Business Ethics and
Corporate Social Responsibility
Cedric Dawkins, Ph.D
Introduction: Apples or Barrels?
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PA R T I - P U R P O S E
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Part I I - ST RUCT URE
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My first two employers – raises a question...
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Who's here
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Apples and barrels (how do we frame your
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eClass and syllabus
moral and ethical thinking)?
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In-person and Zoom
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Why Business Ethics?
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Debate topics and teams
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Why me? Professional credentials
PA R T I I I - O P E N I N G E X E R C I S E
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Was Dennis' decision ethical?
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What do you think of his 'new' policy
regarding socializing at work?
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Why was his father comfortable while he was
uncomfortable?
AGENDA – CLASS SESSION 1
Why Me?
Associate Professor of Management at York University in Toronto Canada.
Previously, he was Associate Professor and Chair Management at Loyola University
Chicago and held the William A. Black Chair in Commerce at Dalhousie University in
Halifax, Nova Scotia. His research focuses critically on business ethics and
workers’ rights, and appears primarily in the business ethics journals, such as
Business & Society, the Journal of Business Ethics, and Business Ethics Quarterly,
Current projects examine the role of multi stakeholder initiatives—particularly those
comprised of NGOs, civil society organizations, and labor unions—in developing
labor governance structures for global supply chains.
Education
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PH.D. Ohio State University: Labor and Human Resources
Experience
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Associate Editor, Business Ethics Quarterly
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Varied Teaching Ex perience in Hig her Ed
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Sales Manag ement: The Prudential, New Eng land Financial Group
Fun
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Ex cellent Ping Pong Player
Criticisms of Business Ethics
Moral character is static
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L yn d o n B. Jo h n s o n
Br o w n v Bo ar d o f E d u c at io n
It's inde t er m i na n t
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Disagreements about theory
but conclusions converge
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It's Impract ica l
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R e ad in g s an d
d is c u s s io n r e in f o r c e s
v alu e s an d b r in g s
c lar it y
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Pr in c ip le s f o r n e w
s it u at io n s
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Wax o n w ax o f f –
n o r m at iv e ap p r o ac h
Avoid harm and promote
wellbeing
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Justify coercion
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Discrimination and
deception are generally
wrong
Myth #1 It's Easy to be Ethical
Ethical decisions are complex
Organizational context brings
additional pressures
Making ethical choices often requires
extra steps and consideration.
Not all situations have a clear right or
wrong action.
Simple tests (smell, tell mom, newspaper)
Influences relation between moral
judgment and action
Conflicting values (child labor, payday
loans)
Ethics evolve over time
Awareness, preparation,
judgment (motivation, integrity)
e.g., "the irrefutable logic of results”
W hi l e b e i ng e thi cal i s an ad mi rab l e g oal , i t can b e chal l e ng i ng
to determi ne what i s ri ght and make the right choices.
Myth #2 Unethical Behavior in
Business Results from 'Bad Apples'
Wells Fargo and Rogue Bank Tellers
Joseph Jett v Kidder Peabody (General Electric )
1. 1991 - $500,000
2. 1992 - $2.3 mil
3. 1993 - $9.2 mil
Morality i s compl ex wi th many sources, leading to disagreement,
b ut a common moral i ty may e x i st.
Ethical principles and codes of conduct are what allow for a system of exchange to flourish
over long periods of time.
Socrates -- ‘honor among thieves’
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¤ Pirates – ‘the Code’
¤ Mafia – ‘the Mattresses’
¤ The Wire – ‘never on no Sunday ’
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The Talmud has over 613 commands – 100+ concern business
and economics
U.S. Founding Fathers
Alan Greenspan – not more greed, more opportunity to express
greed
Erika Cheung and Theranos
American Airlines and Gerard Arpey
Myth #5 Ethics can be
Managed through Laws and
Codes
Next Week
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IN PERSON, RIGHT HERE...
CHAPTER 1
TRAGEDY OF THE
COMMONS
Th e F I r s t G e n e r a t i o n Pr o bl e m
Pe r s o n s a r e m o r e a g i l e a n d m a l e a bl e
t h a n l a ws
M I LTO N F R I E D M A N - T h e
p u r p o se o f b u si n ess