Business ethics (also corporate ethics) is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It applies to all aspects of business conduct and is relevant to the conduct of individuals and entire organizations.
Business ethics has both normative and descriptive dimensions. As a corporate practice and a career specialization, the field is primarily normative. Ethics implicitly regulates areas and details of behavior that lie beyond governmental control. The emergence of large corporations with limited relationships and sensitivity to the communities in which they operate accelerated the development of formal ethics regimes.
History
Business ethical norms reflect the norms of each historical period. As time passes norms evolve, causing accepted behaviors to become objectionable. Business ethics and the resulting behavior evolved as well. Business was involved in slavery, colonialism, and the cold war. The term 'business ethics' came into common use in the United States in the early 1970s. By the mid-1980s at least 500 courses in business ethics reached 40,000 students, using some twenty textbooks and at least ten casebooks along supported by professional societies, centers and journals of business ethics. The Society for Business Ethics was started in 1980. European business schools adopted business ethics after 1987 commencing with the European Business Ethics Network In 1982 the first single-authored books in the field appeared.
Functional business areas of ethics
Finance
Fundamentally, finance is a social science discipline. The discipline borders behavioral economics, sociology, economics, accounting and management. It concerns technical issues such as the mix of debt and equity, dividend policy, the evaluation of alternative investment projects, options, futures, swaps, and other derivatives, portfolio diversification and many others.
Finance paradigm
Aristotle said, "the end and purpose of the polis is the good life". Adam Smith characterized the good life in terms of material goods and intellectual and moral excellences of character. Smith in his The Wealth of Nations commented, "All for ourselves, and nothing for other people, seems, in every age of the world, to have been the vile maxim of the masters of mankind
Other issues
Fairness in trading practices, trading conditions, financial contracting, sales practices, consultancy services, tax payments, internal audit, external audit and executive compensation also fall under the umbrella of finance and accounting. Particular corporate ethical/legal abuses include: creative accounting, earnings management, misleading financial analysis insider trading, securities fraud, bribery/kickbacks and facilitation payments.
Human resource management
Human resource management occupies the sphere of activity of recruitment selection, orientation, performance appraisal, training and development, industrial relations and health and safety issues. Business Ethicists differ in their orientation towards labour ethics. Some assess human resource policies according to whether they support an egalitarian workplace and the dignity of labor.
Management strategy
Among the many people management strategies that companies employ are a "soft" approach that regards employees as a source of creative energy and participants in workplace decision making, a "hard" version explicitly focused on control and Theory Z that
INTRODUCTION Business ethics is a study of moral standards and how these apply to the systems and organizations through which modern societies produce and distribute goods and services, and to the people who work within these organizations. Business ethics, in other words, is a form of applied ethics. It includes not only the analysis of moral norms and moral values, but also attempts to apply the conclusions of this analysis to that assortment of institutions, technologies, transactions, activities…
Ghazaleh Tavakolishanjani Business Ethics Professor Peter Sebhatu National University 1. No. The ability to act with rectitude, to refer their policies and plans to a culture of ethics that embraces the most fundamental moral principles of humankind, which serves to legitimize the maximization of shareholder wealth. 2. Yes. These resources may be both tangible and intangible. Shareholders, for ex- ample, supply capital; suppliers offer material resources or intangible knowledge; employees…
Business Ethics Karl Claudio Composition GE-117 Business ethics is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It applies to all aspects of business conduct and is relevant to the conduct of individuals and entire organizations. The economy these days is at a low point for many consumers in United States. Due to the economy, prices are getting higher, many people’s income is decreasing…
purpose of business practices that are put in place is to provide the company with approval and favorable expert position among merchants, consumers, and prospective collaborations. These characteristics and having well-known business ethics allow room for the business to grow in many areas such as building working relationships. The positive outcome of these relationships can consist of merchandise prices being lower, consumers being loyal with returning their business, and the business growing from…
HEADER: BUSINESS ETHICS Business Ethics Kimberly Lindsey PHI 208: Ethics and Moral Reasoning Instructor John Ludes June 16, 2014 BUSINESS ETHICS 2 Introduction In this paper we will be discussing how businesses and management should and do show superior business ethics in doing what is right for the company as well as the employees. The reason for there to be business ethics, is to choose and know what is right and what is wrong in the business and with…
one of the biggest energy companies in America, was reviewed by Paul Healy, the James R. Williston Professor of Business Administration at Harvard, and Krisha G. Palepu, the Ross Graham Walker Professor of Business Administration at Harvard, who state that “despite the elaborate corporate governance network, Enron was able to attract large sums of capital to fund questionable business model, conceal its true performance through a series of accounting and financing maneuvers, and hype its stock to…
Business Ethics Assignment 1 Introduction This essay is to generally discuss how ethical theories provide guides in valuing human being’s behaviours to be ethically good or bad. We also have a look in different ethical theories to see why they are incompatible. The ethical theories include Utilitarianism, Kantian moral theory, virtue ethics and rights theory. Drawing on two of the theories, we will outline their positions and critically discuss the claim in a business situation…
Introduction Ethics and integrity are vital characteristics of modern businesspeople. This is a result of a combination of rising public scrutiny around businesses and the ethics of their actions. In addition to this, business leaders need to show high levels of ethical behaviour and integrity if they are to obtain the respect and commitment of their workforces and thus discharge their duties to shareholders. In this essay I will explore these issues and the importance of future business leaders developing…
Business Research Ethics: Job Satisfaction Research RES/351 Kim Gravelle Business Research Ethics: Job Satisfaction Research The Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Industry is among one of the most dynamic industries in the world. The products they produce touch almost every one of our lives. These products require a tremendous skill base to maintain operations to a level that satisfies all of the quality, volumes, and responsiveness that society needs, and at the times required. As a result, many of…
Business Ethics MGMT-1125 6/5/2013 Rhonda Ledbetter | Business Ethics Business ethics are forms of applied ethics or professional ethics that examine ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It can also be defined as the moral values and principles set forth for a company or market. Proper business ethics are vital for a business to be successful, providing quality care and honesty to consumers. Business ethics are important because how a business…