Can corporate social responsibility help us understand the credit crisis?

The financial crisis which started in the United States in 2007 and which has spread throughout the world has many causes, one of which is the abundance of unethical behavior on the part of many of those who made the financial decisions, such as regulators, supervisors, managers and employees, and also on the part of a not insignificant number of their customers. In this paper, we will seek to shed light on the crisis's ethical content and show how the generalized practice of corporate social responsibility within financial institutions could have helped reduce the magnitude of the crisis, perhaps not systemically but definitely in some of the organizations that have been most affected by the crisis. For this to happen, however, a particular concept of social responsibility would have to have been applied, a responsibility with an ethical basis - or, more specifically, a voluntarily assumed ethics that was capable of giving rise to self-generated duties among financial decision-makers.Crisis; Ethics; Finance; Corporate Social Responsibility; Financial system;

Fostering values in organizations

Today, values hold a prominent place both in business ethics and in organization theory. However, there persists considerable confusion about what these values are and what role they play in these theories and, therefore, how they can be developed both within the individual and within the organization. Therefore, this paper seeks to define a conception of values based on a theory of human action that can provide a basis for an organization theory, and to propose a series of ideas about how personal and organizational values can be fostered.action theory; motives; organization; strategy; values; virtues;

Corruption and companies: The case of facilitating payments

Facilitating payments are a very widespread form of corruption. They consist of small payments or gifts made to a person -a public official or an employee of a private company- to obtain a favor, such as expediting an administrative process, obtaining a permit, license or service, or avoiding an abuse of power. Unlike the worst forms of corruption, facilitating payments do not usually involve an outright injustice on the part of the payer, as she is entitled to what she requests. That may be why public opinion tends to condone them; often they are assumed to be unavoidable and are excused on the grounds of low wages and lack of professionalism among public officials and disorganization in government offices. Many companies that take the fight against "grand" corruption very seriously are inclined to overlook these "petty" transgressions, which are seen as the "grease" that makes the wheels of the bureaucratic machine turn more smoothly. And yet, facilitating payments have a pernicious effect on the working of public and private administrations; all too often they are the slippery slope to more serious forms of corruption; they impose additional costs on companies and citizens; and in the long run they sap the ethical foundations of organizations. This article focuses on facilitating payments from the point of view of the company that makes the payment, either as the active partner (when it is the company that takes the initiative) or as the passive partner (when the official or employee is the instigator).bribery; corruption; extortion; facilitating payments; gifts;

Corporate social responsibility in the tourism industry. Some lessons from the Spanish experience

Tourism has been, and still is, a very profitable industry in Spain. But the Spanish model of tourism development, following a pattern set in the 1950s, is now in crisis. The crisis is apparent in the widespread overdevelopment of tourist resorts and residential facilities in coastal areas, generating high environmental, social and economic costs. In this paper, we describe the Spanish model of tourism, the results it has achieved, the reasons for its longevity and the obstacles facing any attempt to change it. Given the failure of individual, collective and political action to solve the problems ofoverdevelopment, we ask whether corporate social responsibility and its theoretical foundations and instruments offer a solution.Spanish model of tourism; Corporate social responsibility; Overdevelopment; Tourism; Residential tourism;

Love in companies

The traditional theories of the firm leave no room for love in business organizations, perhaps because it is thought that love is only an emotion or feeling, not a virtue, or because economic efficiency and profit making are considered to be incompatible with the practice of charity or love. In this paper we show, based on a theory of the firm, that love can and must be lived in companies for companies to operate efficiently, be attractive to those who take part in them and act consistently in the long run. (Also available in Spanish)Charity; Firm; Organization; Theory of action; Theory of the firm; Virtues;

Political party funding and business corruption

The funding of political parties raises interesting economic, political, social and ethical problems. This paper seeks to address these problems with the intention of contributing to the general debate, but, above all, of understanding the issue from the company's viewpoint, since companies are directly implicated in political party finance, as donors, as supposed beneficiaries of political activity, or as the sufferers of the consequences of illegal party funding. The analysis is focused in economic, political and, above all, ethical terms, first on a general level and then from the company's viewpoint.Business ethics;

From action theory to the theory of the firm

Since Coase's (1937) pioneering article, the theory of the firm, especially in its neoclassical form, has developed tremendously. The criticisms leveled against it confirm its interest and usefulness - which is not to say that it cannot be improved upon or corrected in many respects. This chapter is intended to contribute to a broadening of the theory of the firm, starting from a theory of human action that encompasses a wide range of motivations. It also suggests specific ways in which the conception of the firm can be improved.Action; Action theory; Firm; Motivations; Organization; Theory of the firm;

Anthropological and ethical foundations of organization theory

The ever more frequent and forceful criticisms of management sciences suggest that we need a new model. In fact, the number of proposed alternatives has multiplied, with some suggesting that the range of economic points of departure be extended, while others turn to other sciences (sociology, psychology, neuroeconomics, political sciences, philosophy) for their inspiration. This article suggests returning to the origins of economic science, action theory, with a broader approach that takes in the contributions of realist philosophy (Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas), with a view to laying the foundations for a richer organizational theory in which ethics plays a clearer role.action theory; ethics; management; moral virtues; organization theory;

Ethics in finance and public policy. The Ibercorp case

The “Ibercorp affair” was front-page news in Spain at various times between 1992 and 1995. In itself, there was nothing particularly new about it: a newly formed financial group engaged in legally and ethically reprehensible behaviour that eventually came to light in the media, ruining the company (and the careers of those involved). What aroused public interest at the time was the fact that it involved individuals connected with Spanish public and political life, the media and certain business circles. Above all, it demonstrated the personal, economic, social and political consequences of a business culture based on the pursuit of easy profits at any price (what came to be known as the cultura del pelotazo or “get rich quick culture”). Again, this is all too familiar in business ethics. But it served to goad Spanish society into a rejection of such behaviour. This article describes the facts and their ethical implications.Ethics; public policy; ethical implications;

The common good of the company and the theory of organization

The concept of common good occupies a prominent place in political and social philosophy, yet it has had little impact on the theory of the firm. This is despite some recent attempts to resituate the theory of the firm on broader and therefore more fruitful anthropological and social foundations than those of traditional economic theory. The present study connects with other discussions of organization theory based on the ideas of Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas and is an attempt to explain how the concept of common good may be used to broaden the foundations of organization theory.Catholic social teaching; Common good; Company; Goods; Organization; Organization theory;