Question

1. Directors, executives, and accountants all need to make strategic decisions for their company. Discuss three reasons why directors, executives, and accountants should understand ‘Teleology’ and ‘Deontology’ in their decision making.                                                                                                     

Can managers influence a company’s ethical culture by altering the organisation’s code of conduct? Discuss.

Answer 1

Teleology or finality is a reason or explanation for something as a function of its end, purpose, or goal. It is a consequential ethics. It defines "right" behavior by Consequences for the decision Maker. It considers  the wellbeing of others within the scope of deciding on a course of action based on self interest. It evaluates consequences of actions (harms and Benefits) to Stakeholders. It evaluate Whether the intended action provides the greatest. It select the action that conforms to the correct moral rule that produces the greatest net benefits. But the same comes with problems while implementation:-

It fails to consider interest of others affected by the decision.

Interest of others are subservient to self interest.

It can be difficult to assign values to harms and benefits.

On the other hand, deontology is duty based ethics. It considers Rights of Stakeholders and Related Duties to Them. It values Inputs not Results. It treats People as an end and not merely as a means to an end. It has a Universality Perspective that is Would I want others to act in a similar manner for similar reasons in this situation.

But the same comes with problems while implementation:-

It relies on moral absolutes - no exceptions; need to resolve conflicting rights.

By observing the above concepts of ‘Teleology’ and ‘Deontology’, we can say that that it is necessary for directors , executives, and accountants to understand the importance of implementing the same within the organisational culture.

Also, managers can absolutely change the ethical culture by changing the oragnsaitiona code of conduct. A code of ethics, also known as a code of conduct or statement of values, is a policy statement of a company’s values, responsibilities, and conduct expectations. The purpose of a code of ethics is to guide employees in handling ethical dilemmas. It is essentially a moral compass.

The extent to which an organization’s managers and leaders leverage the four building blocks discussed above will determine the type of ethical workplace culture they shape. The ethical culture of most organizations falls into one of three models:-

Compliant ethical workplace cultures promote the minimum ethical standards required by law, regulation and social convention. Concerns about justice and fairness are limited to contractual obligations and commitments, such as respect for employees’ rights and respect for employer’s property.

Positive ethical workplace cultures go beyond the legal bare minimum by ensuring that self-transcending values and expectations are clearly communicated to all managers and employees and by ensuring that all employees adhere to the highest levels of justice and fairness. Furthermore, positive ethical cultures encourage their managers to become role models and to learn from the ethical dilemmas that inevitably arise in conducting business.

Virtuous ethical workplace cultures pursue the highest standards and levels of compliance and justice and make adherence to self-transcending values a priority. Ethical values are synonymous with a firm’s value.