Business Ethics Managing Performance in an Ethical Company - Term Paper Example

It may also take time and energy on behalf of management to implement an ethical culture. Most severely, they say, it can cost uncompromising damage to Performance Management in an organization (Aguilar). This paper discusses how performance is managed within an ethical company, what Performance Management means for a company and when integrated with Business Ethics, how it can improve business efficiency. It will discuss the challenges companies face while ensuring that their employees behave ethically, with special emphasis on the role of Directors and managers in cultivating that culture.

Finally, the paper will discuss how performance is measured in relation to the business and its ethics. First off, we need to define what Performance Management means and what does it insinuate when applied in an organization. Performance Management refers to a system of processes whereby organizations engages its employees as either a team or individually in order to enhance over all organizational performance and achievement of company goals and objectives (U.S. Office of Personnel Management).

Companies around the world are trying to incorporate Performance Management in their organizational culture, but they still find it difficult to understand what it truly means and how to achieve it. Employee performance management involves managers to establish employee expectations and standards. They plan work and frequently monitor performance. They develop a culture of learning and development and give ample freedom to employees to show their abilities. Furthermore, they rate employee performance and provide summarized reports to higher management, prompting management to reward good performance.

In addition, where managers are assessing employee performances, they are to incorporate business ethics in the culture and measure organizational effectiveness in an ethical enterprise. They need to take steps to ensure that people in their organization are behaving ethically without compromising on performance. There are many different strategies managers’ may apply to make sure that their employees are not underperforming and remain efficient. They may tackle a situation differently and adapt according to the calls of the circumstances.

However, the best tactics managers have used historically to ensure performance is the Performance Appraisal. Initially, performance appraisal was only a tool to evaluate current productivity levels among employees. Studies have shown that this has gradually shifted to note an increase in productivity levels, as different factors motivate different employees. This is a huge role on the part of managers and Directors to conduct an ethical performance appraisal, as this does not only instigate worker efficiency but improves the overall organizational performance.

In theory, this is a simple correlation, that is, a fair performance appraisal leading to a motivated staff leading to an efficient and ethical organization. However, it is not that easy in practice. Francis Aguilar, a Professor at Harvard University stress on the importance of ethical behaviour as a must for contemporary organizations. He points out that, employees as well as the customers are aware of, and expect companies to engage in ethical business practices. The Professor indicates that Corporate Ethics does not only motivate employee behaviour but alleviates the position and repute of the organization in the customer's view.

Ethics scandals such as Johnson &