International Business Under Adversity

Business and corporate actions, globally and locally, have often encouraged and aggravated human conflict. Equally evident is the fact that business, if only out of enlightened self-interest, can and should be an integral part of preventing, mitigating and ending violent conflict. This highly complex relationship needs to be seriously studied and discussed with an open mind. Dr. Suder s publication makes an important contribution to this discussion and I recommend the information and analysis contained in this book to a wide audience. Daniel Stauffacher, Former Ambassador of Switzerland and Chairman ICT4Peace Foundation While Golda Meir was Prime Minister of Israel she shared her hopes for humanity: I hope that some day, perhaps not in my time or my children s time, but in my grandchildren s time, war will become like cannibalism, completely unthinkable . For war to be unthinkable, business must be a part of the solution. Gabriele Suder s new volume recognizes the imperative of peace and brings many of the best thinkers in the world together to ask how the private sector can contribute to a peaceful future for our planet. With strikingly new ideas, International Business under Adversity is must reading for business leaders and students alike. Nancy J. Adler, McGill University, Canada International Business under Adversity explores the essential issues of corporate responsibility rooted in firms international activities. The wide spread of specific sets of values, ways of thinking and living, infrastructures and technologies are commonly associated with the motivations of conflict, crisis and terrorism. What is the role of international business in this dilemma? How and why do international corporations maximize value beyond core strategy and partners through corporate responsibility? This informative and accessible resource expands the readers understanding of the ways in which profit maximization, value creation and community benefit interconnect. How to respect the wider business settings and communities, the environment and encourage peace? Is this just another dream? This book clearly provides a starting point for upstream mitigation, in which collective action allows disruption to be avoided at its very roots. It shows the way into responsible business, as a downright condition for an enlightened self-interest for all parties to pursue. This book will be of great interest to those who wish to understand the case for corporate responsibility: its tools, measures and practices in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), conflict prevention, and reduction of risk and uncertainty in the globalized world. It will be valuable to the leadership of international corporations, and serve academics and postgraduate students to efficiently link the fields of risk management, CSR, business ethics and corporate strategy.