business ethics: the case of ar consultoria ltd a

AR Consultoria Ltda.,owned by brothers and partners Alfredo and Rodolfo, specializes in selling chemical products and providing agribusiness services. It was born of an opportunity glimpsed by Rodolfo to become a supplier for the company where he used to work. As an agribusiness employee in Chapecó/SC, he had built up technical knowledge and an excellent relationship with his colleagues, at the upper and lower levels. He contacted his previous employer and offered similar products, but which were more efficient and cost less than the competition. However, he was confronted with a problem he had not faced before: corruption. The first ethical challenge faced by AR Consultoria was whether or not to pay a bribe in order to become a supplier. Alfredo, a recent BA graduate, was excited about the possibilities and opportunities of being an entrepreneur and gradually learned the difficulties involved in starting up one’s own business: the significant taxes, lack of incentives and credit available and the opportunity to “make a little extra” through informal sales. AR Consultoria’s entry to the market was marked by these and other difficulties. This case aims at presenting a real situation that can be found in some organizational sectors areas, which demands readers to take a decision and an ethical stance when faced with moral challenges.