The Fundamentals of Business - Assignment Example

Assignment 1. The Philosophical Context of Business & Professional Ethics

Part 1. The philosophical context framing business and professional ethics

There have been rampant reports of businesses and leaders abusing their powers and defrauding investors of millions of their hard-earned dollars. Poor foundations and work ethics can be attributed to this increasing greed among businesses and leaders. Business ethics is the study of how to integrate integrity into the economic and professional power of an individual or an organization. Across the globe, stories of runaway corruption and scandals can be seen strewn across the pages of print media and on televisions and the internet. What are alarming are the ridiculous amounts of monies that these individuals and institutions are able to amass for themselves in a relatively short time endearing them to young minds? The youth today have been exposed to the allure of flashy lifestyles and plush living making them crave to make a quick buck regardless of the means. Future business environments, therefore, stand to suffer greatly if this fast life mentality is not addressed soon (Wall, Hursh and Iii, 2014). The demands of the workplace today mean that most children are left home to be educated by television and celebrities. Television producers have targeted the youth especially with shows that follow around people who spend large sums of money without seemingly having to work for it. Many youths have therefore turned to looking for quick money and as surveys have shown many of them would not give being unethical a second thought if it meant they could get a lot of money and be rich.

Changing the fundamentals of business needs to start early (Aakhus and Bzdak, 2012). Right from a tender age, students need to be taught the importance of working hard and the sweetness of hard-earned rewards. Companies and individuals can still make profits and be rich if they follow rules and regulations. Following rules and regulations further enhances the image of a brand or a company effectively increasing its visibility in its industry and market. Increased visibility results in increase revenues and profits and significantly reduces client acquisition costs. There is a need to enhance accountability in the education system so that graduates can have a firm ethical and moral foundation. Ethics and morality are all about creating a culture that promotes and celebrates merit and where innovation and ingenuity are handsomely rewarded. Students need to learn the importance of finding passion in all that they do and learning how to translate their passions into practical solutions for global problems. When everybody is on the same page ethics and moral wise, accountability and good governance will come naturally in both our institutions and governments. Leaders in both business and government can only get away with as much wrongdoing as the people following them can let them. People, therefore, need to become aware and knowledgeable so that they can have a comprehensive basis for monitoring and evaluating the actions and results of business and government leaders.

There is already a worrying trend amongst many students who do not put in the required amount of effort in school but still want the same rewards. Students of means are increasingly being found in cheating scandals where they use professional assistance to complete assignments and tasks given in class. There have also been several reported cases where some students pay others to supply them with answers during exams or even have them answer the questions for them and hand them the answer booklets to write their names and hand in. Although this might give them high grades and even help them secure good paying jobs upon graduations, the amount of disservice and damage they are doing to themselves cannot be understated. There are several situations in both work and adult life that might require skills and thought processes that they could have failed to learn while in school. Assignments and tasks not only function to test understanding but also help an individual to develop maturity and gain varied insights and perceptions to life and problems. Ethics is supposed to be second nature just like breathing. Students need to understand that there is nobility in trying and putting one’s effort into an endeavor. That way, when one has given all that they have to give, they can truly stand tall and proud no matter the outcome.

That is truly the beauty of life that even in defeat a lot can be learned about oneself and his environment. Problems provide people with the opportunity to reach into themselves and remember the basics of living and life that were taught and learned in childhood. Reflection leads to a deeper understanding of the knowledge gained throughout the years resulting in the attainment of wisdom. Wisdom is important in bridging the gap between theory and practice in real life situations later in life. A high level of self-awareness is important in ensuring that one can make tough decisions no matter the cost to his or her position as long as it is the right call. It also allows a person to have the mental fortitude to see things through; sometimes all a plan requires is time, no one ever got a baby in a month by impregnating nine women at once.

Part 2. How ethos relates to what ethicists call moral ground

Ethos refers to the accepted standards in one’s community and forms the basis on which cultural and traditional values are developed. A person is considered ethical when he or she conforms to socially acceptable customs present in their society. Morality, on the other hand, refers to the rules that determine the relationships between individuals while moral philosophy refers to set rules, qualities, and traits that determine social interactions and ensure the safeguard of common rights for all parties. Moral judgments are the processes of deciding the fairness or otherwise of a situation or circumstance affecting people that are familiar to a person. All communities across the globe have their unique customs and traditions that guide their day-to-day lives. These traditions and customs act in very much the same way as math formulas do. They function to ensure that different people and processes run in concert and harmony with each other (Gotsis and Kortezi, 2013). Communities have developed intricate structures and rules to enhance governance and oversight on leadership. All that is necessary for leading an ethical life is taught during childhood. Sharing, compassion, tolerance and contrition, are all lessons taught to children from a tender age. These virtues enhance interpersonal relationships while ensuring that individuals and groups conform to the laws of the land. Virtues work as double-edged swords when practiced by every person; they ensure self-preservation while ensuring peaceful coexistence with neighbors. Since customs, traditions, largely based on morals, and morality, it is almost impossible to talk about ethics without touching on the two. Morals and ethics are the foundations of the reputation and image of a person, a brand or a community. Ethics can be defined as the study of integrity, which is the conscious drive to conduct one’s activities according to previously established personal rules that ensure fairness and equality. In the world, we live in today, and indeed in life throughout history, a good name is better than riches and gold. A good name opens doors and hearts before the person even arrives at his destination.

Moral ground as proposed by ethicists is about understanding what is fair and equitable in our societies and communities. Fairness and equity are the building blocks of good citizens and more importantly good leadership. The ethics and morals of a community and people are what hold leaders and institutions accountable. Leaders’ behaviors can, therefore, be a strong indicator of the values and morals their communities hold dear and which ones they think do not have much weight. Morals and values are very similar across the globe and across different communities and cultures although there might be slight variations and differences in their implementations, perception, and interpretations. These differences sometimes create challenges and problems at points where different communities and people interact necessitating the creation of global and regional rules to govern such engagements. Leaders and leadership today especially faces significant pressures to maintain high ethical and moral standards. Ethics, however, goes a step further than morality in business since non-conformity can lead to sanctions and other penalties. Leaders also have to factor their followers and words into their decision-making processes since their decisions can have unprecedented and unforeseen challenges and problems. Decisions also have to be in line with laws and professional regulations that ensure fairness and equity in the competition. With the growing globalization, decisions also have to be considerate of regional and global laws to ensure that firms remain competitive, productive and profits.

Business leaders today need to actively follow trends in employee and employer relations and labor laws and regulations in order to ensure their firms conform to the ever-changing laws and regulations. Employees also have to take their roles and responsibilities seriously if they are to enhance their work environments and experience. Different organizations and professions have unique customs from their dressing to how they conduct their daily affairs. A good example is how lawyers in Britain have to don wigs and robes when in court. The internal culture of an organization is more important to its continuity and sustainability than its communal culture. It plays a significant role in cementing the bonds between employees while ensuring the efficient and effective direction of available resources towards the accomplishment of set goals. Workplace dynamics can many times overwhelm employees resulting in loss of morale and motivation and subsequently resulting a decrease in overall productivity. Leaders need to encourage their employees to constantly believe in their power to make a difference in the organization. Increasing their self-worth goes a long way in ensuring they are able to make sound decisions even under pressure increasing the firm’s productivity and ensuring its continuity and profitability. Leaders should also create a culture where their employees are able to look at the grand scheme of things in the organization. Seemingly, simple actions might have devastating ripples throughout the organization and result in unprecedented problems or challenges.

Communication is a major ingredient for the success of any enterprise. When employees feel valued they will perform over and beyond their mandate building on their experience and knowledge and understanding how to benefit from the synergies available from working as a team. Leaders should, however, be cautious not to prescribe or force their personal understanding and interpretations of statutes and ethical procedures to their employees. They should, however, provide guidelines that will enable their followers to grow and develop a deeper understanding of the part they play in the organization and how they can better improve their work environment and experience. Business leaders need to help their employees to develop and establish good ethical roots to enhance the overall ethical position of their organizations. A strong foundation will provide employees with significant resources for eliminating and evaluating different scenarios and situations when confronted with choices and decisions.

Part 3. How social contract theory relates to business and professional ethics

The mind works to ensure the survival and continuity of an organism. The study of how the human mind works is called nomology. All people are born with certain rights and freedoms that are safeguarded by law. The way the law works is that all individuals forfeit some of their rights and privileges to the government so that in return the government can assure them the same rights and privileges. Social contract theory, therefore, acts, in the same way, an insurance policy acts; it provides an individual with an avenue for recourse in the event that another individual, group or institution infringes upon their freedoms. Its maxim, or rule, is to ensure that people practice what they would like to see practiced everywhere giving rise to the idea that ethics can have a place in the rules in the global arena known as deontology. It relies heavily on the strong human need for self-preservation since everybody wants to be treated with respect and due regard, therefore, they understand that they also have to accord others the same courtesies. It also forms the golden or basic rule of ethics, especially in business. There are however some cases in a society where this rule might not hold. Business and professional ethics have their foundations firmly grounded on this principle especially with regard to market competition and customer rights. Increasing knowledge and advancements in technology and innovation have increased competition throughout the markets all over the globe. Growing globalization and liberalization of labor and markets are also increasing the effects of competition (Jack, Greenwood, and Schapper, 2012). To ensure that all stakeholders are safeguarded and that businesses play nice, more stringent rules and regulations have been introduced throughout the world.

In all business transactions, the law requires that all parties be willingly participating, that is to say, that there should be a willing buyer and a willing seller for a transaction to be considered lawful. Many business people however cut corners and employ deceptive tactics effectively denying consumers their right to consent. In the business arena, four main stakeholders interact with each other on a regular basis; individuals, organizations, governments or their proxies and the environment. The rules that govern the interactions of these parties are known as contracts and occur in five common formats. First, implicit agreements are based on perceived expectations between two or more parties that are dictated by the circumstances they find themselves in at the moment. A person who breaks an item in a store will have to take liability for the loss and pay for it. Second, spoken promises hold the speaker accountable due to his or her reputation being on the line. A man who proposes marriage to a woman usually has to follow through on his promise and marry her or risk ruining his reputation if he does not have a valid enough reason to call off the engagement. Third, buyer agreements can govern the conditions of sale of goods or services by a vendor to a consumer and state the conditions and terms of transfer of ownership. Fourth, warranties are contracts that ensure consumers of the quality of goods and services that they purchase from producers and manufacturers. Manufacturers provide product surety to consumers based on their reputation that if the products should malfunction while under normal care and operations they will replace them or fix them at no extra cost to the consumer. Last, government constitutions are the supreme laws that govern any jurisdiction under said governments.

There, however, comes times and situations where the parties present have had no prior interactions or common laws to guide them. Social contract theories play a significant role in ensuring peace and harmony in such situations since the simple act of one individual ensuring his or her self-preservation and continuity; they unwittingly ensure that of other parties. There is a lot of money, consumers, and resources to go around if businesses take the time to work together rather than fight and squabble amongst themselves. Businesses need to develop and formulate sustainable and progressive guidelines to govern their processes and mind the environment. Many of the guidelines currently in play across different industries and markets reward the most effective raw material user. Although this leads to high revenues and profits for such firms, it creates a lot of wastage and unfairness, which is detrimental to the environment and market sustainability in the end. Businesses and professional bodies, therefore, need to take active steps to enhance the preservation of the greater good for posterity and for healthy and vibrant economies. If institutions can manage to create good and sustainable governance policies and procedures, they can effectively enhance the development of industry and market wide procedures and policies that will enhance process and system efficiencies while ensuring the preservation of the environment.

Organizations further need to improve their work conditions and environments to enable their employees to work in a happy and safe environment. Employees need to be accorded the same rights and freedoms that their organization wants them to relinquish. Employment terms and contracts need to give both parties the same amount of liberties with regard to notice and payment of final dues. Employers further need to understand that they should accord their employees due process during disputes or appraisals, which will improve their morale and motivation.

Part 4. How to conduct an ethical analysis

An ethical analysis can only be effectively conducted in an environment with pre-existing and established rules that are well known to the participants or players. The art and study of how to make sound rules are known as deontology. Rules function to increase the predictability of the effects of actions or plans (May, Li, Mencl and Huang, 2014). Entities that work within the confines of these laws and regulations significantly increase their chances of survival and continuity. Business processes are divided into tasks and duties where the former refers to the division of work into smaller manageable jobs that can be shared amongst many workers to increase efficiency and accountability. The later refers to the assignment of responsibility for the accomplishment of a task to a particular individual or organization. The effective completion of a duty requires the responsible party to have a certain amount of knowledge, capacity, and virtues. Knowledge is essential in providing the doer with the technical understanding of the processes and their sequence. The doer must have the right prerequisite tools, materials and physical disposition to carry out the task successfully. He or she must further have the ability to bring all these resources together in symphony in order to carry out the task successfully. There, however, exist certain exceptions to some rule where their application will expressly prejudice other parties in the organization.

A situation where the application of one rule to one party will disadvantage others is called a dilemma (Palazzo, Krings, Hoffrage, 2012). There are two types of dilemmas; practical dilemmas are those that occur in situations where carrying out one action will benefit the doer or his or her company while at the same time resulting in another equal amount of loss or exposure. Ethical dilemmas are those where doing good for one party to a contract will affect another negatively. The latter is usually harder and more complicated to resolve than the former. Eight fundamental truths can, however, help business leaders and individuals to successfully resolve ethical dilemmas. First, they need to identify the real issues involved in the dilemma to avoid wasting resources and time dealing with symptoms. Second, they need to identify laws and precedents that might address the problems they have identified above to ensure maximum conformity. Third, they must understand the threats that the problem poses to their organization in order to enhance strategy development and mitigate any blowback that might result. Fourth, they must also identify other possible casualties that might result from the situation. Fifth, understanding the principle that best categorizes the problem could be instrumental to its speedy and successful resolution. Sixth, identifying the best ethical defenses for the chosen course of action is important in anticipation of the questions and inquiries that are sure to follow. Seventh, they should figure out how to best implement the developed solutions to enhance their success. Last, they need to be proactive in developing policies to prevent a repeat of the same situation in the future.

Ofweneke is a Ghanaian immigrant to the US and has successfully completed his doctoral studies in a prestigious institution but has failed to secure employment due to racial bias in recruitment. He has a family back home that depends on him for their livelihood. Due to the challenges in securing employment as a professor in the colleges around his town. Ofweneke has opened up a writing lab where he offers tutoring services for both graduate and post graduate students. Most clients have approached him for writing services instead of his planned tutoring and the month is fast drawing to a close and he has neither made enough money for his subsistence nor to send back home. Although he understands that writing papers for his clients will be tantamount to cheating, the prices they are willing to pay for them could set him well on his way to financial freedom. He also understands that although he is fully qualified the chances of him landing a good position in any school are very slim. Many of the colleges and universities, however, refer students to him for tutoring and even offer him part time to tutor jobs once a month. The money he gets is however too little for his needs.

Frustrated with the system, Ofweneke decides to take on his clients requests and in two weeks, he has made more money than he could have made as a fully-fledged professor. Due to the high quality of work he does for his clients, he gets a steady stream of new clients from referrals. Ofweneke was faced with a choice between starvation and making money by possibly helping students cheat. A teacher by profession, making that decision was probably the hardest thing he has ever had to do. However, in light of the skewed system, he considers it payback for the injustices he and other immigrants have to contend with although being qualified teachers. He has created a forum where other qualified professors who are yet to get teaching positions in schools can come together and make a living while doing what they really love; reading and research. The principle of self-preservation applies in this case.