Business ethics: a view from the trenches

Article Abstract:

This article presents results from a study of how young managers define ethical issues, think about these issues, and resolve them. Several patterns emerge from this study. First, in many cases, young managers received explicit instructions from their middle-manager bosses or felt strong organizational pressures to do things that they believed were sleazy, unethical, or sometimes illegal. Second, corporate ethics programs - codes of conduct, mission statements, hot lines, and so forth - proved to be of little help to these young managers. Third, many of them believed that their companies' executives were out-of-touch on ethical issues, either because they were too busy or because they sought to avoid responsibility. Fourth, the young managers resolved the dilemmas they faced largely on the basis of personal reflection and individual values, not through reliance on corporate credos, company loyalty, the exhortations and examples of senior executives, or philosophical principles or religious reflection. Ironically, however, while the interviewees typically described their experiences as difficult or even traumatic, many believed they had learned important lessons about themselves and the world of work. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Research

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Why is business talking about ethics? Reflections on foreign conversations

Article Abstract:

History tells us that business ethics is a subject that comes and goes. So the interesting question is: why are the ethics of business discussed in one era and not another? Based on conversations with business people and academics from Japan, Europe, and Latin America, this article looks at some of the reasons why ethics is currently on the minds of business men and women. Political conservatism, deregulation, moral pluralism, and globalization emerge as themes that underlie the recent interest in ethics. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

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Business ethics: four spheres of executive responsibility

Article Abstract:

Many people believe that there is some single, overarching approach to business ethics: e.g., serve the shareholders, serve the stakeholders, or follow your conscience. In reality, however, the search for a grand, unifying principle of management morality leads to frustration and often cynicism. The moral dilemmas managers face are, in essence, clashes among very different spheres of responsibility. This article describes each of these spheres and presents a framework for resolving conflicts among them. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Responsibility

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