Question

Jimbo Electronics sells navigation equipment used in airports. You have been working with the government of a western European country and have gotten them to agree to purchase this equipment for all airports in that country. The value of the contract is over $10 Million US dollars. In your last meeting with the government official responsible for signing the contract, you discover that this official is demanding that you paid him a $5,000 dollars "finders fees" for his assistance. Further, he said you are to build this into the the contract price so that there would be no cost to Jimbo. When you indicated that you would not do this, the official said the deal was off. Further, the official said and you have confirmed that such arrangements are considered "normal" in this country.
Required:
Write a brief paragraph on what this statute contains that relates to Moore's dilemma. Some American executives think this law causes American corporations to suffer a competitive disadvantage. Do you agree? Why or why not?

Answer 1

In this text, we learn about the behaviour of the government official responsible for signing the contract. The official appears to be demanding money known as a "finder's fee." However, this was not part of the official agreement, and appears unethical to you. The official justifies it by saying that it is common place in his country. These actions would be considered both ilegal (because they go against the law) and unethical (because they do not follow the values that society accepts as fair). Some executives might think that reacting in this way can cause American corporations to suffer a competitive disadvantage. However, I disagree. While in some cases this might mean that American corporations cannot compete with other, more corrupt corporations, following the law is likely to lead to peace and stability, which ultimately benefits corporations.