On 21 February, 2024, OMNI (Overseas Moving Network International) held the latest in its ongoing World Series educational webinars for its members.
This time the topic related to business ethics, asked whether bad behaviour in business was becoming normal and what, if anything, could be done to improve the situation.
The event was introduced by OMNI President, Philippa Robinson (Robinsons 
Relocation, UK). Guest panellists were Pauline Collins (Voerman, The Netherlands), Sara Lyrum (Aspire Mobility, Denmark) and Andy Cummins (Alfa Mobility, Sweden) with many of the attendees joining in the conversation. The webinar was moderated by Steve Jordan, Editor of The Mover. Last year Steve wrote a piece in The Mover about the sexual intimidation of women at moving conferences which gained much attention. OMNI had responded by acknowledging that this was an important part of a much larger issue which it aimed to address with the webinar.
Steve opened with a simple question: “Is it ever acceptable to impose terms on a supplier that you would not be prepared to accept yourself?” This stimulated much discussion but came to the realistic conclusion that it was not. Why then do so many companies appear to do that and what should the reaction be from suppliers who feel somewhat helpless when in the shadow of powerful customers? That was a much more difficult question to answer ...
Photo: Philippa Robinson.