Ethics in the Workplace - Essay Example

? Dear all, Recently the company has been going through numerous changes, one of which was to change the structure of the company. Initially employed 25 employees, the company expanded and went on to employ a total of 200 employees. This major change in the number of employees and structure of the company called for a change in the ethical code of conduct for the company. As a result of the changes the company has gone through, numerous situations and questions will arise, which were never addressed before. The new code of conduct will act as a guideline for all the employees to follow, when confronted with a dilemma (Roth, 2005). The devised code of conduct will try to cover all the business aspects where any predicament can arise. Thus, code covers the matters of business conduct, marketing and sales practices, business gifts, relationship with colleagues and clients, insider trading, reporting measures and the use fo company or clients’ resources. Therefore, it is very important for every ECG employee to fully understand and abide by the code of conduct. A company’s image is affected by the manner the employees, within and outside the workplace. With ECG’s plan of venturing into international business market, acquiring rival firms and launching an IPO it is essential for the company employees to be on their finest behaviour. This will affect the company’s representation and in turn affect the planned investments (Johnson, 2006). The purpose of developing a code of conduct and policies is to ensure through mutual consent and understanding that these policies are implemented in order to achieve the ultimate target of integrity. The role of all the HODs is very crucial in this regard. The HODs have to become an example for their subordinates. Until the HODs follow these codes of conduct, it is very unlikely for the members of that department to do so. In order to ensure that these policies are adhered to at all times, the HODs should adopt the “lead by example” approach in this regard (Roth, 2005). The code of conduct clearly specifies the kind of behaviour which is expected from all the employees, irrespective of their stature in the company. Emphasis has been placed on integrity, honesty and trust which should be the foundation of any ethical code. The general business code of conduct lays down the rules for the employees, for the business practices and for the overall business as well. The code of conduct outlines the culture of the organization and provides the employees with a framework which will help them in their daily activities. The code also provides the employees with a framework by which they can judge their own behaviour and also learn how to interact with other colleagues and clients. A successful and positive relationship with our clients is essential for the success of ECG. We as a company have been proud of the fact that all out business activities are dealt with honesty, integrity and fairness. Since the relationship with our clients is so vital for our success, care should be taken with the information we provide to our clients, which is always accurate and never misrepresented. Even though client servicing is important, care should be taken when the company is incurring expenses on account of client entertainment or other benefits. These expenses should not exceed a reasonable limit and should always be approved by the finance department. This is made mandatory in order to increase transparency within the system (Lagan & Moran, 2005). Special attention needs to be paid to the marketing and sales department in particular. The marketing department is the department that directly interacts with the consumers. Therefore, the working of the marketing department is a reflection of the company’s image and policies. Documentation of the transactions is an essential part of the code of conduct. Employees are required to document every transaction which takes place between ECG and its clients. This not only makes audit very easy, but also helps retrace the steps of the employees in case any problem arises in the future. Attention should be paid to employee behaviour during the course of these transactions with the clients, because employee’s behaviour will be one of the drivers, which will convince clients to conduct business with ECG. The Marketing Manager should make sure that the employees of the marketing department pay attention to these values and follow the given guidelines. The marketing department is responsible for the communication regarding ECG’s services. This information, which is imparted through advertisements, should not be false and misleading. In case the advertisements give misleading information about the company’s services, our clients will be able to identify this falsehood. In the long run, such misrepresented information can be detrimental to the health of company. Therefore, it is my request to the Marketing Manager to make sure that the advertisements impart accurate and factual information so that our clients, both existing and potential, are not deceived (Johnson, 2006). Employees within the company have access to all kinds of useful and confidential information. They also have access to the contact which they have made during the course of their employment. The department heads are required to keep a check on their employees so that no employee can use any corporate property or information for personal gains. Similarly, before using any company’s resource for personal use, employees are required to gain permission from their supervisors. Even though it may seem unfair, it is very important for supervisors to keep a check on the resource usage of their subordinates. It keeps unfair usage of resources in check and gives every employee the same opportunities (Henn, 2009). The code of conduct has outlined specifically how the employees are supposed to behave and to what extent the company resources are to be used. If I, the Compliance Officer, or any other employee comes across a case of unethical usage of a company resource by a colleague, it is vital that this information be shared with the respective supervisors. Any violations to the code of conduct are reprimand-able. The punishment or the disciplinary action taken against the employee depends on the extent of the violation (Johnson, 2006). Strict guidelines are mentioned in the code for cases of insider trading. All the employees of the company are required to adhere to the company laws. Insider trading is a punishable offense in the court of law. Employees in senior position have access to sensitive information about the company. If any employee is found leaking inside information, that employee will be punished, even if it is the CEO of the company (Henn, 2009). A very vital and pertinent topic which the code of conduct document covers is the reception of business courtesies. Any gift or favour given to employees by their colleagues or vendors is known as a business courtesy. These gifts are used to sway the business decisions in a way that they are biased towards the courtesy giver or recipient. In situations where there are cultural differences between the parties, business courtesies are very common. Since ECG plans to go in the international market, it is better if the guidelines for accepting or giving gifts are understood at this point in time. This would help us avoid any unethical situations regarding such gifts later on during the course of conducting business (Henn, 2009). Lavish gifts, which can be termed as bribery, are strictly forbidden to the employees of ECG. The guidelines have provided all of the ECG employees with a limit for gifts. A single gift should not exceed the price of $75. The tax rule in the code of conduct states that any gift beyond $25 is termed as taxable income. Employees are required to report gifts beyond the value of $25, so that the associated taxes can be deducted. Employees are also forbidden to exchange gifts during a negotiation process as these gifts might sway the eventual decision in the favour of the gift giver. The fact that ECG conducts all business deals and transactions objectively and fairly is a unique selling point for the company. The company is known for its objectivity; the resultant trust of the clients is what has helped this company grow over the past few years and be where it is today (Henn, 2009). Employees should take great care when dealing with clients as the image and reputation of the company rests on their shoulders. The cap limit for gifts and the tax rule might seem as an invasion of privacy to some employees. I would like to further explain that the company is not looking forward to create any distress for any employee, nor are we trying to invade personal privacy here. However, if gifts are exchanged in a professional capacity by the employees, it is bound to affect the company’s reputation and create problems for ECG later on. The objective here is to protect the reputation and interests of the company, whereby keeping the interests of the employees in mind (Lagan & Moran, 2005). Violations of the business courtesies rule can reflect badly on an employee’s profile within the company. If these rules are violated, the company will be forced to investigate the matter and collect evidence. If the evidence proves that an employee is guilty, the employee will be punished for it. If any of the employees are aware of their colleagues violating these rules, it is suggested that they bring this into the notice of their supervisors. The supervisors are required to maintain discretion in this matter and discuss it only with the senior management. The purpose of this rule is not to create problems amongst colleagues. Thus, it is my humble request to all the employees to kindly keep their personal opinion about their colleagues aside, in case if they are reporting against someone. The purpose of this activity is to make sure that all the employees of the company are working towards achieving organisational success and benefit as opposed to fulfilling their personal goals (Roth, 2005). The departmental heads and supervisors are required to present any cases of ethic violations to the senior management or the compliance officer. However, before presenting a case to the Compliance Officer or any Senior Manager, it is crucial that the managers should investigate the matter deeply. It is very common for employees to report against their fellow colleagues owing to personal grudges. The managers and supervisors are required to investigate the matters completely before presenting them to the higher management. The investigation findings should be written in a report and then submitted to the senior management. If any employee is found guilty of a violation of the ethical code of conduct, the punishment can range from a disciplinary action to dismissal. This is a matter of grave importance and should be treated as thus (Lagan & Moran, 2005). In order to make ECG a success and to ensure that all the processes are conducted smoothly, it is essential for employees to follow the code of conduct. If the employees are ethical in their transactions and work for the greater good of the company, only then will the company be a success. Your support and cooperation in this regard will be highly appreciated. Regards, Compliance Officer References Henn, S.K. (2009). Business Ethics: A Case Study Approach. John Wiley & Sons, 2009. Johnson, C.E. (2006). Ethics in the Workplace: Tools and Tactics for Organizational Transformation. SAGE Publications, 2006 Lagan, A. & Moran, B. (2005). Three Dimensional Ethics: Implementing Workplace Values. eContent Management, 2005 Roth, W.F. (2005). Ethics in the Workplace: a systems perspective Read More