ethical perspective in organization
DESCRIPTION
Ethical Perspective in OrganizationTRANSCRIPT
ETHICAL
PERSPECTIVE IN ORGANIZATION
WHAT IS ETHICS?
• A branch of philosophy concerned with the study of moral principles and moral actions.
• Purely theoretical treatment of moral virtues in terms of speculative and practical collective cultural value systems.
WHAT IS MORALITY?
• Morality is concerned with those practices that are considered right or wrong.
• It also concerns of values that reflects those practices and with the rules with which they are carried out.
COMPONENTS OF ETHICAL BEHAVIOR
1. Justnesswhat is right
2. Fairnessimpartiality
3. Righteousnessrational judgment of what is supposed to
be
4. Truthfulnessconformity with facts or reality
ORGANIZATIONAL ETHICS
• It is how an organization ethically responds to an internal or external stimulus.
• It includes, but is not limited to business ethics which contains corporate governance and corporate ethics.
ORGANIZATIONAL ETHICS
There are at least four elements which exist in organizations that make ethical behavior
conducive within an organization.
FOUR ELEMENTS: #1
1. Written code of ethics and standards
Companies have written rules that guides employees about the basic guidelines that needs to be followed in order to maintain an ethical organization.
FOUR ELEMENTS: #2
2. Ethics Training
Ethics training is conducted to the members of the organization starting from the employees, managers, and even to executives.
FOUR ELEMENTS: #3
3. Availability for advice on ethical situations
Organizations may have advice lines, offices or certain individuals in the organization that help employees in troublesome situations to help them choose the best alternative.
FOUR ELEMENTS: #4
4. Systems for confidential reporting
Having these systems would help avoid unethical activities like leaking top-secret files and information that would be harmful to the organization.
ORGANIZATIONAL ETHICS
Good leaders strive to create a better and more ethical organization. Restoring an ethical climate in
organization is critical, as it is a key component in solving the many other
organizational development and ethical behavior issues facing the organization.
MODEL OF ETHICAL BEHAVIOR IN THE WORKPLACE
Internal Org’l Influences
Individual
External Org’l Influences
Neutralizing / Enhancing
Factors
Ethical Behavior
INTERNAL ORG’L INFLUENCES
• Ethical Codes
• Organizational Culture
• Organizational Size
• Organizational Structure
• Corporate Strategy
INTERNAL ORG’L INFLUENCES
Studies revealed that:
• Larger firms are more likely to behave illegally
• Managers are more likely to behave
unethically in decentralized organizations
• Mid-managers have the tendency to act
unethically in order to “look good” for higher
level managers
EXTERNAL ORG’L INFLUENCES
• Political-Legal
• Industry Culture
• National Culture
• Environment
EXTERNAL ORG’L INFLUENCES
• Increase in the monitoring of unethical and
potentially illegal actions
• World Customs Org. estimates that $512B
lost in counterfeiting activities
• China is the largest contributor to
counterfeiting in the world with 2/3 of all
the fake goods worldwide
INDIVIDUAL
• Personality
• Values
• Moral Principles
• Environment
NEUTRALIZING/ENHANCING FACTORS
• Age• Length of Service• Position• Heterogeneity /
Homogeneity of Org.
ETHICAL BEHAVIOR
MODEL OF ETHICAL BEHAVIOR IN THE WORKPLACE
Internal Org’l Influences
Individual
External Org’l Influences
Neutralizing / Enhancing
Factors
Ethical Behavior
WHY DO PEOPLE BEHAVE UNETHICALLY?
No one will find out
Behavior is not really illegal
It is in the best interest of the organization
The organization will protect them
OBSERVED UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR IN THE WORKPLACE
• Using office equipment for personal use
• Doing personal business on work time
• Calling in as “sick” to take the day off
• Divulging confidential information
• Claiming credit for someone else’s work
• Concealing own errors
MOREUNETHICAL BEHAVIOR
• Faking financial statements / accounting
records
• Engaging in illegal activities / business
• Bribery
• Badmouthing about competition
• Fooling customers
• Escaping the law
EXAMPLE
Corporate executives of WorldCom, a giant in the
telecommunications field, admitted fraud and
misrepresentation in financial statements.
WorldCom's former CEO went on trial for alleged
crimes related to this accounting ethics scandal.