Prof.

Tadeusz Oleksyn October 2020

ON ETHICS IN MANAGEMENT
Master’s study, first year, first semester, 30 hours, 4 points ECTS
academic year 2020 / 2021. Lecturer: prof. dr hab. Tadeusz Oleksyn

Goals
1. General introduction to morality and ethics. Essence and differences
between morality and ethics. Why are there important?
2. Learning about principles and requirements of ethical management
behawior.
3. Acquainting with international regulations concerning business ethics and
management.
4. Clarification of selected practical issues related to management ethics.
5. Encourage further self-exploration of ethical issues.

Lecture topics
1. What is the lecture program about and what is expected of students.
Information on exams and subject literature.
Morality and ethics - why are they not synonymous? Universal ethics and
detailed ethics. Normative, descriptive and meta-ethics. Sources of ethics:
emphaty, philosophy, religions, history, literature, art. Truth and myths about
ethics. What outstanding people say about ethics?
2. Ancient philosophical inspirations of ethics: Pythagoras, Sophists,
Socrates, Plato, Cynics, Hedonists. Aristotle and his ethics of moderate.
Stoics philosophy and ethics. Ancient Greek virtues. Taoists and Lao-tzi.
Confucius and Confucianism. Old Chinese moral characteristics.

1
3. Modern philosophical and ethical inspirations: Kant and deontology.
Bentham and utilitarianism. Nietzche - his cult of power and superman.
Totalitarian and authoritarian regimes Situational ethics. Moral relativism.
Contemporary stoicism. Liberalism - different versions, liberal democracy.
Libertarianism. Communitarianism, socialism, socialdemocracy, welfer state.
Populism as a soft version of authoritarian regime. Ideology - primary and
later (degenerate) understanding. Philosophy of globalisation.
4. Great religions of the world and their ethics: Judaism and Tora. Judaism -
a religion conducive to activity and entrepreneurship. The rich people are
those whom Jehovah favors. The poor are usually the ones they don't like
because they're lazy. God is to be in the first place in human life.
Christianity and Biblia. Original and similar features of Christianity. Ethics
of Christianity, in it ethics of management. Different versions / religions of
Christianity. Protestantism / Calvinism and the beginnings of the ethics of
capitalism (16th century). Is the term Judeo-Christianity legitimate /
appropriate? Anthropocentrism of the great monotheistic religions. Saint
Francis and Pope Francis - glorious exceptions when it comes to the attitude
towards fauna and flora.
5. Islam and Koran. Allah is great and Muhammad is his prophet. Ethics of
Islam. Different forms of Islam. Hospitality and kindness, mercy (zakat),
successes in trade and banking. (Too) rerstrictive islamic law - Sharia.
Hinduism and its holly books. Is Hinduism a polytheistic or monotheistic
religion? Ethics of Hinduism. The influence of belief in reincarnation and the
caste system on ethics, labour and management. (Caste system is illegal since
1950 in India but very common still). Hinduism and Buddhism as two
religions friendly to life and nature.
New religions and religious sects. Why there are so many religious sects
immoral or criminal?

2
6. Ethics and law - mutual relations and differenties between them. Does good
law set a minimum of ethics? When is civil disobedience justified?
Ethics and customs; conflicts of universal ethics and bad customs.
Subcultures: criminal organizations, prison, football fans, sectarian. Other
immoral subcultures related to violence - at work, at school, in the military,
etc. Excessive competition as a moral and ethical problem - in environments
with a very high level of competition (professional athletes, artists, lawyers,
entrepreneurs, managers, others). Polygamy and pedophilia among Mormons
and Gypsies as the results of bad traditions. Conflicts between the law and
universal morality and some traditional customs. Some bad morality
gradually changes, generally for the better.
7. Ethics of duty (deontology). Immanuel Kant and his imperative categorical.
His principle of Do what you should because you should. The tyranny of
values according to Nicolai Hartmann. Deontology at work and management.
Limits of freedom - where the freedom of others is violated. Organizations
and professions of public trust.
8. Features of ethical entrepreneur, manager, employee. A review of more
frequent ethical / unethical situations in the activity of an entrepreneur,
manager, employee. Ethics of relations with stakeholders.
Competences as an important ethical criterion. Working in a position and
acting without competence as a violation of moral norms.
9. Unethical and controversial industries and professions, related to the
production and sale of: alcohol, tobacco, drugs, weapons. Prostitution and
pornography. Gambling. "Meat industry" - industrial fattening and slaughter
of animals. Breeding of "fur animals". Legal but unethical products. Violent
and health-damaging sports. Hunting - cruel entertainment. Child labor -
controversy. Labor and employees exploitation. Gray and black zones.
Corruption and fraud.

3
10. Organizational codes of ethics. History, reason of creating these codes,
controwersies. Some examples of organizational codes of ethics.
International ethical regulations: Philadelphia Declaration, Caux Round
Table, EBEN, Global Compact.
Some ethical challenges of the future:
 The impending climate and biological catastrophe - the moral
obligations of politicians, managers and everyone else.
 Sustinability conception; ethical issues.
 Artificial intelligence and less work for people.
 Genetic engineering and human improvement. Breaking trans-species
barriers.
 Are we threatened with the return of totalitarian and authoritarian
systems, or are we able to defend ourselves against it?

Forms of crediting the course

Credit for a grade. Criteria: activity, team assessment

Obligatory literature
Power point presentations:
1. Oleksyn T. On Ethics in Management, Warsaw 2020
2. Oleksyn T., Ethics – essense. Normative ethics, descriptive ethics,
methaetics. Myths about ethics. Outstanding people about ethics.
3. Oleksyn T. Philosophical Inspiration of Ethics, Warsaw 2020
4. Oleksyn T. Religious Ethics Inspirations, Warsaw 2020
5. Oleksyn T., Values and ethics. How to manage ethically? Warsaw 2020.
6. Oleksyn T. Ethics, Law and Customs, Warsaw 2020
7. Oleksyn T. Ethical entrepreneur, manager, employee. Warsaw 2020.
8. Oleksyn T. Codes and other regulations related to ethics. Warsaw 2020

4
 Supplementary literature
1. Herman A., Oleksyn T., Stańczyk I., Management by Values –
Management Respecting and Promoting Values, Jagiellonian University
Press, Cracow 2015
2. Seredi H., Nezhad B.M., Role of Ethics in management of Organization.
„International Journal of Advences in the sciences, 4 (11) November
2014;
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271139279_ROLE_OF_ETHIC
S_IN_MANAGEMENT_OF_ORGANIZATION, Access date 14/10/2020