CityU hosts 9th World Business Ethics Forum to explore best practices and new opportunities in business ethics

 

The 9th World Business Ethics Forum, hosted by the Faculty of Business (FOB) at the City University of Macau, recently took place. With the theme of “Managing Ethically in Times of Disruption and Conflict”, the two-day forum brought together experts, scholars, and industry peers from academics and industries globally. Through the keynote, invited sharing, roundtable discussions, and parallel sessions, they discussed the best practices and innovative solutions of business ethics under disruption and conflict.

 

 

At the opening ceremony, Prof. José Alves, dean of the Faculty of Business at the City University of Macau, delivered a speech on the relationship between business ethics and business environment. He explained the importance of ethical management in the current business environment and combined Macao’s unique advantages to elaborate on its role as a platform for promoting exchange practices in business ethics and setting a tone of pluralistic integration. The forum also included a sponsorship presentation ceremony and a guest speaker certification presentation ceremony, highlighting the commitment to ethical practices of the business community.

 

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On the first day of the forum, Prof. Andrew Crane from the University of Bath, U.K., and Prof. Simon S. M. HO, president of the Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, presented the keynote speeches. Starting with the topic of “Modern Slavery in Business”, Prof. Andrew Crane revealed the modern slavery of labor exploitation in turbulent times, emphasizing that the need to establish an ethical prevention and control system from the perspective of supply chain governance. Prof.  Simon S. M. Ho focused on “Corporate Governance and Sustainable Development”, using social contract and stakeholder theories to explain how enterprises could achieve value balance within the responsibility framework. The two keynote speeches triggered the reflections on business ethics at the forum.

 

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During the first session, Professors Zhou Shoujin, Yin Juelin, and Zhang Ran shared their different perspectives on the theme of “Incentives and Aspirations for Sustaining the Workforce”. Then, the second session invited Dr. Georgina Curto Rex, senior researcher and team leader at the United Nations University Institute in Macao, Dr. Stephan Rothlin SJ from University of St Joseph, and Ruby O from the Assistant Vice President of Sustainability and Business Synergy of MGM to share insights on “New Challenges for Responsible Corporations”.

 

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The next day, the roundtable discussion focused on “Supporting Sound Business Models”, inviting Dr. William Yu, founder and CEO of World Green Organizations, Mary Suen, founder and executive chairman of Chief Happiness Officer Association Limited, Hellen Lok from Director of HR and Sustainability Department of CEM, António Tam, consultant from the Office of the Office of the Secretary for Economy and Finance to share their practical experiences. Finally, three Deignan Award winners, Edmund Chan, co-founder of Meat the Next, Paul W. B. Chan, Hanin Enterprises Ltd., and Emma Yu, founder of Dress Green Ltd. shared their stories with their examples of responsible entrepreneurs and new business models.

 

The parallel sessions covered practical scenarios on business ethics, including “Leadership, Integrity and Sustainable Consumption”, “Responsible Accounting and Finance”, “Ethical Management”, “ESG Practices”, “Public Interest for Accounting”, “Innovation Protection”, and “Environmental Management”. Through empirical research and case studies, scholars discussed current topics, such as the ethical application of ChatGPT, greenwashing in digital transformation, and fraud prevention in family businesses, addressing ethical issues in the current business environment and providing academic support for business development.

 

The 9th World Business Ethics Forum demonstrated the collaboration between academia and business managers in the field of business ethics. The forum provided new research perspectives for the academic community and offered thoughtful insights for enterprises to address contemporary challenges while maintaining ethical principles. Taking this as an opportunity, the forum aimed to promote joint efforts in exploring new paths of business ethics and create a more morally resilient and sustainable business future. In addition, CityU would continue to play its active role as a platform to integrate business ethics into sustainable development.

 

Source: Faculty of Business