Business And Professional Ethics Management

Running head: BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
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BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL ETHICS1
Question 1
a) What does Goodpaster mean by ‘strategic stakeholder synthesis’? Why does
he think that businesses that operate according to the principles of strategic
stakeholder synthesis do not really introduce ethical values into business
decision making?
(Goodpaster 1991) states when companies or organisations identify stakeholders who can have a
huge impact on the business of an organisation and include them in the decision making process
assessing their impact on the business then this is known as the strategic stakeholder synthesis.
According to Goodpaster, organisations need not introduce ethics and values in diverse decisions
and their associated systems as the primary focus of an organisation is mainly because of their
own benefits and profits and thus they do not include stakeholders with minimum impact on the
business in their decision making. Functioning systematically and properly is enough in this
approach (Goodpaster 1991).
b) Goodpaster argues that we need an approach to business ethics that avoids
business without ethics (strategic stakeholder synthesis) and ethics without
business (a multi-fiduciary stakeholder approach). Explain Goodpaster’s
nonfiduciary approach to business obligations, making sure you distinguish it
from both the multifiduciary stakeholder approach and the strategic
stakeholder approach.
(Goodpaster 1991) argues that is important to practice an approach which avoids both
strategic stakeholder synthesis and multi-fiduciary stakeholder approach and thus presents a

BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL ETHICS2
nonfiduciary approach, Nemo Dat Principle where he states that it is not important for
organisations to think about the expectation of the communities in terms of ethics as it is
important for them to generally create products and services complying with the consumer’s
demands and thus the prime focus of the managers should be to increase profits.
This approach suggests that it is the moral obligation of the business is to not cheat and harm
the stakeholders and the shareholders of the organisation. This approach in comparison with the
other approaches is better as multifiduciary stakeholder approach states that organisations have
no nonfiduciary obligations to third parties revolving around the fiduciary relationships. This
approach is feasible when compared to strategic stakeholder approach as the organisations do not
consider the stakeholders having low power important which can have negative effects on the
company later.
c) Does Goodpaster’s nonfiduciary account of business obligations provide
sufficient protection for the interests of stakeholders other than
shareholders? Does it avoid the problem of treating stakeholders as mere
means to corporate ends? Give reasons for your answer.
The interest of the stakeholders can be protected if the non-fiduciary approach is taken into
consideration which is provided Goodpaster as it aims on providing the consumers with the
services and products which meet their expectations and demands making it ethical.
This approach helps in treating the stakeholders’ more than just corporate ends as providing
quality products and services not only help in catering to their demands but also show that they
are valuable to the organisation and thus establish a concrete positive relationship with the
customers and the stakeholders.