Making it Stick | What is the role of ethics officer and what message does it convey to stakeholders?

What is the role of ethics officer and what message does it convey to stakeholders?

The hiring of an ethics officer represents a formal commitment to the management and leadership of an organization's ethics program. The role usually develops as a separate department, responsible for enforcing the code of ethics and for providing support to any employees who witness unethical behavior. It sends a clear message to an organization's stakeholders and provides an appropriate person to whom employees and managers can when they need additional guidance and support.

Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Making it Stick | Case / Opinion | Code of Ethics 1986

Code of Ethics 1986

Your company wrote its code of ethics in 1986.  

You have been assigned to a team that has been tasked with updating the code to make it more representative of current business ethics issues like the Internet and modern business technology. 

What are your recommendations?



Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Making it Stick | Case / Opinion | Team Representative

Team Representative

You have been asked to join a team as a representative of your department.  

The team has been tasked with the development of an ethics training program to support the company’s new code of ethics.  

What would your recommendations be?



Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Making it Stick | What can a well written code of ethics do? 1. It can capture what the organization understands ethical behavior to mean. 2. It can establish a detailed guide of acceptable behavior. 3. It can state policies for behavior in specific situations. 4. It can document punishments for violations of those policies

What can a well written code of ethics do?

1. It can capture what the organization understands ethical behavior to mean.

2. It can establish a detailed guide of acceptable behavior.

3. It can state policies for behavior in specific situations.

4. It can document punishments for violations of those policies.



Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Making it Stick | What steps can be taken to create an ethical culture that is sustainable?

What steps can be taken to create an ethical culture that is sustainable?

1. Establish a code of ethics.

2. Support the code of ethics with extensive training for every member of the organization.

3. Hire an ethics officer.

4. Celebrate and reward ethical behavior demonstrated by employees.

5. Promote the organization's commitment to ethical behavior.

6. Continue to monitor the behavior as the organization grows.



Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Making it Stick: Doing What’s Right in a Competitive Market | Key Terms

Key Terms - Making it Stick: Doing What’s Right in a Competitive Market

Ethics Officer:  A senior executive responsible for monitoring the ethical performance of the organization both internally and externally.

Organizational Integrity:  A characteristic of publicly committing to the highest professional standards and sticking to that commitment. 

Proactive Ethical Policies:  Policies that result when a company develops a clear sense of what they stand for as an ethical organization.

Reactive Ethical Policies:  Policies that result when organizations are driven by events and/or fear of future events.

Sustainable Ethics:  An ethical culture that persist long after the latest public scandal or the latest management buzzword.

Transparent Organization:  An organization that maintains open and honest communications with all stakeholders

Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Ethics and Technology | Key Terms

Key Terms - Ethics and Technology

Cyberliability: Employers can be held liable for the actions of their employees in their internet communications to the same degree as if those employers had written those communications on company letterhead.          

                               

Thick Consent:  When jobs are plentiful and the employee would have no difficulty in finding another position, then the employee has a realistic alternative if he or she finds a monitoring policy unacceptable, and consent can be classified as thick.

Extranet:  A private piece of a company’s internet network that is made available to customers and/or vendor partners on the basis of secured access by unique password.

                                                             

Thin Consent:  When an employee receives formal notification that the company will be monitoring all email and Web activity. Either at the time of hire or during employment and is made clear in that notifications that his or her continued employment with the company will be dependent on the employee’s agreement to abide by that monitoring. 

Intranet:  A company’s internal website, containing information for employee access only.     

                                                                    

Vicarious Liability:  A legal concept that means a party may be held responsible for injury or damage even when he or she was not actively involved in the incident.

Telecommuting:  The ability to work outside the office (from your home or anywhere else) and log into your company network (usually via a secure gateway such as a VPN, virtual private network).



Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

CSR | Corporate Social Responsibility – Strategic CSR

Strategic CSR

Strategic CSR is a type of philanthropic activity which targets programs that will generate the most positive publicity or goodwill for the organization.

By supporting these programs, companies can claim to be doing the right thing and they also can meet their fiduciary obligations to their shareholders.

Critics can argue that strategic CSR is ethically commendable because these initiatives benefit stakeholders while meeting fiduciary obligations to the company’s shareholders.


Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

CSR | Corporate Social Responsibility 1 | Why is the failure of the public sector a major trend behind the CSR phenomenon?

Why is the failure of the public sector a major trend behind the CSR phenomenon?


















































Many, if not most, developing countries are governed by dysfunctional regimes. Developing countries alone do not suffer from public sectors. In the United States and in other developed countries, citizens expect less of government than they used to, having lost confidence in the public sector as the best or appropriate venue for addressing growing lists of social problems.


Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e