Cultural and Ethical Factors for International Business in Brazil - Essay Example

Cultural and Ethical Factors for International Business in Brazil A. Introduction International business involves making business decision which involved cultural and ethical elements of different countries. All cultures are different, thus in order to enter new markets a business must adapt to the new surroundings. For example the eating behavior and taste preferences change from region to region. McDonalds has standardized menus and procedures throughout all its US based franchises. In their international operations the company changed its menu to adapt to the taste of the foreign customer. International firms are obligated to establish operations that safeguard the social and economic assets of a local community (Bird & Smucker, 2007). Ethics plays a big role in the international affairs of multinational companies. A practice that a business would not even contemplate in its home country could be an acceptable method of doing business in a foreign country. For example many third would countries have governmental institutions which require money offerings to officials in order to be able to be able to realize business in the region. Certain countries have extremely low environmental standards. Companies are sometimes tempted to lower their standards, even though they have full knowledge that by doing so they will cause tremendous damage to the environment. B. History that influences current business activities Brazil has been highly influenced by its Europeans ancestors. The personal appearance of Brazilians which affects business activities in the clothing and apparels segments is geared towards a European style. Italian fashion is the preferred style of the urban Brazilian (CultureGrams World Edition, 2007). Businesses have also been greatly influenced by the country’s conversion into democracy in the late 1980’s. C. Language and verbal and non verbal communication customs Portuguese is the official language of Brazil. Spanish is spoken a bit in Brazil in the bordering Spanish speaking countries. Male Brazilians greet each other with handshakes. Male to female and females among them greet each other with up to three kisses in the cheek or with a kiss in the head. Personal space is highly valued and when two people are speaking to each other it is considered very rude to walk near them. Gestures are utilized by the people to express their feelings. For example pulling down the lower eyelid with an index finger signifies disbelief or caution (CultureGrams World Edition, 2007). D. Educational system and literacy rates The educational system of Brazil is based on a primary and secondary school system. Children spend eight years in primary school followed by three years of secondary school. The national university system is very prestigious and selective. Very few young adults entered into this system and many Brazilians choose to study in trade schools. Adult literacy rates are 88% for males and 89% for females (CultureGrams World Edition, 2007). E. Role of social institutions such as family such as family, religion, labor unions, place of employment In Brazil the family unit is considered a sacred institution. Parents take care of their children and adult children are welcome to stay in the household for as long as they want. It is very common for 30 year old single males to live with their parents. The elderly are the responsibility of the sons and daughters. It is not socially acceptable to send off their parents to nursing homes. The most powerful religion in Brazil is the Catholic Church. About 70% of the population is catholic (CultureGrams World Edition, 2007). Other religions practiced in the area include Pentecostalism, Buddhism, Protestants and Afro-Brazilian religions. Labor unions in Brazil have a lot influence over work related issues. The largest union is called The Unitary Workers Capital (CUT). The union represents over 25% of all workers in Brazil (U.S. Department of Labor, 2007). The people of Brazil are hard workers. They start working at an early age to support their families. F. Shopping practices and commonly eaten foods unique to the country Brazil is a country in which piracy levels are very high. Nearly 50% of copyright products sold are counterfeit products which are sold at a fraction of the cost on an original version. (International intellectual copy alliance, 2007). The regular commerce is restricted to certain hours of the day. On weekdays shopping hours are between 8:00 A.M to 6:00 P.M. Saturday stores are open until 12:00 P.M. and they are closed on Sundays. Brazilians enjoy spending time with their families with a nice meal. The most important meal to them is lunch. One of the typical plates they enjoy is “churrasco” which is grilled or barbequed meat. The national meal of the country is called “feijoadas”. “Feijoadas” are black beans simmered with a variety of dried, salted and smoked meats (Brazilhouson). “Tucupi” is very popular among the tribal residents in Brazil. It is a sauce that is squeezed out of manioc root seasoned in garlic. G. Major holidays and customs In Brazil the biggest holiday is a five day event called Carnaval. The Carnaval has an electrifying atmosphere in which the natives form street parties, wear customs, listen to loud music, dance, drink and eat plenty of food in a fabulous celebration. Every April 21st Brazil celebrates Tiradentes Day. This holiday is in honor of Joaquim Jose da Silva Javier a freedom fighter that died in country’s struggle for independence. Other holidays celebrated in Brazil are illustrated in the list below: St. Peter St. John The Festas Juninas – parties celebrated in the month of June Easter Labor Day (May 1) Independence Day (September 7) Memorial Day (November 2) Republic Day Christmas New Years (CultureGrams World Edition, 2007). Brazilians are very passionate about their music. Their favorite genre is Samba. An interesting folklore of the country is the belief in a mythical creature which rules the Amazon jungle. The creature is called “Cobra-Grande”, a large snake with the ability to change shapes. Teenagers begin dating before the age of 15. Brazilians tend to marry very young. H. Business practices related to place of employment, type of business, length of workdays and hiring practices The most commonly found business entities in Brazil are corporations and limited liability companies (Advertising & Marketing). Most people in Brazil work from 8:30 A.M. to 5:30 P.M. (Gwu, 2007). Hiring practices that can lead to problems for companies in Brazil are letters with details of the private negotiations. The letters can be interpreted by a court as a labor contract according to the Brazilian labor laws (Dias). Companies can not hire a Brazilian citizen unless they are registered with the government; direct foreign employment by a foreign company is not a permitted business practice (Worldwideconsulting, 2004). I. Ethical practices, employment practices, human rights, environmental regulations, corruption, and moral obligations of multinational corporations Human rights in Brazil are not protecting very well its citizens. Two major work related problems in the country are child labor and forced labor. The law in Brazil says children can work after the age of 16. There is a loophole in the law which allows children to work as apprentices after the age of 12 with the parent’s permission. Two horrific horrifying facts related to child labor are that in the Northern region of Brazil over 50% of children work and there are over 800,000 girls in the country between the ages of 10 and 17 years old working as domestic servants (U.S. Department of Labor, 2007). Forced Labor can be defined as compulsory labor. It is 21st century slavery and the people involved in this illegal activity are in the market of selling their workers as if they were cattle. The practice is more common in the rural regions of the country. The victims of this practice typically work in agriculture, forest clearing, livestock raising among other jobs. Other human right problems in Brazil include domestic violence, police violence, torture, indigenous violence and agrarian violence (Wikipedia, 2007). Corruption is widespread among governmental officials. “Deeply entrenched pork barrel practices have been reflected in a tradition of mutual exchange of favors in Congress, or as the mensalao scandal showed, plain corruption” (EIU Country Report: Brazil, 2006). Environmental regulation in Brazil needs to be improved to be able to negotiate economic international agreements. The region has very valuable natural resource including the largest rainforest in the world, The Amazon. The country has to protect the Amazon to stop deforestation in the area. This jungle holds the key for many future cures of diseases because of its unique characteristics, thus its survival is extremely important. A third world country, especially one with a tropical climate, has a higher incidence of virus diseases. Multinational pharmaceutical companies have a moral obligation of providing medicine at deeply discounted prices to prevent epidemics from spreading in Brazil. Large companies are largely responsible for the release of hazardous material into the ecosystem. They must be socially responsible in these matters to protect the wildlife in the area. J. Conclusion I utilized a variety of sources for the research on this project. I started by entering two specialized databases of country information, CultureGrams and EIU Country Intelligence. CultureGrams had very insightful information about the culture of Brazil. I searched for peer reviewed journal in EBSCOhost and ProQuest databases. The articles I found in these databases helped me with the introduction. I used the interned to search for information. I prefer using Google and Yahoo browsers to find information. It was not easy to find at times, but all the information needed to complete the paper was available. In my home I have a collection of original Snoop Dogg music CD’s and lot of football memorabilia which is worth hundreds of dollars. If I went to a swap meet to try to sell my original CD’s for half the original cost the Brazilians would laugh at me. First of all rap music is not their preferred style of music and their culture place very little value in original copyrighted material. My football memorabilia would not be worth much to a customer in this country since the people do not follow football, their national sport is soccer. The culture and customs of a country affect the products a company could introduce into a country. A society which has very high religious values, might not be the best place for a video store to sell Jerry Springer uncensored videos. If in a country the people don’t like to eat salted foods, then Frito Lays Doritos chips are not a good product to introduce into the region. An area with high levels of illiteracy is not a good place for Barnes a Noble to open up a store. References Advertising and Marketing Review. International Business Practice. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://www.ad-mkt-review.com/public_html/govdocs/ibp/ibpcbrz.html Bird, F. , Smucker, J. (2007). The Social Responsibilities of International Business Firms in Developing Areas. Journal of Business Ethics, 71(1), 1). Retrieved June 19, 2007 from EBSCOhost database. Brazilhouston.org. Flavors from Brazil. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://www.brazilhouson.org/ingles/flavors/htm CultureGrams World Edition (2007). Federative Republic of Brazil. 1-4. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from CultureGrams database. Dias, A. Avoiding Unanticipated Costs for Compensation of Employees. The Global Employer Retrieved June 18, 2007 from http://www.shrm.org/global/publications/baker/1299glob/Jan%2000%20docs/brazil.htm EIU Country Report: Brazil (2006). 10. Retrieved June 18, 2007 from Economic Intelligence Unit database. Gwu.edu (2007). About Brazil. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://www.gwu.edu/~rpsol/culture/br-op.htm International Intellectual Copy Alliance (2007). Special 301 Report: Brazil. 5. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://www.iipa.com/rbc/2007/2007SPEC301BRAZIL.pdf U.S. Department of Labor (2007). Foreign Labor Trends-Brazil. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://www.dol.gov/ILAB/media/reports/flt/brazil-2002.htm Wikipedia.org (2007). Human Rights in Brazil. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Brazil Worldwideconsulting.com (2004). The Employment Relationship. Retrieved June 19, 2007 from http://www.worldwideconsulting.com/brazil.htm Read More