HSUHK Presents Junzi Corporation Awards and Announces Rise in Business Ethics Index to 62.4
The School of Business (SBUS) of The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (HSUHK) hosted the 12th Junzi Corporation Award Ceremony (please refer to Appendix for the award list) yesterday (15 June), where the ‘HSUHK Hong Kong Business Ethics Index’ was announced to have scored 62.4 out of 100 this year, an increase of 0.8% from 61.9 in 2022.
In his welcome speech, Professor Simon Ho, President of HSUHK, pointed out “The concept of five Junzi virtues is in fact, more comprehensive and goes beyond Western business ethics. Not only do enterprises need to avoid wrongdoings, they need to promote good deeds.” He also noted that through the Junzi Corporation Award, HSUHK will honour enterprises with a Junzi demeanour.
Since 2011, HSUHK faculty members and students have made tremendous efforts to compile the HSUHK Hong Kong Business Ethics Index by undertaking rigorous academic research that reflects the Five Junzi Virtues, to further reflect the Hong Kong business community’s overall ethical standards.
The survey was conducted in March 2023 in all 18 districts, and a total of 1,949 questionnaires were collected from sampling face-to-face interviews. The results showed that the HSUHK Hong Kong Business Ethics Index for 2023 is at 62.4 (out of 100), which represents a 0.8% increase from 61.9 in 2022, and a 4% increase from 60.0 in 2021. The results reflect an increase in the appraisal of companies’ performance with Junzi values and an improvement in business ethics, as observed by Hong Kong citizens. The results also showed a significant correlation between a company’s performance when it adopts Junzi practices and its consumers’ satisfaction (standard β value of 0.828), indicating that for every one-point increase in the rating of a company’s performance with Junzi values, satisfaction with the company increases by 0.828 points.
The survey also examined the average scores of Hong Kong enterprises with the five Junzi virtues ‘Ren (benevolence)’, ‘Yi (righteousness)’, ‘Li (propriety)’, ‘Zhi (wisdom)’, and ‘Xin (trustworthiness)’:
(benevolence) | |
(righteousness) | |
(propriety) | |
(wisdom) | |
(trustworthiness) | |
Among the five Junzi virtues, ‘Xin (trustworthiness)’ scored the highest, therefore pointing out that there is a high level of trust for Hong Kong enterprises, including honouring commitment to customers and acting in a trustworthy manner. ‘Yi (righteousness)’, however, scored the lowest and reflected respondents’ perception that companies might disregard the public’s best interest for the sake of greater profits.
As for the risks of business ethics, the strongest concern was fairness to customers (30%), followed by public safety (27%) fairness to employees (16%), corruption (14%) and financial integrity (13%).
In addition to the award presentation ceremony, a dialogue with business leaders on the topic: “Moving Forward from the Pandemic: Reflections and Strategies for the Future” was hosted during the event. Ms Kathryn Ho, Deputy CEO of International Housewares Retail Co. Limited, and Mr Maurice Kong, Chairman of the Institute of Dining Professionals shared that as the world begins to recover from the pandemic, business and organisations are looking for ways to improve efficiency and streamline their operations. Technology has always been a powerful tool for achieving these goals, but the pandemic highlighted the need for even greater reliance on technology to maintain the productivity and profitability.
President Simon Ho also presented the Junzi Corporation Award for Exemplary Business Practices, and Professor Robin S Snell conferred the Corporation Awards (Small and Medium Enterprises) to the Awardees. Other award presenters included Ms Mary Suen, Founder and Executive Chairman of Chief Happiness Officer Association; Mr Eugene Liu, Managing Director and Head of Consulting, RSM; and Dr Raymond Wong, Associate Dean (Undergraduate Programmes), College of Business, City University of Hong Kong. HSUHK will continue to promote business ethics, the spirit of the five Junzi virtues, and create a good business environment as Hong Kong continues moving forward towards a brighter future.
At the event, Dr Thomas Man, Associate Dean (Enterprise and Business Engagement), announced the HSUHK Business Ethics Index, and Dr Belinda Yau, Assistant Professor of Department of Accountancy of HSUHK, shared the methodology of the Junzi Survey.
12th HSUHK Junzi Corporation Award List of Awardees
(in no particular order)
| Junzi Corporation Award for Exemplary Business Practices with BENEVOLENCE |
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| The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited |
| Junzi Corporation Award for Exemplary Business Practices with WISDOM |
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| Macao Water Supply Company Limited |
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