PHI445: Week 2 Journal

16 June 2014

Week One Journal

Objective

You will outline and explain ethical theories and then apply that knowledge to how organizations would function were they to adopt those ethical principles. In addition, you will also examine punishments for corporations and present your own ideas about the relationship between ethical demands on business entities vs. those on individuals in society.

Instructions

In this assignment you will reflect on the topics of Week One and apply them to an analysis of ethical paradigms. You will be asked to respond to two prompts below. The first asks you to explain three of the ethical philosophies you encountered in Chapter 1 of Introduction to Business Ethics, and then determine how companies that abide by these policies would act. In the second prompt, you will be asked to explain various punishments that can be given to corporations and the behaviors that are ethically dangerous to corporations.

Please answer all questions in detail. Because this journal is worth 5% of your final grade, there is a high expectation for your participation. Grades for the journals are based on content, critical engagement, quality of reflection, and detail. Please submit the completed journal via the Assignment Basket found in the Week One Journal tab on the left navigation toolbar by Day 7.

Organizations

Select a Not-For Profit and a For Profit organization you would like to study. These will be the organizations that you will be focusing on throughout the course so be sure to choose organizations that you find interesting and that you think will be engaging as you learn about the ethical climates of these organizations.

Place the Name of the Not-For-Profit Organization here:

YMCA

Place the name of the For-Profit Organization here:

Berkshire Hathaway

Reflection Prompts

Reflection Prompt #1

Summarize three of the ethical theories that are explained in Chapter 1 of Introduction to Business Ethics. Explain how people running businesses would construct their companies if they utilized these ethical theories. For example, you might personally think that people should act to increase the overall happiness for the greatest number of people (utilitarianism). You would explain utilitarianism and then explain how a company based in utilitarian ethics would function. In other words:

· What products would they make?

· How would they treat their employees? How would they treat their customers?

· How would they manufacture their products?

· How would they utilize their resources and profits were they to become successful?

The three ethical theories explained in Chapter 1 include: utilitarianism, social contract theory and care ethics. Utilitarianism states that an action is morally right if its consequences are more favorable than unfavorable to everyone. A company based on utilitarian ethics would function great. The company will make products that are quality, safe for use and usable by the greater number of consumers. Furthermore, they would be able to treat both their employees and customers with utmost respect. In manufacturing their products, the company will be trying to please everyone and this implies that they will strive to produce products that are of high quality and safe for use. Besides trying to please everyone, the company would utilize their resources for the greater benefit of the society and not an individual. Basically, the company will not survive in the business world in trying to make everyone happy. It will succeed in making the customers happy, but fail against the competitors (Belak & Rozman, 2012).

On the other hand, social contract theory states that in order to preserve our own individualized lives, we must agree to put aside our hostilities and exchange it with peace that civilized societies offer. A company based on social contract theory will treat their employees and customers well because they want peace. When it comes to the manufacturing of products, there will be an issue since the company will be in business and more concerned about profits and resources rather than making everyone happy. They will be more concerned about the competition with other companies and this implies utilizing the resources and profits for its own greater good. Basically, if you do everything to please the competitors, the company will fail.

Care ethics holds that women view morality as the need to care for individuals who are in situations of dependency and vulnerability. A company using care ethics would function well. It will produce products that will aid in bettering an individual’s life rather than to sell an arbitrary product. It would treat both the employees and the customers very well. Employees and customers are attracted to the company because it cares and nurtures. The products would be targeting the less fortune and the vulnerable. The profits and resources would be invested towards ethical moral growth because the business is more concerned with the social responsibility and would engage in activities such as charity, environmental protection and community development.

Reflection Prompt #2

Analyze three of the punishments that corporations undergo when they have acted unethically (i.e., name them, define them, explain what they are). In addition, explain three threats to running an ethical corporation. Finally, from your own perspective, explain whether or not a corporation should have to function by the same codes of morality that individual people in society have to abide by or if they should be allowed to get away with certain actions that people in society cannot get away with.

When corporations act unethically, they face several punishments that include: fines, corporate incapacitation and corporate death penalty. Fines are payments of money as a penalty for an offense. On the other hand, corporate incapacitation refers to a court directive for the restraining of corporation’s activities in some areas. Corporate death penalty is a punishment in which the company is forced out of business.

The threats of running an ethical corporation include the profit motive, groupthink and strategic misrepresentation. Profit motive is the belief that the end result must always be gaining profit. This is a threat because the end should go beyond profit to incorporate social responsibility. Aside, groupthink refers to a situation whereby a decision is made collectively rather than by one or two individuals. This eliminates creativity and imagination. When a groupthink is done it ends with a decided result that some individuals may have and others may need to complete the resulted action. Lastly, strategic misrepresentation is a situation whereby one side withholds information that can be harmful. This can be a threat to the company and the society (Shaw, 2008).

This writer feels like all companies should have to function by the same codes of morality that the individual people in the society abide by. You can’t run a business by what your own morals are because there are different views amongst people on morals. Even if you have different views from others, we all understand the codes of morality in the society and they should be the same within each and every business. Hence, business should not be allowed to get away with certain actions that people in the society cannot get away with. We are all created equally and should be treated equally whether in the business or in the society.

References

Belak, J., & Rozman, M. (2012). Business ethics from Aristotle, Kant and Mill's perspective. Kybernetes, 41(10), 1607-1624. doi:10.1108/03684921211276783

Shaw, W. H. (2008). Business ethics. Belmont: Wadsworth.

Vallance, E. (1996). Business ethics at work. Cambridge [u.a.: Cambridge Univ. Press.