Current Ethical Issue in Business
Introduction
Ethics and moral obligation are something that we all encounter at one time or another. Even in a professional setting, all persons should act in a manner that would uphold the good of society. Why is it that good, ethical and moral behavior is not always adhered to? Is it because some people do not understand ethics and what it means to be ethical? To be ethical, one has to decide between right and wrong, determine what is for the betterment of society and act accordingly. Ethics have three basic criteria that must be met – obligations, moral ideas, and consequences (Ruggiero, 2004). Businesses have their own code of ethics and the individuals within that business have to determine
Another ethical theory that applies is the consequentialist theory in which the consequences are the primary concern. What will happen to Mr. Hathaway if he continues to accept the gifts from the dealership? What actions will the university take to ensure that its policies are maintained? How will the manner be handled by the state ethics committee?
Ethical change, deficiency, or conflict that brought it about
The interests of Hathaway as an Athletic Director are different from the state ethics that governs the university resulting in conflict. On one hand, Hathaway wants to drive the free vehicles without comply with Monaco offer to participate in an advertising campaign on television and print ad for Monaco. This present a conflict as Hathaway under state law is unable to accept any outright gifts nonetheless he is responsible for overseeing the corporate sponsorship agreement between Monaco Ford and his department. However, in order to maintain economic status in the university, and to maintain his current position as Athletic director he has not performed the role for Monaco in any formal way outside of talking to Monaco periodically about ideas and market theories.
Codes of conduct for ethical behavior are the written policies of second-generation businesses. These codes pertain to the employee's interaction as a representative of the company