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This paper aims to make suggestions for addressing the apparent failure of business schools to communicate good ethical decision-making skills to students studying in postsecondary institutions.

At the beginning of university management classes, a form is distributed to students outlining a short scenario that requires a course of action. The two questions asked, based on this decision context, are (i) is it ethical to offer bribes to secure construction contracts in countries where this practice is considered an acceptable way of conducting business and (ii) has the student completed an ethics course at the university?

The scenario described is what occurred at SNC Lavalin, a Canadian construction company that was charged and convicted with offering illegal inducements to foreign officials (in Libya) to secure large government construction contracts. Ethically, the “right” decision would be to not offer bribes; this is because they are illegal when offered both in the Canada and in foreign jurisdictions. The response results to the survey questionnaire showed that 21% of the students thought that bribery was acceptable, if it was a customary business practice in the country where the transaction occurred, and 93% of these students had taken an ethics course. It was interesting to note that almost all the students, who had not taken a business ethics courses, thought that bribery is not acceptable under the circumstances described.

To address the apparent failure to communicate good ethical decision-making skills, this essay suggests that when teaching business ethics, there should a clearer focus on (i) the distinction between morality and ethics; (ii) the problem posed by relativism; and (iii) the reasoning behind ethical standards. This approach is novel in that it makes sense from the perspective of both a business practitioner and university educator.

As part of the V.10 F programme financed by Service Technique de la Production Aeronautique (STPA), AEROSPATIALE and DASSAULT — BREGUET have joined forces to produce a single Falcon 10 wing entirely made of carbon fibre. This wing has just been sent from the AEROSPATIALE Company's Nantes factory to the Toulouse Aernautic Testing Centre. A second wing will also be built, but this time, by DASSAULT‐BREGUET Biarritz plant. The two wings will be used for static fatigue testing. The programme calls for another pair of wings, one to be made by each of the same firms. They will later be mounted to a Falcon 10 for flight testing.

Statements by Lord Denning, M.R., vividly describing the impact of European Community Legislation are increasingly being used by lawyers and others to express their concern for its effect not only on our legal system but on other sectors of our society, changes which all must accept and to which they must adapt. A popular saying of the noble Lord is “The Treaty is like an incoming tide. It flows into the estuaries and up the rivers. It cannot be held back”. The impact has more recently become impressive in food law but probably less so than in commerce or industry, with scarcely any sector left unmolested. Most of the EEC Directives have been implemented by regulations made under the appropriate sections of the Food and Drugs Act, 1955 and the 1956 Act for Scotland, but regulations proposed for Materials and Articles in Contact with Food (reviewed elsewhere in this issue) will be implemented by use of Section 2 (2) of the European Communities Act, 1972, which because it applies to the whole of the United Kingdom, will not require separate regulations for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This is the first time that a food regulation has been made under this statute. S.2 (2) authorises any designated Minister or Department to make regulations as well as Her Majesty Orders in Council for implementing any Community obligation, enabling any right by virtue of the Treaties (of Rome) to be excercised. The authority extends to all forms of subordinate legislation—orders, rules, regulations or other instruments and cannot fail to be of considerable importance in all fields including food law.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an understanding of the “Kyocera approach” to business, i.e. the relationship between the Kyocera philosophy, the amoeba management system (AMS) and the associated management accounting system.

Utilising a variety of secondary sources, including semi-autobiographical works written by Inamori, the architect of AMS, the authors examine in detail the links between the underlying Kyocera philosophy and the management and accounting principles derived therefrom. These sources are used to examine the historical origins of these principles, their influence on both the AMS and the management accounting system, and how these have developed over time.

Both the AMS and the associated management accounting system can be shown to contain a mixture of influences, including traditional Asian/Japanese factors, but also Inamori/Kyocera-specific factors linked to Inamori's underlying philosophical approach to life and specific life experiences encountered by him. This suggests that while the Kyocera approach may be applicable more widely in Japan or Asia, outside of this context, the conflicts between Western and Asian cultures, although not necessarily insurmountable, may provide barriers leading to incomplete applications of the Kyocera approach

This study adds to the understanding of the interrelationship between management philosophy and management accounting practices, and the ability of individuals to determine culture within organisations. It illustrates the importance of historical research in obtaining a detailed understanding of the philosophical, cultural and religious underpinnings of current management and accounting practices.