Changing Ethical Roles in Corporations - Research Paper Example

Changing Ethical Roles in Corporations Introduction Looking at various businesses is one that is not only defined by the main structure and the way in which they associate with others in the industry. There are also other concepts that are applied to businesses and the missions which they are required to fulfill within a given society. The ethical implications within a business hold the standards in which each corporation follows as they move through different needs within the environment. This is followed by direct action and decision making processes that are required for social and ethical movements within the business. Associating with these different concepts is one that is directly related to the main structure of the corporation as well as how they respond to different scenarios and needs within the community that they are functioning in. For a corporation to function effectively, it is required to first carry a strong internal environment then build specific responses at a community and stakeholder level. Practical Concepts of Corporations The basis of different organizations is one that is reliant on the main structure of the company. The use of the mission, vision and objectives within an organization is what propels forward the different responses on an ethical level, as well as through the social and cultural needs within a community. By having the right basis, the corporate role can then lead into practical applications with the main activities and functions it carries. The main aspect that is achieved is to provide a level of economic stability and different levels of activities within the community. If a corporation is moving into a multinational corporation, then there is also the need of having opportunities through the rights within the community while abiding by specific policies and procedures that are required by the government and the economy of a given location. By doing this, there is the ability to create a different set of opportunities within the corporation while showing ethical considerations first (Scherer et al, 2007). Social Obligations Even though most businesses are only required to focus on their specific needs related to the economy and the structure of their business, there are also other obligations that most are required to consider. The social obligations are one of the demands that continue to grow with corporations and businesses. By fulfilling the social obligations, there is the ability to build trust among those in the community while creating a reputation for the business and the needs that are associated with this. The social responsibilities are then combined to create a different level of responsiveness by potential customers. The model for corporate social performance is one that continues to be defined and grows according to newer and more contemporary needs. The models include three dimensional concepts that apply to businesses. This includes social responsibility, responsiveness and becoming involved with social issues. At one level, the social responsibility is one that is defined by following the policies and procedures within a given locality. At another level, this includes applying principles that fit into the interaction of different communities while fulfilling specific obligations that are not only from the firm, but also which are a part of the current environment (Wartick, Cochran, 1985). The corporate social responsibility that is defined through the several dimensions of responsibility are further refined according to trends within various localities. Through specific research studies (Quazi, 2003), it has been found that the social obligations come from the perceptions that are within a corporation. The mission and vision as well as the ethical considerations also make a difference in how corporations will respond to social responsibilities. Those who are based on moral perceptions and obligations will often further the social responsibilities to new levels while focusing on different aspects within their business. This is furthered by the amount of education and training, as well as the physical maturity of the business. The more education and the older that the business is, the more opportunities they will have to change the level of social commitment. More opportunities and changing perceptions of what should be done as a part of corporate responsibility becomes the main response. The result is further commitment to the education, training and responses that are a part of different communities (Quazi, 2003). Ethical Processes of Businesses The ability to make concrete decisions within business that are based on ethical concepts and considerations is one that provides corporations with a stronger foundation. It has been found that the ability to work with specific ethics also creates different types of business relationships on a global level. Those who are interested in social concepts and stakeholder opportunities will look toward businesses that have a strong ethical foundation and which act according to the ethical processes that they have defined within their corporation. To do this effectively, the ethics have to be refined by the current trends. For instance, if there are specific social movements that are within society, then many businesses will work with the public opinion. The green movement is an example that many businesses use to show their ethical considerations toward their business. When looking closely at this, it can be seen that the ethical process is directly linked to the ideologies of public opinion and the social concepts that are a part of the current trends (Carroll, Buchholtz, 2009). The influences that relate to the social demands as well as the ethical process are one that is used not only for social influences. Businesses have found that there is an increase in the behaviors of consumers dependent on the ethics that are involved. When a business acts with specific ethical considerations and uses this as a basis, then there are more possibilities for the market. Consumers are interested not only in the basic purchase of products, but have a level of awareness about a corporation. The way that the internal organization works, the social responses to specific situations and the considerations that are linked to the economy all become a part of the main interests of consumers. The result is that most businesses combine the ethical considerations with outside influences, such as the expectations and the demands that are related to the potential consumers and those that are interested in the business. The result is a slight increase in the profit and loss margin for different businesses (Creyer, 1997). Actions Among Corporations The ability to meet public interest while providing a strong basis for a corporation is also the need to understand how to take action in given situations. The ethical decision making process is known to have several levels of responsibilities and requires specific actions that are in response to diverse sets of situations. The actions that are taken require an awareness of the lower levels as well as how different actions will affect the internal environment and the public. More importantly, the actions that are taken require understanding legalities, obligations and rules and laws that are a part of each society. The principles that are held by a corporation have to provide a strong moral basis first. From this, there is the need to respond to different societal concepts while providing actions that fit with specific needs in society. This leads to the need to have several perspectives and angles within society while deciding what the consequences will be with different corporate behaviors at different levels (Salaman et al, 2005). The different actions that lead to layers of responses through ethics have then changed into innovations that are required for ethical actions. The use of technology, the movement into globalization and the concept of opening into different segments of society are creating changes in the types of obligations that individuals have. Specifically, corporations have to rethink the ethical decision making process while redefining what is the basis of their actions in society. Responding to specific scenarios and cultures and understanding the main components that are a part of a society are the basic concepts that businesses have to consider. However, to effectively work with and meet different needs within the business structure and in society, there is also the need to reach levels of innovation while redefining what is needed for a business to function with specific needs. The actions that are taken as a result are dependent on the area in which the business functions in, societal needs, stakeholder demands and the ability to provide innovative solutions within a given community (Leclair, Ferrell, 2000). Since there are several layers to the actions that are taken, a corporation has to begin taking actions with the organizational culture that is currently a part of the business. From the internal structure and the attitudes of individuals, there is the ability to understand and identify what is needed within society. Values, ethics, integrity and responsibility are required at an individual basis first, then through the leadership that is within a corporation. The mission and vision can identify this responsibility while creating an internal structure and environment that is conducive to actions for ethics. From this basis, there is the ability to intertwine social needs and the external environment with the different internal environment. The more that this structure is set up and changed, the more likely that there will be a stronger basis for individuals to implement ethical actions. The ethics in the work place will then lead to different social concepts that are supported by the organization and which provide more sustainability from the corporation at a larger level (Joyner, Payne, 2002). Decision – Making Processes The importance of the internal organization, structure of a corporation and the way in which they respond to social needs is one that builds from ethics through the decision making process that occurs. The first part to this is to have a value – based leadership that can provide a strong moral basis as well as a level of integrity with different needs within the organization and outside of the environment. The individual values will then begin to become a part of the decisions that are made within the business and the way in which individuals react to given situations. While this is essential, the problems with processes sometimes occur because of the individual values that an individual has which conflicts to the values of a business. To mediate beyond this component, it is essential to begin to change their personal values toward the ethics that are incorporated into the business. This has to be combined with the process of finding a respect toward the different values in which individuals have while considering the ethics that are within the corporation before any other concept. To do this, ethical issues have to be defined and should be combined with attitudes and beliefs that are a part of both the individual associations with the company as well as through the attitudes, awareness and values of both leaders and teams (Ferrell, et al, 2008). The individual factors that are associated with different needs and concepts then have to be combined with the organizational culture that has been built. Ethical decision making, while having an individual influence, is more conducive when it works through the organizational structure and needs. Each individual identity that carries specific values and morals has to combine with the corporate ethics and structure. After this, the ethics need to be defined within a group setting so each individual can move into decision making with groups and discussions. If this is not done, then an individual who feels as though the decision is against ethical considerations may turn into a whistle blower while going against the organizational process. To bring each individual into agreement, there is the need to combine the understanding of ethics in the organizational structure with group agreement. This part of the process is one that is led with several discussions and an understanding of the decisions that are made through leaders that carry value. After this is done, the ethical decisions can move into an action plan and implementation within the corporation (Joyner, Payne, 2002). The last step to the decision making process is to create an action plan that moves into the social needs and concepts of the organization. By doing this, there is the ability to create community efforts while allowing the organization to expand effectively. With current trends, ideas with technology and globalization should be considered first. An evaluation of the external environment and the understanding of needs from different cultures and societies are essential to the way in which individuals respond to a given situation. More importantly, there is the need to create a different set of concepts that are conducive to the society that one is in. The corporations are responsible for responding in an effective manner while having a broad understanding of the society and culture in which they are living in. By doing this, there is the ability to combine different components of their business with the ethics and the decisions that are needed within a given area. Without doing this, a culture or specific community may find the ethical decisions as one that is not ethical or that doesn’t match with the specific needs of the society. The result is conflict with potential customers and misunderstandings over the main action plans in which the corporations are taking (Joyner, Payne, 2002) Conclusion The different concepts that are associated with ethics in a business have several layers that are a part of the main functions. The first part to this is the individual values and morals that are a part of a business. After this, group decisions and leaders that carry a certain level of value have to be defined. The internal environment is one that is required to not only carry these aspects but which is also required to understand the corporate culture and the ethical basis that is a part of society. After these specific concepts are defined and understood, then the business has the ability to move forward with ethical decision making processes. Most of the ethics that are a part of the business relate specifically to not only the basis of the company but also to trends and needs within society. The social demands affect the success of the company as well as the responses from potential customers and stakeholders. Defining specific action plans and knowing how to implement different concepts within the community can then help to redefine what is needed within the community. The ethics then becomes a basis of how the company is presented to potential customers and stakeholders while redefining the actions that a corporation takes socially and in response to ethical needs of the community. References Carroll, Archie, Ann Buchholtz. (2009). Business and Society: Ethics and Stakeholder Management. Ohio: Cengage Learning. Creyer, Elizabeth. (1997). “The Influence of Firm Behavior on Purchase Intention: Do Consumers Really Care About Business Ethics?” Journal of Consumer Marketing (14), (6). Ferrell, O.C., John Fraedrich, Linda Ferrell. (2008). Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. Joyner, Brenda, Dinah Payne. (2002). “Evolution and Implementation: A Study of Values, Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility.” Journal of Business Ethics (41). LeClair, Debbie, Linda Ferrell. (2000). “Innovation in Experiential Business Ethics Training.” Journal of Business Ethics(23). Quazi, Ali. (2003). “Identifying the Determinants of Corporate Managers’ Perceived Social Obligations.” Management Decision (41), (9). Salaman, Graeme, John Storey, Jon Billsberry. (2005). Strategic Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice. New York: Sage Publishers. Scherer, Andrea, Guido Palazzo, Dorothee Baumann. (2007). “Global Rules and Private Actors – Towards a New Role of the Transnational Corporation in Global Governance.” Journal of International Management (1). Wartick, Steven, Philip Cochran. 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