Ethics Reflection Paper
Ethics Reflection Paper
STR/581
July 26, 2010
University of Phoenix
Ethics Reflection Paper
Before WorldCom and Enron, many organizations unconditionally placed social and ethical responsibility with administrative legal and compliance obligations, regulations and rules. Today, a company’s ethical behavior is vital to the success of the company. Consumers not only expect but demand that a company is visible in their practices and are held accountable for their actions; be it through internal regulations and rules through the involvement of the government. In this paper, there will be discussions of the social responsibility and role of ethics as it relates to the development of a strategic plan and how the ethical perspective of the author’s perspective has evolved through the studies of the Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) program. In business strategic plans, the management team of the company should integrate ethics and by also asking three basic questions, “What values do we have”, “What is our purpose” and “What do we stand for” according to Robert Finocchio, Dean’s Executive Professor of Santa Clara University. Ethical behavior cannot simply be written /noted in a mission and/or vision statement and should not just be something that a company should declare on the front steps of their offices. Customers and shareholders demand much more from organizations as ethical behavior is very vital. Ethical behavior should be considered the cornerstone of organization cultures and is crucial that all levels of management appropriately communicate the business policies and procedures and the ethical stance the organization takes to the employees. According to the Ethics Awareness Inventory, ethics is identified as moral principles and rules that promote the behavior of individuals that live in society (Fisher, 2008). Business ethics is referred to as the principles that organize the behavior of employers and employees
STR/581
July 26, 2010
University of Phoenix
Ethics Reflection Paper
Before WorldCom and Enron, many organizations unconditionally placed social and ethical responsibility with administrative legal and compliance obligations, regulations and rules. Today, a company’s ethical behavior is vital to the success of the company. Consumers not only expect but demand that a company is visible in their practices and are held accountable for their actions; be it through internal regulations and rules through the involvement of the government. In this paper, there will be discussions of the social responsibility and role of ethics as it relates to the development of a strategic plan and how the ethical perspective of the author’s perspective has evolved through the studies of the Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) program. In business strategic plans, the management team of the company should integrate ethics and by also asking three basic questions, “What values do we have”, “What is our purpose” and “What do we stand for” according to Robert Finocchio, Dean’s Executive Professor of Santa Clara University. Ethical behavior cannot simply be written /noted in a mission and/or vision statement and should not just be something that a company should declare on the front steps of their offices. Customers and shareholders demand much more from organizations as ethical behavior is very vital. Ethical behavior should be considered the cornerstone of organization cultures and is crucial that all levels of management appropriately communicate the business policies and procedures and the ethical stance the organization takes to the employees. According to the Ethics Awareness Inventory, ethics is identified as moral principles and rules that promote the behavior of individuals that live in society (Fisher, 2008). Business ethics is referred to as the principles that organize the behavior of employers and employees
References: Fisher, C.B (2008). Decoding the Ethics Code: A Practical Guide for Psychologists (2nd Edition) Sage Publication. Hartman, L.P. (2004). Perspectives in Business Ethics. Burr Ridge. IL: McGraw-Hill Publications. http://www.shvoong.com/business-management/accounting/1738801-enron-smartest-guys-room/" target="_blank">Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. Retrieved on July 25, 2010.