International Conference on Global and Contextual Business Ethics organized by Globethics.net and IIMB

An International Conference on Global and Contextual Business Ethics was held on April 25-27, 2010 at Mysore. Organized by Globethics.net Foundation, Switzerland and the Centre for Corporate Governance and Citizenship (CCGC) of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) the conference was designed to share the findings of the Global Survey on Business Ethics and to arrive at an agenda for research, teaching and training in the field of ethics, responsibility and governance. 

Welcoming the participants to the conference on the evening of April 25, Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan, Chairperson CCGC, said that over the past 18 months, especially in the background of the recent global financial crisis, there have been increased questions on corporate governance, ethics and responsibility. The implications have necessitated greater emphasis on the teaching of Ethics in B-Schools, more Ethics training in Corporations and more research on Corporate Responsibility. The conference aimed to bring together participants from diverse backgrounds and obtain inputs towards developing an agenda for corporate responsibility and business ethics that would support the needs of different stakeholders. The networking opportunities provided at the conference was expected to lead to greater coordination and convergence in achieving desired goals.

Mr. Walter Fust, President of the Board of Globethics.net Foundation provided his perspective on the increased risks and uncertainties in doing business that required an institutional response in preparing for the future, and sound leadership.

The introduction to the conference was given by Mr. S.D. Shibulal, COO, Member of the Board and Co-Founder of Infosys, and Member of the Board of Globethics.net. He said that a civilized society must be built on a foundation of trust, the two key pillars being ethics and governance. Modern corporations are obliged to behave in a legal and ethical manner. For the right to exist, trust has to be earned on a continuous basis. "Ethics and good behavior cannot be legislated," said Mr. Shibulal, and added that "clear, well-articulated value systems must be established." Over time, companies evolve into corporations and then into institutions, and while corporate governance norms may change, value systems do not, so it is important to have a larger cause for people to rally around.

The inaugural address on "Ethics, Governance and CSR" was delivered by Mr. R. Bandyopadhyay, Secretary, Government of India, Ministry of Corporate Affairs. He detailed a number of initiatives that the Ministry had undertaken, in the