In this module we will discuss the difficulties of maintaining ethical autonomy and fostering environment where responsible conduct is supported from a perspective that is more geared towards the employee.
Chapter 8: Safeguarding Ethical Autonomy in Organizations from The Responsible Administrator by T. L. Cooper (2012)
When loyalty to the organization or a supervisor are at odds with the obligation to the public, employees may choose to blow the whistle as a means of coping. The decision to report misconduct may depend on the numerous factors including the uncertainty that positive change will occur and fear of reprisal. The challenge for managers is to promote an organizational culture and structure that encourages internal disclosure of …show more content…
Individual autonomy is developed by setting organizational limits and developing personal and professional identities that go beyond the organization. Cooper also offers that “the cultivation of principled thinking is a desirable practical way to protect ethical autonomy from dominant organizations in the hands of benevolent or misguided superiors” (2012, pp. 234). When a person’s own values and belief system conflicts with organizational obligations a resolution may be found in an evaluation of the role in question and may be done in three phases. First, there is the question of whether the role is legitimate in society. If it is found appropriate in society, the next question asked is the role something that the individual can agree with, personally. The final question is can this individual meet the responsibilities of the role in every situation or are there some circumstances where they will be unable to comply. It is also important to understand if the ethical dilemma is with the role itself or simply certain aspects of it. Conflict may arise if the role is being redefined by new policies or laws, or possibly a person’s individual development may change their values so they are no longer compatible with the obligations of the …show more content…
One is the intentional acts, where Hitler in his mania had a long-term plan to eradicate the Jewish people. The other view is from a functional interpretation that civil servants used administrative means to contain and remove a problem from everyday society. Adams and Balfour point out that it was not small isolated groups or large incidents that led to the killing of millions, but instead genocide was the outcome of the work from thousands of ordinary civil servants, carrying out ethically neutral and social acceptable tasks. Adams and Balfour view this evil act as a combination of both intentional and functional activities. Hitler took direct control of civil servants, who felt they could comply with orders or lose their jobs. Many civil servants were comfortable caring out morally neutral activities of administrative routine and did not hesitate to move onto less traditional work, such as identifying who was Jewish and who was Aryan. By following proper bureaucratic procedures civil servants could disassociate there administrative actions from the inhumane end results. Adams and Balfour contends that without modern bureaucratic processes and the management and organizational skills of civil service employees, the Holocaust could not have been
Chapter 8: Safeguarding Ethical Autonomy in Organizations from The Responsible Administrator by T. L. Cooper (2012)
When loyalty to the organization or a supervisor are at odds with the obligation to the public, employees may choose to blow the whistle as a means of coping. The decision to report misconduct may depend on the numerous factors including the uncertainty that positive change will occur and fear of reprisal. The challenge for managers is to promote an organizational culture and structure that encourages internal disclosure of …show more content…
Individual autonomy is developed by setting organizational limits and developing personal and professional identities that go beyond the organization. Cooper also offers that “the cultivation of principled thinking is a desirable practical way to protect ethical autonomy from dominant organizations in the hands of benevolent or misguided superiors” (2012, pp. 234). When a person’s own values and belief system conflicts with organizational obligations a resolution may be found in an evaluation of the role in question and may be done in three phases. First, there is the question of whether the role is legitimate in society. If it is found appropriate in society, the next question asked is the role something that the individual can agree with, personally. The final question is can this individual meet the responsibilities of the role in every situation or are there some circumstances where they will be unable to comply. It is also important to understand if the ethical dilemma is with the role itself or simply certain aspects of it. Conflict may arise if the role is being redefined by new policies or laws, or possibly a person’s individual development may change their values so they are no longer compatible with the obligations of the …show more content…
One is the intentional acts, where Hitler in his mania had a long-term plan to eradicate the Jewish people. The other view is from a functional interpretation that civil servants used administrative means to contain and remove a problem from everyday society. Adams and Balfour point out that it was not small isolated groups or large incidents that led to the killing of millions, but instead genocide was the outcome of the work from thousands of ordinary civil servants, carrying out ethically neutral and social acceptable tasks. Adams and Balfour view this evil act as a combination of both intentional and functional activities. Hitler took direct control of civil servants, who felt they could comply with orders or lose their jobs. Many civil servants were comfortable caring out morally neutral activities of administrative routine and did not hesitate to move onto less traditional work, such as identifying who was Jewish and who was Aryan. By following proper bureaucratic procedures civil servants could disassociate there administrative actions from the inhumane end results. Adams and Balfour contends that without modern bureaucratic processes and the management and organizational skills of civil service employees, the Holocaust could not have been