ethics

• Ethics


  Deals with the principles of ethical behavior in modern society at the level of the person, society in interaction with the environment and shared resources
• Morality


  Pertains to the standards of right and wrong that an individual originally pick up for the community
• Moral Standards


  Morals tend to be driven by personal beliefs and values, there are certainly some common morals that most people agree on
• Non-Moral Standards


  Rules that are unrelated to moral or ethical considerations. Either these standards are not necessarily linked to morality or by nature lack ethical sense
• Moral Standard Examples

  • Always tell the truth
  • Have courage
  • Keep your promises
  • Do not cheat
• Non-Moral Standard Examples

  • Etiquette
  • Fashion standards
  • Rules in games
  • Various house rules
• Moral Dilemma


  Any situation in which the person making the decision experiences a conflict between the moral rightness of a decision and the quality of the results it produces
• Historic Examples of Moral Dilemmas

  • 1842 shipwreck where the captain had to choose between throwing weak passengers overboard or letting all drown
  • Sophie's Choice where a mother had to choose which of her two children would be executed in a concentration camp
• Business Ethics


  A study of proper business policies and practices regarding potentially controversial issues, such as corporate governance, insider trading, bribery, discrimination, corporate social responsibility, and fiduciary responsibilities
• Businesses must abide by some basic principles. It should provide quality goods and services at reasonable prices to their consumers. It must also avoid adulteration, misleading advertisements, and other unfair malpractices
• Ethics


  Derives from the Greek word ethos - meaning "character' - and is also known as moral philosophy, which is a branch of philosophy that involves "systematizing, defending and recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct"
• Three Categories of Ethics


  • Meta ethics - the study of the concept of ethics
  • Normative ethics - the study of how to determine ethical values
  • Descriptive ethics - the study of the use of the ethical value
• Moral Management


  Strives to follow ethical principles and precepts, moral managers strive for success, but never violate the parameter of ethical standards
• Amoral Management


  This approach is neither immoral nor moral. It ignores ethical considerations. Amoral management is broadly categorized into two types - intentional and unintentional
• Intentional Amoral Managers


  Exclude ethical issues because they think that general ethical standards are not appropriate to business
• Unintentional Amoral Managers


  Do not include ethical concerns because they are inattentive or insensitive to the moral implications
• Immoral Management


  Synonymous with "unethical" practices in business. This kind of management not only ignores concerns, it is actively opposed to ethical behavior
• Business Ethics


  Deciding what is right or wrong in the business
• Business Ethics


  Enables the leaders and employers to act at the time of crises and confusion in the business. Therefore, business ethics helps to deal with business ethical issues that are vague
• Carroll and Buchholz (2001): 'The concept of business ethics has become relative and include grey areas of right and wrong'
• Benefits of Business Ethics

  • Helps in improving society by establishing government agencies, unions, laws and regulations
  • Helps an organization maintain ethical values during times of crisis
  • Helps employees behave according to the ethical values that are preferred by the top management
  • Supports employee growth
  • Helps to avoid criminal acts of 'omission' and it also helps in lowering the fines
  • Helps to identify and manage the values associated with quality management, strategic management and diversity management
  • Helps in building a strong, and positive public image of an organization
  • Strengthens organizational culture
  • Makes sure that the right activities are performed in an organization
• Need for Business Ethics

  • Ethics corresponds to basic human needs
  • Values create credibility with public
  • An ethical attitude helps the management make better decisions, because ethics will force a management to take various aspects - economic, social, and ethical in making decisions
  • Value driven companies are sure to be successful in the long run, though in the short run, they may lose money
  • Ethics is important because the government, law, and lawyers cannot do everything to protect society