How the American business world is influenced by the American values

By Thaylane Marques da Costa

Untitl 1880, small firms offered the majority of goods and services in the United States. Meanwhile, after 1880, those businesses grew; their owners achieved material success, and Americans attributed their business growth to the American values, such as individual freedom and hard work  (BLACKFORD, 2003). However, the American business world was not influenced by the American way of life just in the past, since it is still influenced by this set of values nowadays.

Then, it is necessary to understand the U.S. beliefs in order to comprehend how American business works (STEWART-ALLEN, 2002); in this case, two of the most influential faiths are equality of opportunity and competition (GEORGE, 1982). Therefore, the American Equal Employment Opportunity Commission establishes that discriminating against a job applicant because of his or her race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, and so on is a crime (THE UNITED STATES, 2021). Then, according to Cyprus (2014), writer of Smart Capital Mind, ethic firms avoid discrimination of any kind in hiring pactices; in fact, anti-discrimination is one of the most hard fought American business ethics in terms of both racial minorities and women. Thus, everyone can compete for job opportunities in an equal way, legally.

In addition, there are other circumstances that are affected by those two creeds. An article published by BBC claims that U.S. business culture is characteristically less formal and less hierarchical than other nations' business culture due to the belief in equality. Staff often address one another by first name, have greater access to superiors, and exhibit a relaxed approach to dress and communication. (HSBC, 2021). Moreover, Americans usually consider that competition extracts the best of the competitors, as they must work hard and innovate to stay on the market; which may benefit customers, promoting their well-being (STUCKE, 2013). Meanwhile, some workplaces in the country are not as fair as they should be. A research realized in 2019 by The balance indicates that there are significant percentages of discrimination practices in those workplaces. In 2019, many charges of workplace discrimination were received by the EEEOC (DOYLE, 2020). The infographic below elucidate the data:

FIGURA 01: TYPES OF WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION

FONTE: THE BALANCE, 2020.

Besides that, other relevant creeds for the matter are material wealth and hard work. Americans accept meritocracy; which means a social system that sorts people into positions based on their merit or talent. Thus, those of great merit occupy higher positions (SCULLY, 2015). Accordingly, in order to be successful economically, people must endeavour to achieve material accomplishment. Nevertheless, it is not really simple, mainly for those who come from lower social classes because they have to strive even more. In this regard, upward mobility requires steps, like the process of climbing a mountain, metaphorically speaking. It is necessary to acquire knowledge, though labor, as well as be sincere and be humble, as the image below illustrates:

FIGURA 02- THE RISE AND FALL OF SUCCESS

FONTE: G2C, 2016.

Thus, Americans pursue material success through hard work. In fact, this virtue is touted as one of the United States of America central values (LAM, 2017). Americans take fewer holidays and work longer hours than most other industrialized nations; many people reckon that employees must be free to labor any time if it is needed (HSBC, 2021). A research published in 2019 affirms that U.S. citizens work about 20 percent more hours than European ones; which is equivalent to an additional day a week. The standard work week is Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm; meanwhile, workers have to be prepared to be flexible with their time (BICK; BRÜGGEMANN; FUCHS-SCHÜNDELN, 2019). However, that work culture may bring some consequences to workers

Therefore, workism has harmed Americans. Workism is the belief that labor is essential for one's life purpose and identity, just as for one's social mobility (THOMPSON, 2019). Nonetheless, its influence on U.S. citizens’ way of life may be dangerous. Although they work much, they do not hold a guaranteed right to paid time off for a new child, illness, or vacation and holidays (COVERT, 2018). Without those rights, people may overwork, fall ill, and have no assistance. In fact, people who work more than 55 hours a week have 17% higher risk of dying from heart disease and a 35% higher risk of a stroke (PEGA et al., 2021). Taking this into consideration, citizens from Southern cities like Atlanta and San Francisco, on the West Coast, tend to value work-life balance, or a “work to live” perspective. They differ from New York, Boston and Philadelphia residents who are known for logging longer hours, as well as a “Work hard, play hard mentality” (HSBC, 2021).

Furthermore, individual freedom and self-reliance impact on business in the country. George (1982), a distinguished University of Kansas Philosophy professor, says that the model of free enterprise developed in the nation presupposes a value system. As the video below clarifies, customers have the freedom to choose what, when and from what company they want to buy something; which is assured by the pillars of the free enterprise system. Besides that, the government does not interfere in the firms’ administration much. Thereupon, companies are mostly independent; they determine products, services and prices rather than the government (BANTON, 2020). Therefore, from an American point of view, the  greatest reward in business for an enterprise master is success from self-reliance, as the owner is the only one responsible for the company's triumph or slump (PAYNE, 2021).

However, the liberty, and the independence faith might lead to corruption and scandals in some enterprises, mainly in big ones. Since U.S. businesses have less state regulation, and their holders consider that they are independent to profit by using the methods that they judge better, numerous scandals have occurred. For example,  according to a BBC publication, the Facebook owner, Mark Zukeberg, allowed Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting company, to use personal data from its users to tailor  political messages for those users with the intention to influence their votes in the 2014 electoral campaign (WAKEFIELD, 2020). The disgrace even became the theme of a book written by the former director of the British firm, Brittany Kaiser, its title is Targeted: the Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower's inside story of how big data, trump, and Facebook broke democracy and how it can happen again (CARVALHO, 2019).

Hence, the American business is impacted by American beliefs. Values like equality of opportunity and competition are the bases for workplace anti-discriminations laws, although they are not fully efficient to avoid the issue. Besides that, the pursuit of material wealth by hard work may lead to not only social mobility, but also developing illness without assistance. In addition, individual freedom and self-reliance ensure customers the freedom to buy whatever they want, whenever they desire, just as they might stir corporations corruption scandals. U.S. creeds can extract the best and the worst in the corporate world in the country.

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