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I live in this world, and have been in the upper levels of all sorts of these discussions regularly. I've never seen a direct bribe. If you want to call lavish

I live in this world, and have been in the upper levels of all sorts of these discussions regularly. I've never seen a direct bribe. If you want to call lavish dinners, drinking, and entertainment bribes, okay, that happens constantly. But a bribe? No... You don't need bribes. It's quid pro quo all of the time, but bribes?! No... Maybe you can get hired at a higher pay scale/job title from your work getting someone a deal. There are certainly perks.. but not bribes...

enraged_camel 11y ago
Expensive dinners and entertainment can definitely count as bribes. In certain sectors of government, decision makers are required to disclose things like when vendors take them out to dinner or pay for fancy seats at ball games.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- sergers 11y ago
  the company i work for doesnt allow us to provide dinner/entertainment for clients/vendors, nor can we accept offers to be taken out for dinners/entertainment. if we do go out somewhere, we pay our own we deal with govt and large healthcare corporations, the same policies are the norm among them. we also get these policies hammered into us quarterly through Anti-bribery/corruption and code of ethics training which is mandatory for all 30k employees regardless of role.
- BinaryIdiot 11y ago
  > In certain sectors of government, decision makers are required to disclose things like when vendors take them out to dinner or pay for fancy seats at ball games. I used to work in this space. Not only what you are saying is wrong but it's very illegal. I was lectured for offering a government representative lunch from a cheap place we were all going to (have to give them the opportunity to pay). There are so many rules around this that the type of bribery you're referring to just doesn't happen.
  - AndyNemmity 11y ago
    This is true for government. I'm talking generally about non-governmentally agencies, in which case it's the norm.
  - SOLAR_FIELDS 11y ago
    I used to work in a city IT department and the department head would allow future prospective and already existing vendors to take them out for meals "if we weren't currently soliciting bids from that specific company for work." Yeah, like they are taking you out because you are buds and they never plan on submitting any bids or extending contracts in the future? A lot of what I saw in the government when I worked there was borderline illegal but certainly ethically wrong.
    - enraged_camel 11y ago
      Yep, exactly. It's all about exploiting loopholes and wink-wink-nudge-nudge type stuff.
sailfast 11y ago
If you know [government] people getting wined and dined and not covering costs - report them, please. In my experience this line is not crossed very much but agency cultures can vary. As for the job thing - I would like to see more emphasis on curbing potential abuse for awards that lead to jobs with a contractor. This kind of thing can be hard to prove especially at large firms but needs to be locked down for anyone in a procurement / review board role.
- AndyNemmity 11y ago
  What? It's literally constant... Just go to any conference if you want to see it. I mean, I don't even know how to react to something like this. Edit: I am talking specifically about general business, not governmental business.
  - sailfast 11y ago
    Of course, in general business this happens all the time. I interpreted your "I live in this world" comment to mean "government" - apologies. Government contracting is extremely specific to the point that most systems integrators / mid to large businesses don't even allow you to buy coffee for someone because they want to avoid any perception issues. As for "general business"? Go nuts! :)
  - DannyBee 11y ago
    This absolutely not does not happen in government - at least, the federal government. Every employee in an office with contact with federal government officials will fill out a disclosure form every year. Every official will do the same. I remember we had to figure out the value of free google lunch because they were not allowed to eat for free. The federal government employees take this very very seriously. State, no idea, they all have different rules (but most companies just apply the same "no gifts of any sort" policy to them anyway)
    - amscanne 11y ago
      I can't remember who told me, but I recall a story of people working for the federal government declining a cup of coffee when visiting an office for similar reasons. It's applying the rule beyond reason, but that sure beats the alternative!
coldtea 11y ago
>I've never seen a direct bribe. If you want to call lavish dinners, drinking, and entertainment bribes, okay, that happens constantly. But a bribe? Those are rarely seen by those that aren't supposed to be seen. That's kind of the whole point (hence "under the table"). E.g.: http://www.theage.com.au/interactive/2016/the-bribe-factory/day-1/the-company-that-bribed-the-world.html http://www.theage.com.au/interactive/2016/the-bribe-factory/...

enraged_camel 11y ago

Expensive dinners and entertainment can definitely count as bribes. In certain sectors of government, decision makers are required to disclose things like when vendors take them out to dinner or pay for fancy seats at ball games.

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
sergers 11y ago
the company i work for doesnt allow us to provide dinner/entertainment for clients/vendors, nor can we accept offers to be taken out for dinners/entertainment. if we do go out somewhere, we pay our own we deal with govt and large healthcare corporations, the same policies are the norm among them. we also get these policies hammered into us quarterly through Anti-bribery/corruption and code of ethics training which is mandatory for all 30k employees regardless of role.
BinaryIdiot 11y ago
> In certain sectors of government, decision makers are required to disclose things like when vendors take them out to dinner or pay for fancy seats at ball games. I used to work in this space. Not only what you are saying is wrong but it's very illegal. I was lectured for offering a government representative lunch from a cheap place we were all going to (have to give them the opportunity to pay). There are so many rules around this that the type of bribery you're referring to just doesn't happen.
- AndyNemmity 11y ago
  This is true for government. I'm talking generally about non-governmentally agencies, in which case it's the norm.
- SOLAR_FIELDS 11y ago
  I used to work in a city IT department and the department head would allow future prospective and already existing vendors to take them out for meals "if we weren't currently soliciting bids from that specific company for work." Yeah, like they are taking you out because you are buds and they never plan on submitting any bids or extending contracts in the future? A lot of what I saw in the government when I worked there was borderline illegal but certainly ethically wrong.
  - enraged_camel 11y ago
    Yep, exactly. It's all about exploiting loopholes and wink-wink-nudge-nudge type stuff.

sailfast 11y ago

If you know [government] people getting wined and dined and not covering costs - report them, please. In my experience this line is not crossed very much but agency cultures can vary. As for the job thing - I would like to see more emphasis on curbing potential abuse for awards that lead to jobs with a contractor. This kind of thing can be hard to prove especially at large firms but needs to be locked down for anyone in a procurement / review board role.

AndyNemmity 11y ago
What? It's literally constant... Just go to any conference if you want to see it. I mean, I don't even know how to react to something like this. Edit: I am talking specifically about general business, not governmental business.
- sailfast 11y ago
  Of course, in general business this happens all the time. I interpreted your "I live in this world" comment to mean "government" - apologies. Government contracting is extremely specific to the point that most systems integrators / mid to large businesses don't even allow you to buy coffee for someone because they want to avoid any perception issues. As for "general business"? Go nuts! :)
- DannyBee 11y ago
  This absolutely not does not happen in government - at least, the federal government. Every employee in an office with contact with federal government officials will fill out a disclosure form every year. Every official will do the same. I remember we had to figure out the value of free google lunch because they were not allowed to eat for free. The federal government employees take this very very seriously. State, no idea, they all have different rules (but most companies just apply the same "no gifts of any sort" policy to them anyway)
  - amscanne 11y ago
    I can't remember who told me, but I recall a story of people working for the federal government declining a cup of coffee when visiting an office for similar reasons. It's applying the rule beyond reason, but that sure beats the alternative!

coldtea 11y ago

>I've never seen a direct bribe. If you want to call lavish dinners, drinking, and entertainment bribes, okay, that happens constantly. But a bribe? Those are rarely seen by those that aren't supposed to be seen. That's kind of the whole point (hence "under the table"). E.g.: http://www.theage.com.au/interactive/2016/the-bribe-factory/day-1/the-company-that-bribed-the-world.html http://www.theage.com.au/interactive/2016/the-bribe-factory/...