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A neo-institutional perspective on ethical decision-making

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Abstract

Drawing on neo-institutional theory, this study aims to discern the poorly understood ethical challenges confronted by senior executives in Indian multinational corporations and identify the strategies that they utilize to overcome them. We conducted in-depth interviews with 40 senior executives in Indian multinational corporations to illustrate these challenges and strategies. By embedding our research in contextually relevant characteristics that embody the Indian environment, we identify several institutional- and managerial-level challenges faced by executives. The institutional-level challenges are interpreted as regulative, normative and cognitive shortcomings. We recommend a concerted effort at the institutional and managerial levels by identifying relevant strategies for ethical decision-making. Moreover, we proffer a multi-level model of ethical decision-making and discuss our theoretical contributions and practical implications.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Human Resource Management, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, ON, M3J 1P3, Canada

    Christopher Chan

  2. Faculty of Business, Australian Catholic University, North Sydney Campus (MacKillop), Level 4, 21 Berry Street, Sydney, NSW, 2060, Australia

    Christopher Chan

  3. Institut de Gestion de Rennes, Université de Rennes 1, 11 rue Jean Macé, 35708, Rennes, Cedex 7, France

    Christopher Chan

  4. School of Management, Curtin Business School, Curtin University, Kent St, Bentley, WA, 6102, Australia

    Subramaniam Ananthram

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Correspondence to Subramaniam Ananthram.

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A preliminary version of this paper was accepted for presentation at the 10th Asia Academy of Management Conference, Fukuoka, Japan, 2017.

Appendix: Schedule of interview questions

Appendix: Schedule of interview questions

  1. 1.

    Do you think that it is possible for businesses to be ethical? Explain ‘why’ or ‘why not’ using anecdotal evidence/examples.

  2. 2.

    What do you think make Indian business ethics unique? How is it different to business ethics in other countries? Please explain using examples.

  3. 3.

    India has been perceived as having high levels of corruption with evidence of the Indian business environment ranking very high on the Corruptions Perceptions Index (CPI) [# 94 most corrupt out of 174 countries] and the Bribe Payers Index (BPI) [# 18 out of 28 countries]. Why do you think that is so? Give reasons using examples.

  4. 4.

    What do you think are the obstacles for other executives to put into practice ethical principles/teachings? Are these obstacles mainly at the global, societal, institutional level, organizational level or managerial level or a combination? Explain in detail using anecdotal evidence/examples.

  5. 5.

    Do you find any obstacles in putting into practice these ethical principles/teachings? Are these obstacles mainly at the global, societal, institutional level, organizational level or managerial level or a combination? Identify and explain using examples.

  6. 6.

    Where do corruption, cronyism and nepotism stem from? Please explain using anecdotes.

  7. 7.

    Is it possible to eradicate unethical practices? Please justify your response using examples/anecdotes.

  8. 8.

    How can Indian multinational businesses implement ethical practices? What do they need to do? Provide suggestions and examples.

  9. 9.

    How should Indian executives implement those ethical principles?

  10. 10.

    How do you implement those ethical principles?

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Chan, C., Ananthram, S. A neo-institutional perspective on ethical decision-making. Asia Pac J Manag 37, 227–262 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-018-9576-x

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