Essay Question
Week 2: Option 1

Zach Horn

Ethical Issues in the Energy Industry, ENRG 302

Instructor: Shawn Neidhardt
Date: 3/15/2013

Question: Research the company you work for and find their Code of Ethics. Read it, put it in your research paper and critic it!

My company has a code of ethics that it refers to as its “Values & Beliefs” and it is given to each employee at orientation when they begin working for our company. Our code of ethics is also is covered at various safety and awareness training meetings throughout the year. Additionally, it is made available for our employees to read and review at any time on our membernet site that employee’s access daily. It is also made available to the public for our customers and visitors to view on our company website where it is listed with our mission and vision statement. The code of ethics at my company reads as follows:
Individual Safety and Well-Being - We advocate attitudes and actions that promote individual safety, health and success.

Transparency - We operate our business openly and communicate in a clear, candid and timely manner.

Teamwork - We work together to achieve shared goals and objectives.

Respect - We treat others justly and consider their views in the decisions we make.

Integrity - We conduct ourselves in an honest, fair and trustworthy manner.

Public Service - We give our time and energy to better the communities where we live and work.
BELIEFS
Live Safely - I protect myself and others from injury by constant engagement, always living safely.

Achieve Together - I reach out to others across the company so we can achieve more.

Shared Trust - I commit to acting in a manner that cultivates trust.

Take Charge - I am accountable to deliver our key results, mentor others and manage my career.

Unleash Potential - I get superior results by applying innovative thoughts and constant self-improvement.

Values Matter - I model OGE’s values in everything I do.

I think that my company has a good set of values and beliefs, for the most part companies will have a similar code of ethics for employees to follow. Codes that include, building trust, having open and honest communication, being respectful, upholding the law, and being accountable for yourself and those you may be in charge of. One difference that you will find when working for a utility company, or one that has you working in somewhat dangerous environments, is putting a strong emphasis on safety and well-being. When looking at my company’s values and beliefs I feel as though they have set up a good code of ethics for our employees to follow. Being that a large majority of our employees do work in the field, it is no surprise to me that our first value is to promote individual safety and well-being. It is important for us as individuals and as a team to ensure that we are being safe on the job, and also taking the time to recognize unsafe working conditions and ensure that we can perform our work in the most responsible way for ourselves and our community. It is important for us to be transparent to our employees and also customers to promote trust. Teamwork is a very important value because of the nature of our work, we need to work together to