...are Ethics? Generally, why do people act unethically? 2 3.0 Justify why is there a special need for ethical conduct in professions including those in the accounting and auditing related field? 6 4.0 Discuss how the Barings collapse serves as an example of failed internal controls and governance within organization. 13 5.0 Conclusion 20 1.0 Case Summary Nick Leeson, an employee of Barings Bank who after a successful spell working for the firm's office in Indonesia is sent to Singapore as General Manager of the Trading Floor on the SIMEX exchange. Leeson's rise as he soon becomes one of Barings' key traders. However, everything isn't as it appears — through the 88888 error account, Nick is hiding huge losses as he gambles away Baring's money with little more than the bat of an eyelid from the powers-that-be back in London. Eventually the losses mount up to well over £800 million and Nick, along with his wife Lisa, decide to leave Singapore and escape to Malaysia. Nick doesn't realise the severity of his losses until he reads in the newspaper that Barings has gone bankrupt. They then decide to return to London but Nick is arrested en route in Frankfurt. Nick is extradited to Singapore where he is sentenced to six and a half years in jail and is diagnosed with colon cancer. 2.0 What are Ethics? Generally, why do people act unethically? At its simplest, ethics is a system of moral principles. They affect how people make decisions and lead their lives. Ethics is concerned...
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...Ethics and the Food Industry By: Diana Rhyne and John Hanley In early 2009, Peanut Corp. of America was discovered to have allowed Salmonella tainted peanuts to be distributed across the United States causing an outbreak that resulted illnesses in 714 people across 46 states with nine resulting in deaths ("Department of Health and Human Services; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention", 2009). In this paper, we will explore the concept of corporate social responsibility and some of the current ethical dilemmas many corporations in the food industry face today. We will further discuss the many arguments (in favor of and in opposition to) these ethical dilemmas, or why these issues pose an ethical dilemma. Finally, we will examine the consequences of unethical behavior in the food industry and how consumer demand/behavior affects corporate decision-making. In the food industry, a corporation’s actions/inactions are often far reaching. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not a new concept. The idea that a business (or business person) should behave in an ethical and socially responsible manner has roots in Biblical times with the advent of usury laws. During the 1700s, Benjamin Franklin was an early advocate for business ethics, going so far as to form a club for young businessmen, tradesmen, and merchants to come together to discuss business philosophies and further their careers (Finamore, 2005: 35-38). CSR is generally based on the idea that companies...
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...Chapter 3 ethical dilemma Jackie did not know the relationship she was having with Curtis was considered illegal at her record company until after it was too late. I feel as though someone within the company should have told her that beforehand. However, her personal relationship rises more than a few ethical issues presented in this chapter. To begin, her lack of integrity, Integrity is defined as being whole, sound, and in an unimpaired condition. Had Jackie used integrity before continuing her relationship with Curtis, she would not be the sexual harassment and bullying that is undeserved to her. Once Jackie found out that Curtis had been carrying on with Leslie, a woman who worked in the legal department, and decided to break their relationship off she now had to deal with the abusive behavior that Curtis purposely put on her. If Jackie had acted earlier on before the situation got ugly I believe she definitely could have lifted a huge weight off her shoulders. She could always leave but since Curtis literally holds her singing career in his hands, her career is done before it even started. Personally, I think she should bring in lawyers and have them deal with Curtis because the legal department is obviously not backing her up in the situation either. If she does take legal action and wins, Jackie can easily move on with her life and her career. However, if she loses in this legal action, working at SDR would literally be a living nightmare and she will stifled for years...
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...As companies look for ways to strategically perform better in their respective industries many chose to outsource job functions. Outsourcing allows companies to grow and expand their business around the world. Many have attributed outsourcing to lowering operating costs, a method to increase expertise and gain additional technology, and as a way to improve efficiency and services. These advantages can help a company gain a competitive advantage over industry participants. When a company strategically plans to outsource ethical consideration must be acknowledged; especially when outsourcing is offshore. As a display of corporate citizenship a company must do their part to address ethical concerns related to this practice. Building a long term relationship with the outsourced company will aid in cultivating the competitive advantage. The following ethical principles can ensure the longevity of the relationship. One of the first principles states “seek not harm indigenous cultures” the company must become aware of the culture where they chose to outsource their business to. Understanding the cultures is a way to avoid ethical problems that could arise from not acknowledging cultural norms; rule-based or relationship based. Rule-based relationships support the basic principle that “seeks to uphold basic human rights.” To ensure you have engaged and satisfied employees display a courtesy for justice, equality, and their basic human rights. Not only must the culture and rules of...
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...also very secretive in addressing the remunerations of the top management and openly filed their financial reports wrongly to please investors and attract more clients. The Lehman management was also profit oriented opting to reduce health insurance of its employees in order to maximize on profits. This shows the extent management was willing to sacrifice to fulfill the company’s appetite for money placing their staffs’ interests in the backseat. 3. What role did Lehman’s executives play in the company’s collapse? Were they being responsible and ethical? Discuss. The Lehman management openly violated the ethics code of business. For example they filed unverifiable, inaccurate financial reports openly contravening the Sarbanes-Oxley Act that states that companies should file correct and accurate financial documents. They also disregarded legit means of conducting business creating a culture where staff that practiced illegitimate means were idolized and rewarded thus encouraged to continue with their ways. In another case the management initiated a policy that reduced the health insurance of their staff showing openly that their main objective was profits. All this practices were extremely unethical openly encouraged by the top executives (Smith, 1997). 5. After all the public uproar over Enron and then the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to protect shareholders, why do you think we still...
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...Code of Ethics Bus/210 Friday December 12, 2013 Jeannette Lipford This code of conduct will help guide the ethical business practices of all persons and employees of Angie’s Computer Repair Service. These codes will define the responsibilities for each and every employee of Angie’s Computer Repair Service. by protecting our business reputation as ethical and a reliable Computer Repair Service. As a company we will comply with all the state and local laws, Employees will conduct themselves in a professional manner when dealing with company business. Employees will not discriminate against one another do their gender, race, religion, or beliefs we will be treated fairly and equally. There will be a zero tolerance for harassment of any sort whether it is intentional or unintentional. All employees including myself must be able to depend on each other’s truthfulness as well has have the ability to be able to step up and bring issues and concerns to the proper people. We will strive to provide excellent customer service to our clients. Employees will do what is in the best interest of the company to help the company to continue to grow and gain new business. Failing to protect the company’s interest along with our affiliates may result in suspension and or termination. We here at Angie’s Computer Repair Service pride ourselves on maintaining our good reputation within the community. Therefore these rules will be the standard functions of our good business practices;...
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...a scenario which could be his own life saver when it comes to his job, school concerns, family constraints, or some other relationships as they may deem very important to him. Looking at different places, while strolling inside the malls, or even on my way to school or back to our home, I see faces of people from whom I can feel diverse sentiments. Some are happy- go- lucky. Some may seem problematic. A lot of them, I see, are unsmiling and serious, although some are witty and funny-looking. I believe, these auras help us cope up with the very rough surface of professionalism, in connection to ethics, of course. Based on some existing distinctness, ethical behavior is something that goes beyond simply obeying a set of rules and regulations, it is about committing yourself to do and act according to what is right, cognizant of your own conscience. To put it simply, professional ethics concerns one's behavior, conduct and practice when carrying out professional work. And most importantly, the way I see people is a big contribution to how I’m going to carry out with them, especially...
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...Social Performance, Part 2 Due Week 8 and worth 250 points This is a continuation of your first assignment. Imagine your company does not currently have an ethics program and you believe an effective program is necessary. The Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations encourages firm to set up ethics programs. Review this Website, located here , prior to doing the assignment. Write a 4-6 page paper in which you: 1. Briefly describe your company and then benchmark the codes of conduct used by similar companies in the industry. Critique the codes of conduct of at least three (3) similar companies in order to write codes for your company. 2. Analyze ways ethical challenges affect your business and create a code of conduct for your company. Provide a rationale on how these specific codes enhance your company’s ethics program. 3. After reviewing the Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations, explain how these guidelines influence the ethics program you created. 4. Anticipate where the challenges or setbacks may be in the adoption and enforcement of the codes of conduct for your company. Explain how you will address these challenges and anticipated setbacks. 5. Given the influences of changing economic, political, social, cultural, and technological forces on business and society, explain how you can ensure that your codes of conduct will remain relevant in the years ahead. Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements: ...
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...organization wants to achieve. Tesco’s vision is “To be the most highly valued business by the customers we serve, the communities in which we operate, our loyal and committed colleagues and of course, our shareholders.” The vision of Tesco consist of five elements and each of the elements describes the sort of Tesco aspires to be. 1. Wanted and needed around the world –Tesco want to be a company not only shop of choice for customer but also the place people want to work, a business that communities welcome and the retailer in which every shareholder wants to invest. 2. A growing business with full of opportunities- Tesco want to create full of opportunities for both customers and colleagues by offering something new every time. 3. Modern, innovative and full of ideas-Tesco always trying to understand customers needs better than their competitors and then innovating to make their lives easier such as online grocery shopping, extended shopping hours. 4. Winners locally whilst applying their skills globally 5. Inspiring, earning trust and loyalty from customers, colleagues and communities. Mission refers to the reason for the organizations existence and the business it is in. Tesco’s core purpose or mission is a clear statement of “We make what matters better, together.” Tesco core mission is to reflect how much society has changed to be more scepticism about corporation, more desire to see business demonstrate it has a purpose beyond profit, a sense that corporation...
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...only be eliminated by an extensive redesign of the software. He is convinced that the patch that was applied to remedy the specific tests in the simulation did not address the underlying problem. But, when George brings his concerns to his superiors, they assure him that the problem has been resolved. They further inform George that any major redesign effort would introduce unacceptable delays, resulting in costly penalties to the company. There is a great deal of pressure on George to sign off on the system and to allow it to be flight tested. It has even been hinted that, if he persists in delaying the system, he will be fired. What should George do next? Identify the pertinent clauses in the ACM/IEEE Software Engineering Code of Ethics that can help you make an ethical decision on this...
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...the small grocery store. In small businesses, it is important to keep your stakeholders happy. Stakeholders are customers, investors and shareholders, employees, suppliers, government agencies, communities, and many others who have “stake or claim” in the company or business (Ferrell, Fraedrich, Ferrell). If customers were to find out that a local grocery store is not being supportive of a local food bank, and would rather throw the food away, than feed starving citizens, I would think they would lose a lot of their own local support. If the food is going to be thrown away, they are going to be losing profit on it regardless of whether an employee takes the food home or whether it is donated to a food bank. Either way, the food is going to a good cause versus being wasted. The next thing I would improve would be the loyalty of your employees. If you have constant worries about what your employees are doing when you are not looking, then you need to consider hiring more trustworthy employees. Perhaps do a pre employment screening before your hire someone. Make sure you check references and their background. You should have enough faith and trust in your employees that it shouldn’t have to interfere with your business decisions. Another suggestion would be to have your employees keep a log of food and items that are donated. That way you have documentation of what has been...
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...Evaluation of Business Code of Ethics Many companies and organizations employ codes of ethics that can enhance their image and endorse a form of legitimacy to that company or organization. A company such as Walmart with local and global outreach has incorporated into its system a culture of ethics and integrity that defines who they are as a company. This culture of ethics determine how customers and suppliers are treated by the company and how workers treat each other within the company. Walmart with many years of experience as a company deals with many ethical issues and there is need for constant evaluation and analysis of systems and structures to meet expectations, and remain in compliance with the demands of the corporate world of business. The company was founded by Sam Walton in 1950, started out with as a single discount store in Northwest Arkansas and grew to become one of the world’s largest retailer in less than 50 years, with thousands of stores and clubs and millions of associates. Walmart is a value-based company that has ethics at the forefront.The company has three basic beliefs, (1) Respect for individuals. (2) Service to its customers and (3) Strvving for excellence. The vision statement is to promote ownership of Walmart’s ethical culture to all stakeholders globally. The company also has some guiding principles to assist their associates in making the right decisions and acting with integrity. These principles are, to always act with integrity. Lead...
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...the short film, “Greyston Bakery” and focus on why are the issues in the film important. As well as what role do external social pressures have in influencing organizational ethics? Wrapping up the paper, a look at how these issues are relevant to organizational and personal decisions along with the relationship between legal and ethical issues as shown in film (UOP, 2013). Film: Greyston Bakery The Greyston Bakery located in Yonkers New York is known for their gourmet sweets that populate restaurants to the White House but this organization started a social experiment over two decades ago (CBS News, 2010). Julius Walls Jr., President and CEO of Greyston Bakery, states “there is more substance to the organization besides the famous brownie recipe” (Liberty Mutual, 2010). The organization conducts business with the use of a balance between a double bottom-line model. The use of this model allows Greyston Bakery profits to support Greyston Foundation, an organization with ethical principles that supports a mission of social enterprise while making a profit (Liberty Mutual, 2010). The bakery implemented a social mission to give back and provide support to the community. Important Issues of Film The Greyston Bakery has obtained notoriety through intentional efforts to communicate good ethics. Transmitting moral information is vital for an organization to have a strong,...
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...Table of contents Introduction -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1 Evaluate Planning Function of Management------------------------------------------------------------2 Analyze Influence on Management Planning -----------------------------------------------------------3 Analyze Factors that Influence the Boeing Corporation Planning------------------------------------4 References----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------5 INTRODUCTION I will evaluate the planning function of management by using the Boeing Corporation as an example in my paper. I will analyze the influence that legal issues, ethics and corporate social responsibility has had on management planning at the Boeing Corporation. I will also analyze the factors that influence the strategic, tactical, operational and contingency planning at the Boeing Corporation. PLANNING FUNCTION The planning function is a process which begins with a situation analysis of external and internal forces affecting the corporation. This situation analysis identifies the problem and diagnose the solution which will bring alternative solutions for the corporation. The next step is to review all advantages and disadvantages against the plan for evaluation. Once the evaluation has been reviewed, the goal is selected by the corporation. The implementation is the next step which will be presented...
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...Ethics are a set of guidelines that differentiate between right and wrong. It is a set of expectations that the society has from an individual or organization which is deemed to be the ‘right thing to do’ in a given environment or circumstances. I would like to illustrate with an example, say in a factory there is a recess time for lunch for about an hour and everyone is expected to be back in time and start work. Now one group comes back right on time but another group of workers always comes back late. Now the group that comes back late may say that there isn’t enough time or maybe the eating joint is far away and try to justify their actions, here, they may be right according to their morality/moral values but they are definitely wrong according to the organisation ethics. Whatever the case may be, it results in low productivity of the factory as a whole. In today’s world where businesses are growing , ethics are somewhere losing their identity. I think ethics are very important for a business. I believe that ethics lay a strong foundation for any business to grow and prosper. Unethical business practices may seem attractive and promising for a short period of time but it is bound to see its downfall. A very good example of this may be the economic crisis in USA as depicted by the movie ‘The Inside Job’. I think that the employees working for a business that follows ethical policies are more satisfied, productive, loyal and show a greater organisational citizenship behaviour...
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