Professional Documents
Culture Documents
BUSINESS ETHICS
When evaluating one’s goals and
objectives, a vital question
must be asked: What is your
highest aspiration?
A. Wealth
B. Fame
C. Knowledge
D. Popularity
E. Integrity
If integrity is second to any
of the alternatives, then it is
subject to sacrifice in
situations where a choice
must be made. Such
situations will inevitably
occur in every person’s life.
Can ethics be
taught?
Teddy
Roosevelt
said, “To
educate a
person in
mind and not
in morals is to
educate a
menace to
society.”
Ethics is essential to the functioning of a free society: 2nd U.S.
President John Adams observed: “We have no government
armed with power capable of contending with human passions
unbridled by morality and religion. Our Constitution was
made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly
inadequate to the government of any other.”
“God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the
liberties of a nation be secure when we have
removed a conviction that these liberties are
the gift of God?”
Expected by
Society
Ethical Responsibilities
Required by
Society
Legal Responsibilities
Required by
Society
Economic Responsibilities
Stakeholder
Recognize Engage in
Make moral Establish
moral issue moral
judgment moral intent
behaviour
Individual influences on ethical decision – making
Individual influences on ethical decision-making relate to these facets
of the individual who is actually going through the decision-making
process.
The factors and their likely influence on ethical decision-making are
summarized as follows :
Factor Influence on ethical decision-making
Age and Gender Very mixed evidence leading to
unclear association with ethical
decision-making
National and Cultural
Characteristics Appear to have a significant effect on
ethical beliefs, as well as views of what
is deemed an acceptable
approach to certain business issues
Education and
Employment Somewhat unclear, although some
Thomas Szasz
Understanding corporate governance
With regard to the ownership of corporations, there are
however some crucial differences :
Child labour
Discrimination
Environment
“……Even if we know we can get away with doing something
wrong, even if no one ever discovers what we are up to,
our vice harms us more than it hurts any of our victims.”
-SOCRATES
Is ethics same as law?
- No - although the law should reflect the ethical views
of
society there are certain activities permitted by law
which
some individual or groups in society or individual
might
regard as unethical.
- Ethical considerations are about what is right and what
is
wrong
- The law is about what is lawful and what is unlawful
The following business activities are legal but might
pose ethical dilemmas for individuals:
ORGNIZATIONA
STRUCTURAL L
CHARECTERIS CULTURE
TICS OF
ORGANIZATIO
N
What causes unethical behaviour
• Stress
• Confusion
• No knowledge
Some of the Unethical Business practices
are :
Cutting corners on quality
Covering up incidents
Abusing or lying
Lying customers
Stealing from the company
Taking credits from co-workers ideas/work
Taking or giving bribe
Unethical business practices (contd)
Government corruption
Financial scandals
Product safety
discrimination
Sexual harassment
Firing an employee for whistle blowing
Divulging confidential information
“What’s in it for me to be ethical?”
2. Economic perspectives:
3. Social perspectives
-Creating social justice
-A more just and equitable world, whether between rich
consumers in the west and poor workers in developing
countries, between the urban rich and the rural poor, or
between men and women, remains the central concern in the
social perspective on sustainability
Carroll’s four-part model of corporate social
responsibility
a) Economic: Companies have shareholders who demand a
reasonable return on their investments, they have
employees who want safe and fairly paid jobs, they have
customers who demand good-quality products at a fair
price.