Corporate Scandal: Bribery

Corporate scandal: Bribery
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Abstract
Bribery is the act of offering incentives or valuables to a party in expectations of reciprocation in
the form of tangible or intangible favors. Corporate corruption often takes place for personal or
professional gains. It may be a result of several socio-economic factors, but it is evident that
corporate bribery has long-lasting effects on the nation and its economy, along with the two or
more parties involved.

Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction........................................................................................................5
1.1 Background of the study............................................................................................5
1.2 Problem statement.....................................................................................................5
1.3 Research aims and objectives....................................................................................6
1.4 Research questions.....................................................................................................7
1.5 Research rationale......................................................................................................7
1.6 Structure of the study.................................................................................................8
Chapter 2: Literature review................................................................................................9
Chapter 3: Research methodology.....................................................................................19
Research Design and Methodology...............................................................................19
6.1 Research philosophy................................................................................................19
6.2 Research Approach..................................................................................................19
6.3 Research Design......................................................................................................19
6.4 Data collection and analysis process.......................................................................20
7. Research Limitations.................................................................................................20
8. Time Schedule...........................................................................................................20
Chapter 4: Results and analysis.........................................................................................22
4.1 Qualitative analysis..................................................................................................22
4.2 Thematic analysis....................................................................................................24

Chapter 5: Conclusion and recommendations...................................................................28
5.1 Conclusion...............................................................................................................28
5.2 Recommendations....................................................................................................28
References......................................................................................................................30

Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Background of the study
The original meaning of "Bribe" lies in the Old French language, meaning rob or extort,
(as a noun) theft or stolen goods. Today Bribery can be defined as the act of offering, promising
or giving someone something of value to persuade him/her to do something favorable in return.
Bribery is often done illegally between two or more government or nongovernment
organizations. Bribery was the most common practice in the judicial system, wherein judges
were persuaded with the help of bribes to make biased decisions in exchange for favorable
rulings. Corporate bribery is one in which potential buyers or agents are influenced in one's favor
using promises to provide something in return.
The happenings of bribery have been around for several decades. However, it is seen
in the last two decades that corporate bribery is emerging as a global pandemic. Research states
that corporate bribery most commonly takes place in four sectors, namely: Construction, IT and
Telecommunications, Transportation, and Extraction. According to the International Monetary
Fund, around $2 trillion are spent on corruption and bribery. This accounts for about 2 percent of
the world's GDP. The Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) stated
after studying over 400 cases that almost everyone in two convicted bribery cases involved
officials from countries with high to very high HDI (Human Development Index). This shows
that corporate bribery is independent of a nation's developmental status.
1.2 Problem statement
The primary causes of bribery, specifically corporate bribery, are greed for profits and
other personal gains, poor moral and ethical environment, economic environment, traditions,

values and habits, religion, and lack of quality education. Greed for profits and power is one of
the leading causes of bribery. Many multinational corporations are found in practicing illegal
methods of bribing government and other officials to secure contracts in various fields. It is also
evident that bribing an official to get work done gives the company an edge against its
competitors. This leads to a false sense of power in otherwise undeserving entities. Various
socio-economic and environmental factors can also lead to a feeling that a particular task cannot
be accomplished without the means of bribery. This often happens due to a history of events that
have been wrongly nurtured in the system. Religion and religious practices are also a leading
cause in corporate bribery and corruption, due to which people of seemingly backward religions
need to pave their way into the system through bribery. Lack of education is, however, the most
important cause of corruption in the corporate world. It is evident that a person brought up in an
environment that promotes integrity and openness would not practice in any illegal activities
such as bribing. One should be taught from early childhood to work purely on the grounds of
merit and promote the same in future generations.
1.3 Research aims and objectives
The study aims to understand the factors responsible for corporate scandal: Bribery and
analyse its impact on performance of the company.
The objectives are as followed.
 To understand the factors responsible for corporate scandal: Bribery
 To find out the impact of corporate scandal: Bribery on organisational
performance
 To analyse the challenges faced by organisations for corporate scandal: Bribery

 To recommend solutions for overcoming the challenges
1.4 Research questions
The research questions are as followed
 What are the factors responsible for corporate scandal: Bribery?
 What is the impact of corporate scandal: Bribery on organisational performance?
 What are the challenges faced by organisations for corporate scandal: Bribery?
 How the challenges can be overcome?
1.5 Research rationale
Corporate bribery scandals not only affect the reputation of the involved parties but may
also have an impact on the economy of a country as a whole. Gains obtained illegally have
driven many countries into a state of economic instability. It is found that bribery often leads to
an increase in transaction costs and makes the economically insecure. It can be seen that bribery
leads to money being allocated for unnecessary projects, especially regarding construction and
infrastructure often acquired by undeserving executives and officials. It is because of this
inefficient allocation of resources that funds cannot be allocated to the sectors in real need such
as rural development, education, and awareness. Due to this, the Government is unable to
generate merit-based employment, which in turn decreases the tax revenue of the country. It is
therefore inevitable that the country's tax prices are ever rising, giving birth to a vicious cycle of
an unstable economy.
Corporate bribery is not limited to two or more companies; it also extends itself into the
government. It is the large industries and industrialists that have a large chunk in the campaign
funding of politicians. Political parties often bend the legislation in favor of large multinational

corporations as a token of reciprocation for such bribes. An unfortunate effect of this is the
elected leadership is often unable to govern the country, which takes a toll on the nation's
reputation as well as its economy. Policies in favor of these corrupt industrialists are often made
by these politicians, which may benefit the company in the form of profits, but in the long term
are found to have numerous ill effects.
1.6 Structure of the study
The research covers introduction, literature review, research methodology, results and
findings and conclusion as well as recommendations.