IBM Bribery Scandal in China
So IBM already acknowledges the existence and perceived legitimacy of the document at hand [1,2]. Now the question is, did IBM know about this all along? If so, to what extent can the blame be offloaded to a so-called 'rotten apple'?
The report from Bloomberg (it's not limited to that) says an IBM spokesperson claims “IBM takes seriously and thoroughly investigates any alleged behavior that might have violated our business conduct guidelines."
That's nonsense. IBM has a long history of bribery and other crimes. We covered a long list in past years. Some sites that document this probably went offline by now, but just because they cannot be found doesn't mean history magically changed.
This will probably stay in the news for the coming days/weeks. They try to colour this as an ethnic/racial/national issue. █
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IBM Investigates Allegations of Executive Misconduct in China
International Business Machines Corp. is looking into allegations against its China head after a letter circulating online accused the executive of misconduct, including accepting gifts from business partners, the latest upheaval in the US firm’s operations in the Asian country.
A former employee said in a letter to the US company that Chairman Chen Xudong of IBM’s Greater China Group received gift vouchers and cash equivalents from external partners, leaked classified company information to others and violated the company’s expense policies by taking his staff to karaoke bars, several Chinese outlets including the influential business publication Jiemian reported on Monday.
A IBM spokesperson confirmed the existence of the letter and said the company is looking into it.
“IBM takes seriously and thoroughly investigates any alleged behavior that might have violated our business conduct guidelines. We do not discuss individual employee circumstances and remain focused on serving our clients across greater China,” the spokesperson said.
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15-page letter circulating online accuses IBM China head of misconduct; here's what company said while confirming the letter --
A former IBM employee claimed in the letter that Chen, the chairman of IBM's Greater China Group, received gifts, leaked confidential information, and violated company expense policies.
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IBM confirmed the existence of the letter and stated that they are taking the matter seriously. "We attach great importance to and thoroughly investigate any behavior that may violate the company's business code of conduct. We do not discuss the personal circumstances of employees and will continue to focus on serving customers in Greater China," said an IBM spokesperson.