Ethics Failure due to Organizational Culture
Introduction
The standards of the operations of organizations are set by business ethics. These ethical principles provide the foundation for the different concepts for organizations. This broadens the individual as well as the organizational priorities beyond traditional objectives of an organization which is to maximize profits as well as enriching the shareholders. Factors associated with ethics also have a crucial impact on the institutions as well as the public sector companies, whereby the traditional priorities of ensuring that product attains quality as well as maximizing profits and management of costs should comply with the ethical considerations that affect both the commercial and corporate world. This essay addresses the reasons why organizations fail to practice ethics in management as a result of organizational cultures. In addition, the effects of CSR on business ethics are also discussed, including the steps that organizations may take to win digital data ethics.
Ethics Failure due to Organizational Culture
Ethics entails a collective people’s attitudes that are cultivated and supported by not less than seven factors (Azanza, Moriano and Molero, 2013, pp.47). These factors include leadership from the management, programs and policies, business conduct, trust in workers, communication that is open and timely, availing tools to workers to solve ethical issues, a reward and recognition system that reinforces ethics’ importance. It is necessary to note the top management leadership plays an important part in developing and implementing ethics management strategy. This means that the top management is responsible for the business’s overall ethics (Aguinis and Glavas, 2012, pp.932). Hence, without the commitment of the top management would result to non-ethical compliance by the workforce that is under the management. Additionally, this workforce may be discouraged may be discouraged from practicing ethics since the system they are associated with does not value such initiative (Worrall, 2012, pp.74). Following leadership and commitment is having a well-defined set of primary values. Deficient in having a written code of conduct as well as the values undermine the management’s needs because the workers are not managed appropriately and thus are left to decide on their own perspective the correct action to take (Berings and Adriaenssens, 2012, pp.328). The written values assist in managing crisis because it acts as a guide to both the management and the staff in making important decisions.
Nonetheless, the study has indicated that the managers need to be careful of the strategy they are implementing as they establish a code of conduct that is well-defined. Studies show that the most appropriate approach is the integrity approach than compliance approach in the implementation of a code of ethics within an organization (Bezrukova, Thatcher,Jehn, and Spell, 2012, pp.77). This is because the authoritative style of having rules only results to the formulation of more rules. Additionally, communication contributes to the organization’s failure to implement ethical management in the workplace. This is because there are goal thrust and value congruency’s environment devoid that results due to the lack of open and honest rapport among the high and low levels (Burnes and Oswick, 2012, pp.4). This is also associated with the absence of timely feedback. Disseminating effective work ethics as well as results which include timely feedback from the management facilitates problem identification as well as enhancing the timely application of solutions to the identified problem.
Importance of Top Management and Written Codes of Conduct
In addition, lack of employee ethics training program also affects ethical management in the workplace. It is ineffective for an organization to have ethical codes unless the ethical codes are accepted, maintained, and cultivated as well as vigorously implemented by the organization’ employees (Carroll and Buchholtz, 2014, pp.125). For effectiveness of such abstract ideas in becoming tools for managing crisis, it is important that employees are reinforced with training programs. Ethical values that are not internalized results to making unethical decisions by an individual.
The other factor why business fails to practice ethics in the workplace is due to lack of trust in the business. Trust that is important for authentic transformational leadership fails when the management is caught in lies. Other factors that result in distrust are discrimination, hostility, as well as the inconsistent application of policies. Finally, the availability or absence of a reward and recognition system may either make or break the implementation of ethical management in a business (Demuijnck, 2015, pp.836). There is a need for the managers to complement the atmosphere of their commitment to ethical behavior through positive results such as by giving promotions as well as other rewards. Whistle-blowers are beneficial to a corporation since they possess strong ethical convictions, thus making them important in checking and balancing the entity’s system. Thus, lack of such people affects the practice of ethical management in a business.
Conclusion and Recommendation
The report shows that the main failure in ethics management is mainly as a result of the inadequate commitment by the management, insufficient leadership, organizational mistrust, inexistent policies and programs, and lack of tools in resolving ethical problems such as training. The absence of management ethics has negative impacts on a business because it affects the interpersonal relationship between the employees and the managers. Also, the business’s atmosphere, the quality of operations, and the organization’s image is affected. For an efficient shift of organizational operations in attaining business ethics, it is recommended that the organizations should lead with culture by making the most of cultural support. Second, in making changes during changes to incorporate ethics into an operation should begin with the top management. Nonetheless, in shifting the operation model, every layer should be involved in the initiative.
Case 2
Introduction
Corporate Social Responsibility is closely related and associated with organizational ethics. Corporate Social Responsibility involves continuous commitment by the organizations in behaving ethically as well as facilitating the economic growth while similarly improving the employees’ life’s quality, their families, and the local community. Corporate Social Responsibility is also reflected in an organization’s corporate behavior and policies such as how the workers, community, suppliers, the environment, and the stakeholders are treated by the company.
Effects of Communication and Feedback on Ethical Management
Foxconn Technology Group is a multinational organization that is located in Taiwan. Its primary plant operates in Shenzhen, China. The company is considered to be the largest electronic, computer as well as computer components manufacturer across the globe. The company has more than 800,000 employees where 500,000 workers are involved in the manufacture of Apple Inc. products. Between 2010 and 2013, the organization has been associated with a string of suicide where 16 people have resulted in jumping from the company’s high buildings (Denison, Nieminen and Kotrba, 2014, pp.152). Additionally, there have been 12 more deaths and 20 of the employees were stopped while in the process of jumping. The company has been described as having a military-style of efficiency where the assembly line employees’ movements are mapped out in details and their tasks are monitored using a stopwatch. A normal employee within the company shares a dormitory room with nine other employees, as well as working for almost 11 to 13 hours, and eat in a campus cafeteria. The company forbids snacks and has a shortage of warm water resulting to use of cold showers by the workers (Ferrell and Fraedrich, 2015, pp.62). From the above, it is seen that the company is not committed to behaving ethically pertaining to the working conditions of the workers as well as fairness. Most of the workers worked for long hours and received low wages while under extreme pressure.
Corporations are considered to be powerful as well as being influential institutions. Nonetheless, it is important to remember that their actions have a public effect that impacts on the lives of many people which is as a result of their behavior and actions (Floyd, Xu, Atkins and Caldwell, 2013, pp.761). Due to this, it is important that businesses act and behave responsibly. Additionally, Corporate Social Responsibility should be used in guiding corporations to an ethical path. Firms that do not regard their responsibilities behave in unethical ways thus earning a bad reputation that results in destroying the company’s image. It is observed that CSR affects business ethics in the following ways: due to the high demand for accountability by the stakeholders, CSR has been seen to be involved in complex decision making. As a result, the organizations move from a single dimension of thinking which is to maximize the profits and become concerned about the social, economic, and environmental issues thus shaping the company’s ethical management (Gentile, 2013, pp.1220). For this t be possible, it is essential to have knowledge on CSR. This is because learning about Corporate Social Responsibility entails having an understanding of how to manage CSR initiatives as well as engaging the stakeholders to ensure that the management keeps the Corporate Social Responsibility alive within the organization. Additionally, learning about Corporate Social Responsibility is necessary because it assists in recognizing ethical misconduct that might take place within the organization by the stakeholders, managers, and the workers (Laschinger, Wong, Cummings and Grau, 2014, pp.5). This, as a result, creates a gateway to addressing the ethical misconduct.
Employee Training Programs and Reinforcement
Nonetheless, some organizations such as the United Nations are struggling to use their framework to regulate CSR. This is because CSR is a voluntary organizational action since it goes beyond regulations and laws. CSR cannot be compared in detail because it lacks formal regulation as well as not being standardized (Mahrt and Scharkow, 2013, pp.31). This leads to the use of Corporate Social Responsibility as a marketing ploy hence impacting negatively on business ethics. Such incidences have been revealed by the British American Tobacco Corporation that is known to perform socially responsible acts. This is because the organizations have been given the opportunity of shaping and defining Corporate Social Responsibility leading to the rise in abuse of power. As a result, this affects the business’s ethical behavior.
Additionally, Corporate Social Responsibility is concerned with the maintenance of the environment. By being green, an organization can reap many benefits in several ways. It is important that businesses adhere to environmental legislation (Miller and Ewest, 2013, pp.34). Some of the problems associated with the environment include recycling, scarce resources’ consumption, waste disposal, and recycling (Mittelstadt and Floridi, 2016, pp.332). Thus, in this case, the Corporate Social Responsibility is seen to affect business ethics in that it guides an organization in conserving the environment. By concerning themselves with the environment, they will improve their reputation from the community and the stakeholders.
Conclusion
Regardless that Corporate Social Responsibility is considered to be an idealistic idea, particularly because it is voluntary and there are no regulations guiding it thus subjecting it to the abuse of power, it has an effect on business ethics. Additionally, if CSR is properly applied, it may result in favorable positive results. The government and corporations are powerful and they possess a lot of influence. Thus, they can make a great difference to the society. The difference impacted on the society either positive or negative by these institutions will depend on the Corporate Social Responsibility’s contribution to enhancing the thinking on what is considered to be ethically right or wrong. CSR’s knowledge may lead to the production of decisions and behaviors that the stakeholders recognize to be unethical as well as assisting managers to become aware on how to best manage CSR since it impacts on business ethics. A Corporate Social Responsibility framework should align the organization’ primary business strategy, markets demand, and expertise to the community’s efforts as well as charitable efforts. As a result, this assists in building on organization’s social capital resulting in positive returns.
Building Trust to Support Ethical Behavior
Case 3
Introduction
Today, the biggest risk that is accounted for by organizations is data. As the data’s business value increases, organizations are facing the risk of improper data handling. Some companies’ executives have reported strong demand for knowledge among employees in managing data ethically while others view trust as the digital economy’s cornerstone. It is thus important that ethics is considered to be the primary performance indicator of all workers who directly or indirectly come into contact with clients’ data. This report addresses the steps to winning digital effectiveness.
First, data should not be collected just for the sake of increasing data size. This is because data that is collected will be useful in the future for unpredictable purposes. Second, data can be used as a tool of inclusion or exclusion. As a result, data experts should always listen to the concerns of the people affected and mitigate their products’ disparate impacts (Murgia and Poggio, 2013, pp.417). Third, data experts should maximize transparency during data collection process to reduce risks may arise during the data’s supply chain. Fourth, data experts should clearly present their qualifications by adhering to professional standards and striving to attain peer accountability. Mainly, this discipline depends on the trust from the customers. Hence, the data experts should formulate practices that ensure they hold themselves and their peers accountable to the standards (Pfeffer, 2014, pp.51). Fifth, there should be formulation and design of practices which include accountability, transparency, auditability, as well as configurability. Not all ethical issues are considered to have designed solutions. However, paying close attention to designing practices can help in breaking down many practical barriers that hinder shared and robust ethical standards. Sixth, practices that relate to products and research should be subjected to both internal and external ethical review. Companies should put their priority in the establishment of actionable, consistent as well as efficient ethical review measures of all new product, services, and research programs. Conducting an internal review helps in mitigating risk while the external review contributes mainly in gaining public trust. Last, there should be robust governance practices that are known by all the team members, and they should be regularly reviewed (Richards and King, 2014, pp.393). There many organizational challenges that are posed by data ethics, and it is hard to resolve them using only compliance regime. Thus, companies that are engaged in data analytics require collaborative, transparent measures, and routine to ensure there is ethical governance.
The Role of a Reward and Recognition System
Conclusion
Companies are more likely to reduce their likelihood of exposure to digital risk through the integration of data ethics practices in their data supply chains. This will result in the increase of stakeholders’ trust, improved business benefits, as well as positioning themselves for future benefits in the digital economy.
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