertaining to the relation between business value on one hand and social and environmental values on the other hand is structured. A framework based on different ethical traditions – including philosophical, institutional and cultural – is proposed. Tools and strategies to analyse business ethical dilemmas are presented. Issues of reputation, credibility and communication are specifically addressed. In this manner, participants shall develop their knowledge of environmental, social and personal values and their understanding of the place and role of business in society.

This increased awareness, coupled with the methodology, constitutes a basis for efficient and responsible management, as participants will be better prepared to act in situations involving tough ethical issues.

Course Method

The course is built on required readings prior to class, lectures, videos, case studies and active discussions of business ethical issues. All required readings can be found in the course website on Campus Global.  The readings required for a particular session must be completed BEFORE coming to class that day. For those who want to go further, optional readings are also proposed and can help the understanding of the issues.

Grading

At the beginning of each session, one or two questions will have to be answered in writing. They should demonstrate that you have read the required material in a way that enables you to have a discussion on the issue at stake. This will amount to 30% of your grade.

A group presentation will amount to 40% of the grade.

A final exam will assess the knowledge of the main concepts of the course. It will amount to 30% of the grade.

About the Group Presentation

Each group is composed of 4 students and presents during sessions 14, 15 and 16. You have to:

1. Search for a concept, an initiative from a company, a behaviour of an individual, a campaign from an institution or a NGO that could constitute a model for successfully combining ethical values with the creation of economic value.
2. Describe and explain this practice to other students, analyzing the ethical and the economic contributions as well as the way they combine together.
3. Evaluate whether you believe this is really a successful model.

- Groups must be announced and agreed with the Teaching Assistant before April 20^th.
- Each group has to propose two ideas for possible topics to the teaching assistant by XXX, explaining why they think these cases are interesting. The teaching assistant will comment on them.
- Each group has to have his topic accepted by the teaching assistant by XXX.
- Each group has to pre-present its work to the Teaching Assistant prior to the class presentation (for instance the week before).
- On the day of its presentation, each group has to submit a printed version of the slides, a list of sources used and a short (max. 300 words) synthetic conclusion of their personal evaluation (point 3 above).

Schedule Overview

1. Introduction: Why Ethics and Business?
2. Global Business and the Environment: Toxic Waste Trade.
3. Corporate Social Responsibility: The Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
4. Business, Ethics and Profit: Economic Approaches.
5. Ethics and Behavior: Philosophical Approaches.
6. Accounting Practices: the Enron Collapse.
7. Goals, Processes and Rationality: A Parable and a Framework.
8. International Business and National Politics: Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria.
9. Business and Global Environmental Issues: The Oil Industry and Climate Change.
10. Marketing Practices: The Tobacco Business.
11. Global Labor Markets: Child Labor in Asia.
12. The Internet and Multi-jurisdictional Compliance: Yahoo! on trial.
13. Technological Risks: Monsanto and Genetically Modified Organisms.
14. Culture and Intellectual Property Rights: Patenting the Indian Neem Tree.
15. The Individual, Business and Corruption: The Changmaï Case.
16. Students’ Group Presentations.
17. Students’ Group Presentations.
18. Students’ Group Presentations.
19. Concluding Session.

Bibliografia
CHRYSSIDES, G.; KALER, J. Essentials of Business Ethics. Londres: McGraw-Hill, 1996. Pàg.1-21.
ELKINGTON, J. Cannibals with Forks: Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business. Capstone Publishing Limited, 1999. (Paperback).
ELKINGTON, J. The Chrysalis Economy: How Citizen CEOs and Corporations Can Fuse Values and Value Creation. Capstone Publishing Limited, 2001.
KELLY, M. The Divine Right of Capital. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2003.
KORTEN, D. The Post-Corporate World. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1999.
KORTEN, D. When Corporations Rule the World. 2a. ed. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1996.
LAPIERRE, D. i d’altres. It Was Five Past Midnight in Bhopal. Full Circle Publishing Ltd., 2001. (Paperback).
MARTINEZ-ALIER, J. The Environmentalism of the Poor: A Study of Ecological Conflicts and Valuation. Edward Elgar, 2003. (Paperback).
MATTHEWS, J.; GOODPASTER, K.; NASH, L. Policies and Persons: A Casebook in Business Ethics. Nova York: McGraw-Hill, 1997.
NORMAN, Richard. The Moral Philosophers. 2a. ed. Oxford University Press, 1998.
RAMPTON, S.; STAUBER, J. Trust us, we are experts!. Nova York: Penguin Putnam, 2002. (Paperback).
SINGER, Peter (ed.). A Companion to Ethics. Blackwell Companions to Philosophy, 1993.