Business Ethics
Content
Business Ethics
Assignment
By : Ravi Shankar Singh Roll no. :1020227 “M2”
Case1: Similarities in Business and IT Professional Ethics: The Need for and Development of A Comprehensive Code of Ethics
The study of business ethics has led to the development of various principles that are the foundation of good and ethical business practices. A corresponding study of Information Technology (IT) professionals' ethics has led to the conclusion that good ethics in the development and uses of information technology correspond to the basic business principle that good ethics is good business. Ergo, good business ethics practiced by IT professionals is good IT ethics and vice versa. IT professionals are professionals in businesses; a difficulty presented to these professionals, however, is the number and diversity of codes of ethics to which they may be held. Considering the existence of several formalized codes of ethics prepared by various IT professionals; associations, a more harmonized approach seems more reasonable. This paper attempts to present a review of the purpose of codes of ethics, the persons who should be covered by such codes and to organize codes of ethics for business in general and IT professionals in particular and to make the argument that, once again, good ethics is good business practice, regardless of the profession or occupation concerned.
Case 2 : International exchanges as the basis for conceptualizing ethics in International business
Extant business ethics literature available for application to international business demonstrates some variety but no comprehensive principles. While the domains of both international business and business ethics are expanding, they are also becoming increasingly divergent. At the same time, the primacy accorded to the multinational enterprise in both fields ignores the socio-cultural and political embeddedness of economic activities, and multiple agencies in international business (individuals, firms, nations, etc.). Some international business theorists have offered the view that international exchange should be the central building block for theories on international business. In this paper, it is argued that international exchange could be the fundamental unit of analysis for international business ethics as well. The potentially unifying feature of exchange norms and ethical principles leads the author to develop some core exchange ethics principles that are tested on three recent international business practices.
Case 3:TEACHING BUSINESS ETHICS: THE ATTITUDES OF BUSINESS DEANS AROUND THE WORLD
While there are calls for more and better training in business ethics and a serious emphasis on ethics in the accreditation standards, there seems to be little information available on what actually existing practices are and what outcomes result, to assist schools in designing more effective ethics training. Approximately 120business deans from around the world were surveyed in April 2007 concerning the teaching of business ethics. Survey statements and questions, including both the Likert scale and the open-ended format, were designed largely to ascertain attitudes and opinions on business ethics. There was general agreement, but not substantially, that the emphasis in teaching business is related more toward moral values and philosophies rather than more pragmatic schemes. There was strong agreement that business ethics is influenced by the prevailing cultural climate of a country and very strong agreement that both corporate and/or governmental scandal and accrediting bodies have influenced the current focus on teaching business ethics.
Case 4 : Exposure to Ethics Education and the Perception of Linkage between Organizational Ethical Behavior and Business Outcomes
This study focused on the effects of individual characteristics and exposure to ethics education on perceptions of the linkage between organizational ethical practices and business outcomes. Using a stratified sampling approach, 817 students were randomly selected from a population of approximately 1310 business students in an AACSB accredited college of business. Three hundred and twenty eight of the subjects were freshmen, 380 were seniors, and 109 were working managers and professionals enrolled in a night-time MBA program. Overall, the respondents included 438 male students and 379 female students. Exposure to ethics in the curriculum had a significant impact on student perceptions of what should be the ideal linkages between organizational ethical practices and business outcomes. Gender based differences were found with female students having a higher expectation regarding what should be the "ethics practices and business outcomes" link. Exposure to ethics in the curriculum had a positive moderating influence on the gender-based effects on perceptions of ideal ethical climate.
Case 5: On the Ethics Behind "Business Ethics"
Ethics in business and economics is often attacked for being too superficial. By elaborating the conclusions of two such critics of business ethics and welfare economics respectively, this article will draw the attention to the "ethics behind" these apparently well-intended, but not always convincing constructions, by help of the "fundamental ethics" of Emmanuel Levinas. To Levinas, responsibility is more basic than language, and thus also more basic than all social constructions. Co-operation relations in organizations, markets and value networks are generated from personal relations and personal responsibilities. It is not sufficient to integrate ethics in an impersonal, rational system, neither in business organizations nor in the world economy. Ethics has its source not in rationality, but in the personal.
Assignment
By : Ravi Shankar Singh Roll no. :1020227 “M2”
Case1: Similarities in Business and IT Professional Ethics: The Need for and Development of A Comprehensive Code of Ethics
The study of business ethics has led to the development of various principles that are the foundation of good and ethical business practices. A corresponding study of Information Technology (IT) professionals' ethics has led to the conclusion that good ethics in the development and uses of information technology correspond to the basic business principle that good ethics is good business. Ergo, good business ethics practiced by IT professionals is good IT ethics and vice versa. IT professionals are professionals in businesses; a difficulty presented to these professionals, however, is the number and diversity of codes of ethics to which they may be held. Considering the existence of several formalized codes of ethics prepared by various IT professionals; associations, a more harmonized approach seems more reasonable. This paper attempts to present a review of the purpose of codes of ethics, the persons who should be covered by such codes and to organize codes of ethics for business in general and IT professionals in particular and to make the argument that, once again, good ethics is good business practice, regardless of the profession or occupation concerned.
Case 2 : International exchanges as the basis for conceptualizing ethics in International business
Extant business ethics literature available for application to international business demonstrates some variety but no comprehensive principles. While the domains of both international business and business ethics are expanding, they are also becoming increasingly divergent. At the same time, the primacy accorded to the multinational enterprise in both fields ignores the socio-cultural and political embeddedness of economic activities, and multiple agencies in international business (individuals, firms, nations, etc.). Some international business theorists have offered the view that international exchange should be the central building block for theories on international business. In this paper, it is argued that international exchange could be the fundamental unit of analysis for international business ethics as well. The potentially unifying feature of exchange norms and ethical principles leads the author to develop some core exchange ethics principles that are tested on three recent international business practices.
Case 3:TEACHING BUSINESS ETHICS: THE ATTITUDES OF BUSINESS DEANS AROUND THE WORLD
While there are calls for more and better training in business ethics and a serious emphasis on ethics in the accreditation standards, there seems to be little information available on what actually existing practices are and what outcomes result, to assist schools in designing more effective ethics training. Approximately 120business deans from around the world were surveyed in April 2007 concerning the teaching of business ethics. Survey statements and questions, including both the Likert scale and the open-ended format, were designed largely to ascertain attitudes and opinions on business ethics. There was general agreement, but not substantially, that the emphasis in teaching business is related more toward moral values and philosophies rather than more pragmatic schemes. There was strong agreement that business ethics is influenced by the prevailing cultural climate of a country and very strong agreement that both corporate and/or governmental scandal and accrediting bodies have influenced the current focus on teaching business ethics.
Case 4 : Exposure to Ethics Education and the Perception of Linkage between Organizational Ethical Behavior and Business Outcomes
This study focused on the effects of individual characteristics and exposure to ethics education on perceptions of the linkage between organizational ethical practices and business outcomes. Using a stratified sampling approach, 817 students were randomly selected from a population of approximately 1310 business students in an AACSB accredited college of business. Three hundred and twenty eight of the subjects were freshmen, 380 were seniors, and 109 were working managers and professionals enrolled in a night-time MBA program. Overall, the respondents included 438 male students and 379 female students. Exposure to ethics in the curriculum had a significant impact on student perceptions of what should be the ideal linkages between organizational ethical practices and business outcomes. Gender based differences were found with female students having a higher expectation regarding what should be the "ethics practices and business outcomes" link. Exposure to ethics in the curriculum had a positive moderating influence on the gender-based effects on perceptions of ideal ethical climate.
Case 5: On the Ethics Behind "Business Ethics"
Ethics in business and economics is often attacked for being too superficial. By elaborating the conclusions of two such critics of business ethics and welfare economics respectively, this article will draw the attention to the "ethics behind" these apparently well-intended, but not always convincing constructions, by help of the "fundamental ethics" of Emmanuel Levinas. To Levinas, responsibility is more basic than language, and thus also more basic than all social constructions. Co-operation relations in organizations, markets and value networks are generated from personal relations and personal responsibilities. It is not sufficient to integrate ethics in an impersonal, rational system, neither in business organizations nor in the world economy. Ethics has its source not in rationality, but in the personal.
