Question

ETHICS 301 - Business ethics

4. What are the benefits of ethics program? Discuss at least four distinct benefits.

5. Define code of ethics and code of conduct, and discuss the difference between the two.

Answer 1

There are several benefits of ethics program

1.Acts as an insurance policy — they help ensure that policies are legal.

The various lawsuits on personal matters affects the product of organization.

. As mentioned earlier in this document, ethical principles are often state-of-the-art legal matters. Prevention is better than cure. Its It good to bear bea cost of ethical program rather than legal cases.

Attention to ethics ensures highly ethical policies and procedures in the workplace. A major objective of well-designed personnel policies is to ensure ethical treatment of employees, in matters of hiring, evaluating, disciplining, firing, etc.

2.Avoids criminal act omission:-

Ethics programs fecilitates the identification of violation and its reporting . If an organization is aware of an actual or potential violation and does not report it to the appropriate authorities, this can be considered a criminal act.However, the guidelines potentially lowers fines .

3.Quality management, strategic planning and diversity management .

Ethics programs identify preferred values and ensuring organizational behaviors are aligned with those values. This effort includes recording the values, developing policies and procedures to align behaviors with preferred values, and then training all personnel about the policies and procedures. This overall effort is very useful for several other programs in the workplace that require behaviors to be aligned with values, including quality management, strategic planning and diversity management. Total Quality Management includes high priority on certain operating values, e.g., trust among stakeholders, performance, reliability, measurement, and feedback. Eastman and Polaroid use ethics tools in their quality programs to ensure integrity in their relationships with stakeholders. Ethics management techniques are highly useful for managing strategic values, e.g., expand marketshare, reduce costs, etc.

4.Ethics programs promote a strong public image.

Attention to ethics is also strong public relations — admittedly, managing ethics should not be done primarily for reasons of public relations. But, frankly, the fact that an organization regularly gives attention to its ethics can portray a strong positive to the public. People see those organizations as valuing people more than profit, as striving to operate with the utmost of integrity and honor. Aligning behavior with values is critical to effective marketing and public relations programs.

Code of Ethics which consist of a set of principles, designed to guide the members of the organisation to carry out business honestly and with integrity. It is issued by top management.

It describes the core values of the organisation that guides the decision-making. It provides ethical standards which are to be followed by the members.

Code of ethics helps members in understanding what is right or wrong. The codes are disclosed publicly and hence addressed to the interested parties to know the way the company does business. Violation of the code of ethics by any member may result in termination or dismissal from the organisation.Code of Conduct is a document that expresses the practices and behaviour of a person, required or restricted as a condition for becoming a member of the organisation or profession. The code sets out the actual rules, so it lays down the do’s and doesn’t s of an employee. The members are responsible for its adherence and held accountable for its violation.

Codeof Ethics isissued by the board of directors containing core ethical values, principles and ideals of the organisation while Code of Conduct is a directional document which includes some specific practices and behaviour, that are followed or restricted under the organisation.Code of Ethics is general is general in nature, whereas code of conduct is specific.Code of Conduct are originated from the code of ethics.Code of ethics is a shorter document in length than a code of conduct.Code of Ethics regulates the judgment of the organisation while a code of conduct regulates the actions.Code of Ethics can be accessed by anyone while Code of Conduct is addressed to employees only.