Personal and Organizational Ethics Search the Web Nortel
Personal and Organizational Ethics Search the Web Nortel has posted its ethics policies on the Internet. To read it, navigate your web browser to: http: //www. nortelnetworks. com 7 -1
Chapter Seven Objectives • To understand the different levels at which business ethics may be addressed • To appreciate principles of personal ethical decision-making • To identify factors affecting an organization’s moral climate • Describe actions or strategies to improve ethical climate 7 -22
Chapter Seven Outline • Levels at which Ethical Issues May Be Addressed • Personal and Managerial Ethics • Managing Organizational Ethics • From Moral Decisions to Moral Organizations • Summary 7 -3
Introduction to Chapter Seven • This chapter focuses on the day-to-day ethical issues that managers face 7 -4
Levels at Which Ethical Issues May Be Addressed • Personal level—situations faced in personal life (income tax, doing kid’s homework, etc. ) • Organizational level—workplace situations faced as managers and employees (cutting corners, etc. ) 7 -5
Levels at Which Ethical Issues May Be Addressed • Industrial level—situations confronted as professionals (the practices of stockbrokers, accountants, etc. ) • Societal and international levels—local-to -global situations confronted indirectly as a management team 7 -6
Personal and Managerial Ethics Resolving Ethical Conflicts Three Approaches • Conventional (covered in Chapter 6) • Principles • Ethical tests 7 -7
Personal and Managerial Ethics Principles Approach Anchors decision making on an ethical principle such as: • Utilitarianism • Rights • Justice • • Caring Virtue ethics Servant leadership Golden Rule 7 -8
Personal and Managerial Ethics Principle of Utilitarianism focuses on an act that produces the greatest ratio of good to evil for everyone – Consequentialist theory 7 -9
Personal and Managerial Ethics Principle of Rights focuses on examining and possibly protecting individual moral or legal rights 7 -10
Personal and Managerial Ethics 7 -
Personal and Managerial Ethics • Principle of justice involves considering what alternative promotes fair treatment of people • Types of justice – Distributive – Compensatory – Procedural – Rawlsian 7 -12
Personal and Managerial Ethics Rawls’ Justice • Each person has an equal right to the most basic liberties comparable with similar liberties for others • Social and economic inequalities are arranged so that they are both: a) reasonably expected to be to everyone’s advantage and b) attached to positions and offices open to all people 7 -13
Personal and Managerial Ethics • Principle of caring focuses on a person as a relational (cooperative) and not as an individual – Feminist theory • Virtue ethics focuses on individuals becoming imbued with virtues – Aristotle and Plato 7 -14
Personal and Managerial Ethics Servant leadership focuses on serving others first such as employees, customers, community and so on 7 -15
Personal and Managerial Ethics Characteristics of Servant Leaders • • • Listening Empathy Healing Persuasion Awareness • Foresight • Conceptualization • Commitment to the growth of people • Stewardship • Building community 7 -16
Personal and Managerial Ethics Golden rule focuses on the premise that you should of unto others as you would have them do unto you 7 -17
Personal and Managerial Ethics Concerns to be Addressed in Ethical Conflicts • Obligations • Ideals • Effects 7 -18
Personal and Managerial Ethics When Our Obligations, Ideals and Effects Conflicts • When two or more moral obligations conflict, use the stronger one • When two or more ideals conflict, or when ideals conflict with obligations, honor the more important one • When effects are mixed, choose the action that produces the greatest good and the least harm 7 -19
Personal and Managerial Ethics • • • Ethics Test Approach Test of common sense Test of one’s best self Test of making something public Test of ventilation Gag test 7 -20
Managing Organizational Ethics Factors Affecting the Morality of Managers Society’s Moral Climate Business’s Moral Climate Industry’s Moral Climate Superiors Policies Individual (One’s personal situation) Peers 7 -
Managing Organizational Ethics Factors Influencing Unethical Behavior • • • Behavior of superiors Ethical practices of one’s industry or profession Behavior of one’s peers in the organization Formal organizational policy (or lack of one) Personal financial need 7 -22
Managing Organizational Ethics 6 -23 7 -
Managing Organizational Ethics Questionable Behaviors of Superiors or Peers • Amoral decision making • Unethical acts, behaviors or practices • Acceptance or legality as the standard behavior • Absence of ethical leadership 7 -24
Managing Organizational Ethics Questionable Behaviors of Superiors or Peers • Objects and evaluation systems overemphasizing profits • Insensitivity toward how subordinates perceive pressure to meet goals • Inadequate formal ethics policies 7 -25
Improving Ethical Climate Ethics Programs & Officers Realistic Objectives Effective Communication Top Management Leadership Ethics Audit Ethics Training Ethical Decisionmaking Processes Codes of Conduct Discipline of Violators Whistle-blowing Mechanisms (“Hotlines”) 7 -
Ethical Decision-Making Identify decision you are about to make Articulate all dimensions of proposed decision Conventional Approach Standards/Norms -Personal -Organizational -Societal -International Principles Approach Ethical Principles -Justice -Rights -Utilitarianism -Golden Rule Course of action passes ethics screen Engage in course of action Ethical Tests Approach Ethical Tests -Common sense -One’s best self -Public disclosure -Gag test. . . Course of action fails ethics screen Do not engage in course of action Identify new course of action 7 -
Ethics Audits and Self-Assessment 7 -
From Moral Decisions to Moral Organizations Moral Decision(s) Moral Manager(s) Moral Organization 7 -
Selected Key Terms • • • Codes of conduct Codes of ethics Compensatory justice Distributive justice Ethical tests Ethical audits Golden rule Legal rights Moral rights • • • Principle of caring Principle of justice Principle of rights Principle of utilitarianism Procedural justice Rights Servant leadership Utilitarianism Virtue ethics 7 -30
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