At the workshop on business ethics and culture, Nguyen Xuan Thang, Politburo member, President of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, and Chairman of the Central Theory Council, emphasized that enterprises should go beyond mere profit-seeking and pursue a mission of contributing to the nation's prosperity

The 13th National Party Congress outlined national development goals for Vietnam: to transition to a lower middle-income developing country with a modern industrial base by 2025, and to an upper middle-income developing country with modern industry by 2030. The congress emphasized the importance of cultivating a strong and dynamic entrepreneurial force dedicated to the nation, characterized by progressive cultural and ethical standards, as well as strong management and business skills. Building business ethics and business culture was defined by the 7th National Congress of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in 2021 as a strategic breakthrough task for the 2021-2026 term. We need to establish a system of business ethics principles and standards tailored to the current situation and the new context. This will empower entrepreneurs to operate profitably while effectively serving consumers, partners and shareholders. It will also support them in fulfilling their obligations to the state, creating jobs and enhancing worker income. In May 2022, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) introduced a set of criteria for the code of ethics for Vietnamese entrepreneurs, comprising six key standards: creating economic value for society; adhering to the law; upholding transparency, fairness and integrity; fostering creativity and cooperation for mutual development; respecting nature and protecting the environment; and demonstrating patriotism and social responsibility. However, implementing these criteria in business operations is not simple.

Honesty and social responsibility will lead to success

Dr. Nguyen Duc Chinh from the Academy of Politics Region 1 said, business ethics guide businesspeople in all activities and relationships, addressing the interests of three key entities in a market economy: consumers, businesspeople and government. Consumers play a particularly important role in this relationship.

The decisive factor for business existence and development is profit, but profit depends entirely on the purchasing power of consumers. Therefore, before bringing products to market, businesspeople must carefully consider not only whether the goods can be sold, but also whether they should be sold, rather than simply selling whatever is available. In reality, any business that truly considers customers as “kings” in both thinking and action will be successful.

Successful businesses operating and developing over decades or centuries of fierce market fluctuations share some common characteristics: Keeping their word, acting honestly and responsibly. Honesty helps businesses maintain and develop sustainably, create trust and strengthen relationships, thus creating a good environment for their relationships to grow. When building trust with partners, they can have good cooperation, making it easy to reduce costs, stabilize consumption and expand the scale of operations

Besides, every business that wants sustainable development must be aware of their responsibility for the entire impact on the social environment, natural environment and legal compliance. These are standards on environmental protection, gender equality, labor safety, employee training and development, and community development.

Today's material production process poses two urgent matters that need to be solved: environmental pollution and the depletion of natural resources. More and more profit-hunting businesses are using toxic substances in production, exploiting resources indiscriminately and discharging toxic waste into the water and air environment. Most environmental incidents stem from illegal waste dumping by businesses or issues at waste treatment facilities, such as fires, explosions and leaks, resulting in untreated waste entering the environment. Typical examples include marine incidents in four central provinces, mass fish deaths caused by waste discharge from Hoa Binh Sugarcane Company and Tan Hieu Hung Company on the Buoi River, and mud spills from Dak Nong Aluminum Company. Every year, on average, about 5-6 major oil spills happen, mainly caused by collisions, stevedoring or shipwrecks. Oil drifting ashore in some Central and Southern provinces for unknown reasons caused serious environmental pollution and greatly affected socioeconomic activities. The price that these businesses have to pay is that their goods are boycotted and their existence is threatened.

Therefore, to survive and develop, each business must always be aware of its responsibility to link production and business with waste treatment, with its obligations to protect ecological environment and natural resources.

In particular, taking good care of employees is a factor that demonstrates business ethics and directly fulfills its social responsibility. Currently, labor regulations have become an inseparable part of new-generation free trade agreements. Full compliance with legal regulations on employee rights is an important factor in business strategy and can provide the business with better competitive advantages in addition to other advantages.

Strong enough sanctions to deter and prevent violations needed

In order to tackle weaknesses and violations in exercising business ethics, for their part, companies must incorporate integrity into corporate culture, strengthen and focus on sustainable corporate governance, place people at the center of their business strategies, promote a culture of diversity and integration, innovation and creativity, and strengthen solidarity and cooperation in business, said Dr. Chinh.

Authorities need to perfect the legal framework for business ethics, he added. In particular, there should be strong enough sanctions to deter and prevent violations of business ethics, law disrespect and intentional violations. Authorities should continue administrative reforms to enhance honesty, transparency and professionalism, and resolutely eliminate the “give-take” mechanism. Specially, it is necessary to develop and implement sound and scientific policies and legal regulations to close loopholes that enable illegal profiteering. Additionally, fostering and educating business ethics among enterprises and entrepreneurs is important to ensure they have a thorough understanding of regulations, responsibilities and ethical standards.

In addition, it is necessary to build and perfect ethical values of entrepreneurs and Vietnamese business culture according to domestic and international standards and practices which will be foundational for society to assess business activities, thus pressuring and motivating businesses to comply with their commitments.

On the community side, society needs to have a proper attitude towards entrepreneurs and enterprises, share advantages and difficulties, and encourage them in business activities, he said, adding that they should join hands together to “say no” to products made by companies that do not comply with business ethics and social responsibility and cause harm to the economy, the environment, and consumers.

Vietnamese entrepreneurs/business owners are facing great opportunities and challenges, requiring them to improve their competitiveness not only in terms of capital, business strategy, technology and product quality, but also in terms of reputation, brand and business ethics. Improving entrepreneurial ethics, along with fostering a strong corporate culture and building a comprehensive, internationally integrated nation, requires the collective effort of the genuine business community, supported by the Party, authorities, localities, and professional associations.