Personal_Value

Personal Values Paper Omotinuke Adebiyi April 19, 2010 Abstract The Ethics awareness Inventory refers to a series of broad characterizations representing four prominent categories of ethical philosophy. These descriptions are used to analyze some of the characteristics of my own perspective on ethics, as identified by my Ethics Awareness Inventory. This category should closely reflect my perspective on ethics. My Ethical Perspective I tend to base my ethical perspective on what it is so good to be, rather than what it is good to do. I believe that ethics should focus on ways to help people achieve moral excellence. When Asked to judge whether an individual’s actions are ethical, I look beyond the actions to examine the individual’s character. Uprightness and integrity are key factors in my assessment. I look for evidence of virtue in people, including such traits as honor, justice and benevolence, believing that a virtue is not just an abstract principle. Rather virtue is reflected in the quality of an individual’s character, and character is more important than an individual’s actions. In my opinion, mere compliance with rules, no matter how well intentioned does not make anyone an ethical person. My Ethical Style I believe that ethics relies on the ability of individuals to make sound moral judgments. I do not believe that it is enough to comply with some preset standards or principles of right and wrong to find the solution to a complex ethical dilemma. Ethics relies on exemplary character to make the difficult choices. I value such qualities as honesty, wisdom and integrity and I place greater emphasis on demonstrating these qualities than on following rules. I believe that an individual would be incapable of choosing between conflicting rules or standards of right and wrong without already possessing good character. My approach to ethics calls for developing practical wisdom and sound judgment within individuals to guide them in their ethical decision making. My ethical style compels me to strive to be a person of wisdom and integrity. Frustrations I Face in Addressing Ethical Dilemmas * Because social inequalities exist in our society, not everyone has an equal opportunity to develop the virtues that I value so highly. * I believe that development of character within individuals is a slow and deliberate process that has been neglected in recent years. This kind of ideal goal is not compatible with the tendency for some people to look for “quick fixes” for problems. * I am frustrated when ethical considerations appear to be tacked on to the “real business” of organizational decision making- almost as an afterthought. I believe this disregard for ethics is a negative reflection on the character of the decision makers. * The people that I work with may not have had the benefit of appropriate moral guidance throughout their lives, and they may not understand my perspective. * The word “integrity” is used by many in ethical discussions, but modeled by few. Trying to align my values to Kudler Fine Foods and how this would affect my performance if I was a manager there makes me to point out Kathy’s vision of the organization: – Kathy not only has the vision of the organization, she has established the culture and is the main management person. She hires new people, fires those not working out, finalizes the inventory numbers, places the weekly orders and controls the finances making sure all of the vendors get paid. Based on her vision, I think that my values fall right in place on the way that I will run KFF as a manager. I would expect nothing less than Kathy would from all of my employees. No matter which ethical perspective that is identified as mine and no matter what ethical style, the important thing to understand is that we all face situations in which we must choose what we believe is “right”. Contrary to some beliefs that we can remain “value neutral” in our research and studies, when faced with an ethical decision, we all believe that there are “right” and “wrong” answers. It is therefore critical to develop a process that will guide us in our struggle to make ethical decisions – one that will allow us to consider a variety of aspects that affect not only our immediate decision but its impact on other people.