Douglasian Cultural Model in Indian Context Essay Example for Free

Douglasian Cultural Model in Indian Context Essay Introduction Today’s world is being dominated by daily innovations in technology and increasing globalization which helps organizations to spread and to operate globally in a successful way. Every organisation operating at a global level is trying to improve their financial profits. The success of such organizations greatly depends on their workforce and their decision-making capabilities. Many times the ethicality of such decisions have been questioned because of the profit driven strategies of these organizations. As Nobel Prize winner economist Milton Friedman quotes, â€Å"An executive’s responsibility generally will be to make as much money as possible while conforming to their basic rules of the society, both those embodied in law and those embodied in ethical custom. † The decision-making process and hence ethicality of the decisions in such organisations is greatly influenced by the culture of the workforce. Bartels (1967) was one of the first to note the importance of the role of culture in ethical decision-making. There are different studies which discuss the diversity of ethical decision-making based on different perspective for example, Vitell, Nwachukwu and Barnes, 1993 discuss the effect of culture on ethical decision-making with the help of Hofsted’s typology while Patel and Schaefer, 2009 discuss the same with the help of Douglasian Cultural Theory (CT) perspective in the Indian context. Summary Patel and Schaefer’s article discusses the impact of culture on ethical decision-making from a Douglasian Cultural Theory (CT) perspective. It explains the dynamic ethical behaviour of the individual with four solidarities of CT. The Article also discusses the business ethics in the Indian context. Authors argue that applying static conception of culture to the process of ethical decision-making in business results in several problems. The Authors propose CT as an alternative model to these static conceptions to avoid these problems. The Article says that every social system is ethically plural because of the presence of all four solidarities together. An Individual from different solidarities may have a different perception of an issue’s moral intensity which may lead to different levels of moral awareness and hence to different moral judgements. The Article explores the dynamicity and diversity of ethical decision-making in business using the CT framework within the I ndian context with examples of Amul, SEWA, Tata Steel, ONGC and Reliance. Strengths This article offers an alternative approach of CT stating the impact of culture on ethical decision-making process in business. Authors argue that applying the static conception of culture to the business ethics results in different problems like national stereotyping, focus on only national cultural aspect ignoring the other aspects and broad generalisation of culture at national level. This article strongly supports the scholars who challenge the essentialist culture approach like Hofstedian framework. Singh (1990) and Bosland (1985a) have shown that it is possible to have different scores on the four Hofstedian dimensions within the same country. Hence there is possibility of difference in ethical behaviour within the same country. The Authors also talk about the same ethical dynamicity in behaviour. The article powerfully illustrates the diversity in business ethics within Indian context using CT model. The Article talks about the different cultural patterns existing in same corporation at same time. This article supports the argument by Sathe (1985) which says that although, the term â€Å"corporate culture† is used as if organisations have a monolithic culture, most companies have more than one set of beliefs influencing the behaviour of employees. The Article also supports the Thompson’s (1997 a-c) theory who argues that same individual could be a member of different solidarities in different contexts which explains the different ethical behaviour of an individual at a different social context. Also the article studies the ethical practices of different types of companies and business entities to understand the business ethics beyond large private corporations with respect to all the four solidarities of CT. The article debates about the dynamicity of ethical decision-making by citing the examples of all the solidarities existing in different Indian corporations. Also it talks over about the historical and philosophical background for the adoption of different ethical strategies by different corporations. Weaknesses The article explains the process of ethical decision-making in business from a ‘Douglasian Cultural Theory’ perspective only. The article does not identify many other factors beyond culture that may account for differences in work behaviour across nations. Scholars like Parboteeah and Cullen (2003) have suggested the need to include noncultural factors to isolate the influence of culture on ethical behaviour. Also many scholars have talked about the other personal characteristics like education, age, gender and religion that affect the ethical decision-making but they have not put any light on this part in the article. According to Kracher, Chatterjee and Lundquist, education plays an important and positive role in one’s ethical decision-making. Also Singhapakdi et al.: JBE (1996) talk about the relationship between ethical sensitivity and age being significantly positive. Ameen, et al., (1996) suggests that ethical judgments vary according to gender, where females have historically been more ethical compared to males. According to Singhapakdi et al :JBE (2000), there is a positive relationship between religion and perception of an ethical problem. The article has not mentioned all these perspectives while considering the process of ethical decision-making. Patel and Schaefer explained the ethical behaviour in Indian business context with the help of CT and argue that as CT is not limited in its scope of application, what is true for one country should also be true for other countries. This contradicts the findings of the researchers like Tsui which states â€Å"The major contexts that may separate one nation from another include the physical, historical, political, economic, social, and cultural.† This may cause an individual from another country to behave differently in the same context compare to individual in India. My standpoint The research article applies CT model to explain the ethical decision-making process in business within Indian context which allows us to look beyond static and limited conception of national culture. The authors have explained the ethical behaviours using examples of different Indian business entities. Since India is one of the largest growing economies, this research paper will be useful in providing the insights of the ethical practices in India. In my opinion, the authors have raised valid questions about the studies that link static conceptions of the culture to the business ethics. The authors have successfully associated dynamicity in ethical behaviours with the different cultural patterns as per CT which proves the existence of all the four solidarities in every social system. Paper also gives us insights about how all the solidarities co-exist and try to dominate each other. The Authors explain it in an Indian context citing examples for each solidarity. Moreover, authors have highlighted the important fact that managers operating under different cultural patterns may perceive and attend to information about moral issues differently which results in different ethical behaviours. The article considered the very important factors of history and politics that may have influenced while discussing dynamicity of ethical behaviours within Indian context. I am of the opinion that the Douglasian cultural theory is not sufficient to judge the ethical behaviour in business. There are many other factors like education, age, gender and religion which hold a significant role in the decision-making process. The authors have failed to consider these factors. I believe the consideration of the above mentioned factors would have made this research work more reliable. Also I disagree with the authors’ argument of what is true for India should also be true for other countries since every country has a different political, economical, cultural and physical background. Conclusion Taran Patel and Anja Schaefer have criticized the static and limited conception of culture to ethical decision-making in business. They have provided the alternative approach of Douglasian cultural theory to explain the dynamicity and diversity in ethical behaviours with the help of examples from business entities in India. The Authors advocate that the managers should be sensitive to the beliefs of all the four solidarities to be more effective. The Authors also agree that more empirical and theoretical work is needed to strengthen the relationship between the cultural patterns and business ethics. References Bartels, R.: 1967, A Model for Ethics in Marketing’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 31, No. 1 (Jan., 1967), pp. 20-26 Vitell S, Nwachukwu S and Barnes J. : 1993, ‘The Effects of Culture on Ethical Decision-Making: An Application of Hofstedes Typology’, Journal of Business Ethics,Vol. 12, No. 10 (Oct., 1993), pp. 753-760 Hofstede, G. 1980. (Revised in 1984). Culture’s Consequences – International Differences in Work-related Values. Sage Publications. Singh, J. 1990. Managing Culture and Work-related Values in India. Organization Studies, 11(1): 75-101 Bosland, N. 1985a.An evaluation of Replication Studies using the Values Survey Module.Institute for Research on Intercultural Cooperation, Rijks-universiteit Limburg Working Paper 85-2, Maastricht Sathe, V. (1985), Culture and Related Corporate Realities, Irwin, Homewood, IL. Thompson, M.: 1997a, ‘Rewriting the Precepts of PolicyAnalysis’, in M. Thompson and R. J. Ellis (eds.),Culture Matters: Essays in Honour of Aaron Wildavsky(Westview Press, Boulder, CO). Thompson, M.: 1997b, ‘Cultural Theory and TechnologyAssessment’, in F. Fischer and M. Hajer (eds.),Living with Nature: Environmental Discourse and Cultural Politics (Oxford University Press, Oxford). Thompson, M.: 1997c, ‘Cultural Theory and IntegratedAssessment’,Environmental Modelling and Assessment 2,139–150. Kracher, B., A. Chatterjee and A. R. Lundquist: 2002, ‘Factors Related to the Cognitive Moral Development of Business Students and Business Professionals in India and the United States: Nationality, Education, Sex and Gender’, Journal of Business Ethics 35(4), 255–268 Parboteeah, K. P., Cullen, J. B. 2003. Social institutions and work centrality: Explorations beyond national culture. Organization Science, 14(2): 137-148. Patel, T.: 2005, Using Dynamic Cultural Theories to explain the Viability of International Strategic Alliances: A Focus on Indo-French Alliances. PhD Thesis, Open University. Milton Keynes, UK. Singhapakdi, A., S. J. Vitell and K. L Kraft: 1996, ‘Moral Intensity and Ethical Decision-Making of Marketing Professionals’, Journal of Business Research 36, 245–255. Ameen, E., Guffey, D. and J. McMillan. 1996. Gender Differences in Determining the Ethical Sensitivity of Future Accounting Professionals. Journal of Business Ethics 15: 591-597. Singhapakdi, Anusorn, Janet K. Marta, Kumar C. Rallapalli, and C.P. Rao (2000), Toward an Understanding of Religiousness and Marketing Ethics: An Empirical Study, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 27, No. 4, 305-319.

AOL : An Exceptional Internet Service Provider :: Internet Online Communication Essays

AOLÂ  : An Exceptional Internet Service Provider The internet is expanding every day to new heights never reached before. To accommodate this new growth, internet service providers are needed. One of the largest internet service providers today is American Online, otherwise known as AOL. AOL has created a friendly atmosphere where online users can easily navigate their way on the internet. There are many reasons as to why AOL is one of the leading internet service providers. By clearly gathering and evaluating these reasons, it is obvious they have made all the right choices in building a successful company. AOL started in the eighties when personal computers were just put on the market. Stephen Case founded the company which was known then as Quantum Computer Services, in 1985. (Shelly, 2001) It was located in Dulles, Virginia. Originally the purpose of the company was to sell limited online service to PC users, as opposed to now where there is unlimited service. Slowly but surely Quantum started providing more services and eventually changed its name to American Online in 1991. By 1994 AOL had 1,000,000 members and had bought Redgate Communications, NaviSoft, BookLink Technologies, and ANS. (Who We Are, 2001) Similarly in 1996 AOL had set up in France, United Kingdom, and Canada, with plans to be in Japan. Now with more than seven million members, a deal is reached for unlimited use per month for $19.95. For the last four years the business has grown into a giant corporation. As of this year AOL has exceeded 31 million members and merged with Time Warner. (WWA, 2001) With this many members, it shows AOL must have an outstanding internet service. Since AOL is so commonly used, its website must be easy, convenient, and informative. The site contains a lot of information including entertainment, health, news, sports, and much more. Chat has become widely popular on the internet, allowing people from around the world to talk. It has been recorded that 56 million hours are used up a month in AOL chat rooms. (WWA, 2001) In addition to chat, news is taken from the television, radio, and newspapers to be posted on the web. There is also a section for kids where they can chat, look for help on homework, and go to other children websites.

Middle East case studies: Elixir Technology

1.  Ã‚  Entering the Middle East market through Malaysia is the best alternative at this time. Malaysia has a market not dissimilar with that of the Middle East. Entering Middle East via this option gives the Company an opportunity to partner with a company which has insights on working in a Muslim country. This way, Elixir is not starting with zero knowledge since this entry strategy is a duplication of what it did in Japan. 2.  Ã‚  Elixir develops and sells computer software which includes the stand-alone and the server-side versions of the Elixir Report. These two versions provide business an enterprise-class reporting solution. ER â€Å"was designed for high-performance operation, capable of handling large report generation† (O’Neil, 2004, p. 4). As such, Elixir Report is â€Å"able to accommodate multiple input data source types and provide reports in multiple output formats† (O’Neil, 2004, p. 4). Aside from these benefits, ER can support multilingual reporting and platform independence, and can support mobile devices. The core competencies of Elixir for its ER are: Speed in adopting changes in the environment and technologies into ER’s programs and applications. As a matter of Elixir claims that flexibility is built in into the Company’s spirit   (O’Neil, 2004, p. 8). Network with technology vendors. This relationship enables Elixir to rapidly fit its ER into a client’s information system which was sourced from a particular vendor or several vendors. Capacity and capability to localize the Elixir Report into specific customer requirements. This capacity and capability is a result of the unique design of ER which enables Elixir for â€Å"easy modification for accommodating local cultural needs† (O’Neil, 2004, p. 8). 3.  As the Company recognized the positive relationship between its understanding of it’s customers’ technology vendors and the efficiency of the sales process, Elixir made developing partnerships with other technology vendors the basis of its â€Å"marketing, sales and distribution strategy† ((O’Neil, 2004, p. 6). Another component of its marketing strategy is stressing that other technology companies translate their products instead of localizing them as what Elixir does (O’Neil, 2004, p. 8). Also, the Company provided for a free trial of the software which can be downloaded from the Company’s Web site (O’Neil, 2004, p. 9). By scaling the software into different versions and selling licensing agreements, Elixir is able to sell ER at a price 50 percent lower than its competitors. This scalability, however, is not a liability in terms of software performance. 4.  Ã‚  Elixir, as to its plan and strategy to expand outside Singapore, has been averagely successful. For example, in its entry into Japan, the Company’s initial marketing strategy – advertising in international magazines – generated low response from Japanese customers. However, this was remedied with the Company’s partnership with GrapeCity which enabled Elixir to bridge cultural gap and language barriers. This same strategy can be used in entering the Middle east market. 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Yes, based on the facts presented, it is financially beneficial for Lau Shih Hor to take Elixir into the Middle East. I suggest that Lau pursues a distribution partnership with a Malaysian-based company. This company has a better understanding of the Middle East market than Lau which will allow the Company to better localize ER which is one of the product’s competitive advantages. References O’Neil, E. (2004). Elixir Technology – Entry into the Middle East. Ivey Management Services, pp. 1-24.

A Brief Note On The Canadian Womens Association Of Ontario

ARTICLE 6 – GOVERNANCE 6.1. Term of Office a) Positions shall be for a three (3) year term. b) No official shall serve in the same capacity for more than two (2) consecutive terms. c) All offices, roles, functions and responsibilities described herein are on a volunteer basis. THE CHADIAN CANADIAN WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF ONTARIO GENERAL MEETING 6.2. Definition the Chadian Canadian Women’s General Meeting refers to the open general meeting of all members of Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario, and individual and honorary Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario members; 6.3. Meetings: The Assembly shall be convened at least once every year also referred to as the Annual General Meeting (AGM); 6.4. Functions of the†¦show more content†¦b) The Executive Committee shall carry out the plan of the organization forward by being responsible for governance and recruitment, staffing and community relations. c) The Executive Committee shall consist of the President, Vice-President, Secretary-General, Deputy Secretary-General, Treasurer, Deputy Treasurer and Past-President. The position(s) of Member-at-Large may be created as needed by the Board of Directors. d) The Executive Committee shall be elected from and by the Board members of the Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario 7.3. Functions of the Executive Committee - Members of the Executive Committee shall severally and collectively: a) Be responsible that the day to day management of Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario occurs; b) Represent only the interests, aims and objectives of Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario; c) Work together as a team in providing leadership to Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario; d) Execute decisions made by the Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario Assembly (AGM); e) Have power to constitute ad-hoc committee(s) with specific terms of reference; f) Prepare annual reports and annual financial reports for approval by the Board of Directors of Chadian Canadian Women’s Association of Ontario before submission to the annual general meeting; g) Liaise with other organizations; h) Liaise with government; i) Be accountable to the Board of Directors of