The Ethically Responsible Organization

Today’s businesses have an obligation to conduct themselves in an ethical and responsible manner at all times. Fortunately, many businesses have historically embraced the idea that they can operate in an ethically & responsible manner. However, there are way too many companies that are willing to cut corners and do whatever it takes to make a profit, thus contributing to the vortex of mistrust, distrust, misinformation, disinformation and less than full disclosures as a result of their unethical misconduct. This book takes the position that ‘enough is enough’ and argues that all businesses can and must be ethically responsible no matter its size or whether it operates locally or globally. The book describes the features of an ethically responsible (e.g., ethical and socially responsible) organization that is committed to always “doing the right things” which means they are committed to building, institutionalizing and sustaining an ethically oriented organizational culture. Ethical responsibility means maintaining —even improving— your bottom line, while setting a high bar for high ethical standards AND making a positive contribution to society. The book argues that organizations must be attentive to ensuring that the culture has as its core accountability, responsibility, and learning which means it invests in developing and expecting all of its employees to be fully engaged in making ethical decisions and being ethical leaders. The book also discusses what it means to be an ethically responsible global business, leader, middle manager, and lower level employee. The Ethically Responsible Organization provides a detailed look at the importance of organizations doing preventive work to avoid ethical falls or scandals and takes the position that if such a fall or scandal occurs then the company should seize the moment and learn from the experience by becoming a learning organization. The book also takes the position that an ethically responsible organization is already a learning organization where continuous inquiry, diagnosis, reflection, learning and self-correction is the keystone of the way it operates. Finally, the book offers some ideas on how organizations can reinforce and sustain themselves as ethically responsible businesses today and in the future by taking a strategic approach to ethics that includes constant and consistent ethics training and education for all its employees and partners. In the end, the purpose of the book is to continue to increase our understanding of why organizations stray from “doing the right things” and how a focus on being ethically responsible can position companies to avoid or quickly respond to any potential ethical misconduct or find themselves in the list of the years’ top ethical scandals. This book is written for all those who also take the stance that ‘enough is enough’ when it comes to the headlines of another failure because the organization’s leaders would not commit to being ethically responsible and find themselves in the throes of an ethical scandal and unable to recover from it – and like “Humpty Dumpty, all the kings horses and all the kings men the company can’t recover from what was a preventable ethical fall.”

This book challenges these limited accounts of ethics and responsibility. It will be relevant to students and researchers across business and management, organizational studies, critical management studies, gender studies and sociology.

A Contemporary Look at Business Ethics provides a ‘present day’ look at business ethics to include the challenges, opportunities and increased need for ethical leadership in today’s and tomorrow’s organizations. The book discusses current and future business ethics challenges, issues and opportunities which provides the context leaders and their organizations must navigate. The book includes an in?depth look at lessons learned about the causes of unethical behavior by examining a number of real?world examples of ethical scandals from around the world that have taken place over the past few decades. The analysis of the various ethical scandals focuses on concepts like ethical versus unethical leadership, received wisdom, the bottom?line mentality, groupthink and moral muteness, all of which contribute to the kind of organizational culture and ethical behavior one finds in an organization. The book discusses ethical decision making in general and the increased role of religion and spirituality, in confronting unethical behavior in contemporary organizations. The book also takes an in?depth look at the impact ethical scandals have on employees and more specifically the psychological contract and person?organization ethical fit with the goal of identifying, along with other things, what leaders can do to restore relationships with employees and rebuild the organization’s reputation in the eyes of various stakeholders.

We are constantly faced with ethical decisions, no matter what organizations we join. The ethical choices we make determine the health of our businesses, schools, government agencies, religious congregations, charities, and other institutions. Our ethical decisions also determine our career success or failure. Bestselling author, Craig E. Johnson, shows how we can develop our ethical competence, just as we develop our abilities to manage or oversee operations. Every chapter of Organizational Ethics: A Practical Approach, Third Edition provides readers with opportunities to apply ethical principles and practices in a variety of settings through self-reflection, analyses, projects, and discussion. Written in a reader-friendly style, each part of the book is layered around organizational behavior. The parts introduce moral theories used in ethical problem-solving; examines individual motivations; looks at the ethical dilemmas of groups, teams, and leaders as well as offers strategies for creating ethical cultures and promoting social responsibility. This book shows how readers can develop their ethical expertise and provides opportunities to practice problem-solving to defend their decisions.

Capitalizing on significant developments in social science over the past twenty years, this book explores both the positive and negative aspects of power, identifying opportunities and threats. It shows how managers and employees can manage power in order to make it a constructive force in organizations.

Maintaining solid corporate ethics goes beyond just being a ‘feel good’ story or a good public relations angle. Organizations that demonstrate strong ethical commitments can gain a real competitive advantage over others by keeping employees happy and productive and keeping customers satisfied and loyal, while avoiding some of the unexpected pitfalls that may beset a less ethical organization. These factors all lead to a more stable and consistent organization, and will improve the bottom line and drives higher profits. The erosion of business ethics affects everyone, from the employees laid off, stockholders losing investments, to customers paying a higher price or receiving lesser quality. In Bringing Business Ethics to Life: Achieving Corporate Social Responsibility, best selling author Bjørn Andersen has written an easy to read yet powerful book demonstrating the need for solid ethics in every organization. Andersen first explains the importance of creating a strong ethical culture within every organization, demonstrating the positive effects it will have throughout the business. He then shows how business leaders can make this happen, by introducing a holistic value-driven and ethically based model of leadership and management that can bring about dramatic changes for any organization.

As corporations become increasingly more powerful, their decisions have a larger impact on the social and ecological landscape both domestically and internationally. In Ethics and HRD, Tim Hatcher shows how human resource development departments can foster ethical consciousness and play an important role in transforming their organizations into responsible corporate citizens. He describes the relationship between ethical leadership, social responsibility, and HRD and shows how to synthesize them into a new and more sustainable paradigm for HRD. The first book of its kind, it will serve as a guide for managers, human - resource professionals, and students of HRD alike.

Given recent financial crises and scandals, the rise of corporate social responsibility and the challenge of environmental sustainability, few would disagree that the role of ethics has taken centre stage in the management of organizations. In reality, however, organizations have found it extremely difficult to promote successful, ethical behaviour as this rarely results in short-term gains which can be appraised and rewarded. By and Burnes bring together leading international scholars in the fields of organizational change and leadership to explore and understand the context, theory and successful promotion of ethical behaviour in organizations. By focusing on real world examples, contributors analyze the issues and challenges that hinder ethical change leadership which can lead to sustainable organizations. This unique volume brings together the worlds of organizational change, leadership, business ethics and corporate social responsibility, resulting in a book that will be valuable reading in all four fields. With contributions from leading scholars, including David Boje, Dexter Dunphy, Suzanne Benn and Carl Rhodes, Organizational Change, Leadership and Ethics is a must-read.