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

Ethics & Technology | Case / Opinion | Telecommuting

Telecommuting

If you had a chance to work from home and telecommute, would you take it?  

If the opportunity meant that you had to allow your company to monitor every call on your phone and every keystroke on your computer, would you still take it?  

Explain why or why not.


Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Ethcis & Technology | Explain the difference between thin and thick consent

Explain the difference between thin and thick consent.

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.

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. 

Source: Ghillyer_Business Ethics A Real World Approach 2e

Ethics & Technology | Compare the employer and employee positions on electronic monitoring at the workplace

Compare the employer and employee positions on electronic monitoring at the workplace.

As an employee of an organization, your productivity during your time at work represents the performance portion of the pay-for-performance contract you entered into with the company when hired you. Therefore, your actions during that time are at the discretion of the company. The organization has an obligation to its stakeholders to operate as efficiently as possible, and to do so it must ensure that its company resources are not misused. From an employee's viewpoint, his or her contract should not intrude upon his or her civil rights as an individual. As such, employees should be notified of any electronic monitoring and its purpose. Electronic monitoring also implies that employees cannot be trusted, which raises the question: Why did the company hire that employee?



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