Eth/316 Cross-Cultural Perspectives Research Paper

Cross-Cultural Perspectives
Debra Blackwelder
ETH-316
MAy 12, 2014
Chuck Thompson
Cross-Cultural Perspectives
When an organization goes global, there are new social and ethical issues that arise. A company like Wal-Mart is no different. Wal-Mart is considered a retail giant and one of the largest companies in the world. It has grown as a staple in America as well as on an international platform, touching base in countries such as Japan and China. Wal-Mart is the largest retailer and the largest company in the history of the world in the way it conducts business operations. Wal-Mart management has implemented ways to overcome the challenges the present the ethical and social responsibilities with regard to globalization. The
Wal-Mart failed to become the successful store in Germany that it is in America. Germany is not the only country that the organization has problems in. They also have problems in South Korea and Japan because even the low prices and large selection of merchandise they are having a hard time competing with the chain markets in these countries and the shopper habits. The sales clerks in German Wal-Mart’s are no longer required to smile at customers because it is often interpreted as flirting. German customers were irritated by the store merchandising, premium products are put at eye level in Wal-Mart stores while discount products are on the top or bottom shelves and the stalls were placed in a way that had the customer spending more time in the store. The grocery business is a struggle for Wal-Mart in other counties because either they cannot beat the prices of other discount markets or the type of food does not meet the countries culture. For example, in the German cultural, they purchase meat from a butcher and Wal-Mart sells packaged meat, they do not do well in this department. Some other examples are the mistake of trying to sell golf clubs in Brazil, which is a country that is not familiar with golf, or trying to sell ice skates in
The company should have a great understanding and respect of the new community in order to continue to work there. Ethical perspectives change in different cultures and communities. Each community has different rules and values.
These ethical issues not only will make problems for organizations financially, but also take away the trust from the company. Customers, investors, and stockholders only continue to do business with a company that they can trust, and feel safe to invest their money in. Sometimes organizations may make some changes in their cultures to be able to work in different countries. Global organizations should be able to create a strong culture and ethics that protect different cultures and fit their