Business Ethics

for personal business

the relevance or importance of an event or decision in the eyes of an individual, work group, or organization

the ability to perceive whether a situation or decision has an ethical dimension

workplace, family, religion, legal system, community, profession

a person's perception of social pressure  and the harm the decision will have on others

people often base their decision on their own values and principles of right or wrong

gender
education and work
nationality
age
locus of control (internal=believe they control events, external=going with the flow)

the organization's values have the greatest influence on decisions

set of values, norms, and artifacts that members of an organization share

is a function of many factors, including corporate policies on ethics, top management's leadership on ethical issues, the influence of coworkers, and the opportunity for unethical behavior.

those who have influence in a work group, including peers, managers, coworkers, and subordinates

employees resolve business ethics issues by simply following the directives of a superior

describes the conditions in an organization that limit or permit ethical or unethical behavior

results from conditions that either provide rewards or fail to erect barriers against unethical behavior

can be greatly reduced by formal codes, policies, and rules

where individuals work, with whom, and the nature of work

Normative approaches: What decision makers should approach an issue
--> fairness, justice, set of core values that provide enduring beliefs about appropriate conduct
--> by incorporating stakeholder objectives into corporate core values, companies begin to view stakeholders as significant

political, economic, and social (education, religion, family) institutions

organizations face certain normative pressures from different institutions to act a certain way
--> internally/externally

a thought experiment that examined how individuals would formulate principles if they did not know what their future position in society would be (not biased by one's social position)

Companies take basic principles and translate them into core values

refers to specific principles or values that people use to decide what is right or wrong

if an act produces more value than its effort costs, then it should be accepted as ethical

moral philosophy that places special value on ideas and ideals as products of the mind

the view that an external world exists independent of our perceptions. Humankind is not naturally benevolent and kind but instead is self-centered and competitive

believe only one thing is intrinsically good

often characterized by hedonism where pleasure is the ultimate good

believe that no one thing is intrinsically good (more things matter)

reject the idea that end and means can be separeted

focus on the end result

focus the means and motives by which actions are justified

considers acts as morally right or acceptable if they produce the desired result --> consequentalism

egoism: right/acceptable if it maximizes the personal interest
enlightened egoism: take a long-term perspective and allow the well-being of others while their own self-interest remains

utilitarianism: seeks the greatest good for the greatest number of people
rule utilitarianism: based on principles
act utilitarianism: examine a specific action itself; not the rules governing it

focusing on the rights of individuals and on the intentions associated with a particular behavior

categorical imperative: Immanuel Kant; act as if it's a universal principle

rule deontology: general moral principles

act deontologists: actions are the proper basis on which to judge morality

individuals and groups derive definitions of ethical behavior subjectively from experience

Descriptive relativism: relates to observations of other cultures

meta-ethical relativism: people see situations from their own perspectives

normative relativism: one person's opinion is as good as another's

Ethical behavior follows conventional moral standards and compares behavior against a standard "good" moral character

the ultimate purpose is to serve the public good

Trust, self-control, empathy, fairness, truthfulness, learning, gratitude, civility, moral leadership

Fair treatment and due reward in accordance with ethical or legal standards

Distributive justice
Procedural justice
interactional justice

people pass through 6 moral development stages

people continue to change their decision making priorities after formative years and change their values and ethical behavior

Illegal acts committed for personal and/or organizational gain by abusing the trust and authority associated with given position

Common justifications:
-Denial of responsibility
-Denial of injury
-Denial of the victim
-Condemnation of the condemners
-Appeal to a higher authority
-Everyone else is doing it
-Entitlement

Pressures to succeed create opportunities that reward unethical behavior