Corporate philosophy could be applied to Macau, scholar says

2014-3-19

From：Macau Daily Times

The concept of a Corporate Philosophy might not be familiar to many, but well- known companies such as Mitsubishi or Toyota Tsusho include it in their vision. “Living and prospering together with people, society, and the globe, we aim to be a value-generating corporation that contributes to the creation of a prosperous society” says Toyota Tsusho on its web page. German professor Andreas Schreiber told the Times that such a concept could also be applied in Macau companies.
Last week, the scholar, currently teaching at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, presented the theme in a lecture conducted at the University of Saint Joseph.
He explained that, in current markets, companies face specific dilemmas, and are battling for survival. In his opinion, in order to balance the expectations of employers and employees, corporate philosophy might come in handy.
“Corporate philosophy is a foundation of any corporate identity,” he recalled, adding that many internationally operating corporations have it displayed on their websites.
In his opinion, “they express how [companies] will treat their partners and how they wish to be treated. It’s a kind of abuse of the word philosophy for marketing purposes… to display themselves in the best light.”
On the sidelines of the USJ lecture, Andreas Schreiber told the Times how he sees corporate philosophy could be applied to companies in Macau. He believes that the casino industry could also apply this concept, for instance, by reflecting upon its helpfulness and value in society. “Philosophy is kind of always questioning and challenging, so it might be a chance to challenge even these higher managements, urging casino owners to reflect upon their own aims,” he added.
Regarding Macau, Professor Andreas Schreiber thinks that the casino industry could reflect upon matters such as gambling addiction or the winning rate of their customers: “is it necessary that most people have to lose? I think they have a winning rate of 30-40 percent, whilst 60 percent lose, so they could also adjust this a bit.”
Taking into account that philosophy means the love of wisdom, Professor Andreas Schreiber presented his definition of corporate philosophy as being “an explicit expression of a corporation’s inclination (love) to understand and repeatedly scrutinize its life in general (…)”
Furthermore, he explained that the higher purpose of a corporation should be “supplying societies at least helpful goods or services” and that a corporation should only be allowed by society “to make a profit as long as only the company serves the improvement of social well-being.”
In a Q&A session, which followed his lecture, Professor Andreas Schreiber admitted that this vision might be seen as “a utopia.” But he says that, ultimately, a company should go through a questionnaire with employees and let them participate, or speak their minds when something’s wrong. “A transparency that is still difficult to apply,” he cautioned.
Professor Andreas Schreiber holds a PhD and studied philosophy, ethnology and history of religions at Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg, in Germany. He is currently visiting senior research assistant at the HK Baptist University and teaches at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

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