The Ethical Dilemmas faced by Business Corporations



The Ethical Dilemmas faced by Business Corporations

Introduction

This paper will discuss the ethical dilemmas which are facing by different organizations in today's world. It will also discuss the global implications of the ethical and moral issues in the world of business, as well as it will present the examples of some of the famous companies which have faced any ethical dilemma.

Discussion

Ethics is a set of moral principles and values ??which govern the behavior of a person or group of people and determine the positive and negative assessments of their thoughts and actions. Ethical values are like internal code of laws, which determine how to behave, what should be done and what should be not. It is a difference between the good and the evil. Ethics associated with inner values, is also a part of the corporate culture and determine its acceptability under the social environment. Ethical problem arises when the actions of an individual or an organization may harm the society or its people.

The conflicts of ethics in the business environment are expected to some degree in the twenty first century. There may be a number of scandals in the society. However, the managers of the organizations need to proactively prevent and maintain ethical standards for the protection against unethical and illegal activities. On the other hand, the expectations of the society from the companies are so high that some companies have to incorporate and practice corporate social responsibility (CSR) to comply with the ethical guidelines (Dobson, 1997).

Management in the modern enterprises is primarily responsible towards its shareholders and communities. The ethical problems involve complexity, diversity and variability issues. Managers of the companies find it easier to pretend that they do not see any problems, and then make decisions based on purely economic considerations. Economic imperative dictates primacy of the financial business issues. Ethical aspects are common to all areas of activity of the governmental organizations as well. Ethical issued also affect decisions regarding hiring, performance criteria, definition of research and development and industrial policy, marketing and charitable activities of the organizations.

Global Implications of the Dilemmas

The value-based public goods such as ecological management, solidarity, justice and human rights are the subject of global oriented ethical discussions in the world economy to build a more ethical orientation in the international business of the twenty first century. Therefore, there are a number of ethical dilemmas which have become obvious in today's era of business. These are:

Pesticides and toxic waste

Child labor

Disregard for human rights

Cultural adaptation

Field of armaments projects and corruption

Franchising and cultural maladjustment

Intellectual property rights

The discussion on ethical values ??in the economy focuses on the questions of ethical organizations in the twenty first century as well as on the adoption and implementation of codes of conduct for multinational companies and others. On the basis of proposals from the United Nations and the OECD, the ethical behavior in the development of an acceptable code of conduct for ethical organizations of the twenty first century is considerable (Drahos ...