Basic Ethics
Is it Ethical



Hire a recent College Graduate and then
tell them due to financial constraints that no
longer needed?
Monitor employees use on the internet?
To tell/not tell food purchasers about the
product other than basic ingredients in
product labeling (GMO, How animals were
raised, irradiated, etc).
Ethics is concerned with these issues.




Notice: All of these are legal.
Ethics goes beyond legal issues. Many of the
cases in the book are legal issues. Clearly
unethical. But ethics is much more than corporate
wrong doing.
Individual ethical decision making and corporate
wrong doing are related but very different issues.
Whistleblowing. What do you do when others are
doing immoral things with corporate misconduct?
Ethics



A set of moral principles or values.
Book suggests its has a relative or personal
component.
Ethics also has culturally appropriate
absolute or widely shared values.


My values may be different than your
values. I may value community more than
personal freedom.
Both are concerned about ethics but
sometimes very different kinds of ethical
issues will be important to them.
examples



Internet usage
Ethical to buy drugs from Canada?
Firms using child labor overseas where
legal in that country.




Ethics and decision making. We make
choices. We have the choice to do things.
As we will find out pressure and politics
abounds in many organizations.
Do you chose to make
As leaders You make choices. Can do so
considering financial issues alone, ethics
alone, or both in combination.
Example
Discussion about Process

What did you consider in making your
choice.
Decision Making Paradox



Speed at which you make decision—less
likely to consider ethical implications.
As a manager often pressured to make
decision quickly.
How many people have had a supervisor
promise or imply they would not do
something and then do it anyhow?
Managing time urgency is important

It takes time to consider ethical
implications.
Decision Making process

Most should have had course on Decision
Making. Tell me the steps to ideal decision
making in your own words. Depending on
book no less than five steps.
Takes time to follow the process


Ethical overlay.
Gather the facts.
Information and ethics
are related. Hard to
be ethical if going by
hearsay from
unreliable sources.
What kinds of facts would you like to
get regarding Irwin’s Case.
Define the ethical issues and
stakeholders
Combine steps 2 and 3

Are there legal issues
to consider?



Deontological concerns (doing the things
right)
Consequentialist concerns (making the
right choice)
Example with product recall problem.
Stakeholders




List of people directly or indirectly
influenced by choice. Direct are easier to
identify. Indirect is also important.
Identify concerns issues. Each may have
and develop sympathy/empathy for those
concerns.
Even ones for whom you have little
concern. Bucky Wolford and the mall.
Very important for any ethical issue.



Other examples already raised.
Hire a recent College Graduate and then
tell them due to financial constraints that no
longer needed?
To tell/not tell food purchasers about the
product other than basic ingredients in
product labeling (GMO, How animals were
raised, irradiated, etc).
To me this is most important step in
ethical decision making.



Firm bottom line is it. Anything that makes
money is OK.
Vs This choice influences many people.
It may harm some of those people.
Identify the consequences of different
alternatives






Which stakeholders would likely be harmed
by different alternatives.
Linked to alternatives.
Think “what would others say if what I did
got to be publicly known”?
Think long vs short term consequences
Symbolic consequences
Secrecy
Identify Obligations


What types of commitments have been
made/implied to different stakeholders.
Implied is very difficult—but Need to be
careful.
Consider your Character/Integrity




Tough choices. Purist vs practical
Is this an issue that is significant enough to
influence your reputation, credibility, etc.
If so then its very important that ethics be
considered.
If not, reputation is not important to you or
something not relevant to reputation.
The real Rub


Think creatively to find a win-win solution to
manage the needs of different
stakeholders. This is the hardest part.
If not, win win then think would you be
embarrassed if the choice became public
knowledge? Would others disapprove of it.
Choices



Some fast decision can be ethical
However, the process takes time. Likely to
compromise ethics to solve some tangible
problem.
Thus, choices. Lazy people are more
prone to being unethical. In many cases
You can get by. But what is your overall
reputation? Will your leadership
effectiveness by compromised?
At this point Ethical Extremes


Don’t care about ethics. Don’t believe it
matters. Its all about money and success.
As long as its legal and makes money
anything I do is OK.
Effective Leaders by definition have to be
ethical.
The course will influence you
differently Depending on your attitudes
towards these extremes.





Be prepared.
Look at company code of ethics
Corporate values towards ethics
In practice, what are managerial values of others.
What have others done in the past? Is there a
standard practice. Ask questions.
Do the practices differ from what you feel you
need to do at a gut level (does it seem wrong to
you).
Snap decisions





Internal warning system—heed the call.
Ask for time
Are their policies?
Solicit advice
Would you be embarrassed choice became
public (New York Times Test).
Lets go through the case again






Follow the decision making process.
How does this inform our choices.
I expect you to apply this in every case.
Identify stakeholders. Which stakeholders
are at risk with different alternatives.
Is there a win-win scenario.
How do I soften negative consequences if I
must choose one stakeholder over another.
Summary



What did you learn about Ethics and
decision making. What are your take home
points? Lets develop a list.
Partially for me and partially for you.
What is vague or unclear?