Introduction:
As recently as a decade ago, many peoples,companies or organizations viewed ethics,social responsibility,business ethics only in terms of administrative compliance with legal standards and adherence to internal rules and regulations. Today the situation is different. Attention to them is on the rise across the world and many companies or organizations realize that in order to succeed, they must earn the respect and confidence of their customers. Like never before, corporatons are being asked, encouraged and prodded to improve their business practices to emphasize legal and ethical behavior. Companies, professional firms and individuals alike are being held increasingly accountable for their actions, as demand grows for higher standards of corporate social responsibility. This essay will define about ethics,social responsibiliy and show how it is going on and how it is importance to manager and global business.
So `Ethics' or `morality'; some people distinguish between ethics and morality: ethics is a standard of conduct for a particular group; morality is a more general standard) is one of those words in our language that we use every day but we find notoriously hard to define. Webster's Dictionary defines ethics as "1. the study of standards of conduct and moral judgment; 2. the system of morals of a particular person, religion, group, etc..." This definition distinguishes between the study of ethics (otherwise known as moral philosophy) and the subject of that study, i.e. standards of conduct.(www.ethicsinaction.com,retrieved:25/06/06)
In our daily lives, certain words carry the same meaning across all social, economic, racial and spiritual boundaries. We know a dog or cat wh...
... middle of paper ...
...bility. University of Chicago Press: Chicago.
Louis Pojman, 1995. Ethics: Discovering Right and Wrong (2nd edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Beauchamp, T.L., Bowie, N.E. (1993), Ethical Theory and Business, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ., .
internet source:
http://www.bitc.org.uk
http://www.business-ethics.com/
http://www.ethicsinaction.com/
http://www.e-businessethics.com/
JOURNAL:
DeConinck, J.B. (1992), "How sales managers control unethical sales force behavior", Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 11 No.10, pp.789-98.
Jansen, E., Von Glinow, M.A. (1985), "Ethical ambience and organizational reward system", Academy of Management Review, Vol. 10 No.4, pp.814-22..
(Singhapakdi, A.), "1996", in The perceived role of ethics and social responsibility: a scale development' (Eds),Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 15 No.11, pp.1131-40.
The word “Ethics” has its root in the Greek word ‘ethos’, which means character, spirit and attitude of a group of people or culture. Ethics is defined in the Concise Oxford Dictionary as: a system of moral principles, by which human actions may be judged good or bad or right or wrong, and the rules of conduct recognized in respect of a particular class of human actions.
“Ethics”, in general, is nothing but a principle of conduct. Ethics can also be defined as moral philosophy which is used to answer questions related to morality. The word ‘Ethics’ has been derived from the Greek word ‘Ethos’ which simply meant “the state of being” or “to keep ones soul pure”. The sub divisions of ethics are as follows;
Ferrell, O.C., Fraedrich, J., & Ferrell, L. (2009). Business ethics: Ethical decision making and cases (7th ed.). South-Western College Pub;
Business performance of organizations are primarily steered through good ethics and corporate social responsibility, and such business practices have become an integral part in order to conduct successful business operations in today’s highly competitive and dynamic environment (Joyner & Payne, 2012). Ethical business practices are widely implemented in small or large enterprise as the growing need of social responsibility and environmentally proactive practices are recognized by these businesses. Hence businesses should be conducted in a way that it not only benefits the owners, employees or customers but the society and community at large (Smith, 2008).
In today’s global society, a Code of Ethics policy is used to label established, acceptable behaviors among that industry’s business associates, potential investors, and the corporation’s executive officers and employees, and most important, the consumer (Ethics Resource Center, 2003). In an attempt to promote an increased efficiency and productivity potential level, among employees and prospective clients, a corporation’s standard Code of Ethics should guide its members toward a more in-depth examination of their personal moral activity, and how these actions affect the people or acquaintances they encounter. A company should utilize this strategy as a model for the professional behaviors and responsibilities of its constituents, and proves the occupational advancement of that business. Ethics are important in every level of a corporation, but specifically in the day-to-day actions of its members, and the image the company broadcasts to its associates is fundamental in building a stable business foundation. These pledges are a vital communication tool used to covey the firm’s standards for business operations, and predominantly, its relationships with the surrounding communities (Ethics Resource Center, 2003).
Sims, R. R. (1992). The challenge of ethical behavior in organizations. Journal of Business Ethics, 11(7), 505.
Although ethics and morals are distinct knowledge from each other, people use the terms as if they are interchangeably because these words have shared a similar belief about what right and wrong. However, ethics define as a set of rules which come from an external sources like social system that tell people what right and wrong while morality refer to an individual’s internal principals that decide what good and bad. Conflicting in between ethics and morality hurt people in their career and every day decision making in every workplace.
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).
It has been shown that there are many different areas in which a company may choose to focus its corporate social responsibility. The top area of focus in corporate social responsibility is on environment. Other areas that should be considered in the development of corporate social responsibility programs are education, health, nutrition and employment. “Social responsibility investment combines investors’ financial goals with their obligation and dedication to factors that ensure the well being of society such as environmental friendly practices, economic growth and justice in society” (Anderson 9). These elements not only epic corporate social responsibility, but also represent ethical standards of a company. It is unethical for some individuals to own so much and earn so much, at the expense of other suffering members of society. It is also unethical for companies to damage environmentally that result in illnesses and loss of life. It can be concluded that Social corporate responsibility and the maintenance of high ethical standards is not an option but an obligation for all
"Ethics vs. Morals" is the main topic of this assignment. The goal is to understand the difference between ethics and morals and their perspectives. Many people believe that both terms are the same and not important to apply in daily life and business. Although I learned the meaning of ethics and morals as a child, I was still confused when I started this course. Through this course, I aim to gain more knowledge and the ability to explain each topic.
4. Unknown. Ethics. Santa Clara University Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. 29th March 2004. http://cseserv.engr.scu.edu/NQuinn/COEN288/EngrHandbook_Ethics.pdf
“Ethical leaders within an organization cannot make every ethical decision by themselves” (Ferrell, 2015). In centralized management, the top people make all of the decisions. There are still however many opportunities for lower level employees to make unethical decisions. Management can promote ethical behavior at every level by being a good example and following its own code of conduct. The ethical environment should also be closely monitored. When someone makes a really great ethical decision, that person should be recognized. By rewarding good behavior, others will naturally want to receive these rewards as
A company has an economic obligation. It must earn a favorable return for its stockholders in the restrictions of the law. But, corporate social responsibility means that organizations have also ethical and societal responsibilities that go past their economic responsibilities. CSR needs organizations to develop their documentations of their responsibilities to include other stakeholders such as workers, customers, suppliers, local societies, state governments, international organizations, etc. Ethics could be seen as a fundamental component of individual and group activities at the heart of organizations’ errands.
The module has analysed business-society relations through the theories and practices of business ethics and social responsibility and how business ethics has evolved from theoretical frameworks as to how business should be managed.
Ethics is a system of moral principles and a branch of philosophy which defines what is acceptable for both individuals and society. It is a philosophy that covers a whole range of things that have an importance in everyday situations. Ethics are vital in everyones lives, it includes human values, and how to have a good life, our rights and responsibilities, moral decisions what is right and wrong, good and bad. Moral principles affect how people make decisions and lead their lives (BBC, 2013). There are many different beliefs about were ethics come from. These consist of; God and Religion, human conscience, the example of good human beings and a huge desire for the best for people in each unique situation, and political power (BBC, 2013).