Ethical Dilemmas and Standards

Ethical Dilemmas
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How do ethical dilemmas complicate the workplace?
An ethical dilemma occurs when choices offer potential for personal and/or organizational benefit but may be considered unethical.
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Ethical dilemmas include:
Discrimination
Sexual harassment
Conflicts of interest
Customer confidence
Organizational resources

RATIONALIZATIONS FOR
UNETHICAL CONDUCT
• “It’s not really illegal...”
• “It’s in everyone’s best interests...”
• “Nobody will ever find out…”
• “The organization will protect me...”
Source: Saul W. Gellerman, Harvard Business Review, 1986
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“DOUBLE-CHECK”
FOR ETHICAL DECISIONS
• Question 1 “How will I feel about this if my family finds out?”
• Question 2 “How will I feel about this if it is printed in the local newspaper?”
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Sometimes, perhaps too often
Who hold a lot of power
BOSSES
Bosses may ask:
• “support an inccorrect view”
• “sign a false document”
• “overlook a wrong doing”
• “do business with my friends”
Who depend on them for raises, promotions, etc.
Chapter 3
LOWER LEVELS
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Ethical Dilemmas
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Factors influencing ethical behavior include:
The person
– Family influences, religious values, personal standards, and personal needs
• The organization
– Supervisory behavior, policy statements and written rules, and peer group norms and behavior
• The environment
– Government laws and regulations, societal norms and values, and competition climate in an industry

Figure 3.3 Factors influencing ethical managerial behavior —the person, organization, and environment.
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How can high ethical standards be maintained?
Checklist for dealing with ethical dilemmas
Step 1. Recognize the ethical dilemma
Step 2: Get the facts
Step 3. Identify your options
Step 4. Test each option: Is it legal? Is it right? Is it beneficial?
Step 5. Decide which option to follow
Step 6. Double-check decision by asking the
“spotlight” questions: “How would I feel if my family found out about my decision?” “How would I feel about this if my decision were printed in the local newspaper?”
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Step 7. Take action.

How can high ethical standards be maintained?
Whistleblowers
Expose misdeeds of others to:
• Preserve ethical standards
• Protect against wasteful, harmful, or illegal acts

How can high ethical standards be maintained?
• Laws protecting whistleblowers vary.
• Reasons for not reporting:
– Believe no corrective action will be taken
– Fear that reports will not be kept confidential
• Barriers to whistleblowing include:
• Strict chain of command
• Strong work group identities
• Ambiguous priorities
• Organizational methods for overcoming whistleblowing barriers:
• Ethics advisors
• Moral Quality Circles

How can high ethical standards be maintained?
• Top managers serve as ethical role models.
• All managers can influence the ethical behavior of people who work for and with them.

How can high ethical standards be maintained?
• Excessive pressure can foster unethical behavior.
• Managers should be realistic in setting performance goals for others.

How can high ethical standards be maintained?
Codes of ethics:
• Official written guidelines on how to behave in situations susceptible to the creation of ethical dilemmas.
Areas often covered by codes of ethics:
• Workforce diversity
• Bribes and kickbacks
• Political contributions
• Honesty of books or records
• Customer/supplier relationships
• Confidentiality of corporate information

Code of Ethics Exercise
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In pairs, develop what you consider to be an appropriate Code of Ethics for teachers at
DDSS. Develop 7-10 individual rules that would apply.
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Develop a formal classroom Code of Ethics that will apply to students at DDSS.
3.
Have one group member write out a final copy of both codes. You will present your answers to the class.

Ethical Dilemmas Exercise