Premium Essay

Does a Business Need to Be Ethical to Be Successful?

In:

Submitted By christinaharkin
Words 2027
Pages 9
Primark, one of the UK’s most popular retailers of budget clothing, has also been rated the country’s least ethical retailer. With reference to Primark or any business you have studied, to what extent does a company’s ethical stance determine its long-term success? [40]

The ethical environment - The moral beliefs and attitudes from both inside and outside a business that influence its behaviour. Due to the current economic environment, many businesses are being forced to fight for survival and they therefore lose focus on long-term success and instead focus on short-term success. However the larger companies, which are blessed with sufficient finances and stability, such as Marks and Spencer and John Lewis are focusing all their efforts into improving their reputation, brand, revenue and costs all in hope of securing long-term success. In order to improve their reputation and brand image they are more than ever before, adopting ethical business practices including ethical sourcing, marketing, pricing and treatment towards employees. However, despite this positive move in the right direction from some businesses, others are being forced to seek success through other, unethical means such as unlawful treatment towards employees, unethical means of advertising, pricing, selling, contracting, sourcing and overall failing to meets the current laws and legislations, causing them to gain bad publicity and tarnished reputations yet, in some cases such as Amazon and Primark, they have managed to not only remain successful but thrive. The reason for this is that an unethical company in one market could fail due to consumer action, yet an unethical company in another market could dominate. Why? Because target markets expect different things and react in different ways. For example, Primark’s customers are the bargain hunters of the retail industry, they want low cost

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Sinyi Real Estate Case

...and transformation, many companies ignore ethical business practices for profit maximization. This goes against traditional Confucianism, which prioritizes customer satisfaction and seeks to avoid exploiting customers for profits. Sinyi, founded by Chun-Chi Chou in 1981, has been one of the most successful real estate companies in mainland Asian markets. Chou has successfully developed a people-oriented culture, which has lead to an excellent corporate image and satisfied customers. However, challenges have accompanied Sinyi's recent growth into Asian markets, where unethical business practices exploit clients for profit maximization. Exponential growth at Sinyi has made it extremely difficult to maintain a uniform ethics-based culture. Chou plans to expand his business while maintaining rigid ethical principles focused on the welfare of customers above profit maximization. Sinyi has strived to transmit this ethical culture to employees and the community by creating continual education and outreach programs. In a chaotic Taiwanese real estate industry, Chou has realized that a "people centered" business is key to success. While some competitors use price fixing to cheat customers, Sinyi has taken affirmative actions towards applying social responsibility in management concepts. In accordance with Confucian teachings, Chou believes that the needs of both clients and employees should come before profit maximization. If this does not hold true, the firm will loose its value...

Words: 1820 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Leadership

...In today’s world, many organizations and businesses need effective leadership in order for them to continue to be successful. Organizations without an effective leadership cannot correctly function or maintain the achievement of the company goals and visions. Effective leadership is a role dependent upon the leader and whether or not they can make certain their employees meet the objectives and standards of the company. There are a few things a leaders must know and show in order to encourage others to achieve higher levels of work. Many of the things leaders have to do does not come as a natural thing to them however it is acquired through much continued studying and hard work. Having the will power and desire can help a individual become an successful leader. Northouse describes leadership as a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. Defining leadership as a process means that it is not a trait or characteristic that resides in the leader, but rather a transactional event that occurs between the leader and the followers. Leadership involves influence. It is concerned with how the leader affects followers. Leadership occurs in groups. Groups are the context in which leadership takes place. Leadership involves influencing a group of individuals who have a common purpose. Leadership is about one individual influencing a group of others to accomplish there common goals. Attention to common goals also includes leadership. Leaders...

Words: 2402 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Capping Paper

...with the business world. I will discuss different styles to management ethics, the benefits companies will find from acting ethical and socially responsibly and some examples of unethical behavior in the workplace. I will also look at social responsibly and its benefits, as well as give my opinion on both topics. Businesses have always been known to shoot for maximum profits in order to please both those inside and outside their company. However, the concept of business ethics and social responsibility has put principled boundaries on organizations so that they cannot achieve their profit goals in any way they please. In order for a company to function within today’s global business society, they must be able to take a strong stance ethically on how they are going to sell their products and conduct their everyday work activities. Alongside being ethical, companies must also take on social responsibility; showing their community that they are involved, alert and willing to be philanthropists even in tough times. Corporate ethics and social responsible, if overlooked, can be detrimental to an organizations outward appearance and customer base. It is not only the right thing to do, but it has always been seen as good business. Both business ethics and social responsibly, although different, play fundamental roles in an organization’s successes. Ethics can be defined as the study of standards of behavior in which promote human welfare and “the good”. Business ethics can...

Words: 3437 - Pages: 14

Premium Essay

Ethics and Leadership

...and performance. Understanding organizational behavior can give managers an idea of what factors are necessary to create an effective and successful organization. Organizational behavior is a non-performance related set of practices which when implemented in organizations lend good credibility to the organization for its ethics.(Campbell) Ethics involves moral issues and choices and deal with right and wrong behavior.(Luthans) Businesses need people who have strong moral leadership skills and who are guided by clearly defined business ethics. Ethical standards have an important role not only in business decisions but also in a person’s everyday life. If a person is making unethical decisions others tend to not want to follow that person and the level of respect and trust are diminished, which can lead to a shift in employee organizational behavior. Even though there is not a published set of ethics to follow the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) has a code of ethical principles that include honesty, fairness, objectivity, and responsibility. The following responsibilities are standards in which all members should comply: Competence, Confidentiality, Integrity, Objectivity, and Resolution of Ethical Conflict. An effective leader should maintain a high level of confidence, integrity, and credibility by upholding his/her ethical responsibilities to the shareholders, customers, employees, and society. In order to be an effective leader one must foster positive relationships...

Words: 3798 - Pages: 16

Free Essay

Ethics

...GCE Religious Studies Advanced GCE Unit G582: Religious Ethics Mark Scheme for January 2011 Oxford Cambridge and RSA Examinations OCR (Oxford Cambridge and RSA) is a leading UK awarding body, providing a wide range of qualifications to meet the needs of pupils of all ages and abilities. OCR qualifications include AS/A Levels, Diplomas, GCSEs, OCR Nationals, Functional Skills, Key Skills, Entry Level qualifications, NVQs and vocational qualifications in areas such as IT, business, languages, teaching/training, administration and secretarial skills. It is also responsible for developing new specifications to meet national requirements and the needs of students and teachers. OCR is a not-for-profit organisation; any surplus made is invested back into the establishment to help towards the development of qualifications and support which keep pace with the changing needs of today’s society. This mark scheme is published as an aid to teachers and students, to indicate the requirements of the examination. It shows the basis on which marks were awarded by Examiners. It does not indicate the details of the discussions which took place at an Examiners’ meeting before marking commenced. All Examiners are instructed that alternative correct answers and unexpected approaches in candidates’ scripts must be given marks that fairly reflect the relevant knowledge and skills demonstrated. Mark schemes should be read in conjunction with the published question papers and the Report on...

Words: 1987 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Ethis in Business

...Research findings: 5 Business Relationships can be improved through being Ethical and Socially Responsible 5 Strong Business Ethics will increase Efficiency 6 Social Responsibility will greatly increase our company’s Reputation 7 Recommendations 8 Conclusion 9 References 11 Executive Summary Ethics and social responsibility is on the mind of everyone in the world these days. We have all seen the effects of what happens when a company does not follow an ethical standard; it can lead very quickly to its demise. A strong ethical standard and being socially responsible is a must in the world of business. There are those who think that if they can get away with things, it can lead to higher profits and a bigger bottom line. This may be true in the short term but history has shown that those with strong ethics have the longevity and reputation to make it in the long run. The research for this report will show that not only is having strong ethics and being socially responsible the right thing to do, it is the smart thing to do for our company. In all we do, we need to have good relationships with those that we need in order to conduct business. We have vendors, suppliers, stakeholders and consumers that we have to maintain a good and strong relationship with. By having a strong ethical standard and good social responsibility, it allows us not only to maintain these relationships but to build and make them stronger. With the strong ethical standard we can work...

Words: 4015 - Pages: 17

Premium Essay

Business Ethics

...Business Ethics: The Responsibilities of Employees and Employers Debra J. Scott Columbia Southern University Business Ethics: The Responsibilities of Employees and Employers Ethics are an extremely important aspect of every successful business; they are crucial on the end of the employer as well as every employee. Employees and executives need a clear definition of business ethics and a clear explanation of the significance of ethics in relation to the position and to the business as well. It is shown to be beneficial to employees and executives to use a decision making process in the development of making important decisions; there are many approaches as well as many consequences to making ethical decisions. Good ethics start with the employer and how they handle and execute their ethics and provide a good working example for their employees. There are many viewpoints on what ethics are, especially in relation to business, “Ethical obligations are a set of “ought to” standards that define a moral course of action and draw a line between right and wrong” (Lohrey). Business ethics can be comprised of written and formal guidelines in relation to an organization’s morals. Many businesses use their code of conduct or credo as their guidelines to communicating their organizational ethics, “Business ethics manifests both as written and unwritten codes of moral standards that are critical to the current activities and future aspirations of a business organization. They can differ...

Words: 2028 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Rwt1 Business Ethics

...Business Ethics and Efficiency RWT1 Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 Subject and Purpose 3 Introduction 5 Discussion 5 Ethics and Economic Efficiency 6 Organization Goodwill and Competitive Advantage 7 Risk Management and Credit Facility 9 Recommendation 9 Conclusion 10 References 12 Executive Summary Due to increased globalization and competition in industry, organizations are facing tough challenges in the keeping their business operations sustainable and ethical so that they continue to grow and develop in a successful manner. When we talk about driving the organization towards success it is not any different from steering a car or vehicle in the right direction towards the required destination. That is why roadmaps and directions are developed and changed constantly so that the organizations and management are able to keep their business current and follow the latest trends and requirements as demanded by the external environmental factors that are constantly changing. It is extremely important that on its way to growth and improvement, the organizational management must look out for any new developments like technological advancement, globalization, new regulations, and laws or policies with regards to their business industry in order to maintain the performance and reputation of the business. On their way towards growth many leaders and management often ignore and forget the importance of business ethics and corporate...

Words: 3461 - Pages: 14

Premium Essay

Legal and Ethical Issues

...Legal and Ethical Issues Italia Espinoza, Anthony Hill, Erik St. George, David Rojas, Janet Sanchez ETH/ 316 August 17, 2015 Leonard Knight Legal and Ethical Issues Having to deal with legal and ethical issues in a business can become difficult if the correct procedures are not followed. Knowing the difference and the importance of how these issues can impact a business and or an organization is a good approach when trying to make a business grow. Taking into consideration the minimal details in which a company can avoid any issues that can make their business fall back from growing and becoming successful, can be beneficial in the long run. Throughout the context, there will be some examples of what ethical and legal issues are and the impact they can cause an organization. What are ethical issues? Ethical issues are problems, situations or opportunities requiring an individual to choose among actions that may be evaluated as right or wrong, ethical or unethical. Ethical issues are sometimes caused due to conflict which could include personal or business. Some of the questions that arise would be “is it ethical to sell products that are legal, but are known to harm those who use them?” Defining ethics is norms of conduct that distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Ethical issues goes beyond personal or business matters. It depends on the person or business to decide. In business ethics there are a set of attitudes, morals and rules of behavior...

Words: 1359 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Toolscorp Corporation

...vision statements.   ToolsCorp Introduction ToolsCorp Corporation, a company out of Tennessee that builds power tools, lawn mowers, lawn furniture, microwaves, and ranges. Currently these products are sold in retails such as Sears, Best Buy, and Wal-Mart. Their products are manufactured locally and have a promising business within the US and Canada. The plan is to introduce ToolsCorp into the global market place to become one of the largest establishments in its field. By gaining this large establishment and the global market place, ToolsCorp can overcome their competitors in sales to dominate the market. Mission Statement The nine components of a mission statement are customers, products / services, markets, technology, concern for survival, growth, and profitability, philosophy, self-concept, concern for public image, and concern for employees. These nine components look at who the firm’s customers are; what the firm’s major products or services are; geographically speaking, where the firm competes; is the firm technologically current; is the firm committed to growth and financial soundness; what the basic beliefs, values, aspirations, and ethical priorities of the firm are; what the firm’s distinctive competence or major competitive advantage is; is the firm responsive to social, community, and environmental concerns; and are employees a valuable asset of the firm (David, 2013). ToolsCorp’s high quality product earned the reputation as a reliable and trusted brand...

Words: 1531 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Reporting Practices and Ethics Paper

...health care today like any other business should be conducted ethically, professional and accurately. The four elements of financial management need to be used and put into place to help ensure the financial stability and success of the organizations will be accomplished year after year. Generally, the same accounting principles and general financial ethical standards are practiced in every health care organization and these principles need to be implemented correctly if the organization wishes to be successful. Organizations need to keep up a certain level of transparency and this can only be accomplished by accurately reporting their financial statements. Several articles are going to be discussed reflecting the reporting practices and ethical standards in health care after a brief summary of the general accounting principles, ethical standards of finance and the four elements of financial management are given. Summary: Four elements of financial management The four elements of financial management are planning, controlling, organizing and directing and decision making. (Baker & Baker, 2011, p. 5) Each element is a task that is performed by the finance manager and they go in the order mentioned above. Like in any other aspect of business, planning has to be done to help identify the objectives that need to be accomplished and establish the steps necessary to ensure that each objective is completed. Controlling, helps ensure the successful execution of each step and all...

Words: 1150 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Cross Cultural Perspectives

...and he would encourage the associates of the company to follow the 10 foot rule which is whenever as associate comes within 10 feet of a customer they would smile, greet them, and ask if they can help the customer. One of the ethical and social responsibility issues that Wal-Mart deals with because it is a global organization is that the organization has found that its’ formula doesn’t fit every culture. Wal-Mart failed to became the successful store in Germany that it is in America. Germany is not the only country that the organization has problems in. They also have problems in South Korea and Japan because even with the low prices and large selection of merchandise they are having a hard time competing with the chain markets in these countries and the shopper habits. Wal-Mart’s experience in Germany, where it lost hundreds of millions of dollars since 1998, has become sort of template for how not to expand into a country (LANDLER, 2006). The sales clerks in German Wal-Mart’s are no longer required to smile at customers because it is often interpreted as flirting. The organization never established a good relationship with labor unions because they didn’t understand that companies and unions are closely connected. The grocery business is a struggle for Wal-Mart in other countries because either they can’t beat the prices of other discount markets or they type of food doesn’t meet the countries culture. For example in the German culture they purchase meat from a...

Words: 1121 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Friedman vs. Drucker

...Friedman vs. Drucker The fundamental goal of any business, whether private or public, is to be profitable, and profitability relates to greater returns to the shareholders. Even in the non-profit segment of the business arena, a healthy bottom line ensures that the company can continue to operate and meet the needs and demands of its clients. The leaders of businesses and organizations are groomed or recruited for their positions because of an innate ability to provide successful business results. However, there is an underlying factor that influences an organizations ability to be successful and provide stakeholders with healthy financial performance. One of the key performance indicators of businesses according to Drucker (1981) is their engagement in ethical business practices or according to Friedman (1970) their social responsibility in the business arena. What is clear is the need for businesses to act in a responsible manner, including implementing actionable measures that include environmental factors, community involvement, financial stability, and corporate sponsorships, as well as having senior leaders who are willing to accept accountability for the actions of the businesses in which they are leading. However, there remains conflicting definitions of ethical business behavior, and “ethics is, after all, not a recent discovery. Over the centuries philosophers in their struggle with human behavior have developed different approaches to ethics, each leading...

Words: 1632 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

The Importance Of Engineering Management

...1999). It has been established that working as a team improves the productivity of the organization rather than having to work in silos. F1 racing is one example that shows that teaming is very imperative for any organization to be successful, every team member works together to achieve a common objective. If the team does not work in sync it might cause the team not to win the race. As an engineering manager or project manager it is very imperative if there is a project to be done to hire a group of people that have the right skill to complete a project because unskilled team members might cause the project to fail, the project is more likely to be successful with the right people within the...

Words: 1716 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Conflict

...The Conflict of Morality and Egoism, in Daily Life and Business The most basic distinction to make between morality and egoism is that morality demands that, at sometimes, you are obligated to do what is not in your self-interest to do. If morality never made these demands, then it would not be anything additional to the doctrine of ethical egoism (always do what is in your self-interest to do). In daily life, people are generally expected to act within moral constraints. Most people would claim that it would be wrong for me to kill an innocent stranger, even if it was in my self-interest to do so. One variable in these types of cases is the law, which is basically an instrument to make moral constrains more self-interested. So, when considering whether or not to kill someone for their money, the threat of lifetime imprisonment or death may make not killing in my self-interest. However, the key in these cases: is there any constraint on me not to kill the person if I could get away with it? Morality would say yes, there is a genuine constraint on my actions that obligates me not to kill the person even if I could get away with it. There are also other ways that morality can stretch beyond legality. There are plenty of things that people would consider immoral, but are not illegal. Cheating on your significant other, for example, is considered immoral even though is not illegal (though it is actually illegal to cheat on your spouse in some states). Where I’m going with this:...

Words: 1831 - Pages: 8