Corporate Values, Personal Values, Cultural Congruence and Ethics: A Critical Exploration

Abstract

This paper attempts to explore critically, some differences between ‘corporate values’ and ‘personal values’, as indicated by the values statements of a few well-known companies, both in the West and the East. It appears that values choices by Western companies tend to represent primarily ‘corporate values’, which emphasize the objective character of the organization. Indian companies seem to follow this lead. But most companies in other Asian countries appear to select values in terms of subjective character of individuals that should augment the performance effectiveness of organizations. ‘Corporate values’ tend implicitly to accord priority to objective or doing skills over subjective or being values. But in ‘personal values’ the subjective values dimension receives greater accent than the objective. This is because decisions and actions taken by ‘high skills’ persons may become unethical if their driving values originate from questionable subjective motives (values). Values are the cause, ethicality or unethicality the effect. Moreover, in the ultimate analysis ‘personal values’ at the very top have a pronounced influence on the tone of ‘corporate values’ for the organization as a whole. Besides, both Western and non-Indian Asian companies show close alignment of corporate or personal values with the values of the wider society to which they belong.