Literary Review Introduction This part of the paper presents information based on recent literature regarding the status quo of Volkswagen. It reveals the incident that acted as a whistleblower in identifying the scandal, the various unethical business practices that were involved and the impact it has as a result. The rest of the paper will elaborate the points of view of different scholars who analyzed this particular scandal and shared their thoughts pertaining to the unethical practices discovered in Volkswagen’s corporation based on evidenced facts. Ethics versus Profit In general, business ethics means getting to know what is considered right or wrong in the workplace and involves performing accurately in regard to effects of products, …show more content…
Any corporation involved in fraudulent activities will suffer from consequences that negatively affect the image of an organization. While the majority of companies earn …show more content…
The company has knowingly been involved in illegal installation of ‘cheat software’ in millions of its cars all over the world. This unethical act of theirs was a lie about the true potentiality of the cars that are sold to its customers. By being involved in such fraudulent behavior, Volkswagen not only cheated the people but also caused apparent damage to the environment by emitting 40% more nitrous oxide than the EPA’s standard. According to Edward L Queen, Director of Ethics and Servant Leadership Program in Emory University, Volkswagen intentionally deceived those to whom it owed a duty of honesty. This was not a mistake, an error, an ethical lapse, or poor judgment. This was an intentionally designed and executed violation of the law in both its letter and its spirit. It also was an ethical violation of the highest level (Queen, 2015). It should not be seen as a misunderstanding or a failure to communicate, but a purposeful wrongdoing that was conscious to the top management of the
Many organizations have been destroyed or heavily damaged financially and took a hit in terms of reputation, for example, Enron. The word Ethics is derived from a Greek word called Ethos, meaning “The character or values particular to a specific person, people, culture or movement” (The American Heritage Dictionary, 2007, p. 295). Ethics has always played and will continue to play a huge role within the corporate world. Ethics is one of the important topics that are debated at lengths without reaching a conclusion, since there isn’t a right or wrong answer. It’s basically depends on how each individual perceives a particular situation. Over the past few years we have seen very poor unethical business practices by companies like Enron, which has affected many stakeholders. Poor unethical practices affect the society in many ways; employees lose their job, investors lose their money, and the country’s economy gets affected. This leads to people start losing confidence in the economy and the organizations that are being run by the so-called “educated” top executives that had one goal in their minds, personal gain. When Enron entered the scene in the mid-1980s, it was little more than a stodgy energy distribution system. Ten years later, it was a multi-billion dollar corporation, considered the poster child of the “new economy” for its willingness to use technology and the Internet in managing energy. Fifteen years later, the company is filing for bankruptcy on the heels of a massive financial collapse, likely the largest in corporate America’s history. As this paper is being written, the scope of Enron collapse is still being researched, poked and prodded. It will take years to determine what, exactly; the impact of the demise of this energy giant will be both on the industry and the
Many other businesses may not want to do business as the company was involved with immoral behavior. The unethical business practices of the company will also gain exposure in the media and to the public (Nicol, 2015, n.p). Employees no longer keep unethical activities of the company to themselves. As a whistleblower, they may be perceived as a traitor, but in this case the senior executives are being traitors. They are taking money from immoral behavior and tarnishing the name of the company (Nicol, 2015, n.p).
(Mallor, Barnes, Bowers, & Langvardt, 2010) Business ethics is when ethical behavior is applied in a business environment, or by a business. There are many situations that can arise in which a person is experiencing an ethical dilemma. They have to choose between standing by their own personal ethical standards or complying with their companies ethical standards. In some instances, some have to choose whether to serve their own personal interests, or the interests of the company.
The task of business ethics is to make sure business decisions encompass an ethical element, and to make sure that managers take ethical implications of strategic decisions into account before choosing a line of action.
Business ethics simply can be defined as the application of business values in the business practice of a company (Seawell 2010, p. 2). For a multinational company, business ethics is one of the critical aspects need to be taken into account in business decision-making processes. Failure to give attention on ethics may bring consequences on company’s reputation (Meyer & Jebe 2010, p. 159). The company is expected not only to pursue its own profits but also contributing to the environmental and social welfare of the community where it operates (Svensson & Wood 2008, p. 308).
This paper will illustrate the moral, social, and factual implications of the Volkswagen scandal regarding the case dealing with emission standards of the diesel Volkswagen vehicles. The reader should note that this analysis will be given from two different philosophical points of view. Namely from the Kantian and Rule-Utilitarian perspective. The paper will attempt to demonstrate the moral implications of the case at hand, and how this applies to Mr. James Liang’s actions. As the reader may know Mr. James Liang worked for the Volkswagen Company for more than 30 years. He and his colleagues worked on creating a low emission diesel engine. In the course of this project, it became apparent that the emission goal could not be achieved with respect
By definition, ethics refers to "a set of principles of right conduct." It is also defined as "the rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession," (www.thefreedictionary.com) and in business may be considered the standards governing the conduct of people in the business environment. Business ethics is the behavior that a business adheres to in its daily dealings with the world. It relies on values as a way of guiding behaviour in business.
Volkswagen participated in an intentional fraudulent act. There may be violations of the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection which stops unfair, deceptive and fraudulent business practices by collecting complaints and conducting investigations, suing companies and people that break the law, developing rules to maintain a fair marketplace, and educating consumers and businesses about their rights and responsibilities. (FTC, 2016)
Last Sunday, the company’s then CEO, Martin Winterkorn, issued a brief statement declaring that the Board of Management at Volkswagen AG “takes these findings very seriously.” The findings revealed that the automaker used “defeat devices” to fool emissions testing, effectively concealing the reality that certain cars spew emissions some 10 to 40 times the legal limit.
In the business world there are many fundamental aspects and situations that can lead to several issues. In order to find an optimal and professional solution, business decision makers need to apply moral and ethical standards. And it is at that moment in which business ethics perform its role. Business ethics, which is in charge of examine how companies and individuals should act in business situations, is very essential in order to reach a common agreement and to work within the laws of business and solve an arisen dilemma. Working of the hand of ethical business companies, employees, investors, directors, and even individual officers can be beneficiated and obtain most favorable outcomes.
The standards of ethics serve as guidelines for the conduct of individuals and businesses alike. Uzi Nissan acted h...
Recently, three individuals were awarded $170 million for helping investigators gather a record $16.65 billion penalty against Bank of America. Based on their action of inflating the value of mortgage properties and selling defective loans to investors. By influencing the market falsely is unethical and wrong. That is also why their punishment was so harsh. Firms today warn their managers and employees that failing to report unethical behavior and violations by others, could get them fired.
Tyco provides products and services across the world. The company is global and diversified providing a variety of products including electronics, healthcare, fire and security services and engineered products and services. While employing over 250,000 people worldwide they grossed approximately $40 billion in revenue in the year 2005. In 2002 Tyco was involved with the corporate scandal where the management mis-appropriated corporation funds. The previous CEO Dennis Kozlowski was convicted in 2005 on 22 counts of the 23 that he was charged with. This is an example of not only a legal issue of responsibility but also one of an ethical issue that the Tyco Corporation has had to face. In the face of the legal and ethical issues that this mishap had placed the corporation in, Tyco placed Ed Breen in as chairman and CEO. Mr. Breen joined the company in 2002 after the scandal and immediately began the rebuild of the company’s name. With the appointment of Ed Breen and his changing of the company’s ethical standards (to be discussed in the next portion of the paper) he promotes the legal responsibilities of not only the company’s employees but the responsibilities of the suppliers and buyers to report any wrong doing. This reporting also speaks to the ethics of the Tyco corporation employees as well as those of the companies th...
Ethics is simply doing the right thing. In the business situation ethics are the moral concept of a firm getting through it organizational duties ethically.
Ethics is the study of right or wrong and the morality of the choices that individuals make. That basicly means the set of morals or responsibility that a person, group, or field have. Ethics can also be classified as code of morals. In business there are ethics that portray to business. These are called business ethics, business ethics just happen to be the application of ethics, morals, into the business field. Some examples of business ethics are obeying all rules and regulations even when nobody 's looking, which is pretty self explanatory, you shouldn’t be breaking rules. Even if it is as simple as washing your hands after you use the restroom or straight up lying to your customers, they are the ones making you money so if they find out