GSK in China: Bribery allegations
Assist me with a clear and logical analysis of the issues
that responds to the criteria and questions listed below.
Provide additional research from scholarly sources and
academic journals.
Use the data presented in the case study “GlaxoSmithKline in
China (A)” (Harvard Business School case, no. 9-514-049).
Please address the following issues and questions:
The CEO of a company based in the USA with subsidiaries in
the United Kingdom is contemplating moving some of its operations to China but
has read about the GSK bribery scandal in China. The CEO understands that the
climate for foreign companies operating in China is not as welcoming as it used
to be. The CEO is now asking his manager for international business to assess
the GSK case, analyze the issues it presents. In particular the CEO wants to
know what lessons his company can learn and how the company can reduce its
risks when operating in China. The CEO handed his manager this list of
questions:
•GSK has featured its robust ethics and compliance program,
even a “3rd Party Code of Conduct” for suppliers. What went wrong?
What are the main external and internal factors that encouraged the GSK bribery
scandal in China? Which, in your opinion, are more important? Explain your
position.
•Assess GSK’s response so far. Are the initiatives that GSK
has implemented to address the bribery problems sufficient or would you suggest
further actions? If you were Mark Reilly what would you have done? Explain.
•Do you think that GSK has been treated unfairly? Was GSK
really at fault or was it just unfortunate to have gotten caught given the
perception that companies have to resort to bribing to win contracts? Explain.
•How can we avoid similar situations and how can we
reconcile local expectations of questionable payments with the U. S. Foreign
Corrupt Practices Act or the U.K. Bribery Act? What do you recommend? Explain
your position.
•What strategic and operational lessons can the CEO learn
from this analysis?
