Why is there an increased public interest in ethical behavior?
-Media coverage
-Collapse of major corporations as a result of ethical violations
-Focus on eithics in professional training and academia
Discuss some of the major business ethics issues that have arisen in recent history.
-Drug testing
-Discrimination of employees who are HIV positive
-Email screening and other surveillance measures
List three negative outcomes that could result from unethical business decisions.
-Poor public image
-Increased government scrutiny of an individual company or an industry
-Public reluctance to use a company's products and services
How can implementing ethical standards help an organization to succeed?
By valuing ethics, an organization promotes and rewards honesty, fairness, and integrity in its workers. Those workers, in turn, are likely to treat customers, suppliers, contractors, and the general public in a way that develops their company's good name. Ethical standards helps to foster trust among colleagues and between supervisors and subordinates. With trust comes more open communication, which will likely increase morale, productivity, and efficiency. Workers will also feel freer to discuss difficult business and ethical issues, rather than act in an inadequately informed and perhaps ill-advised manner.
Why is it that a company's disregard for ethics often results in less productive business?
When intense business pressures arise, workers need the support that a company's commitment to ethics provides. Otherwise, they may engage in practices that they would ordinarily reject as immoral. Trust, which fosters open communication and collaboration cannot exist without positive standards. Lower morale, productivity, and efficiency are likely to ensue.
What causes ethically sound people to make unethical business decisions?
Business decisions with ethical implications are rarely easy to make. The workplace has plenty of ethical landmines.
What is the correlation between workplace ethics and productive business?
Companies that take ethics seriously gain in terms of morale and public image. With high morale, workers are more likely to treat customers in a favorable way that will eventually lead to success for the organization.
True or False:
More and more corporations are recognizing the impact of unethical behavior on their business and reputation.
True
True or False:
Business schools are reluctant to offer ethics courses, although corporations are beginning to ask for them.
False
True or False:
The federal government has chosen to stay out of cases involving breaches of business ethics, leaving such cases to the states.
False
True or False:
Corporate standards of ethical behavior are applicable to all levels of employees, not just to management.
True
True or False:
Ethics applies more to people's personal lives than their professions.
False
What two actions must a company take to promote ethical standards in its workplace?
1. Creating an ethical code.
2. Administering ethics training.
List the three qualities that an organization that values ethics should promote and rewards in its workers.
