PRELIMINARY CURRICULUM
COURSE: AMERICAN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND ETHICS
American Chamber of Commerce and Center for North-American Studies
Instructor: Representatives of Companies associated in the American Chamber of Commerce
Office hours: tbc
Contact details: cnas@euba.sk
Contact hours: 90 minutes/week for 13 weeks
Lectures: every Thursday 15.15 - 16.45
Course Description:
Aim of the course is to acquaint students with particularities and specifics of the North-American business environment and with the role of ethics in business relations. It discusses basic characteristics and determinants of the US economical system while focusing on the value dimension of social and environmental aspects of business enterprise. At the same time it offers an analysis of current development prospects and possible implications of the financial and economical crises on business and trade relations in the North-American region.
The course will be conducted in seminar format and in English.
Course website:
Readings will be sent to students via e-mail and/or will be posted on the website. Link:
URL:TBA
Course requirements:
• Regular class attendance:
Students may only miss two classes during the semester.
If a student misses more classes, s/he must present a valid proof of the reason (doctor's note in case of illness, obituary in case of death of a family member, etc.). If a valid proof is presented, the student must write a 2-3-page summary of the topic he/she missed referring to either provided readings (if relevant) or other sources based on students' decision.
• Active participation:
Students are expected to actively participate during seminars by asking and answering questions, presenting comments, etc. Students' activity will be evaluated after each seminar.
• Essay writing:
Students are expected to write an essay on chosen topic selected from the list of topics discussed during the course. The student should demonstrate his/her ability to work with literature and various references while taking into account diverse points of view when reflecting particular topics.
The concluding essay should consist of 10 - 15 pages (Times New Roman, 12p, spacing 1,5p) and possible extra attachments. (Charts, diagrams, photos, etc.) Each essay is expected to include at least 5 references. Deadline for submitting the essay is December 12, 2009
Plagiarism and cheating are considered unacceptable academic practices. Plagiarism is understood as any usage of text of other author(s) - identical or paraphrased borrowing of an idea - without proper referencing. This includes copying or borrowing from other students or handing in work prepared by someone else than the student. For word by word references, please use quotation marks as well as references. For referencing consult the APSA style manual: http://www.ipsonet.org/data/files/APSAStyleManual2006.pdf. The fact that you employ someone else's argument will not affect your grade negatively as long as you provide references. However, the instructor will make every effort to screen out cases of plagiarism. Cases of plagiarism will be dealt with according to university regulations.
Evaluation:
Grades will be made up by the following components:
• Active participation in seminars: 50%
• Essays: 50%
TIMETABLE
1. WEEK: INTRODUCTION TO COURSE AND CURRICULUM OVERVIEW
• Is American business environment different?
• What is ethics?
• Why study ethics?
• Can ethics be taught?
• How can be ethics applied to business?
2. WEEK: FOUNDING VALUES IN ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIPS AND ASSUMPTIONS AND VALUES OF CAPITALISM
• New framework of responsible capitalism
• The Ethics of Late Capitalism
• Entrepreneurial Living: What It Takes?
• Financial crisis - Crisis of capitalism?
3. WEEK: THE AMERICAN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND SYSTEM EVOLUTION
• U.S. Capitalism: Is the U.S. Number One, or why is it so important?
• The Legal dimension
• The future of American business environment
4. WEEK: GLOBALIZATION AND GLOBAL BUSINESS
• The Process of Globalization
• The Benefits and Costs of Globalization
• Doing Business in a Diverse World
• Collaborative Partnerships for Global Problem Solving
BUSINESS AND GOVERNMENT
5. WEEK: How Business and Government Relate
• Government Regulation of Business
• Regulation in a Global Context (export/import/business behavior)
• Economic Sanctions on Multinational Corporations
• Government and business as economic counterparts and as institutions: different and common in goal pursuit, organizational forms, legal authority and property rights
6. WEEK: Influencing the Political Environment
• Influencing the Business-Government Relationship
• Participants in the Political Environment
• Lobbying
7. WEEK: BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE
• Technology: A Global Economic and Social Force
• Managing Technological Challenges
• Protecting Intellectual Property
• Managing Scientific Breakthroughs
8. WEEK: THE CORPORATION AND THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT
• Ecology and Sustainable Development in global Business
• Corporate Environmental Responsibility
• Costs and Benefits of Environmental Regulation
• Environmental Management as a Competitive Advantage
9. WEEK: BUSINESS AND THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Global Corporate Citizenship
• Sweatshops, Fair Trade and Global Outsourcing
• Social Skills in the Business Environment
BUSINESS AND THE ETHICAL ENVIRONMENT
10. WEEK: Ethics and Ethical Reasoning
• What Is Business Ethics?
• Why Ethical Problems Occur in Business?
• Making Ethical Decisions in Business
11. WEEK: Organizational Ethics and the Law
• Corporate Culture and Ethical Climates
• Business Ethics across Organizational Functions
12. WEEK: BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH STAKEHOLDERS
• Stockholder Rights and Corporate Governance
• The Community and the Corporation
• Consumer Protection
• Employees and the Corporation
• Managing a Diverse Workforce
• Business and the Media
13. WEEK: IMPLICATIONS OF THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS ON THE AMERICAN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
• Macroeconomic impacts and policy: growth impact scenarios for the current crisis, lessons learned from the current and previous crises, the prospects for rebalancing growth away from exports and policy recommendations for fiscal policy, monetary policy, currency and reserve management
• Real economy impacts: SMEs, trade finance and industrial structure
• Social and environmental impacts: employment and income distribution, poverty, sub-national regional economies, health, education, gender and environment
• Financial reform and regulation: ways how to avoid or mitigate a systemic financial crisis in the region, ways how to improve regulation and oversight of financial products, markets and investor groups, streamlining of regulatory structures, strengthening the functioning of regional financial markets, credit rating agencies and payment systems
• Regional cooperation and regional/global architecture: recommendations for improving and/or developing regional economic policy and institutions aimed at preventing the recurrence of a systemic financial crisis in the region, improving policy coordination, promoting regional trade, and political economy aspects of cooperation
