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    Ethics in Business

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    Eduardo Canela
    This document discusses ethics in business practice and provides guidelines for running a business ethically. It outlines several ethical principles that should be followed, including trust, responsibility, honesty, integrity, fairness, equity, loyalty, fidelity, confidentiality, and reparation. These principles are important to apply to all aspects of running a business, from hiring and firing to pricing and promotions. Upholding strong ethical standards in business dealings will help a business gain the trust of customers and partners and ensure long-term growth and success.

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    Ethics in Business

    Uploaded by

    Eduardo Canela
    76 views16 pages
    This document discusses ethics in business practice and provides guidelines for running a business ethically. It outlines several ethical principles that should be followed, including trust, responsibility, honesty, integrity, fairness, equity, loyalty, fidelity, confidentiality, and reparation. These principles are important to apply to all aspects of running a business, from hiring and firing to pricing and promotions. Upholding strong ethical standards in business dealings will help a business gain the trust of customers and partners and ensure long-term growth and success.

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    This document discusses ethics in business practice and provides guidelines for running a business ethically. It outlines several ethical principles that should be followed, including trust, responsibility, honesty, integrity, fairness, equity, loyalty, fidelity, confidentiality, and reparation. These principles are important to apply to all aspects of running a business, from hiring and firing to pricing and promotions. Upholding strong ethical standards in business dealings will help a business gain the trust of customers and partners and ensure long-term growth and success.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    76 views16 pages

    Ethics in Business

    Uploaded by

    Eduardo Canela
    This document discusses ethics in business practice and provides guidelines for running a business ethically. It outlines several ethical principles that should be followed, including trust, responsibility, honesty, integrity, fairness, equity, loyalty, fidelity, confidentiality, and reparation. These principles are important to apply to all aspects of running a business, from hiring and firing to pricing and promotions. Upholding strong ethical standards in business dealings will help a business gain the trust of customers and partners and ensure long-term growth and success.

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    Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria

    ETHICS IN BUSINESS PRACTICE


    OBJECTIVES : To expose participants on the issues in business ethics

    To show participants how to run their businesses in an ethical manner

    INTRODUCTION Ethics when applied to business is a set of values and beliefs, culture evolving over a period of time that guides business practice. Business ethics is therefore a form of applied ethics. The aim of business ethics is to inculcate a sense within a business owner and the employees of how to conduct business responsibly. Business ethics is often translated through such terms as integrity of responsible business conduct, what is right or wrong, legality, etc. therefore the goal of ethics is the pursuit of that which is legal, right and balanced.

    THE REQUIREMENTS OF ETHICS A HIGH SENSE OF SELF AWARENESS AND MANAGEMENT This is seen in ones management. do you plan your activities and give priority to urgent matters? Do you set goals and pursue the goals? Furthermore, it is seen in ones personal grooming and consciousness, in human relations, in striving for excellence and in self discipline.

    A HIGH SENSE OF RESPONSIBILITY AND LOYALITY Responsibility demands that you should care for and account for whatever is put in your care or charge. Loyalty is about commitment to set objectives or goals, steadfast allegiance to the management of the organization or your business. High sense of responsibility and loyalty should be exhibited in ones own roles, towards superiors and subordinates, towards the customers and suppliers.

    A HIGH SENSE OF PROBITY Honesty should be demonstrated in dealing with confidential matters, in handling companys finances, and indeed in very different situations.
    HIGH SENSE OF ACCOUNTABILITY This is being responsible or answerable for your decisions and actions when called to do so. Accountability is required for positions held or authority received and roles played, for resources utilized.

    ETHICAL PRINCIPLES IN BUSINESS Trust: Business thrives mainly on trust. Often times you are faced with the challenge of who to trust. Trust presents a picture of belief that somebody is sincere or honest in his statements or offers. That he will not try to harm or deceive you. It is the belief that something is true or correct and you can rely on it. It is having confidence that a company or a product can be relied upon. Right: Right is seen as justified claim or action. Most of us know the difference between right or wrong. How do your business decisions make you feel? Would you like others to know you made the decision you did? Insist on doing the right thing in your business dealings.

    Integrity: This implies having strong moral principles. Integrity in business pays. Any business run that is devoid of integrity has a short life span. Being honest in your business dealings demonstrates integrity. Honesty: Tell the truth always. Avoid denials that could affect your integrity in business. Disclose any necessary information to your publics and facilitate access to queries. Respond openly to all queries and complaints. Honesty earns confidence of your publics. Honesty has a lasting positive implication on the business.

    Responsibility: In this context, we refer to responsible business conduct, being reliable or trust worthy, accountable etc. Business should be run responsibly in order to build the trust of customers and other publics. Fairness: Ensure fairness in action and deals undertaken, ensure adequate compensation for the parties involved. Apply same standards in judging ones actions, others dear to one, and those of strangers. Fairness ensures that no one is cheated or treated unduly.

    Equity: In upholding equity, you are expected to treat everyone equally no discrimination, partiality or nepotism. Equity is the pursuit of that which is fair and reasonable. Do not try to exploit your workers, partner, customers etc. Do not take advantage of your customers ignorance in terms of the quality, the quantity and the price of the product / service. Loyalty: Loyalty entails commitment to set objectives by all concerned. It calls for steadfast allegiance to management of the organization. Disloyalty can dislodge the mission of an organization. Business organizations require loyal employees, loyal customers, loyal suppliers, distributors etc.

    Fidelity: Keeping promises is one of the challenges of good business practice. You have a duty as a business owner to keep promises-promises of quality of prompt delivery, of quick services, quick response to complaints etc. Keeping promises creates in the mind of your publics enduring trust that you will deliver what you promised. Reparation: What do you do when you find out that you have short changed or deceived your client (customers)? The principle of reparation puts a duty on you to compensate others when you harm, defraud or cheat them. When this is done it restores confidence and promises business growth.

    Confidentiality: Confidentiality entails being discreet with the publics. It also means refusing to reveal official information. Certain information are regarded as confidential and thus treated with secrecy especially in large organizations. Be discreet with business information especially if it does not affect your publics adversely

    THE APPLICATION OF ETHICS Most business actions and choices, decisions and judgments have ethical aspects. They involve specifically values, help or harm people, or indicate character or all of the above

    Sternberg (2000) stated that, hiring or firing, choosing suppliers setting prices, establishing objectives, allocating resources, determining dividends, disciplining workers, planning schedules, awarding contracts all involve ethical choices

    Ethical consideration is an indispensable aspect of business. It promotes sound business practice. It is expressed in all aspect of business such as outlined above and more. It is evident in product design, product quality, pricing, promotion, packaging, sales and marketing, negotiation, social responsibility, environmental issues, legal tax and regulatory issues and so on. In fact there is no area or aspect of business that does not raise ethical questions.

    Your ethical foundation will go a long way in determining your attitude, your responses, your relationships, your actions, and choices and in fact your success in your business dealings, you are expected to adhere to a set of these moral principles. This is what being ethical is about. Do to others what you would expect them to do to you.

    CONCLUSION It is worthwhile to run your business ethically. On the long run your Business gains due to its long lasting impact on business growth. Insist on those values that are morally sound, insist on doing things right. It will make your publics have confidence in your business which will result in great patronage. Trade tricks, sharp business practices, profiteering etc are unethical business behaviours. They will undermine the success of your business. Therefore, avoid them in your business dealings.
    Thank you for your audience!

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