Business Ethics: Obligations, Issues, Conflicts, and Dilemmas

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BUSINESS ETHICS
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Business Ethics
Ethics are principles, which guide and help a person or people to decide what is right
and wrong;1 additionally, ethics helps organizations when it comes to decision making.
Ethical finance allows an organization, that is, the staff and the shareholders to make sound
choices about the financial institutions the business deals with. Healthy choices lead to the
growth of an organization and this helps in attracting customers, investors, and at the same
time boosting the organization's reputation. Ethical norms in an organization are honest,
truthfulness, integrity, respect, fairness, and justice.2
Ethical obligations in an organization
Ethical obligations in an organization help in differentiating between what is right and
wrong. Ethical obligations determine how a business conducts itself and at the same time
making profits and achieving its strategic goals.3 Ethical obligations in an organization
include staff hiring, maintaining safe and healthy working environment, minimizing the
available resources, and avoiding conflicts of interest. For an organization to be successful it
should work harder to accomplish the ethical obligations; the organization should work as an
example and work well with its staff to create ethical standards and a code of ethical conduct,
this will ease the communication within the organizations.
Training should also be conducted within the organization concerning the conduct of
ethics, staff members should clearly be explained how their decisions and attitude towards
ethical behaviors has a long-term impact on the firm. To avoid ignorance of ethical
obligations ethical decision-making framework should be developed as this will help reduce
cases of ethical dilemmas.
1 Duska, Ronald. (2013). "Why Be a Loyal Agent? A Systematic Ethical Analysis." In Ethics and Agency
Theory. New York: Oxford University Press.
2 Richard T. (2012). "Agency Theory and the Ethics of Agency." In Ethics and Agency Theory. Oxford
University Press.
3Kenneth, E. (2009). "Business Ethics and Stakeholder Analysis." Business Ethics Quarterly.

Name 3
In an organization the employee is entitled to the ethical obligation; there is certain
ethical obligation the worker has towards his employer or the firm and which guides him
towards decision making and impacts his/her action. The employee has obligation to job
completion, money usage, honest, and conflict of interest. Managers cannot keep all
employees under one watch at the same time and this may make some employees put less
effort in their work; thus, it is the obligation of the employees to ensure that they complete
their work on time. It is morally correct for employees to remain honest and always give
truthful information to their employers as this helps in making conversant decisions.
Employees should avoid conflict of interest, as this will strengthen their relationship with
their current organization their reputation as business people remains unblemished.
Core Ethical Issues, Conflicts, and Dilemmas in Business Organization
Ethical Issues
Ethical issue is a problem, which requires a person or an organization to choose
between two alternatives whereby one must be evacuated as right/ethical or wrong/non-
ethical. Ethical issues can also involve conflict by choosing between equally desirable or
undesirable alternatives, or balancing options.4 Examples of ethical issues in business
include:
1) Workplace discrimination
2) Poor working conditions
3) Whistleblowing
4) Nondisclosure
5) Accounting practices
4Frowen, F. and McHugh, P. (2005). Financial Decision-Making and Moral Responsibility. New York: St.
Martin's Press.