Business Ethics Presentation

							Business Ethics
      Manuel Velasquez’s view
• Rights- individuals’ basic needs to welfare
• Justice- how the cost and benefits of an action
  can be distributed fairly among a group
• Utility- concerns the positive and negative effects
  that an action or a policy has on the public
• Care-the relationships we have with other
  individuals; we owe care and consideration to all
  people
            Code of conduct
• It protects the interest of the public rather
  than the interests of the members of the
  organization or profession
• It is specific and comprehensive
• It is enforceable
     Code of Ethics for Engineers
• Engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall:
• Hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public.
• If engineers' judgment is overruled under circumstances that
  endanger life or property, they shall notify their employer or
  client and such other authority as may be appropriate.
• Engineers shall disclose all known or potential conflicts of
  interest that could influence or appear to influence their
  judgment or the quality of their services.
• Engineers shall not complete, sign, or seal plans and/or
  specifications that are not in conformity with applicable
  engineering standards. If the client or employer insists on such
  unprofessional conduct, they shall notify the proper authorities
  and withdraw from further service on the project.
      Principles of medical ethics
• A physician shall be dedicated to providing competent medical
  care, with compassion and respect for human dignity and rights.

• A physician shall uphold the standards of professionalism, be
  honest in all professional interactions, and strive to report
  physicians deficient in character or competence, or engaging in
  fraud or deception, to appropriate entities.


• A physician shall respect the law and also recognize a
  responsibility to seek changes in those requirements which are
  contrary to the best interests of the patient.
               Challenger
• Mistaking groupthink for teamwork
• Allowing person bias to influence judgment
           Critical thinking
• How can I know the “right action” in this
  situation?
• What are my obligations, and to whom, in
  this situations?
• What values or ideals do I want to stand for
  in this situation?
• What is likely to happen if I do X or Y?
          Ethical Relativism
• Obligations- the responsibilities we have
  to everyone involved
• Ideals- values that we believe in
• Consequences- the beneficial, or harmful,
  results of our actions
 Case Studies- What would you do?
• It is late April and you need a summer job.
  In a local newspaper you see an ad for a
  potential job. The only problem is that the
  ad specifically mentions that “this is a
  continuing, full-time position.” You know
  that you will be returning to college in the
  fall.
  – Is it ethical for you to apply for the job without
    mentioning this fact? Why or Why not?
 Case Studies- What would you do?

• If you received a final grade of “A” by
  mistake, would you inform your professor?
• Would you allow a friend to submit a paper
  you’ve written for some other course?
• Would you tell the cashier if he/she gave
  you too much change?
 Case Studies- What would you do?
• While traveling on an assignment that is being
  paid for by your employer, you visit an area in
  which you would really like to live and work, an
  area in which you have lots of contacts but never
  can find time to visit on your own because your
  job keeps you so busy. You have five days to
  complete your assignment, and then you must
  report on your activities. You complete the
  assignment in three days.
   – Should you spend the remaining two days checking out
     other job possibilities, without reporting this activity?
            Legal Guidelines
• Laws against deception
• Libel law
• Laws protecting employee privacy
• Copyright law
• Law against electronic theft
• Laws against fraudulent, deceptive, or
  misleading advertising
     Justified Whistleblowing
 strong evidence that the organization is hurting or
  will hurt other parties
 employee has made a serious but unsuccessful
  attempt to prevent the wrongdoing by going
  through internal channels
 external whistleblowing is reasonably certain to
  prevent or stop the wrongdoing
 wrongdoing is serious enough to warrant the
  consequences for the employee, his/her family and
  any other parties