1

Levels at Which Ethical Issues May

Be Addressed
1)Personal level—situations faced in personal life
(income tax, doing kid’s homework, etc.)
2)Organizational level—workplace situations faced
as managers and employees (cutting corners, etc.)
Levels at Which Ethical Issues May
Be Addressed
3)Industrial level—situations confronted as
professionals (the practices of stockbrokers,
accountants, etc.)
4)Societal and international levels—local-to-
global situations confronted indirectly as a
management team
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Resolving Ethical Conflicts
Three Approaches
Conventional
Principles
Ethical tests
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Principles Approach
Anchors decision making
on an ethical principle such as:
Utilitarianism Caring
Rights Virtue ethics
Justice Servant leadership
Golden Rule
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Principle of Utilitarianism focuses on an act that
produces the greatest ratio of good to evil for
everyone
Consequentialist theory
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Principle of Rights focuses on examining and
possibly protecting individual moral or legal rights
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Principle of justice involves considering what
alternative promotes fair treatment of people
Types of justice
Distributive
Compensatory
Procedural
Rawlsian
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Rawls’ Justice
 Each person has an equal right to the most basic
liberties comparable with similar liberties for others
 Social and economic inequalities are arranged so
that they are both:
a) reasonably expected to be to everyone’s advantage
and
b) attached to positions and offices open to all people
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Principle of caring focuses on a person as a
relational (cooperative) and not as an individual
Feminist theory
Virtue ethics focuses on individuals becoming
imbued with virtues
Aristotle and Plato
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Servant leadership focuses on serving others first
such as employees, customers, community and so
on
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Characteristics of Servant Leaders
Listening Foresight

Empathy Conceptualization

Healing Commitment to the

growth of people
Persuasion
Stewardship
Awareness
Building community
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Golden rule focuses on the premise that you
should of unto others as you would have them do
unto you
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Concerns to be Addressed in
Ethical Conflicts
Obligations
Ideals
Effects
Personal and Managerial Ethics
When Our Obligations, Ideals and
Effects Conflicts
When two or more moral obligations conflict, use
the stronger one
When two or more ideals conflict, or when ideals
conflict with obligations, honor the more
important one
When effects are mixed, choose the action that
produces the greatest good and the least harm
Personal and Managerial Ethics
Ethics Test Approach
Test of common sense
Test of one’s best self
Test of making something public
Test of ventilation
Gag test
Factors Affecting the Morality of Managers
Society’s Moral Climate
Business’s Moral Climate
Industry’s Moral Climate

Superiors
Policies

Individual
(One’s Peers
personal
situation)
Managing Organizational Ethics
Factors Influencing Unethical Behavior
Behavior of superiors
Ethical practices of one’s industry or profession
Behavior of one’s peers in the organization
Formal organizational policy (or lack of one)
Personal financial need
Managing Organizational Ethics
Questionable Behaviors of Superiors or Peers
Amoral decision making
Unethical acts, behaviors or practices
Acceptance or legality as the standard behavior
Absence of ethical leadership
Managing Organizational Ethics
Questionable Behaviors of Superiors or Peers
Objects and evaluation systems overemphasizing
profits
Insensitivity toward how subordinates perceive
pressure to meet goals
Inadequate formal ethics policies
Ethics Programs Effective
Ethics Audit
& Officers Communication

Realistic
Objectives
Top
Management Ethics Training
Leadership
Ethical Decision-
making Processes

Codes of Discipline of Whistle-blowing

Conduct Violators Mechanisms
(“Hotlines”)
 Identify decision you
are about to make

Articulate all dimensions

of proposed decision

Conventional Approach Principles Approach Ethical Tests Approach

Standards/Norms Ethical Principles Ethical Tests
-Personal -Justice -Common sense
-Organizational -Rights -One’s best self
-Societal -Utilitarianism -Public disclosure
-International -Golden Rule -Gag test . . .

Course of action fails

Course of action passes ethics screen
ethics screen

Do not engage in course

Engage in course of of action
action
Identify new course of
action
 Moral Decision(s)

Moral Manager(s)

Moral Organization
Case 4.1
Imagine that you are an experienced engineer. You
occasionally pause to watch the progress of a construction
site in the middle of a city where you work. A viewing place
has been formed in the security fence specifically for
members of the public. You notice a problem with a tower
crane, which you feel could lead to a failure if not rectified.
The failure is not likely to take place immediately but it
appears to you that the crane could collapse and parts of
the boom fall into the site and adjacent street unless some
action is taken soon. Do you have any responsibility for
action to prevent the possible accident? If so, to whom?
Case 4.2
You are used to working in the United Kingdom but
this is the first time you have worked overseas in a
developing country. You are disturbed to see the poor
health and safety standards everywhere around you.
Work would certainly not be allowed to be carried out
under these conditions in the United Kingdom.
What should you do?