IRGreat Co. Case Study: Examining Business Ethics and Integrity Issues

This essay delves into the business ethics of IRGreat Co., focusing on the conflict between profit and integrity. The company, led by Dean, aims to replace plastic bottles with a resin-based alternative. However, lab results reveal the new product is more harmful to the environment, creating an ethical dilemma for Dean's assistant. The assistant, guided by his personal values and promises, grapples with whether to reveal the truth, highlighting the importance of product integrity, moral autonomy, and environmental conservation in business. The essay emphasizes that long-term business success relies on ethical conduct, truthfulness, and a commitment to environmental responsibility.

Running head: BUSINESS ETHICS 1
Business Ethics
Name
Institution

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The business or an organization is governed by a set of values, norms, standards, and
principles referred to as business ethics (Drucker, 2018). The ethics have two dimensions,
descriptive and normative. A normative field is majorly used in cooperate practices and career
specializations (Bhishmendra, 2007). Expressive aspects are handled by academics who are
trying to research more about a business behavior. Business ethics determine the fundamental
purpose of a company. For example, the primary goal of IRGreat Co. is to find a solution to the
existing plastic bottles. Trust of an organization by the employees, customers and the general
public builds the organization’s success. This trust is always achieved through the practice of
integrity in the business practices. An organization is not required to do this just because of the
legal standards set by the authorities but because it is the right thing to do. IRGreat Co. ought to
do the right thing through the introduction of an alternative to plastic bottles though it has failed
to be trustful since it has decided to introduce a product which is more harmful to the
environment than the existing one. From the case study, Dean’s assistant proves to be a person of
high integrity since he is guided by what is right to do but not what his boss wants him to so.
For a business to be successful, it must show some if not all ethics described in this
paper. To begin with Product integrity, this is important to those who purchase the products. It
brings to stage public perception and recognition of the brand (Lotich, 2016). IRGreat Co.
pretends to have come up with a product that is better compared to the existing plastic bottles
according to Dean's report. Though, it is contrary to what laboratory results shown after the test.
Therefore I believe that, Dean's assistant decision to make known of the laboratory results that
the product about to be staged is more dangerous than the current plastic bottles is a good idea. It
is good for a company to make it a culture to operate with integrity as this helps new employees

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understand that working with honesty is the way to carry out things. This saves organizations
respect and demand in the highly competitive market.
Keeping of promises is very fundamental for any organization to thrive (Bennett, 2014).
This is why Dean’s assistant views it right to keep the promises he made to Dean about working
hard for IRGreat Company to sign a deal with the soft drinks company. Moral autonomy is all
about being personally aware, smart and wise enough to suit the livelihoods of those people you
interact with (Kant, 2015). A business, for example, should be wise enough not to introduce a
commodity in the market that will ruin the livelihoods of its customers and the general public at
large. Truthfulness is a crucial factor. A company is required to be truthful to its customers. This
helps the company to continue enjoying strong support from its customers. Dean’s assistant
course of action to reveal the impacts of the product IRGreat Co. was about to sell to the soft
drinks company was a wise decision according to me. This is because, by doing so, he will have
maintained his trust to his children on the idea of creating a carbon-free environment.
Recognizing the difference between right and wrong is one character of ethical people
(Brian, 2018). These individuals always work towards setting an example of ethical conduct. In
business, for one to be moral, he or she has to apply honesty and fairness on how they relate to
their coworkers and customers at large. One ought, to be honest with their customers on the
advantage and disadvantages of an individual product. Dean’s assistant at IRGreat Co. decided
not to hide the fact that, treatment of their product changed the outcome to something else more
dangerous than what the product was believed to be. He felt that it was good to treat everyone in
a manner that he wished to be addressed. Having loyal customers is the key to long-range
business success. Serving the same customers with dignity maintains businesses' reputation
which in return helps accelerates the company's image a factor that helps to bring in more

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customers. Environmental conservation is always a major concern for every business. It is a
requirement for any business to be caring for the environment as it is the mother of all the
opportunities. Dean's assistant felt that it was ideal for him to be honest because what IRGreat
Co. was to introduce to the environment was meant to complicate the safety of the situation. This
could totally waste the all the possible opportunities. To my conclusion, businesses should
observe ethical values every time to enable their success in the market.

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References
Bennett, T. (2014, April 4). 12 Business Ethics Examples. Retrieved from Udemy.com:
https://blog.udemy.com/business-ethics-examples/
Bhishmendra, P. K. (2007). Ethical Theories about Business. Business Ethics.
Brian, H. (2018, March 26). The Advantages of Ethical Behaviour in Business. Retrieved from
Chron: smallbusiness.chron.com/advantage-ethical-behaviour-business-21067.html
Drucker, P. (2018). What is Business Ethics? The Public Intrest Spring (63), 18-31.
Kant, I. (2015, August 16). What is Moral Autonomy? Retrieved from Quora:
www.quora.com/What-is-moral-autonomy
Lotich, P. (2016, August 24). 6 Ways to Demonstrate Ethics and Integrity in Your Business.
Retrieved from The Thriving Small Business Vision-Strategy-Development-Growth:
https://thethrivingsmallbusiness.com/examples-of-business-ethics-and-integrity/