Honorable businessman

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Introduction and thus the decisive definition of the term unproven

The term “Honorable Merchant” describes the model that has grown historically in Europe for responsible participants in business life . It stands for a pronounced sense of responsibility for one's own company, for society and for the environment. An honorable businessman bases his behavior on virtues that aim at long-term economic success without running counter to the interests of society. He operates sustainably .

definition

The honorable businessman stands as a model for the optimally acting economic subject. This is also clearly expressed in the currently valid " Section 1 of the Chamber of Commerce Law ": " (1) The chambers of industry and commerce have to (...) support and advise as well as uphold the decency and morals of the honorable businessman Act." That is, it has a model for every responsible participants in economic life: Eigenwirtschaftler, merchants , entrepreneurs and managers . There are many synonyms for the attribute honorable in the literature. To be mentioned are the true, good, genuine, honest, honest, moral, ideal, ethical or moral acting and even the royal merchant. The term honor is not an absolute term. It is strongly subject to historical change. A precise definition is therefore not possible. The honorable businessman must always be viewed in the context of his time. Nevertheless, there is a basic framework that has determined the behavior of honorable merchants since the Middle Ages.

The dimensions of consciousness of honorable merchants.

The honorable businessman in the narrower sense

The basis is basic humanistic education. Building on this, every respectable businessman needs extensive economic expertise. It includes all necessary operational relationships and describes the rational side of its character. Today's business administration conveys theoretical specialist knowledge in a comprehensive multi-year course. In the company, practical knowledge is added. The technical knowledge is supplemented by a solid character that is based on virtues that promote profitability. Righteousness, thrift, foresight, honesty, moderation, silence, order, determination, frugality, diligence, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, calmness, chastity and humility must be acquired by the businessman in a learning and educational process in order to become an honorable businessman . The virtues are not primarily used to do good deeds. They serve your own physical and mental health, for a fulfilling life with long-term business activities. Furthermore, they strengthen their own credibility, which creates trust, which is essential for good business relationships ( principle of good faith ). The firm character also protects the merchant from rash actions in order to gain short-term advantages at the expense of others. In the honorable businessman, business and ethics cannot be separated from one another, they are fused into a unit with the aim of doing business successfully (creating value).

The honorable businessman in the broader sense

Building on this solid core, which brings humanity and economic efficiency into harmony, the honorable businessman develops a sense of responsibility for the things that determine his business success. There are two levels to be distinguished.

Corporate level awareness

The relationship with his employees (if he has any) comes first. Your satisfaction determines its success. It is important to treat them fairly and humanely, but also to demand discipline and performance. In second place are business customers and his suppliers, whom he also treats according to his principles, with the aim of building and maintaining good relationships with them over the long term. Personal ties strengthen the company. He is a loyal competitor to his competitors.

Awareness of society

His consciousness doesn't end at the factory gate. The honorable businessman knows that the society in which he runs his company is decisive for the company's success. Here his employees received their basic education. The publicly financed infrastructure enables goods to be transported and the political system ensures property rights. Protecting consumers is important to him because their satisfaction can inspire future purchases. Unsatisfied customers damage the company's reputation. He strengthens his relationship with the community in which the company is located, because he owes his qualified employees to it. The company's reputation in the community also has an impact on the motivation of its employees within the company. The public is significant because through it he can express his interests and explain his socially significant role. The political system is not an issue of the day, but without the social market economy , the company would not be possible. Legal security is guaranteed by the system. Political activity is not excluded for the honorable merchant in order to represent the economic interests of the honorable merchant in the government and to strengthen the understanding of economic relationships in politics. Ultimately, everything surrounds the environment, which he must consider when making fundamental investment decisions. As the person responsible, he also has to consider the long-term consequences for the environment, with a view to ensuring the continued existence of the company, even over several generations.

In science, the field of research on corporate social responsibility has established itself on related issues at the corporate and social level - also known as corporate social responsibility (CSR).

historical development

It has been proven that the model of the honorable businessman has been taught in merchant handbooks in Europe since the 12th century. Its European beginnings can be found in medieval Italy and the North German Hanseatic League.

middle Ages

The Honorable Merchant first appeared in Italy in the Middle Ages . Honesty depends on his or her practical abilities (e.g. writing, arithmetic, languages, pursuit of profit, knowledge of human nature, organizational talent, foresight), which justify his success and on character traits or virtuous behavior (e.g. creating trust, tolerance, love of peace, Courtesy, cleverness, order, cultural promotion), which should serve to promote long-term business success and at the same time to maintain the social peace of his city. God is involved in business on behalf of the poor and is omnipresent in everyday life. Italian business manuals as early predecessors of business administration explicitly recommend these properties. A pragmatic business ethic of the golden mean was observed in a very similar way among the Hanseatic merchants in northern Europe. Serious violations of the rules could have severe consequences there.

Early modern times - European bourgeoisie

The early modern honorable merchant in Germany belongs to the European bourgeoisie and continues the development from the Middle Ages. Practical rules included the rationalization and economization of business management. Saving, high income, diligence, activity and moderation serve business success just as much as the virtues of temperance, silence, order, determination, frugality, diligence, honesty, justice, moderation, cleanliness, calmness, chastity and humility. Commercial solidity (reliability, punctuality, simplicity, truthfulness, loyalty and honesty) and civil decency (e.g. living correctly, not drinking) should build the trust necessary for business. These principles continued to be part of business teachings. Business is a means to an end in life.

Modern - 19th and 20th centuries

In the modern age in Hamburg, attempts were made to uphold the model of the honorable businessman to this day, an example is the assembly of an honorable businessman in Hamburg eV Bauer (1906) continues the tradition of the bourgeois honorable businessman and adapts it to the requirements of the time , global trade and the defense of the constitutional monarchy against tendencies towards nationalization). After the Second World War, the image is adapted to the entrepreneur (responsibility towards consumers, employees, investors, the public, the system of the social market economy, the state and the environment).

The honorable businessman of today

Honesty in business is also of great importance in the 21st century. Numerous development trends in society, politics and economy make this clear:

The Globalization increases the competitive pressure, as companies from highly industrialized countries now have stronger competition from around the world and have to be compared with competitors that have much lower production costs, but neglect example, fair working conditions. Companies are challenged to take a stand: On the one hand, they have the option of relocating their locations to such low-wage countries themselves at any time, or they can choose a different route and take responsibility for their suppliers and customers along the value chain.

Empty state coffers lead to a reduction in state services and so society's expectations of companies increase. They are supposed to take over those tasks that the state can no longer do, for example in the area of ​​education, child care or pension provision.

A critical public has developed that has high expectations of the assumption of responsibility and honesty of companies. Using new media such as the Internet , the public can exchange information quickly and inexpensively and put pressure on companies.

On the financial market , the demand is steadily increasing for sustainable investments. Some funds only invest in companies that not only meet economic but also social and environmental criteria. In 16 of 18 industries, companies with strong sustainability commitments achieved an average of 15 percent better performance on the stock market than the industry as a whole, because investors are more likely to trust sustainable companies to overcome the crisis and be successful in the long term.

An overall change can be observed in consumer behavior. Consumers are becoming more critical and, in view of minor product differences, are increasingly guided by their conscience in their purchase decision-making process . The products must be sourced, manufactured, sold (trade) and communicated honestly. For example, the bankruptcy of the Schlecker drugstore chain in January 2012 is an example of how customers avoid retail companies with rude employee treatment.

Not least in the wake of the economic crisis , there were calls for more honesty and responsibility in the economy. Everyone could see where greedy speculation on returns, regardless of employees and society, can lead.

From a respectable businessman to an honest company

As an entrepreneur or manager , the honorable businessman now has a far greater scope of responsibility than in the past. He is no longer a self-employed person who is only responsible for his own actions, but also for those of his employees, his suppliers, for all processes within the company and their effects on society. He must pass on his ethical basic attitude and his values to the company and generate an honorable company through value-oriented management. Its role model function plays a special role. A model for the whole company can develop from the exemplary behavior of the honorable entrepreneur or manager .

Advantages through honesty

Several current studies show that a morally enlightened corporate strategy and corporate management bound by values ​​are essential success factors of a future-oriented company:

The 2007 management survey by the Values ​​Commission shows that values ​​have positive effects on competitiveness. This has to do with the competition for committed, flexible and resilient managers. In addition, 50% of those questioned said that they had already changed jobs or thought about changing because of different values.

A joint study by the management consultancy Deep White and the MCM Institute of the University of St. Gallen comes to the conclusion that a quarter of the business success of companies can be explained by the value culture practiced in the workplace.

Honesty in corporate practice

However, for value-oriented corporate management, it is by no means sufficient to print the corporate values ​​on glossy paper. A value only has a stabilizing and directional effect for a community if it is valued and supported by the members together. The values ​​must be conveyed in a comprehensible and acceptable manner, so that the real value of the value becomes clear to everyone involved.

The current management survey by the Values ​​Commission shows that there is still a great need for action at this point. Nationwide, the proportion of companies that have a formally defined and internally communicated set of values ​​has risen to almost 80 percent. In the implementation, however, according to the respondents, there is a large gap between aspiration and reality. More than two thirds of young executives do not experience value-oriented leadership from top management. Almost 40 percent of the respondents say their companies only refer to values ​​for marketing reasons.

Successful, value-oriented corporate management consistently implements values ​​in day-to-day business. It is not enough to agree on certain values. The values ​​must be lived in everyday company life and broken down into specific recommendations for action for the individual stakeholder groups. An operationalized value orientation is ultimately corporate social responsibility.

Example : A value like transparency means that executives should communicate in an understandable way and always explain their entrepreneurial actions. Employees should communicate and give honest feedback at all company levels. Products and services should be presented honestly to customers even in times of crisis. Opportunities, risks and challenges should be openly addressed to partners.

criticism

The public criticism of the model of the honorable businessman refers to the assumed unreality of the model. By citing negative examples from entrepreneurs and managers, the attempt is made to show that honorable behavior is of no importance in reality. Furthermore, a romanticization of the historical term merchant is complained, also with reference to negative examples.

There is only indirect scientific criticism, in that economically oriented business ethicists like Karl Homann often turn to the possible short-term exploitation of respectable behavior. Game theory models such as the prisoner's dilemma are dominant . The alleged criticism of respectable behavior is also supported by other forms of moral risk such as moral hazard , free rider behavior , adverse selection and the hold-up problem . The solution to this behavior of exploitation is sought in setting the right incentives and control systems. On the other hand, the results of game theory and empirical behavioral economics, such as the frequent superiority of a long-term tit-for-tat strategy, indicate that non-opportunistic, long-term reproductive behavior , as is typical of the honorable businessman, is common Cases also pays off economically.

The business ethicists Thomas Beschorner and Thomas Hajduk deal with the figure against the background of the current discussion on corporate responsibility. The “fairy tale hours for management” are too simple for them: “Personal virtues are necessary, but not sufficient, for an adequate understanding of business ethics. The 'honorable businessman' is a metaphor whose transferability into the 21st century must also be approached with caution. "

literature

• Horst Albach : Back to the honorable businessman. To the economy of greed . In: WZB-Mitteilungen, Heft 100, Berlin June 2003, ISSN  0174-3120 , pp. 37-40, ( PDF; 0.1MB ).
• Oswald Bauer: The honorable businessman and his reputation . Dresden 1906, Steinkopf & Springer.
• Beschorner, Thomas; Hajduk, Thomas: The honorable businessman - corporate responsibility “light” ?. In: CSR MAGAZIN (2011), No. 3, pp. 6–8, ( PDF; 0.15MB ):
• Dagmar Burkhart: A story of honor . Darmstadt 2006, Scientific Book Society, ISBN 3-534-18304-5 .
• Deep White GmbH / Institute for Media and Communication Management St. Gallen (2004): Basic study of culture of values ​​and corporate success ( Memento from January 31, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• John Dotson: Fourteenth Century Merchant Manuals and Merchant Culture . In: A. Markus Denzel, Claude Jean Hocquet, Harald Witthöft (eds.): Merchants' books and trading practices from the late Middle Ages to the beginning of the 20th century , Stuttgart 2002, Franz Steiner Verlag, pp. 75–87.
• Heinz Dürr : The company as a social event . Lecture at the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin, speech manuscript, January 28, 2003. In: Günther Saßmannshausen (Ed.): Heinz Dürr - Approach to a curious entrepreneur , Frankfurt 2003, Campus Verlag, ISBN 3-593-37315-7 , pp. 40–47 .
• Günter Fandel, Joachim Schwalbach (eds.): The honorable businessman: Modern model for entrepreneurs? . Zeitschrift für Betriebswirtschaft - Journal of Business Economics, Special Issue 1, Wiesbaden 2007, Gabler, ISBN 3-834-9065-9X .
• Habisch, Andre / Wildner, Martin / Wenzel, Franz (2007): Corporate Citizenship (CC) as part of the corporate strategy . In: Habisch, Andre / Schmidpeter, Rene / Neureiter, Martin (eds.): Handbuch Corporate Citizenship. Corporate social responsibility for managers. Springer: Berlin, Heidelberg. ISBN 3540363572 , pp. 3-45.
• Handelsblatt Business Briefing (2009): Sustainable Investments - Better through the crisis . In: Handelsblatt Business Briefing 9/09.
• Paul Arthur Frommelt: The royal merchant in his special kind and universality . Leipzig 1927, construction publisher.
• Kirchhoff, Klaus Rainer (2006): CSR as a strategic challenge. In: Gazdar, Kaevan / Habisch, Andre / Kirchhoff, Klaus Rainer / Vasenghi, Sam (eds.): Success factor responsibility. Manage corporate social responsibility professionally . Springer: Berlin, Heidelberg. ISBN 3540262792 , pp. 13-34.
• Daniel Klink: The honorable businessman . Diploma thesis, supervised by Joachim Schwalbach, Berlin 2007, Humboldt University Berlin, Institute for Management, ( PDF; approx. 1MB ).
• Daniel Klink: The Honorable Merchant - The original model of business administration and individual basis for CSR research . In: Joachim Schwalbach (Ed.): Corporate Social Responsibility . Zeitschrift für Betriebswirtschaft - Journal of Business Economics, Special Issue 3, Wiesbaden 2008, Gabler, ISBN 3-8349-1044-9 , pp. 57-79.
• Berthold Leibinger (2009): Credibility is a manager's greatest asset . Economic guest commentary In: Handelsblatt November 3, 2009.
• Dennis Lotter, Jerome Braun (2009): " Added value for the economy. How companies secure their future viability and increase social prosperity. " In: Stiftung & Sponsoring 3/2009. Red pages, PDF file, 1.6 MB
• Günther Sassmannshausen (Ed.): Heinz Dürr - Approaching a curious entrepreneur . Frankfurt 2003, Campus Verlag, ISBN 3-593-37315-7 .
• Joachim Schwalbach (Ed.): Corporate Social Responsibility . Zeitschrift für Betriebswirtschaft - Journal of Business Economics, Special Issue 3, Wiesbaden 2008, Gabler, ISBN 3-8349-1044-9 .
• Werner Sombart : The Bourgeois - On the intellectual history of the modern economic man . Munich 1920, Duncker and Humblot, ISBN 3-428-10917-1 .
• Values ​​Commission (2007): Management survey 2007 - a study by the Values ​​Commission in cooperation with iab Cologne . Cologne / Bonn. http://www.iaw-koeln.de/uploads/wk_studie_2007.pdf
• Values ​​Commission (2009): Leadership survey 2009 - a study by the Values ​​Commission in cooperation with the German Managers Association . http://www.wertekommission.de/content/pdf/kampagne/Fuehrungskraeftebefragung_2009.pdf
• Josef Wieland : Why value management? A guide for practice . In: Josef Wieland (Ed.): Handbook values ​​management. Murmann, Hamburg 2004, ISBN 3938017066 , pp. 13–54.
• Wegmann / Zeibig / Zilkens: The honorable businessman, performance factor trust - cost factor mistrust, ISBN 978-3-86556-233-3 , Cologne 2009.

Web links

• Information portal on the concept of the honorable businessman, provided by the Institute for Management at the Humboldt University in Berlin

Individual evidence

1. ↑ http://www.ihk-nuernberg.de/de/media/PDF/Recht-Steuern/Gesetz-zur-vorlaeufigen-Regelung-des-Rechts-der-Industrie-und-Handelskammern-vom-18.-Dezember- 1956.pdf IHK law, PDF, IHK Nuremberg, current status
2. ↑ http://www.ihk-nuernberg.de/de/media/PDF/Publikationen/Hauptgeschaeftsfuehrung/Ehrbaren-Kaufmann.pdf PDF, brochure: "The honorable businessman - tradition and obligation"
3. ↑ Paul Arthur Frommelt: The royal merchant in his special kind and universality . Leipzig 1927, construction publisher.
4. ↑ Dagmar Burkhart: A story of honor . Darmstadt 2006, Scientific Book Society, ISBN 3-534-18304-5 .
5. ^ Daniel Klink: The honorable businessman . Diploma thesis, supervised by Joachim Schwalbach, Berlin 2007, Humboldt University Berlin, Institute for Management, p. 59 ( PDF; approx. 1MB ).
6. ↑ Oswald Bauer: The honorable businessman and his reputation . Dresden 1906, Steinkopff & Springer, pp. 103-106.
7. ↑ Daniel Klink: The Honorable Merchant - The original model of business administration and individual basis for CSR research . In: Joachim Schwalbach (Ed.): Corporate Social Responsibility . Zeitschrift für Betriebswirtschaft - Journal of Business Economics, Special Issue 3, Wiesbaden 2008, Gabler, ISBN 3-8349-1044-9 , pp. 57-79. On the history from the Middle Ages to the end of the early modern period.
8. ^ John Dotson: Fourteenth Century Merchant Manuals and Merchant Culture . In: A. Markus Denzel, Claude Jean Hocquet, Harald Witthöft (eds.): Merchants' books and trading practices from the late Middle Ages to the beginning of the 20th century , Stuttgart 2002, Franz Steiner Verlag, pp. 86–87.
9. ↑ Werner Sombart: The Bourgeois - To the intellectual history of the modern economic man . Munich 1920, Duncker and Humblot, ISBN 3-428-10917-1 .
10. ^ Habisch, Andre / Wildner, Martin / Wenzel, Franz (2007): Corporate Citizenship (CC) as part of the corporate strategy. In: Habisch, Andre / Schmidpeter, Rene / Neureiter, Martin (eds.): Handbuch Corporate Citizenship. Corporate social responsibility for managers. Springer: Berlin, Heidelberg. P. 6.
11. ↑ Wieland, Josef (2004): Why value management? A practical Guide. In: Wieland, Josef (Ed.): Handbook values ​​management. Murmann: Hamburg. P. 21.
12. ↑ Kirchhoff, Klaus Rainer (2006): CSR as a strategic challenge. In: Gazdar, Kaevan / Habisch, Andre / Kirchhoff, Klaus Rainer / Vasenghi, Sam (eds.): Success factor responsibility. Manage corporate social responsibility professionally. Springer: Berlin, Heidelberg. P. 20.
13. ↑ Handelsblatt Business Briefing (2009): Sustainable Investments - Better through the crisis. In: Handelsblatt Business Briefing 9/09. P. 2.
14. ^ Receipt for the cheap Rambo spiegel.de January 20, 2012.
15. ↑ Berthold Leibinger (2009): Credibility is a manager's greatest asset. Economic guest commentary In: Handelsblatt November 3, 2009.
16. ↑ Values ​​Commission (2007): Management Survey 2007 ( Memento of the original from February 15, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 232 kB) - a study by the values ​​commission in collaboration with iab-Cologne. Cologne / Bonn. 
17. ↑ Deep White GmbH / Institute for Media and Communication Management St. Gallen (2004): Basic study of culture of values ​​and corporate success. Bonn. ( Memento of February 13, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
18. ↑ Dennis Lotter / Jerome Braun (2009): " Added value for the economy. How companies secure their future viability and increase social prosperity. ( Memento of the original from November 16, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked . Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this note. "In: Stiftung & Sponsoring 3/2009. Red Pages, page 3, PDF file, 1.6 MB 
19. ↑ Values ​​Commission (2009): Leadership Survey 2009 (PDF; 243 kB) - a study by the Values ​​Commission in cooperation with the German Managers Association.
20. ↑ Dennis Lotter / Jerome Braun (2009): " Added value for the economy. How companies secure their future viability and increase social prosperity. ( Memento of the original from November 16, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked . Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this note. "In: Stiftung & Sponsoring 3/2009. Red Pages, page 4, PDF file, 1.6 MB 
21. ↑ Rainer Trampert Honor Blood and Gunpowder Steam The German myth of the "honorable merchant" . In: Jungle World - The Left Weekly, No. 32, August 6, 2009.
22. ↑ See Karl Homann in an interview: Detlef Gürtler More regulation or more responsibility? . In: PWC: The magazine for forward thinkers, special publication for the October 2009 issue, p. 13, available at http://www.der-ehrbare-kaufmann.de/fileadmin/Gemeinsame_Dateien/der-ehrbare-kaufmann.de/PDFs/ Talks% C3% A4ch_Klink-Homann _-_ Long version.pdf .
23. ^ Beschorner, Thomas; Hajduk, Thomas: The honorable businessman - corporate responsibility “light” ?. In: CSR MAGAZINE (2011), No. 3, pp. 6–8, available at: Archive link ( Memento of the original dated August 11, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.