Business Ethics - Ramona Alexander Situation - Essay Example

Case Study Tiaisha Randolph BUSA 561 Introduction Morals and ethics are among the integral parts of modern day business and prevail extensively inevery domain. Ethics within any particular business sector primarily control the overall business towards moving in the right direction through fulfilling all the legal norms and standards. These aspects further enhance the corporate social image of the business (Deal & Key, 1998). This particular essay intends to discuss business ethics in context to a particular case study. Case Overview Ramona Alexander was recruited by some of the most notable multinationals after completing her graduation. Among those players, the most notable and renowned name was of the Next Step Herbal Health, which was also regarded as one of the fastest establishing companies in the US by Forbes. She decided to accept the invitation of joining the company for a ‘Get to Know Us session’. While she was leaving to join the session, she conducted some internet research about the company owing to which she was able to know that the company and its operational effectiveness in an efficient manner. However, some of the internet materials also depicted the malpractices of the company within their business operations. She received a warm welcome when reached the company. She interacted with the recruiters and enquired about the reality of the articles she read on the internet about the ethical practical practices of the company. She also attended a small event where the CEO of the company described the mission and vision of the business in precise. Subsequently, she was offered a contract by the management after which she would need to join an orientation program in the Atlanta office of the company. Advice to Ramona It is apparent that Ramona was offered employment with an attractive contract by one of the top companies of the US. However, there are certain ethical practices and situations that need to be considered by Ramona while signing the contract with the company. Since Ramona was Christian in terms of religion there are also certain spiritual aspects that must be taken into consideration. Notably, as per some of the stanza in the Bible, ethics is an important part to be practiced by individuals towards ensuring their inner satisfaction. As per a particular excerpt from the Bible, “You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another.” The excerpt primarily means that one should not be involved in stealing or appreciating falsely and must not lie to one another. Contextually, it has been noted from the provided case study that the company presents itself as a unit, which works for the betterment of the Americans through deliverance of herbal products. However, the recruiter while talking with Ramona suggested that most of the products and its materials are developed in the lab. This shows that the company does not portray itself clearly to the public. This might harm the ethics of Ramona if she signs the offered contract. Another excerpt from the bible depicted that “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,” This aspect means that one should work with heart for the lord and not for men. Ramona needs to understand that individually she should ensure the deliverance of ethical working approach from her end irrespective of what the company instructs her to act. In this context, Ramona can sign the contract with the company (Kohlenberger, 2004). There are certain ethical perspectives that need to be considered by Ramona while making her decision to sign the contract. Notably, in the present day scenario, in any corporate culture, profit making has been one of the primary aims of the companies. Similarly, Next Step Herbal Health is one of such business unit that is concentrated towards maximizing its profit through deliverance of services to the Americans that can be beneficial for them in the long run. This aspect shows that company can be regarded as a better place to work upon for Ramona. Again, honesty is another aspect that influences ethics and decision making for companies. In this regard, it can be said that the recruiters of the company were quite straight forward and honest enough to respond to the queries of Ramona during her first interaction with the company. It has been viewed that the recruiters honestly responded about how they prepare most of their products in labs and the use of natural herbs is quite less in the same. Rather than ignoring the questions asked by Ramona, the recruiters thought of discussing the policies and approaches of the company towards ethics in brief (Bazerman & Tenbrunsel, 2011). This aspect also depicted that the company was honest and transparent enough to Ramona while hiring her for the job. Therefore, considering this particular aspect, Ramona can sign the employment contract with the company. The aspect of corporate ethics in practice at Next Step Herbal Health must also be taken into consideration by Ramona prior to signing the contract offered to her by the management. Notably, the ethics of the company is strategic rather than real. This is because of the aspect that the company is a corporate unit and its mission is to establish the business to the maximum extent. In this regard, it has been observed that the management of the company developed its corporate ethical code based upon the perceptions or preferences of shareholders. This means that the ethical code of the company is formed in manner where it can attract a hefty number of investors for the business. These aspects can be justified from the fact that the recruiters while interacting with Ramona made it apparent that their ethical code is made entirely to attract the investors and meet the ethical code norms of the government. However, the real ethical practices of the company might differ with that of the ethical practices (Dobson, 2014). This approach of the company largely owes to enhance its competitive business positioning, which is again evident in the present day context. Thus, Ramona can sign the employment contract offer by the company. Conclusion From the above analysis it can be concluded that ethics is among the integral parts that ensure proper functioning and positioning of companies. It has also been seen in the provided case that strategies and ethics is the key to ensure business success. Contextually, with due consideration to the ethical grounds, Ramona Alexander has been advice to sign the offered employment contract to her by the management of Next Step Herbal Health. References Bazerman, M. H., & Tenbrunsel, A. E. (2011). Ethical breakdowns. Harvard Business Review, 89(4), 58-65. Dobson, J. (2014). Virtue ethics as a foundation for business ethics: A "macintyre-based" critique. California Polytechnic State University, 1-13. Deal, T. E., & Key, M. K. (1998). Corporate celebration: play, purpose, and profit at work. US: Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kohlenberger, J. R. (2004). The essential evangelical parallel Bible: new King James Version, English standard version, new living translation, the message. US: Oxford University Press. Read More