LDR 5807 Ethical Leadership and Decision Making

Term: Summer 2020-21

Instructor: Dr. James S Welch Jr
Email: jwelch@mail.lfgsm.edu
Phone: 727-220-9647

Leadership Model
The LFGSM Leadership Model is the core of our degree programs and drives our curriculum and approach to teaching.

AGILITY
Ability to see things from different perspectives, develop big picture ideas, and drive
change.
INNOVATION
Creatively assess customer/market needs, make organizational assumptions, generate
ideas, and execute change.
STRATEGIC VISION
Lead the creation and execution of a strategic vision that improves the bottom line,
productivity, and culture of the organization.
SELF-AWARENESS
Understand and manage personal strengths and weaknesses to optimize leadership
impact.
ENGAGING OTHERS
Actively identify and nurture talent to build effective teams and productive working
relationships.

Course Description
Students examine how values shape individual and organizational ethical behaviors, and how these behaviors influence
leadership and decision-making. Students apply practical knowledge and tools needed to effectively manage the
everyday ethical conduct of self and employees. Core components include discussions on how legal, philosophical, and
corporate practices influence ethical behavior for individuals and companies. Students examine how social,
environmental, and stakeholder responsibilities, as well as different values, impact ethical behavior in companies.

Recommended Prerequisite: LDR 5120

Course Goals and Leadership Principles

AGILITY:
Recognize how legal, philosophical, and corporate practices affect ethical decision-making.

SELF AWARENESS:
Understand how personal values, networks, and how others view you influence ethical behavior.

ENGAGING OTHERS:
Understand the role of ethical leadership in relation to social, environmental and stakeholder
responsibilities. Create an organizational culture that encourages ethical conduct and
discourages unethical conduct

Course Materials

Textbook: Business Ethics

Author: Shaw
Edition: 9th
ISBN: 9781305582088

2
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
Course Objectives and Overview
*Note: Please review the assignments and readings in Canvas for detailed directions

Module 1- The Nature of Morality

Description: This module addresses questions that typify business issues that have moral significance. The answers to
these moral questions depend, in large part, on our moral standards. The moral principles and values that we hold
important guide our dealings in our relationship with others. What moral standards are, where they come from, and
how they can be assessed are some of the concerns of this opening module.

Learning Objectives:
 Explain the purpose of business ethics as well as its scope and ideological source.
 Describe the distinguishing features of morality and how it is different than etiquette, law, and
professional codes of conduct.
 Explain the nature of conscience as well as the relationship between morality and self-interest and how
these impact moral principles.
 Describe how values and ideals are integrated into a person's life and how specific social and psychological
factors may cause a person to jeopardize their integrity
 Demonstrate the use of sound moral reasoning in a business scenario

Complete by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, July 5 by 11:59 pm.
Case 1.3 "Just Drop off the Key, Lee"
Read Case 1.3 in the Shaw text Chapter 1 and answer questions 1, 2, 3, and 6 in the post. Post a response to at
least two classmates.
Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts:

 Acknowledge your classmates' posts.

 Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles.
 Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.

Module 2- Normative Theories of Ethics

Description: This module discusses the different normative perspectives and rival ethical principles that are our
heritage. After distinguishing between what are called "consequentialist" and "non-consequentialist" normative
theories, we look at several ethical approaches, discussing their pros and cons and their relevance to moral decision
making in an organizational context.
3
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
Learning Objectives:
 Describe various moral and ethical theories including egoism, utilitarianism, Kant's ethics, duties, moral
rights, and prima facie principles
 List the pros and cons of specific moral and ethical theories.
 Apply various consequentialist and non-consequentialist normative theories to organizational business
scenarios

Complete by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, July 12 by 11:59 pm. (Both)
Case 2.2 "The Ford Pinto"
Read Case 2.2 in Shaw text Chapter 2 and answer questions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in the post. Post a response to at
least two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.
Assignment 1
Read Case 2.3 in Shaw text Chapter 2 and answer questions 1, 2, 5 and 7 in the paper. Be sure to integrate
your thoughts with the chapter concepts and the theories. Develop your paper in APA format and in essay
form rather than question and answer. Merge responses into one seamless essay. Use at least three cited
sources to support your position.

Module 3- Justice and Economic Distribution

Description: This module focuses on the more specific topic of justice and economic distribution - that is, on the
principles that are relevant to the moral assessment of society's distribution of economic goods and services. Although
the topic is an abstract one, it is particularly relevant to the study of business ethics, because it concerns the moral
standards to be used in evaluating the socioeconomic framework within which both business and non-business
organizations operate.

Learning Objectives:
 Explain the concept of justice and how it is related to fairness, equality, rights, merit-based decision-
making, and principles of economic distribution.
 Describe how the utilitarian philosophy of worth impacts our view of justice and economic equality.
 Compare and contrast the libertarian theory of justice with the contractualist and egalitarian theory of
justice espoused by John Rawls.

Completion by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, July 19 by 11:59 pm.

Case 3.1 "Eminent Domain"

Read Case 3.1 in Shaw text Chapter 3 and answer questions 1, 2, and 3 in the post. Post a response to at least
two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
4
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.

Module 4- The Nature of Capitalism

Description: This module attempts to identify some of the problems and moral ramifications of the capitalist system. It
provides some basic historical and conceptual categories for understanding the socioeconomic framework within which
business transactions occur and moral issues arise.

Learning Objectives:
 Define capitalism and describe its major historical stages
 Describe the four key features of capitalism: companies, profit motive, competition, and private property
 Compare the two classical moral justifications of capitalism: the right to property and Adam Smith's
concept of the invisible hand
 Explain each of the following fundamental criticisms of capitalism:
1. Persistence of inequality and poverty
2. Implicit view of human nature
3. Rise of economic oligarchies
4. Shortcomings of competition
5. Employees' experience of alienation and exploitation

Completion by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, July 26 by 11:59 pm. (Both)
Case 4.6 Paying College Athletes
Read Case 4.6 in Shaw text Chapter 4 and answer questions 1, 2, and 3 in the post. Post a response to at least
two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.
Assignment 2
Read Case 4.3 in Shaw text Chapter 4 and answer questions 1 through 5 in the paper. Be sure to integrate your
thoughts with the chapter concepts and the theories. Develop your paper in APA format and in essay form
rather than question and answer. Merge responses into one seamless essay. Use at least three cited sources
to support your position.

Module 5- Corporations

Description: This module reviews the history of corporations and discusses the dynamics of the corporate moral
agency. It is also addresses the rival views of corporate responsibility and the potentiality for institutionalizing ethics
within the corporate structure.

Learning Objectives:
 Evaluate whether corporations can be moral agents and bear moral responsibilities

5
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
 Define both the narrow and broad views of corporate responsibility and the impact of each view on
organizational decision-making
 Discuss corporate responsibility and the three key arguments: The invisible hand, let-government-do-it,
and business-can't-handle-it
 Describe the importance of institutionalizing ethics within a corporation and determine how it can be
accomplished

Completion by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, August 2 by 11:59 pm.
Case 5.2 "Drug Dilemmas"
Read Case 5.2 in Shaw text Chapter 5 and answer questions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7 in the post. Post a response to at
least two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.

Module 6- Consumers

Description: This module challenges us to expand our perspectives as individual leaders as well as leaders of total
organizations. The module begins at the individual level of threats to diversity and moves out to look at diversity of
cultures around the world.

Learning Objectives:
 Identify the legal and moral responsibilities of manufacturers regarding product safety.
 Evaluate the importance and success of government regulations that are designed to protect consumers
along with the issue of legal paternalism
 Examine the responsibilities of businesses to consumers regarding product quality, prices, labeling, and
packaging
 Assess the impact of deceptive and morally questionable advertising techniques on consumers
 Describe the role of the FTC in regulating advertising
 Debate the social desirability of advertising; Is it a positive feature of our economic system? Does
advertising manipulate consumers or is it a response to consumer needs?

Completion by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, August 9 by 11:59 pm. (Both)
Case 6.2 "Hot Coffee at McDonalds"
Read Case 6.2 in Shaw text Chapter 6 and answer questions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in the post. Post a response to at
least two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.
Assignment 3

6
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
Read Case 6.4 in Shaw text Chapter 6 and answer questions 1-5 in the paper. Be sure to integrate your
thoughts with the chapter concepts and the theories. Develop your paper in APA format and in essay form
rather than question and answer. Merge responses into one seamless essay. Use at least three cited sources
to support your position.

Module 7- Workplace Ethics- Part 1

Description: This module will address moral dilemmas that arise in the workplace, especially those that concern the
civil liberties of employees and the personnel policies that govern hiring, firing, paying and promoting them.

Learning Objectives:
 Describe the current state of civil liberties in the workplace
 List the efforts of specific companies to respect the rights and moral dignity of their employees
 Describe the moral issues involved with hiring, promoting, disciplining, discharging, and determining the
salary of employees.
 Identify the role and history of unions in our economic system. Describe union ideals and achievements
and the moral issues associated with unions

Completion by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, August 16 by 11:59 pm.
Case 8.3 "Speaking Out About Malt"
Read Case 8.3 in Shaw text Chapter 8 and answer questions 1, 2, 3, and 7 in the post. Post a response to at
least two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.

Module 8- Workplace Ethics- Part 2

Description: This module continues discussion on moral issues that emerge in the workplace. It looks at one crucial
civil liberty issue - the right to privacy - and the ethical choices it poses inside the organization. This module also
examines other topics that are stirring up controversy in the workplace.

Learning Objectives:
 Define the nature of privacy and discuss the issues related to organizational rules that impact private
decisions.
 Analyze the moral issues associated with organizations using polygraphs, personality assessments, drug
tests, and employee monitoring tools in the workplace.
 Describe the ethical requirements and challenges of businesses related to working conditions including
health and safety, management styles, provision of day care facilities, maternity/paternity leave, and
family medical leave

Completion by End of Week: (Check Canvas for further detailed directions)

Due on Sunday, August 21 by 11:59 pm. (Both)
7
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
Case 9.3 "She Snoops to Conquer"
Read Case 9.3 in Shaw text Chapter 2 and answer questions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in the post. Post a response to at
least two classmates. Use the following ABC approach when writing your posts: Acknowledge your classmates'
posts. Build upon these posts by providing additional details, statistics, ideas, personal perspectives, or links to
interesting, relevant articles. Conclude with a question or new idea to further stimulate the discussion.
Assignment 4
Read Case 9.2 in Shaw text Chapter 9 and answer questions 1 through 5 in the paper. Be sure to integrate your
thoughts with the chapter concepts and the theories. Develop your paper in APA format and in essay form
rather than question and answer. Merge responses into one seamless essay. Use at least three cited sources
to support your position.

8
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020
Grading Criteria & Weighting
Points Each Percentage Category Description
15 60% Assignment Case Studies
5 40% Discussion Weekly Discussions
Total 100 pts 100%

LFGSM Standard Grading Scale

Grades will be rounded to fit in the brackets below. Grades xx.5 or more will be rounded up. For example if it is a 92.5
or 95.5 it will be rounded up to 93 or 96.

Letter Grade Equivalent Numeric Range

A 100 – 96.0
A- 95.0 – 93.0
B+ 92.0 – 90.0
B 89.0 – 87.0
B- 86.0 – 84.0
C+ 83.0 – 81.0
C 80.0 – 78.0
C- 77.0 – 75.0
D+ 74.0 – 72.0
D 71.0 – 69.0
D- 68. 0 – 66.0
F 65.0 – 0.0

Receiving Grades and Instructor Feedback

Assignment grades and feedback are provided generally the following session (one week) after the assignment is due
and always before an assignment of the same type is due unless otherwise stated. Instructors’ final grade is determined
by the selected criteria of choice (e.g. percent, points, letter, etc.).

9
Copyright © Lake Forest Graduate School of Management – LDR 5807-2020