Trust is an important element of any ethical framework, especially when building durable and reliable relationships with clients and business partners. Nevertheless, business lives by its own rules, according to which sometimes it is necessary to resort to contradictory practices. The second chapter of Honest Work by Ciulla, Martin & Solomon (2013) provides articles which explore the issues of honesty in business ethics from different angles. While trust is at the core of any relationship, even corporate, bluffing, and manipulating information is integral for conducting business, which is its special ethics.
The article “Is business bluffing ethical” by Albert Z. Carr (1968) discusses the idea of the need to conceal or distort the truth in business interactions, depending on the circumstances. The author notes that the ethical rules which many people in business follow or think they follow are different from those adopted in everyday life. It is emphasized that while the head of the company may not personally lie, however, sales or advertising strategies often use customer delusion, which is not considered unethical, but only normal practice. Carr further states that avoiding bluffing in the form of exaggeration, withholding facts, or other means leads to wasted business opportunities. Thus, business ethics is a special kind of interaction which is accepted as a rule at all levels of corporate life, and bluff is part of such ethics.
The author compares running a business to playing poker, where it is needed to know and skillfully use the players’ strengths and weaknesses. Carr concludes that business ethics is all about making a profit, for which any action is appropriate. The corporate world does not obey the rules of general morality; it has its own laws. Thus, when business people talk about their actions’ ethics, this is only a convenient maxing out of the actions that are beneficial at the moment. However, a business cannot work; otherwise, it has its own goals and objectives which are achieved by particular methods, so bluffing in business is part of its special ethics.
Norman E. Bowie (1993), in the article “Does it pay to bluff in business?” is a response to Carr’s article, in which he expresses almost the opposite opinion about bluffing. The author argues that bluffing in business often leads to negative consequences for the businessmen who use it. He emphasizes in detail the ineffectiveness of the modern approach to collective bargaining. The main argument in defense of his point of view, Bowie claims that bluffing primarily undermines the trust, which is so necessary in the conduct of business and cooperation. He further criticizes Carr’s poker analogy as its rules are not complex or detailed enough to explain the corporate world. The author believes that only maintaining reputation through loyalty to moral ideals and values can provide a business’s stability and prosperity. Thus, a company can be conducted only on the basis of trusting and honest relationships with employees and partners, and bluff is a measure of short-term success.
Sissela Bok, in her article “Defining secrecy – some crucial distinctions,” examines other concepts within the framework of ethics and morality. The author considers the difference between secrecy and lying in terms of justification. Bok also explores the essence of concealment and privacy, arguing that they are not identical, but overlapping, so any person has a natural right not to disclose any information. However, the concept leads to a conflict of control, power, and use of information for specific purposes. Bok further argues that, unlike lies, secrecy does not have a positive or negative connotation, and at the same time, does not need justification. With regard to privacy, the difference is that the discussed term implies intentional concealment of information. Thus, Bok concludes that secrecy is not unethical, unlike lying, but a form of strategic interaction. At the same time, it differs from privacy since it does not imply the protection of a person’s right to keep secrets. Therefore, in relation to business ethics, secrecy cannot be considered a violation of ethics or morality.
In the article “Building Trust,” Robert C. Solomon and Fernando Flores (2013) argue about the nature of trust, discussing that it is not passive and natural but is created through activity and certain behavior. According to the authors, trust is a social practice and is built in the process of interaction, also placing certain responsibilities on people. A person decides to trust or not trust in a particular situation, which depends on many factors. The authors explore simple trust, which is a kind of trust that comes naturally and is never questioned, and blind trust, which ignores all reasons to doubt. In turn, breaking simple trust can lead to either mistrust or blind trust. Thus, the authors call both of these models untenable and unhealthy, while the building is about creating authentic trust, in which a person takes into account all factors and evaluates the situation critically. Thus, within the framework of business ethics, it is important to build the trust that arises from interactions, actions, and behavior so that it is durable and recoverable in case of failure.
The conclusion of the first presented article, “Is business bluffing ethical” by Albert Z. Carr, seems to be the most interesting and convincing to me. The author expresses an unpopular point of view about the existence of a special business ethic for which bluffing is part of the big game. The corporate world lives according to different laws; business exists in order to make a profit, which in itself is not the noblest goal. Thus, generally accepted moral standards cannot really be applied to such an environment. A businessperson who honestly conducts his or her business not using people and circumstances for his or her own purposes risks becoming hostages of other people’s interests and not promoting his or her own. Bluffing is truly a part of the corporate world; everything which makes a profit and money is ethical in such terms. However, it is important to use this approach with caution and strategy, as it is essential to maintain its reputation.
Other ideas presented, which in fact disprove Carr’s hypothesis, are also not without foundation. The basis for doing business is the relationship with customers and partners, as well as the reputation of the organization in the field. Establishing and maintaining such a relationship requires a specific strategy in which participants can trust each other. However, it is also important for a business to sometimes keep something secret or present information in a slightly different light than it really is. Such techniques help create a certain image of the company, which also influences its perception. Thus, a balance must be found between bluffing and fair play, as both can be beneficial as well as harmful.
References
Bok, S. (1988). Defining secrecy – some crucial distinctions. In S. Bok, Secrets. New York: Vintage Books.
Bowie, N. E. (1993). Does it pay to bluff in business? In T. L. Beauchamp and N. E. Bowie (eds.), Ethical Theory and Business (pp. 460-462). Prentice Hall College Div.
Carr, A. Z. (1968). Is business bluffing ethical. Harvard Business Review, 46, 143-153.
Ciulla, J. B., Martin, C., Solomon, R. C. (2013). Honest work: A business ethics reader (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press.
Solomon, R. C., & Flores, F. (2013). Building Trust. In J. B. Ciulla, C. Martin, & R. C. Solomon, Honest work: A business ethics reader (3 ed.). Oxford University Press.