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Reports on graduate business students’ perceived importance ratings of 26 job selection criteria. Attempts to determine if statistical differences exist between the importance rating of African‐American and White‐American respondents. Reports significant differences in the areas of appearance, assertiveness, punctuality and sex. Suggests further research should be done from the point of the employer’s perspective in order to better understand the differences.

In culturally homogeneous groups there is a greater likelihood that values, including ethics values, of individual group members will coincide. Due to globalisation, changing demographics, and a desire for increased diversity, corporate cultures are becoming less homogeneous, thus increasing the likelihood that individuals working side by side to maximise shareholder value will not see eye to eye when it comes to business ethics. Given that many international students who earn US graduate business degrees find employment with US companies either in the US or abroad, the objective of this study was to examine whether international graduate business students, in particular Asian nationals, an d their US counterparts share similar attitudes with regard to business codes of ethics and ethics values. It was hypothesised that there would be significant differences in the attitudes of US and Asian students. It was believed that if similarities and differences with regard to ethics could be identified, universities and businesses would be better equipped to address ethics in their operations.

States that as managing a culturally diverse workforce has become increasingly important to business and government, organizations across the USA have focused considerable attention on diversity and diversity training. Highlights that, despite this emphasis, there is little data in terms of the attitudes of specific subcultures as related to management values. Compares the attitudes of individuals from Afro‐American and euro‐American cultures with respect to 18 value statements related to management. Suggests that there were no significant differences.

Belgium was still reeling from fears over mad cow disease and from the news that the carcinogen, dioxin, had been introduced inadvertently into animal feed, when yet another health crisis rocked it. This new crisis was precipitated by consumer complaints about an irregular taste and smell in bottled soft drinks and by reports that more than 100 consumers had become ill after noticing an odour on the outside of canned soft drinks. As a result, The Coca‐Cola Company, under instructions from the Belgian Health Ministry, withdrew its trade‐marked products from the Belgian market. The effects of this crisis were felt not only within Europe, but also in countries as far away as Japan and India. Subsequently, the company identified specific production and distribution problems which could have contributed to the health crisis. Pursuant to the Ministry’s order, the company took immediate steps to remedy those problems, and the Ministry’s ban was lifted. In addition, an aggressive marketing campaign was launched in an effort to regain consumer trust, confidence, and market share. Nevertheless, this incident resulted in substantial financial costs to The Coca‐Cola Company and in considerable damage to its global image and reputation.

Job applicants seek to make a positive impression during the hiring process by emphasising attributes they perceive to be important to the hiring organisation. However, significant differences have been found to exist between different US subcultures in terms of their perceptions of the importance of certain selection criteria. Hence, individuals from different subcultures may emphasise different qualities during the interview process as a result of perceived differences in importance. Thus, those making hiring decisions may be getting different impressions of applicants who may be similarly qualified but whomay come from different subcultures, because of differences in emphasised attributes. This study examines African‐American and White‐American perceptions of the importance of 26 job selection criteria, using data from 1985 and 2002. Of particular interest was to determine if subcultural perceptions had changed over time, or, in other words, if there were significant differences in the importance rankings of the 1985 and 2002 African‐American groups and, similarly, of the two White‐American groups.

Successful staffing in organizations requires that job applicant qualifications be properly matched with job requirements and corporate culture. With rapid economic expansion in China and predictions for continued growth, there has been a substantial increase in the staffing needs of companies operating in China or servicing this market from afar. Working with university placement offices and/or actively recruiting on campuses, many organizations are looking to undergraduate and graduate business programs in China as a source of job candidates.

Recent news of corporate misconduct at Arthur Andersen, Enron, WorldCom, etc., has focused attention on ethics in business. Government, business, educational institutions, as well as professional organisations have had to rethink ways of addressing this issue. This article presents the findings of a study of attitudes toward business codes of ethics. The attitudes of Master’s‐level US business students at two different points in time, before and after recent reports of corporate misconduct, are compared to see what changes had occurred, to see whether these changes were linked to the disclosures of unethical corporate conduct, and to examine whether taking a course in ethics had an effect on attitudes.

States that the end of the last century brought dramatic changes in the composition of the workforce and heightened awareness of cultural diversity in the USA. Highlights the need to identify and understand similarities and differences as we move from the “melting pot” concept to ward off the notion of a multicultural society where subcultures exist and function using specific values. Compares attitudes of African Americans and Euro Americans with respect to ten cultural value statements. Discovers significant differences between the two groups.

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether undergraduate and graduate business students in China and the USA share similar attitudes with regard to business ethics.

Using an instrument derived from Becker and Fritzsche, this study measured attitudes toward eight business ethics value statements. In addition, the survey asked respondents to report the degree to which they believed that reports of corporate irresponsibility had influenced their responses to the survey. Tests of significance were used to determine significant differences.

Despite advances in communication, the influence of foreign firms now operating in China, and the return to China of nationals who were educated in the USA, of eight business ethics value statements examined, significant differences between the Chinese and US respondents were found in all but one case.

The data were drawn from the southern USA and from eastern China. Future researchers may wish to replicate the study using samples from diverse geographical areas in each country. This study could also be replicated to assess similarities and differences between management and student samples.

The results of this study point out significant differences between Chinese and US evaluations of the business ethics value statements examined. Given a history of years with little interaction between these two nations and the cultural distance between China and the USA, studies such as this provide useful information in the process of helping the people of these two nations better understand one another. The findings should prove especially useful to those concerned with the increasingly important issue of ethics in business operations.

Given the growing importance of the Hispanic population in the USA, the increasing presence of this minority at all organizational levels, and the possibility that different subcultures would value different traits when hiring, the purpose of this research was to determine if there were culture‐related differences in the importance placed on 26 job applicant attributes by Hispanics and non‐Hispanics who were involved in hiring.

This study compares the importance ratings of 26 job selection attributes by Hispanic and non‐Hispanic respondents to determine the hiring criteria that are important to each group, and to see if differences are statistically significant.

Significant differences in mean rating scores were found in 13 of the 26 criteria. The Hispanic sample attached greater importance to subjective traits, while the non‐Hispanic group had higher ratings for objectively‐assessed traits.

Given organizational efforts to increase diversity and changing demographics in the US workforce, the results of this study should prove useful to individuals and organizations in the private and public sectors. The findings show that Hispanic and non‐Hispanic respondents had significantly different perceptions with regard to the importance of certain hiring criteria and hence, may assess candidates differently because of what they consider important.

These findings should lead to better understanding among US subcultures, help organizations manage cultural diversity, assist academicians in preparing students for business careers, and improve the matching process between hiring organizations and job applicants.