Three types of ethical code

Code of ethics (corporate or business ethics)

A code of business ethics often focuses on social issues. It may set out general principles about an organization's beliefs on matters such as mission, quality, privacy or the environment. It may delineate proper procedures to determine whether a violation of the code of ethics has occurred and, if so, what remedies should be imposed. The effectiveness of such codes of ethics depends on the extent to which management supports them with sanctions and rewards. Violations of a private organization's code of ethics usually can subject the violator to the organization's remedies (such as restraint of trade based on moral principles). The code of ethics links to and gives rise to a code of conduct for employees.

code of ethics(business of ethics) focus on social issue of organization. It focuses on development of business, mission of business , plan of business development , it determines privacy, environment and great plan to deliver business at the top level. Nagendra.

Example:
[Company Name] will conduct its business honestly and ethically wherever we operate in the world. We will constantly improve the quality of our services, products and operations and will create a reputation for honesty, fairness, respect, responsibility, integrity, trust and sound business judgment. No illegal or unethical conduct on the part of officers, directors, employees or affiliates is in the companys best interest. [Company Name] will not compromise its principles for short-term advantage. The ethical performance of this company is the sum of the ethics of the men and women who work here. Thus, we are all expected to adhere to high standards of personal integrity. Officers, directors, and employees of the company must never permit their personal interests to conflict, or appear to conflict, with the interests of the company, its clients or affiliates. Officers, directors and employees must be particularly careful to avoid representing [Company Name] in any transaction with others with whom there is any outside business affiliation or relationship. Officers, directors, and employees shall avoid using their company contacts to advance their private business or personal interests at the expense of the company, its clients or affiliates. No bribes, kickbacks or other similar remuneration or consideration shall be given to any person or organization in order to attract or influence business activity. Officers, directors and employees shall avoid gifts, gratuities, fees, bonuses or excessive entertainment, in order to attract or influence business activity. Officers, directors and employees of [Company Name] will often come into contact with, or have possession of, proprietary, confidential or business-sensitive information and must take appropriate steps to assure that such information is strictly safeguarded. This informationwhether it is on behalf of our company or any of our clients or affiliatescould include strategic business plans, operating results, marketing strategies, customer lists, personnel records, upcoming acquisitions and divestitures, new investments, and manufacturing costs, processes and methods. Proprietary, confidential and sensitive

business information about this company, other companies, individuals and entities should be treated with sensitivity and discretion and only be disseminated on a need-to-know basis. Misuse of material inside information in connection with trading in the companys securities can expose an individual to civil liability and penalties under the Securities Exchange Act. Under this Act, directors, officers, and employees in possession of material information not available to the public are insiders. Spouses, friends, suppliers, brokers, and others outside the company who may have acquired the information directly or indirectly from a director, officer or employee are also insiders. The Act prohibits insiders from trading in, or recommending the sale or purchase of, the companys securities, while such inside information is regarded as material, or if it is important enough to influence you or any other person in the purchase or sale of securities of any company with which we do business, which could be affected by the inside information. The following guidelines should be followed in dealing with inside information: Until the material information has been publicly released by the company, an employee must not disclose it to anyone except those within the company whose positions require use of the information.

Employees must not buy or sell the companys securities when they have knowledge of material information concerning the company until it has been disclosed to the public and the public has had sufficient time to absorb the information. Employees shall not buy or sell securities of another corporation, the value of which is likely to be affected by an action by the company of which the employee is aware and which has not been publicly disclosed.

Officers, directors and employees will seek to report all information accurately and honestly, and as otherwise required by applicable reporting requirements. Officers, directors and employees will refrain from gathering competitor intelligence by illegitimate means and refrain from acting on knowledge which has been gathered in such a manner. The officers, directors and employees of [Company Name] will seek to avoid exaggerating or disparaging comparisons of the services and competence of their competitors. Officers, directors and employees will obey all Equal Employment Opportunity laws and act with respect and responsibility towards others in all of their dealings. Officers, directors and employees will remain personally balanced so that their personal life will not interfere with their ability to deliver quality products or services to the company and its clients. Officers, directors and employees agree to disclose unethical, dishonest, fraudulent and illegal behavior, or the violation of company policies and procedures, directly to management. Violation of this Code of Ethics can result in discipline, including possible termination. The degree of discipline relates in part to whether there was a voluntary disclosure of any ethical violation and whether or not the violator cooperated in any subsequent investigation

Code of conduct (employee ethics)

A code of conduct for employees sets out the procedures to be used in specific ethical situations, such as conflicts of interest or the acceptance of gifts, and delineate the procedures to determine whether a violation of the code of ethics occurred and, if so, what remedies should be imposed. The effectiveness of such codes of ethics depends on the extent to which management supports them with sanctions and rewards. Violations of a code of conduct may subject the violator to the organization's remedies which can under particular circumstances result in the termination of employment.
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of practice (professional ethics)

A code of practice is adopted by a profession or by a governmental or non-governmental organization to regulate that profession. A code of practice may be styled as a code of professional responsibility, which will discuss difficult issues, difficult decisions that will often need to be made, and provide a clear account of what behavior is considered "ethical" or "correct" or "right" in the circumstances. In a membership context, failure to comply with a code of practice can result in expulsion from the professional organization. In its 2007 International Good Practice Guidance, Defining and Developing an Effective Code of Conduct for Organizations, the International Federation of Accountants [1] provided the following working definition: "Principles, values, standards, or rules of behavior that guide the

decisions, procedures and systems of an organization in a way that (a) contributes to the welfare of its key stakeholders, and (b) respects the rights of all constituents affected by its operations."

sample code of practice

Here's a sample of a code of practice for a business (it's the one we generally use for our our own consultancy services). Feel free to adapt and use it for your own organization. Ensure that you check it with your legal department or legal advisor before establishing and issuing a code of practice, as this type of document will almost certainly have contractual implications for your organization. Involving customers in the drafting of a code of practice is also useful. A code of practice is not the same as your terms and conditions of sale, which are purely to cover the legal aspects of the sales transaction. A code of practice should reflect as far as possible the way that you do business, and also cover any issues of potential misunderstanding concerned with your trading style, and even your business philosophy. Your code of practice should state your organization's position on the issues that your customers might consider to be important criteria in the approval of suppliers, so the example below is not an exhaustive or definitive list. A code of practice is a good way to state clearly your organization's position on important subjects like equality, ethics, contracts, conflict of interest and duty of care. Often these matters get overlooked in the process of buying and selling, only to surface later and cause problems because they've not initially been properly explained or understood. Being able to provide a solid and fair code of practice is therefore important in order to establish a clear common understanding of expectations and deliverables between supplier and customer. So if you don't have one, produce one, get it approved, and start using it.

sample code of practice

Confidentiality
We are committed to maintaining the highest degree of integrity in all our dealings with potential, current and past clients, both in terms of normal commercial confidentiality, and the protection of all personal information received in the course of providing the business services concerned. We extend the same standards to all our customers, suppliers and associates.

Ethics
We always conduct our own services honestly and honourably, and expect our clients and suppliers to do the same. Our advice, strategic assistance and the methods imparted through our training, take proper account of ethical considerations, together with the protection and enhancement of the moral position of our clients and suppliers.

Duty of care
Our actions and advice will always conform to relevant law, and we believe that all businesses and organizations, including this consultancy, should avoid causing any adverse effect on the human rights of

people in the organizations we deal with, the local and wider environments, and the well-being of society at large.

Conflict of interest
Due to the sensitive nature of our particular consultancy services, we will not provide a service to a direct competitor of a client, and we generally try to avoid any dealings with competitor companies even after the cessation of services to a client.

Contracts
Our contract will usually be in the form of a detailed proposal, including aims, activities, costs, timescales and deliverables. The quality of our service and the value of our support provide the only true basis for continuity. We always try to meet our clients' contractual requirements, and particularly for situations where an external funding provider requires more official parameters and controls.

Fees
Our fees are always competitive for what we provide, which is high quality, tailored, specialised service. As such we do not generally offer arbitrary discounts; generally a reduction in price is only enabled by reducing the level or extent of services to be delivered. That said, we always try to propose solutions which accommodate our clients' available budgets and timescales. Wherever possible we agree our fees and basis of charges clearly in advance, so that we and our clients can plan reliably for what lies ahead, and how it is to be achieved and financially justified.

Payment
We aim to be as flexible as possible in the way that our services our charged. Some clients prefer fixed project fees; others are happier with retainers, and we try to fit in with what will be best for the client. We make no attempt to charge interest on late payments, so we expect payments to be made when agreed. Our terms are generally net monthly in arrears.

Intellectual property and moral rights

We retain the moral rights in, and ownership of, all intellectual property that we create unless agreed otherwise in advance with our clients. In return we respect the moral and intellectual copyright vested in our clients' intellectual property.

Quality assurance
We maintain the quality of what we do through constant ongoing review with our clients, of all aims, activities, outcomes and the cost-effectiveness of every activity. We encourage regular review meetings and provide regular progress reports. This consultancy has been accredited under a number of quality assurance schemes. Further details are available on request.

Professional conduct
We conduct all of our activities professionally and with integrity. We take great care to be completely objective in our judgement and any recommendations that we give, so that issues are never influenced by anything other than the best and proper interests of our clients.

Equality and discrimination

We always strive to be fair and objective in our advice and actions, and we are never influenced in our decisions, actions or recommendations by issues of gender, race, creed, colour, age or personal disability.