Business Ethics - Social Environment, Business Environment | Business Environment - B Com PDF Download

Meaning:

The term ‘Business Ethics’ refers to the system of moral principles and rules of the conduct applied to business. Business being a social organ shall not be conducted in a way detrimental to the interests of the society and the business sector itself. Every profession or group frames certain do’s and do not’s for its members. The members are given a standard in which they are supposed to operate. These standards are influenced by the prevailing economic and social situations. The codes of conduct are periodically reviewed to suit the changing circumstances.

Definitions:

“Business Ethics is generally coming to know what is right or wrong in the work place and doing what is right. This is in regard to effects of products/services and in relationship with the stake holders.” —Cater Mcnamara

“Business ethics in short can be defined as the systematic study of ethical matters pertaining to the business, industry or related activities, institutions and beliefs. Business ethics is the systematic handling of values in business and industry.” —John Donaldson

There is no unanimity of opinion as to what constitutes business ethics. There are no separate ethics of business but every individual and organ in society should abide by certain moral orders.

Business ethics should take into consideration the following factors:

1. A business should aim to have fair dealing with everyone dealing with it.

2. Ethics should be fixed for everyone working in the organisation at any level and their implementation should be linked with reward- punishment system.

3. Any violation of ethics should be detected at the earliest and remedial measures taken immediately.

4. Business ethics should be based on broad guidelines of what should be done and what should be avoided.

5. The ethics should be based on the perception of what is right.

Sources of Business Ethic:

In every society there are three sources of business ethics-Religion, Culture and Law. The HR manager in every organisation, thus, has to be well versed with the unique system of values developed by these three sources.

These sources are discussed as follows:

1. Religion:

Religion is the oldest source of Religion is the oldest source of ethical inspiration. There are more than ethical inspirations. 1, 00,000 religions which exist across the whole world, but all of them are in agreement on the fundamental principles. Every religion gives an expression of what is wrong and right in business and other walks of life. The Principle of reciprocity towards one’s fellow beings is found in all the religions. Great religions preach the necessity for an orderly social system and emphasize upon social responsibility with an objective to contribute to the general welfare. With these fundamentals, every religion creates its own code of conduct.

2. Culture:

Culture is the set of important understandings that members of a community share in common. It consists of a basic set of values, ideas, perceptions, preferences, concept of morality, code of conduct etc. which creates distinctiveness among human groups. When we talk about culture we typically refer to the pattern of development reflected in a society’s pattern of knowledge, ideology, values, laws, social norms and day to day rituals. Depending upon the pattern and stage of development, culture differs from society to society. Moreover culture is passed from generation to generation. Culture facilitates the generation of commitment to something larger than one’s individual self interest.

Culture encourages the members of the organisation to give priority to organizational goals over and above their personal interests. Culture also serves as a sense making and control mechanism that guides and shapes the attitudes and behaviour of people. Managers have to run an industrial enterprise on the cutting edge of cultural experience. The tension that their actions create makes the business ethically more complex.

3. Law:

The legal system of any country, guide the human behaviour in the society. Whatever, ethics the law defines are binding on the society. The society expects the business to abide by the law. Although it is expected that every business should be law abiding, seldom do the businesses adhere to the rules and regulations. Law breaking in business is common eg. Tax evasion, hoarding, adulteration, poor quality & high priced products, environment pollution etc.

Importance of Business Ethics:

1. Corresponds to Basic Human Needs:

The basic need of every human being is that they want to be a part of the organisation which they can respect and be proud of, because they perceive it to be ethical. Everybody likes to be associated with an organisation which the society respects as a honest and socially responsible organisation. The HR managers have to fulfill this basic need of the employees as well as their own basic need that they want to direct an ethical organisation. The basic needs of the employees as well as the managers compel the organizations to be ethically oriented.

2. Credibility in the Public:

Ethical values of an organisation create credibility in the public eye. People will like to buy the product of a company if they believe that the company is honest and is offering value for money. The public issues of such companies are bound to be a success. Because of this reason only the cola companies are spending huge sums of money on the advertisements now-a-days to convince the public that their products are safe and free from pesticides of any kind.

3. Credibility with the Employees:

When employees are convinced of the ethical values of the organisation they are working for, they hold the organisation in high esteem. It creates common goals, values and language. The HR manager will have credibility with the employees just because the organisation has creditability in the eyes of the public. Perceived social uprightness and moral values can win the employees more than any other incentive plans.

4. Better Decision Making:

Respect for ethics will force a management to take various economic, social and ethical aspects into consideration while taking the decisions. Decision making will be better if the decisions are in the interest of the public, employees and company’s own long term good.

5. Profitability:

Being ethical does not mean not making any profits. Every organisation has a responsibility towards itself also i.e., to earn profits. Ethical companies are bound to be successful and more profitable in the long run though in the short run they can lose money.

6. Protection of Society:

Ethics can protect the society in a better way than even the legal system of the country. Where law fails, ethics always succeed. The government cannot regulate all the activities that are harmful to the society. A HR manager, who is ethically sound, can reach out to agitated employees, more effectively than the police.