Managing Ethics and Social Responsibility: Management, 13e
Managing Ethics and Social Responsibility: Management, 13e
Managing Ethics and Social Responsibility: Management, 13e
Richard L. Daft
Chapter 5
Managing Ethics
and Social Responsibility
Managerial Ethics
Ethics: code of moral principles and values
that governs the behaviors of a person or
group with respect to what is right or wrong
Three categories of behavior
Codified law: values and standards written into
the legal system and enforceable in the courts
Free choice: behavior not covered by law and
for which an individual has complete freedom
Ethics: standards of conduct based on shared
principles and values about moral conduct
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5.1 Three Domains of
Human Action
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Ethical Management Today
(slide 1 of 2)
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Ethical Management Today
(slide 2 of 2)
Ethical managers
Display honesty and integrity
Communicate and enforce ethical
standards through their behavior
Are fair in their decisions and the
distribution of rewards
Show kindness and concern for others
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5.2 Four Types of Ethical
Manager Behavior
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The Business Case for
Ethics and Social
Responsibility
Studies have found a positive relationship
between ethical and socially responsible
behavior and a firm’s financial
performance
People prefer to work for ethical
companies
Customers would switch brands to do
business with a company that is ethical
and socially responsible
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Ethical Dilemmas
Ethical dilemma: situation concerning
right or wrong when values are in conflict
Right and wrong cannot be clearly defined
Ethical issues can be very complex
Moral agent: the individual who must
make an ethical choice in an organization
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Frameworks for Ethical
Decision Making (slide 1 of 3)
Utilitarian approach: moral behavior
produces the greatest good for the
greatest number
Individualism approach: acts are moral
if they promote the individual’s best long-
term interests
Moral-rights approach: humans have
fundamental rights and liberties that
cannot be taken away by an individual’s
decision
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Frameworks for Ethical
Decision Making (slide 2 of 3)
Justice approach: moral decisions must be
based on standards of equity, fairness, and
impartiality
Distributive justice: different treatment of
people cannot be based on arbitrary
characteristic
Procedural justice: rules must be
administered fairly
Compensatory justice: individuals should
be compensated for the cost of their injuries
by the party responsible
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Frameworks for Ethical
Decision Making (slide 3 of 3)
Practical approach: makes decisions
based on prevailing standards, society,
and all stakeholders
Criteria to be considered ethical
Acceptable by the professional community
Manager would not hesitate to publish on
the evening news
Person would typically feel comfortable
explaining to family and friends
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A Manager’s Ethical Choices
Individuals bring their own personality
and traits to organizations
Personal needs, family influence, and
religious background shape individuals
Personality characteristics such as ego,
self-confidence, and independence may
enable managers to make ethical choices
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5.3 Three Levels of Personal
Moral Development
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What Is Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR)? (slide 1 of 2)
Corporate social responsibility (CSR):
management’s obligation to make choices
and take actions that will contribute to the
welfare and interests of society, not just
the organization
Stakeholder: any group within or outside
the organization that has a stake in the
organization’s performance
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What Is Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR)? (slide 2 of 2)
Stakeholder mapping: technique that
provides a systematic way to identify the
expectations, needs, importance, and
power of stakeholders
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5.4 Major Stakeholders
Relevant to Gap Inc.
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Conscious Capitalism
Conscious capitalism: organizational
policies and practices that both enhance
the economic success of a company and
advance the economic and social
conditions of the communities in which
the company operates
Also referred to as a shared value
approach
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The Green Movement
Driving forces
Shift in social attitudes
New governmental policies
Climate change
Information technology
Quickly spreads news of bad corporate
decisions
Greenwashing: company tries to portray
itself as more environmentally minded
than it actually is
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The Ethic of Sustainability
Sustainability: ability to generate
wealth without compromising
environmental responsibility and social
stewardship, thus meeting the current and
future needs of stakeholders while
preserving the environment and society
so that future generations can meet their
needs as well
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The Triple Bottom Line
Triple bottom line: measuring an
organization’s social performance, its
environmental performance, and its
financial performance
Sometimes called the three Ps
People: looks at socially responsible
aspects
Planet: measures aspects such as
commitment to environmental
sustainability
Profit: looks at success in making 20
5.5 Sustainability and the
Triple Bottom Line
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Benefit Corporations and
B Lab
Benefit corporation: a for-profit
organization that has a stated purpose
that includes creating a material positive
impact on society; is required to consider
the impact of all decisions on
shareholders, employees, the community,
and the environment; and voluntarily
holds itself to high standards of
accountability and transparency
B Lab is a nonprofit organization that
certifies businesses as B corporations 22
5.6 Building an Ethical
Organization
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Code of Ethics
Code of ethics: a formal statement of
a company’s values concerning ethics
and social issues
Principle-based statements: define
fundamental values, company
responsibilities, quality of products, and
treatment of employees
Policy-based statements: outline the
procedures to be used in specific
ethical situations
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Ethical Structures
Ethical structures represent the systems,
positions, and programs a company can
undertake to implement ethical behavior
Ethics committee: group of executives
appointed to oversee the organization’s
ethics by ruling on questionable issues
and disciplining violators
Chief ethics officer: a company
executive who oversees all aspects of
ethics and legal compliance
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Whistle-Blowing
Whistle-blowing: employee
disclosure of illegal, unethical, or
illegitimate practices on the employer’s
part
Company actions to make whistle-
blowing an effective ethical safeguard
View whistle-blowing as a benefit to the
company
Make dedicated efforts to protect
whistle-blowers
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