Ethics, Business and Capitalism - by Janet Hunter & Patnaree Srisuphaolarn & Pierre Van Der Eng & Julia Yongue (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Academic analysis of business ethics in Southeast Asia.

Taking cues from the Japanese concept of ethical or stakeholder capitalism, this book demonstrates how the business activities of firms in Thailand and Indonesia are guided by their perceptions of morality in society and their concerns about the environment. The authors explore the likelihood that foreign influences contributed to the development of such management philosophies, for example through the expansion of Japanese subsidiary firms in the 1980s or the spread of foreign articulations of the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) since the 2000s. Companies in both countries may exercise a degree of pragmatism in how they develop these activities. As the authors reveal, the perceptions of morality in business that have shaped many entrepreneurs and companies in Thailand and Indonesia are their responses to the dynamic political, social, and economic factors that have formed the business environments of both countries.

Review Quotes

"The strength of this book lies in its historical overview and the focus on how the Thai and Indonesian founders established some important contemporary conglomerates, and how in some cases they initially applied a philosophy of responsibility.... This book is a good introduction to Thai and Indonesian business culture, with some rich historical detail."-- "Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies"

About the Author

Janet Hunter is the Saji Emeritus Professor of Economic History at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Patnaree Srisuphaolarn is associate professor of international business at Thammasat Business School in Bangkok. Pierre van der Eng is associate professor at the Australian National University. Julia Yongue is professor in the Business Economics Department of the Faculty of Economics at Hosei University in Tokyo.