Case Study-International Business: The Question of Paying Bribes According to the World Bank, briber

Case Study-International
Business: The Question of Paying Bribes

According to the World Bank, bribery is a $1
Trillion per year issue (Bowie and Schneider 305). All countries have laws
against paying bribes, but it still happens.

You are the manager of a
multi-year, multi-billion dollar project overseas. Local officials from on site
inspectors to national cabinet ministers all have their hands out.

Other companies are making
payments, because “everyone else is doing it†and “that’s how things get done
here.â€

Your project will definitely
get delayed, and may get cancelled, if you do not make the payments. But, US
law is clear, paying bribes is illegal and will be punished if discovered.

What do you do as the project
manager?

What is the ethical basis of
your decision?

Does your answer change if
the company owners and executives are willing to turn a blind eye?

Are there universal ethical
values in play here? Or, is this a case of cultural relativism?