Business ethics help

SPRING 2017

1. How can these types of conflicting behaviors be handled? Who should do it?

a. It wasn’t the first time that Marta’s manager asked her to copy-edit the store flyer. Their company served a large Latino population and Marta was happy that more Latino items were being offered at local supermarkets. As she worked on the flyer featuring the new products, Marta noticed that the items were not being promoted in a way that would appeal to Latinos. She thought of approaching her manager with her observations but she felt that the boss would take them as criticism of the advertising team who had created the copy. So she kept her mouth shut.

Later, when Marta mentioned her decision to Jim, an Anglo colleague, he said Marta’s boss would probably welcome the suggestions. Jim is right. A good manager is usually happy to hear suggestions for improving products or services, something that, for many Latinos and people from other backgrounds, may come across as questioning authority. This is just one of many examples of cultural differences in the workplace. Think about it this way: you are being paid to think outside the box, to come up with unique ideas and points of view that can give your company a competitive advantage.

b. Latinos tend not only to share a lot about themselves but also to ask about other people’s families. They can often surprise a colleague with a question like, “How’s your aunt Margie doing?” when the colleague no longer remembers that her aunt had an operation a month ago. They ask because they care and they expect others to care about them as well. So when nobody asks Latinos about their sick child or their cousin who got married, they tend to feel isolated and disengaged. If you use these cultural differences at work as an opportunity to learn from each other, you can make it a much better (and humanized) workplace.

2. There are also many macro- level cultural issues in managing global business: take a few of the most potentially contentious: language used internally and externally; employee dress; who makes decisions on products and brands (do you carry pork in a Malaysian grocery; put candy by the cash register. For example). Pick one of the larger categories and discuss how both smaller and larger firms can deal with differing cultural beliefs, practices, and feelings while at the same time able to operate effectively.