Preview

He Importance of Honesty in the Business World

Best Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2916 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
He Importance of Honesty in the Business World
The Importance of Honesty in the Business World
BUSI 472
Organizational Ethics Liberty University

Abstract
Honesty in the business world is something that is automatically expected from society in general. Unfortunately, this expectation has often not been met in one way or another, leading to the collapse of once well-established and reputable organizations and the rise of skepticism and distrust from stakeholders who have been affected as a result of that. Differing cultural values and declining ethical standards have contributed to the widespread scandals related to dishonest practices in the business world in the last few decades, forcing organizations and individuals to take a closer look at their codes of ethics. A combined effort and commitment to restore honesty in the business world from both organizations and employees is the only solution to this major problem.

The Importance of Honesty in the Business World The business world has recently been plagued with negative news and demoralizing events that have almost tarnished the definition of the word “business.” Illegal and dishonest activities resulting in well-publicized scandals by well-known organizations such as Arthur Anderson and Enron have greatly contributed to the public’s skepticism about business in general, making one wonder if such practices are inherently part of doing business (Grudem, 2003, p. 11). Honesty in the business world must not be an option that one can choose at his or her own discretion, but rather a requirement that demands closer scrutiny.
Honesty in the Interviewing and Hiring Process

Honesty in business practices is required in all aspects of business relationships. This is something that managers and supervisors must always keep in mind, even during the interviewing and hiring process, as biased and preconceived ideas may lead to decisions that may not pass the litmus



References: Baker, T. (2009). The new employee-employer relationship model. Organization Development Journal, 27(1), 27-38. Brenkert, G. G. (2010, October). The limits and prospects of business ethics. Business Ethics Quarterly, 20(4), 703-709. Cramton, P. C., & Dees, J. (1993). Promoting honesty in negotiation: An exercise in practical ethics. Business Ethics Quarterly, 3(4), 359-394. Dabos, G.E., & Rousseau, D. M. (2004). Mutuality and reciprocity in the psychological contracts of employees and employers. Journal Of Applied Psychology, 89(1), 52-72. Enofe, A., Amaria, P., & Hope, M. (2012). Keeping employees honest: A matter of corporate culture, changes in employee lifestyle, or greed. International Journal Of Business, Accounting, & Finance, 6(1), 92-123. Evans, R. (2009). Hiring on high ethics is an essential part of the hiring process for property managers. Journal Of Property Management, 74(1), 10. Frankel, T. (2008). Trust, honesty and ethics in business. Finance & The Common Good/Bien Commun, 31(32), 87-93. Grudem, W. A. (2003). Business for the glory of God: The Bible’s teaching on the moral goodness of business. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. Harcourt, M. M., Lam, H. H., Harcourt, S. S., & Flynn, M. M. (2008). Discrimination in hiring against immigrants and ethnic minorities: The effect of unionization. International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 19(1), 98-115. Jehn, K., & Scott, E. (2008). Perceptions of deception: Making sense of responses to employee deceit. Journal Of Business Ethics, 80(2), 327-347. Morris, J. (2008). Come on, be honest. Management Today, 44-47. Schmitt, J. (1999). Honesty can be the only policy. Contractor Magazine, 46(11), 24.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    The Sarbanes-Oxley Act

    • 1677 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Enron’s failure spotlighted corporate America’s moral failures and tremendously injured those that condoned and benefited from the unethical practices. This failure resulted in a major overhaul of accountability guidelines of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Code of Ethics was promulgated along with other support mechanisms that monitor a company’s ethics program that extends to the core values of company management and personnel. Of the five components of ethical behavior, honesty is perhaps the most complex and difficult to implement since the ultimate decision to disclose information to the public relies mostly on the individual’s ethical values or interpretations that can be manipulated to produce a desired…

    • 1677 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Fieser, J. & Moseley, A. (2012). Introduction to business ethics. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Retrieved…

    • 357 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Bus 530 IFL

    • 1517 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Ethics plays a huge role in business as it keeps businesses and employees honest, promotes accuracy, and protects those who could otherwise be hurt by someone else’s scheming. In order to protect ethics, sometimes transparency is needed to help those tempted to commit fraudulent acts. The Bible states, “Better is the poor that walketh in his integrity, than he that is perverse in his lips, and is a fool” (Proverbs 19:1). The…

    • 1517 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    In Bruce Frohnen and Leo Clarke’s essay, “Scandal in Corporate America: An Ethical, Not a Legal, Problem” they discuss their views of American businesses and the little honesty that these businesses have. They claim how important honesty is within businesses and how it will help our public’s well-being and corporate America. They view American business officials to be greedy and many of their jobs just consist of helping businesses find their way around the laws. Frohnen and Clarke then conclude their essay with suggestions on how to change business ethics with education and simply being honest (113-119).…

    • 952 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    the role of external stakeholders in member identification. Business Ethics: A European Review, 15(2), pp. 171-182.…

    • 1293 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    - Encouraging all employees to not ignore the XYZ Company Honesty Code in order to achieve the firm’s financial goals and objectives.…

    • 587 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Trevino, L.K. & Nelson, K.A. (2007). Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it…

    • 2045 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ethics Program Design

    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages

    McNamara, C., Phd (2003). Complete Guide to Ethics Management: An Ethics Toolkit for Managers. Retrieved from http://managementhelp.org/ethics/ethxgde…

    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Personal Ethics Paper

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Trevino, L. K., & Nelson, K. A. (2007). Managing Business Ethics. Straight Talk About How to…

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    Ethics in Accounting

    • 1406 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Corporate ethical breaches in recent times have raised questions about whether the current business and regulatory environment is conducive to ethical behavior. Cases leading to regulatory changes through scandalous financial reporting include Enron, Worldcom, Tyco, HealthSouth and others (Enofe, 2010, p.54). Since the barrage of scandals in the early 2000’s, regulatory bodies like the Federal Accounting Standards Board (FASB), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and law reform like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002 have worked to improve the standards and principles used in accounting and financial reporting. The FASB is “the designated organization in the private sector for establishing standards of financial accounting that govern the preparation of financial reports by nongovernmental organizations,” (www.FASB.com, 2013) and is considered the authoritative body by the SEC. The SEC oversees and inspects securities firms, private accounting firms, etc. in an effort to ensure the integrity of financial reporting for investors (www.sec.gov, 2013). The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was written to “reduce unethical corporate behavior and decrease the likelihood of future corporate scandals,” (Weygant et al, 2012, p. 7).…

    • 1406 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Cavico, F. J., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2009). Business Ethics: The Moral Foundation of Effective…

    • 9503 Words
    • 39 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Business Research Ethics

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages

    When it comes to ethical or moral codes, companies need to certify that the company as a whole follows the highest standards of moral codes at all times and for all occasions. In addition, having higher moral standards are important and necessary in business, as well as times of investigation. For this essay, I will be reviewing a case where dishonest business examination procedures were performed by a company.…

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Organizational Ethics

    • 8003 Words
    • 33 Pages

    From debates over drug-testing to analyses of scandals on Wall Street, attention to ethics in business organizations has never been greater. Yet, much of the attention given to ethics in the workplace overlooks some critical aspects of organizational ethics.…

    • 8003 Words
    • 33 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Business ethics is an area of ethics that examines ethical rules and principles within a commercial perspective using cases such as: Accounting Irregularities at WorldCom and Arthur Andersen…No More: What Went Wrong? (Business Ethics 4th Ed: Cases 5 & 6 pg.101-109), both clearly present various moral and ethical problems that arise that are real life business scenarios as well as question the impact of certain ‘special’ duties/obligations that apply to particular individuals and employees who choose to engage in these activities in the organization leading to their downfall. The WorldCom case and scandal occurred because accountants as well as former CEO Bernie Ebbers and Scott Sullivan failed to live the virtues of accountancy as well as failed to adhere to the moral principles and ideals of their profession and further analysis reveals the ways in which these irregular accounting practices were carried out along with the consequences and charges laid by investigators such as conspiracy, fraud and many false claims regarding their accounts and profitability. The Arthur Andersen…No More: What Went Wrong? case is another scenario where a series of unethical accounting practices resulted in the firm’s decline and the role they played in the accounting fraud at Enron. The way in which these corrupt practices took place is an obvious indication of the culture of the organization and the moral standings of employees, close relationships which affected both the company and clients such as Enron.…

    • 4546 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Ethics of Leadership

    • 1648 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Stark, A. (1993). What 's the Matter with Business Ethics?. Harvard Business Review, 71(3), 38-48.…

    • 1648 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays

Related Topics