How moral is your company?

The days when profit was a company’s main focus could be over. For some time now, companies have been eager to promote their principles and company values. Topics such as social responsibility have found its way into the business universe and the subject of business ethics has gained increased importance for today’s entrepreneurs.

Lucjan Klimsza’s ebook, “Business Ethics – Introduction to the Ethics of Values”, which is available on bookboon.com provides answers for business owners and managers who are responsible for people’s careers from an ethical perspective. The book provides an introduction to the main ethical terminology and an overview of the most important ethical systems followed by interesting case studies.

What are business ethics?

Business ethics is a wide subject that can be applied to all moral or ethical issues that arise in a business environment. According to businessman Thomas Ng, “Business ethics is the study of business situations, activities and decisions where issues of right and wrong are addressed. Where right and wrong are defined as morally right/wrong rather than financial or business strategy”.

“Economies fare better thriving in environments free of scandals, in morally cleaner societies,” says Lucjan Klimsza in “Business Ethics” and gives the following example: If an economy operates under the conditions of a free political society, where the law is firmly applied, where individuals are responsible for their actions and where trust among people is established, legal costs are likely to be kept low.

What values does a company need?

There are values that are generally regarded as typical for economic life. These values constitute the minimum knowledge every small businessman or manager of a large corporation needs to possess. They are basic ethical competencies, not just for those at the corporate steering wheel, but for all employees. This is the starting point for writing ethical codes of companies and the whole corporate culture develops from these values.

The following key values are regarded as essential in business ethics:

• Freedom
• Justice
• Responsibility
• Progress
• Prosperity
• Sustainability
• Rationality

In spite of the fact that these values are common to both European and American ways of thinking, the approaches to their use vary. The European approach is rational and seeks justifications and reasons for these values. The American way tries to make them part of everyday business life. They are regarded as feedback on the behaviour of individuals and companies.

All types of business, if large multinational corporation or a small local firm should have key values implemented through their company’s ethical code. Ultimately the company’s internal working environment as well as the external image can benefit from well-executed ethical codes.

If you would like to hear more about the individual ethical key values or learn about the “Golden rule of ethics” please download our ebook “Business Ethics” by Lucjan Klimsza on bookboon.com.