Ethics And Social Responsibility Of Business Chapter Questions-2

Front 1

Who shapes a company’s ethics?

Back 1

Guided by written policies, unwritten standards, and examples set by top managers, every individual in an organization makes choices that have moral implications.

Front 2

How do companies support ethical behavior?

Back 2

A company can support ethical behavior by ensuring that all the employees have self control and that there is justice and fair guidance. Employees should love each other and be kind as well.

Front 3

How has business’s sense of social responsibility evolved since the turn of the century?

Back 3

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the prevailing view among U.S. industrialists
was that business had only one responsibility: to make a profit. By the early twentieth century,
however, reformers were beginning to push politicians and government regulators to protect
citizens from the abuses of big business. Public confidence in U.S. business revived during
World War II, and throughout the 1050s, the relationship between business, government, and
society was relatively tranquil. However the climate shifted in the 1960s, as activism exploded on four fronts: environmental protection, national defense, consumerism, and civil rights. Today’s businesses are about more than just making products or profits.

Front 4

How are businesses responding to the environmental issues facing society?

Back 4

Environmental issues exemplify the difficulty that businesses encounter when they try to
reconcile conflicting interests: Society needs as little pollution as possible from businesses.
But producing quality products to satisfy customers’ wants can cause pollution to some
degree. Business executives try to strike a balance by making environmental management a formal part of their business strategy—along with quality, profits, safety, and other daily business operations

Front 5

Why can’t legal considerations resolve every ethical question?

Back 5

Even though legal considerations will resolve some ethical questions, you’ll often have to rely
on your own judgment and principles. When trying to decide the most ethical course of action,
you might apply the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Or
you might examine your motives: If your intent is honest, the decision is ethical, even though
it may be factually or technically incorrect; however, if your intent is to mislead or manipulate,
your decision is unethical, regardless of whether it is factually or technically correct

Front 6

How do individuals employ philosophical principles in making ethical business decisions?

Back 6

To make the “right” choice, each person must think through the consequences of his or her
actions. Ethical decisions can be divided into two general types: ethical dilemmas and ethical
lapses. An ethical dilemma is a situation in which one must choose between two conflicting
but arguably valid sides. The second type of decision is an ethical lapse, in which an individual
makes a decision that is clearly wrong, such as divulging trade secrets to a competitor.
Determining what’s right in any given situation can be difficult. One approach is to measure
each act against certain absolute standards. In the United States, these standards are often
grounded in religious teachings, such as “Do not lie” and “Do not steal.” Another place to
look for ethical guidance is the law.

Front 7

Why does a company need more than a code of ethics to be ethical?

Back 7

By itself, however, a code of ethics can’t accomplish much. “You can have grand motives, but
if your employees don’t see them, they aren’t going to mean anything,” says one ethics
manager at accounting firm Arthur Andersen. To be effective, a code must be supported by
employee communications efforts, a formal training program, employee commitment to
follow it, and a system through which employees can get help with ethically difficult
situations.

Front 8

At quitting time, you see your new colleague filling her briefcase with expensive software
programs that aren’t supposed to leave the premises. What do you do? Explain your
answer.

Back 8

You might consider asking yourself a series of questions:
1. Is the action legal? (Does it break any laws?) Is there a written company policy on the
situation? Does the policy spell out the penalty for breaking the law?
2. Is it balanced? (Is it applied to all concerned?) Does the practice of removing software
packages apply to all employees or only to you and not your colleague?
3. Can you live with it? (Does it make you feel good about yourself?) Would you feel
good about pretending that you didn’t see the act?
4. Is it feasible? (Will it actually work in the real world?) Is there a special situation that
requires the software programs to be taken off premises regularly?
If the answers to the questions are no, you need to approach the colleague and question the
appropriateness of their action.