Business Ethics in a Multipolar World

Abstract

A teacher–student dynamic has long shaped the West’s approach to business ethics, one relying on Eurocentric moral frameworks to instruct non-Western cultures. This approach presumes the superiority of Eurocentric concepts but is fraying badly. New realities, especially the Global South’s growing military and commercial power, epitomized by BRICS and the SCA (Shanghai Cooperation Organization), have fueled a return to indigenous cultural roots. For business, the impact is profound, with Asian companies demonstrating the financial power of their indigenous moral systems even as resistance to the Western politicization of human rights grows. Meanwhile, efforts at decolonization have fallen short, aggravating resistance to a simple diet of Western moral concepts. It is time to acknowledge that the teacher–student dynamic is long past its prime. This dynamic undermines moral autonomy, a core principle of Western ethics, while disparaging the ability of non-Western moral systems to express foundational moral truths. Evidence shows that ethics, and with it, ethical reform, thrives best when planted in native soil. Indigenous frameworks frequently achieve better results that Western transplants when used for both institutional reform and business success.