Manual for Azerbaijan companies Rena Safaralieva

 

6. Such a situation is typical for a patriarchal society, including Azerbaijan society, where one of the main 

components of social status is determined by age. It is often very difficult for people of mature age to 

change their attitudes and acquire skills necessary to find a well paid job. Besides, older people, who were 

not taught to work hard by the Soviet system, find it difficult to adapt to the hard work required by the 

market economy. Additionally, they are used to a system of administration, where all decisions are made 

at the top and blindly followed at the bottom, and are reluctant to make their own risky choices. All these 

factors combined lead to a better success rate for young people in business. The market economy 

evaluates people by their contributions, while respect to age is mostly left to the sphere of social relations, 

for example, in a family. In this particular situation the boss is to share the blame, as he cut short all 

attempts to apply directly to him bypassing the immediate supervisor. However, the boss still can help to 

rectify this situation.  

 

 

CONCLUSION  

 

If we want to have positive results in the promotion of business ethics, we cannot blindly transfer 

Western, alien principles to our local context. We must take into account the specifics of our culture, our 

ways of thinking and local realities. When borrowing ideas developed by other cultures, it is essential 

that, whenever necessary, we adapt them to our own situation and reject those principles that are 

unacceptable to us. For example, it cannot be denied that the requirement of fair treatment of customers, 

regardless of personality or financial status, is a well-founded principle and one that should be adopted by 

Azerbaijan business (today in Azerbaijan a well dressed person will receive far better treatment than 

somebody who is plainly or poorly dressed). However, while a Western doctor may tell a patient outright 

that he or she only has several months left to live, this is a practice that would be considered unacceptable 

in our culture. Of course, it is a matter of common  sense to allow  a  patient  to have some time to settle 

financial and personal affairs. However, in Azerbaijan, it is widely considered the family’s privilege to 

decide whether or not to let a patient know if he or she is dying.  

 

The change in the businesses  environment over time will gradually result in the change of  some  ethical 

standards. Azerbaijan  businesses are faced with the challenge of borrowing from Western business 

experience.  Azerbaijan businesses must decide whether the foreign ethical principles and practices are 

appropriate to the local context and, where they are not appropriate, must  adapt them to reflect local 

realities if they contain potential usefulness  for business development. In areas where local realities 

impede free market formation, businesses should strive to improve the business environment, which is 

conditioned by the active cooperation of all three main groups of  society: the state, business, and civil 

society, with support from the international community.  

 

 

 

Sample Business Ethics Code for Private Businesses   

 

RENA SAFARALIEVA  

Transparency Azerbaijan  

 

This document is compiled on the basis of similar documents of well known Western companies and 

organizations:   Royal Dutch Shell,  Johnson     and Johnson,  Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Ritz Carlton 

Hotel company, American Bar Association, Transparency International and other.    

 

Management of Azerbaijan  companies  are recommended to use this document as a sample and 

introduce any changes as   they deem necessary.  

 

Sample   

 

Purpose of the Document:  This documents states main ethical principles  which our company follows in 

its  business relations with all stakeholders involved:  our employees, customers,   partners, suppliers and 

---

community  we live and work in. Our management assumes an obligation to follow the below stated 

principles.  This document will be used to guide us  in resolution of ethical  dilemmas. Violation of the 

principles  stated herein will be considered by our management who will  decide  on administrative 

measures to be applied.      

 

1.We respect the right of our employees for: 

•

 

Workplace and health safety  

•

 

Professional improvement    

•

 

Reception of vital information on corporate activities  (i.e., on anticipated structural transformations, 

on annual financial statement)  

•

 

Right for privacy  and respect as human being   

•

 

Inadmissibility  of sexual harassment in the work environment   

•

 

Competent management and grievances  (i.e., in case of unfair  decision of a direct supervisor to 

apply to  the next in line manager)    

 

2. We believe that our  customers are entitled to: 

•

 

Excellent service  

•

 

High quality goods   and products  

•

 

Fair and unbiased  treatment   

•

 

Sustainable  improvement of  the quality of goods, products  and services  and price reduction, when 

possible   

•

 

Fair and unbiased advertisement of our goods and services    

 

3. We have a responsibility before the society we live and  work in:    

•

 

We follow legislation,  rules and the government’s decrees       

•

 

We  comply with environmental  regulation  

•

 

We create safe and reasonably well paid working places   

•

 

When possible, we support community development projects in the sphere of  culture, science, arts, 

health care and other social needs  

•

 

We care about the vulnerable layers of the society (unemployed, disabled, old people, etc) 

 

4. We bear responsibility before all stakeholders:  

•

 

We  fulfill    our commitments  before our partners timely and   with diligence    

•

 

We  protect shareholders’ investments and provide an acceptable return    

•

 

We accept the right of our partners for profit  

 

5. Special provisions  of corporate external and internal policy    

•

 

We do not render direct financial or any other support to  political parties and movements   

•

 

We work in the spirit of  free competition   

•

 

We  keep our accounting records in strict compliance with local and/or international accounting 

standards   

•

 

We are transparent about our annual financial statement   

•

 

We conduct an annual independent audit of our company’s assets and liabilities 

•

 

We  have an  internal audit  system  

•

 

We do not  accept  conflict of interests   

•

 

We do not offer or accept bribes or gifts that can be interpreted as such  in our relations with any 

parties involved        

•

 

We comply with confidentiality principles in our business transactions   

•

 

We do not accept alcohol use during office hours   or  use  of  non-medically prescribed drugs    

 

 

 

 

 

 

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