SELF-PACED LEARNING MODULE

COLLEGE DEPARTMENT

MODULE 5
Subject:
AE10-GBERMIC: GOVERNANCE, BUSINESS ETHICS, RISK MANAGEMENT AND
INTERNAL CONTROL

AISAT COLLEGE – DASMARIÑAS, INC.

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 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |2
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

INFORMATION SHEET PR-5.1.1

“Introduction to Ethics”

Objectives:

After completing this module, the learner will be able to:

1. Define Ethics

2. Enumerate and describe the basic characteristics and values associated with ethical behavior

3. Appreciate why ethical behavior in personal, professional and business dealings is necessary.

4. Understand the reasons why people act unethically.

5. Give and explain the categories of ethical principles

6. Give and describe the ethical principles related to:

a. Personal ethics

b. Professional ethics

c. Business ethics

7. Explain why professional ethics is important and why a code of conduct should be adopted.

Introduction to Ethics

Ethics can be defined broadly as a set of moral principles or values that govern the actions and
decisions of an individual or group. While personal ethics vary from individual to individual at any point
in time, most people within a society are able to agree about what is considered ethical and unethical
behavior. In fact, a society passes laws that define what its citizens consider to be the more extreme
forms of unethical behavior.

Each of us has such a set of values, although we may or may not have considered them explicitly
Philosophers, religious organizations, and other groups have defined in various ways ideal sets of moral
principles or values. Examples of prescribed sets of moral principles or values at the implementation
level include laws and regulations, church doctrine, code of business ethics for professional groups such
as CPAs, and codes of conduct within individual organizations.

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |3
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

Ethics is a topic that is receiving a great deal of attention throughout our society today. This
attention is an indication of both the importance of ethical behavior to maintaining a civil society, and a
significant number of notable instances of unethical behavior. Much of what is considered unethical in a
particular society is not specifically prohibited. So how do we know whether we are acting ethically?
Who decides what standards of conduct are appropriate? Is any type of behavior "ethical " as long as it
does not violate a law or a rule of one's profession?

It is common for people to differ in their moral principles or values. Even if two people agree on
the ethical principles that determine ethical behavior, it is unlikely that they will agree on the relative
importance of each principle. These differences result from all of our life experiences. Parents, teachers,
friends and employers are known to influence our values, but so do television, team sports, life
successes and failures, and thousands of other experiences.

Characteristics and Value Associated with Ethical Behavior

The following list of ethical principles incorporates the characteristics and values that most
people associate with ethical behavior.

1. Integrity:

Be principled, honorable, upright courageous and act on convictions; do not be

twofaced or unscrupulous, or adopt an end justifies the means philosophy that ignores principle.

2. Honesty:

Be truthful, sincere, forthright, straightforward, frank, can did do not cheat, steal, lie,
deceive or act deviously.

3. Trustworthiness and Promise Keeping:

Be worthy of trust, keep promises, full commitments, abide by the spirit as well as the
letter of an agreement; do not interpret agreements in an unreasonably technical or legalistic
manner in order to rationalize noncompliance or create excuses and justification for breaking
commitments.

4. Loyalty (Fidelity) and Confidentiality:

Be faithful and loyal to family, friends, employers, client and country, do not use or
disclose information learned in confidence; in a professional context safeguard the influences
and conflicts of interest.

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |4
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

5. Fairness and Openness:

Be fair and open-minded, be willing to admit error and, where appropriate, change
positions and beliefs, demonstrate a commitment to justice, the equal treatment of individuals,
and tolerance for acceptance of diversity; do overreach or take advantage of another's mistakes
or diversities.

6. Caring for Others:

Be caring, kind, and compassionate share, be giving, be of service to others help those in
need and avoid harming others.

7. Respect for Others:

Demonstrate respect for human dignity, privacy, and the right to self-determination of
all people; be courteous, prompt, and decent; provide others with the information they need to
make informed decisions about their own lives; do not patronize, embarrass, or demean.

8. Responsible Citizenship:

Obey just laws ; if all law unjust , openly protest it; exercise all democratic rights and
privileged responsibly by participation (voting and expressing informed views ), social
consciousness , and public service ; when in a position of leadership or authority , openly respect
and honor democratic processes of decision making , avoid unnecessary secrecy or concealment
of information , and assure that others have all the information they need to make intelligent
choices and exercise their rights.

9. Pursuit of Excellence:

Pursue excellence in all matters ; in meeting your personal and professional

responsibilities , be diligent , reliable , industrious and committed ; perform all tasks to the best
of your ability , develop and maintain a high degree of competence , be well informed and well
prepared , do not be content with mediocrity do not "win at any cost".

10. Accountability:

Be accountable, accept responsibility for decisions, for the foreseeable consequences of

actions and inactions, and for setting an example of others. Parents, teachers, employers, many
professionals and public officials have a special obligation to lead by example, to safeguard and
advance the integrity and reputation of their families, companies, professions and the
government itself, an ethically sensitive individual avoids even the appearance of impropriety,
and takes whatever actions are necessary to correct or prevent inappropriate conduct of others.

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |5
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

Why is Ethical Behavior Necessary?

Ethical behavior is necessary for a society to function in an orderly manner. can be argued that
ethics is the glue that holds a society together. What would happen if for example we could not depend
on the people we deal with to be honest? If parents, teachers, employees, siblings, co-workers and
friends all consistently lied, it would be almost impossible for effective communication to occur.

The need for ethics in society is sufficiently important that many commonly held ethical values
are incorporated into laws. For example, laws dealing with driving while intoxicated and selling drugs
concern responsible citizenship and respect for other. Similarly, if a company sells a defective product, it
can be held accountable if harmed parties choose to sue throughout the legal system.

A considerable portion of the ethical values of a society cannot be incorporated into laws
because of the judgmental nature of certain values. Looking at the honesty principle, it is practical to
have laws that deal with cheating, stealing, lying, or deceiving others. It is far more difficult to establish
meaningful laws that deal with many aspects of principles such as integrity, loyalty and pursuit of
excellence. That does not imply that these principles are less important for an orderly society.

Business decisions influence employees, customers, suppliers and competitors, while company
operations affect communities, governments and the environment.

Why do people act unethically?

Most people define unethical behavior as conduct that differs from the way they believe would
have been appropriate given the circumstances. Each of us decides for ourselves what we consider
unethical behavior, both for ourselves and other It is important to understand what causes people to act
in a manner that we decide is unethical.

There are two primary reasons why people act unethically:

1. the person's ethical standards are different from those of society as a whole

2. the person chooses to act selfishly.

In many instances, both reasons exist.

1. Person's Ethical Standards differ from General Society

Extreme examples of people whose behavior violates almost everyone's ethical

standards are drug dealers, bank robbers, and larcenists. Most people who commit such acts
feel no remorse when they are apprehended, because their ethical standards differ from those
of society as a whole.

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |6
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

There are also many far fewer extreme examples when violate our ethical values. When
people cheat on their tax returns, treat other people with hostility, lie on employment
applications, or perform below their competence level as employees, most of us regard that as
unethical behavior. If the other person has decided that this behavior is ethical and acceptable,
there is a conflict of ethical values that is unlikely to be resolved.

2. The Person Chooses to Act Selfishly

A considerable portion of unethical behavior results from selfish behavior. The Pork
Barrel Scam and the other political scandals resulted from the desire for political power and
wealth; cheating on tax returns and expense reports is motivated by financial greed performing
below one's competence and cheating on tests are typically due to laziness. In each case, the
person knows that the behavior is inappropriate, but chooses to do it anyway because of the
personal sacrifice needed to act ethically.

Categories of Ethical Principles

1. Principles of Personal Ethics include among others

 Basic justice, fairness

 Respect for the right of others

 Concern for the right of others

 Concern for the well - being on welfare of others

 Benevolence, trustworthiness, honesty

 Compliance with the law

2. Professional Ethics include among others

 Integrity, impartiality, objectivity

 Professional competence

 Confidentiality

 Professional behavior

 Avoidance of potential or apparent conflict of interest

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |7
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

3. Business Ethics include among others

 Fair competition

 Global as well as domestic justice Social responsibility

 Concern for environment

The Need for Professional Ethics

To understand the importance of a Code of Ethics to professionals, one must understand the
nature of a profession as opposed to other vacation.

There is no universally accepted definition of what constitutes a profession; yet, for

generations, certain types of activities have been recognized as professions while others have not.

Medicine, law, engineering, architecture and theology are examples of disciplines long accorded
professional status. Public accounting is relatively new as far as the ranking of the professions is
concerned but it has achieved widespread recognition in recent decade.

All the recognized professions have several common characteristics. The most important of
these characteristics are:

1. a responsibility to serve the public

2. a complex body of knowledge

3. standards of admission to the profession

4. a need for public confidence

Careless work or lack of integrity of a professional may lead the public to a negative view toward
the entire profession. All professionals must have public confidence of the public to be successful.
Consequently, the members of the different professions act in unison by deriving their respective code
of conduct.

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |8
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

Code of Good Governance for the Profession in the Philippines (June 23, 2003)

This Code is adopted by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) and the 42 Professional
Regulatory Boards to cover an environment of good governance in which all Filipino professionals shall
perform their tasks. While each profession may adopt and enforce its own code of good governance and
code of ethics, it is generally recognized that there is a general commonality among the various codes.
This Code which covers the common principles underlying the codes of various professions could be
used by all professionals who face critical ethical questions in their work.

General Principle of Professional Conduct

Professionals are required not only to have an ethical commitment , a personal resolve to act
ethically, but also have both ethical awareness and ethical competency Ethical awareness refers to the
ability to between night and wrong while ethical competency pertains to the ability engage in sound
moral reasoning and consider carefully the implications of alterative actions.

Specific Principle of Professional Conduct

1. Service to Others:

Professionals are committed to a life of service to others. They protect life, property,
and public welfare. serve others, they shall be prepared for heroic sacrifice and genuine
selflessness in carrying out their professional duties even at the expense of personal gain.

2. Integrity and Objectivity:

To maintain and broaden public confidence, professionals shall perform their

responsibilities with the highest sense of integrity and imbued with nationalism and spinal
values In the performance of any professional service, they shall at all times, main objectivity, be
free of conflicts of interest and refrain from engaging in any activity that would prejudice their
abilities carry out their duties ethically. They shall avoid making any representation that would
likely cause a reasonable person to misunderstand or to be deceived.

3. Professional Competence:

In providing professional services, a certain level of competence is necessary, ion,

knowledge, technical skills attitudes, and experience Professionals shall, therefore, undertake
only those professional services that they can reasonably deliver with professional competence.
Corollary to this, it is their express obligation to keep up with new knowledge and techniques in
their field, continually improve their skills and upgrade their level of competence and take part
in a lifelong continuing education program.

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk Page |9
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

4. Solidarity and Teamwork:

Each profession shall nurture and support one organization for all its members. Though
a deep spirit of solidarity, each member should put the broader interest of the profession above
one's personal ambition and preference. Through teamwork within a cohesive professional
organization, each member shall effectively observe ethical practices and pursue continuing
professional development as well as deepen one's social and civic responsibility.

5. Social and Civic Responsibility:

Professionals shall always carry out their professional duties with due consideration of
the broader interest of the public They shall, therefore serve their clients/ employers and the
publics with professional concern and in a manner consistent with their responsibilities to
society. As responsible Filipino citizens, they shall actively contribute to the attainment of the
country's national objectives.

6. Global Competitiveness:

Every professional shall remain open to challenges of a more dynamic interconnected

world or she shall rise up to global standards and maintain levels of professional practices fully
aligned with global best practices.

7. Equality of All Professions:

All professionals shall treat their colleagues with respect and shall strive to be fair in
their dealings with another. No one group of professionals is superior or above others. All
professionals perform an equally important yet distinct, service to society. In the of the PRC, all
professions are equal and therefore, every one shall treat one other professionals with respect
and fairness.

Reference:

 Corporate Governance, Business Ethics, Risk Management and Internal Control, 2019-2020
Edition, Ma. Elenita Balata Cabrera and Gilbert Anthony B. Cabrera

STUDENT NAME: __________________________________ SECTION: __________________

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk P a g e | 10
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

WRITTEN WORK PR-5.1.1

“Introduction to Ethics”

WRITTEN WORK TITLE: Introduction to Ethics

WRITTEN TASK OBJECTIVE: The student on his own and in the long run will be able to
demonstrate understanding and show their knowledge on the
topic and to express their opinion about the topic.

MATERIALS: Pen and paper

TOOLS & EQUIPMENT: None
ESTIMATED COST: None

Let’s Analyze on your own 500 words:

1. Name and Explain the characteristics and values

associated with ethical behavior.

2. Explain why ethical behavior is necessary.

Questions:
3. Explain why ethical behavior is necessary in the
practice of one’s profession

4. Describe some the principles and or value that are

related to:

a. personal ethics

b. professional ethics

c. business ethics.

PRECAUTIONS: None
ASSESSMENT METHOD: Written work criteria checklist

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher
 Unit Business Ethics
Module Introduction to Ethics
Government, Business Ethics, Risk P a g e | 11
AE10-GBERMIC Units: 4
Management and Internal Control

STUDENT NAME: __________________________________ SECTION: __________________

WRITTEN OUTPUT CRITERIA CHECK LIST PR-5.1.1

“Introduction to Ethics”

CRITERIA SCORING
Did I . . . 1 2 3 4 5
1. Focus – The single controlling point made with an awareness of task
about a specific topic.
2. Content – The presentation of ideas developed through facts,
examples, anecdotes, details, opinions, statistics, reasons and/or
opinions
3. Organization – The order developed and sustained within and across
paragraphs using transitional devices and including introduction and
conclusion.
4. Style – The choice, use and arrangement of words and sentence
structures that create tone and voice.
5. Conventions – Grammar, mechanics, spelling, usage and sentence
formation.
TEACHER’S REMARKS:  QUIZ  RECITATION  PROJECT

GRADE:

1 - Excellently Performed
1 - Very Satisfactorily Performed
1 - Satisfactorily Performed
1 - Fairly Performed
1 - Poorly Performed

Ms. CHITA S. CABANZA

TEACHER

Date: __________________

PREPARED BY: APPROVED FOR IMPLEMENTATION:

st nd
MODULE 1 –2
PRELIM MR. WILBERT A. MAÑUSCA
5 Meeting CHITA S. CABANZA School Director
Subject Teacher