Ethics and the Business Professional

Evaluate your own performance as a morally responsible group member. Which behaviors do you demonstrate? Which do you need to develop? What specific steps might you take to improve?

The concept of moral responsibility implies that a person can be evaluated with praise or blame for actions based on a moral code. Moral responsibility suggests that the person is in control of her actions and no other element in the decision-making process interferes with the person's control of the situation. It is connected to ethics in that it creates standards for people to live by, such as in a code of ethics for business, schools or in professions.

Johnson states that “my behavior will have a significant impact on my teams’ ethical success or failure.” (P.164) Moral philosophy and political philosophy is true and reasoned state of capacity to act with regard to the things that are good or bad for man. In the daily scramble to get ahead, earn a profit, and outwit competitors, some people don’t play by the rules. Sometimes the culprits are respected and ordinarily well-behaved persons even though they are accused of a crime or offense. Unfair and unscrupulous actions hinder the development of harmonious relationships between workers and co-workers, and between workers and supervisors. Therefore my evaluation of my own performance as a morally responsible group member is being conscientious, honest and constantly striving to uphold the dignity of my profession by adhering to strict moral guidelines.

One can accept the general notion of collective responsibility. In particular, we accept that collective moral responsibility is not the same thing as individual moral responsibility. How to behave toward oneself and toward other individuals is a matter of making choices: whether to be friendly or unfriendly; whether to tell the truth or lie; whether to be generous or greedy; whether to study in order to pass an exam or to spend valuable study time watching television and cheat to pass it. In the vast world of business there is a constant and inevitable struggle to achieve a more powerful position or leadership role. Power is the shear essence of most corporate endeavors and the need for more power drives most individuals to excel at their current positions, so they may catapult to the next level. The ability to obtain a powerful position solidifies the feeling of having control over the future of your career and well-being. Power is a multifaceted resource that most individuals crave, and would go to any lengths to obtain. Although it is important to solidify your future, you must also remain ethically and morally sound while doing so. Therefore, I always strive to do the right thing even when no one is looking. This will prevent me from getting in trouble and making poor decisions that may and will affect my organization. I have seen many people in business lose positions, money and even their families for lack of integrity.

When people place their ambitions and desires before everything else they may get tunnel vision and deviate from what is best for that of the organization. Putting your desires aside in order to put those of the organization before yours is something hard to do. Johnson states that “a group is dependent on the efforts of others.” (p. 148) these efforts can benefit an organization and others by adopting a cooperative orientation and encouraging others. To me, a cooperative orientation is to take into account every aspect involved in any given situation, peoples' feelings, thoughts and well-being, both now and in the future, and act as best one can to achieve the most satisfactory outcome for all concerned. From my viewpoint, acting in an ethical manner comes from each and every individual, each having learned from the environment in which they have grown and developed. Trust is a big part of cooperative orientation. Many people will invest in an organization by the level of trust and confidence given to them.

Some employees view office politics as a sign of power and support. Needless to say, these individuals create a sense of competitiveness and can often create workplace animosity among team members. When there is competition within the work place, employees that want to move up tend to form social alliances and will build networks that can help provide them with any reinforcement they may need. The corporate world is best known for its break neck speeds and unwillingness to decelerate to accommodate anyone who is employed in it. In order for corporations to maintain a level of integrity and ingenuity, there must be sacrifices made on all levels of employment. These sacrifices can determine who will reach these positions of power and who will ultimately fail to succeed at being a leader in their organization. I prefer to convey an image of hard work and unmatched knowledge of the organization when attempting to demonstrate my potential. Ultimately I gain a stronger sense of myself. I try to not involve others in my attempts to better myself to obtain a higher position in the company. I want to receive a position based on my ability to work hard and to deliver exceptionally high standards of veracity.

Why give a 100% when we can do better and give a 110% for the organization? Johnson states that “doing your fair share”, can affect a group’s performance. (p.164) I believe in doing a task right the first time with minimum errors as possible. By doing our jobs right and giving all we have to the organization will promote a better work environment and this in the end will catch the attention of potential customers. I believe that if we do not do our job right or if we do not give it all, accidents will happen. People will get use to cutting corners and this can affect the organization as a whole.

Reference: Johnson, C. E. Ethics in the workplace, tools and tactics for organizational transformation. Sage Publications, Inc., 2007. Print.

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