Ethical_Issues

Ethical Issues Organizational Ethics and Social Responsibility MGT216 August 21, 2010 Ethical Issues Business ethics is defined as the behavior that a business adheres to in its daily dealings with the world. This doesn’t only apply to how the business interacts with the world at large but also to their one on one dealing with a single customer. Business ethics can increase customer loyalty and increase the amount of customers by referral. When a business is found trustworthy and reliable customers tend to refer family and friends for services. Good business ethics should be a part of every business, regardless of size. Today it seems that they’ve lost sight and money has been the only goal. Ethical issues we deal with in today’s business environment include professional ethics, environmental and ecological ethics, and sales and marketing. Professional ethics are standards or codes of conduct set by people in a specific profession. Respect and honesty are the main two components of professional ethics. Professionals have more responsibilities than people in general. They are capable of making or acting on an informed decision in situations because they are trained things the general public is not. For example a member of the public could not be held responsible for not helping a victim of an accident a doctor however could. It would be unethical for a doctor to stand by and not attempt to help the victim. People place trust in professionals on the basis that they will provide a service that will benefit them. It is possible for professionals to use their authority to exploit a client. An example of that would be a dentist or doctor that does work that isn’t needed for monetary gain. There is no way for a patient to be aware that this is happening because they trust the professional. Environmental and ecological ethics is simply ensuring that energy saving practices are used in the everyday running of an office. Being sure that pollution is kept to a minimum and investing in environmental and ethical businesses. This varies depending on the industry. It is not possible to know that a company you come across is based on ethical principles. Companies are beginning to put together information about themselves. If customers begin asking for this information showing that customers care about ethics in a company it could motivate less ethical companies to make a change. Ethical Issues Salesmen and marketers are in control of what they say to customers and how and where they say it. An organization that markets or sales product of poor quality takes a chance of developing a reputation of being deceptive. Marketing is deceptive if customer believes they’re getting more value from a product then they actually receive. When a product does not provide expected value customer will most likely find a different source thus causing a company to lose money and customers. Business ethics are an important part of business; it can make or break a company. Consumers have a particular way they wish to be treated and expect the product or services they pay for to be of a certain quality. When an organization has an ethical code in place consumers are usually comfortable with that company and will be repeat customer while also being the best marketer; word of mouth. This paper discussed three different ethical issues in today’s business environment; professional ethics, environmental and ecological ethics and salesmen and marketing ethics. All of these are issues simply because many people and organizations have lost sight of the consumer; money has seemed to have taken over. Companies are fined for unethical behavior but the monetary gain outweighs the fine. Once organizations go back to basics and put the customer first there will be a change in customer retention. References www.axiosinstitute.org www.prophix.com/reporting