In other words, there is no ability, under Kant's guidelines, for one to exclude themselves from the duties that human beings under this standard are all held to.
The belief that looking the other way in terms of ethical standards cannot hurt the greater good of a company is a completely naive notion. Much like the adage, "one bad apple spoils the bunch," so too can a mere instance of unethical behavior within a business throw a theoretical wrench in the works of everything that company has set out to do. Therefore, an ethical framework must be laid out within a company from the ground-up, cemented in all levels of employee actions, in order to ensure that a certain standards of ethics and excellence is required. In situations such as this, business managers as well as entry-level employees must hold themselves to the same standards, each operating on an even playing field. Author Lisa Keele notes that, "making excuses for yourself does not get you out of your moral duty . . . no one is above the moral law" (Keele 1).
Again, an understanding that a blanket ethical code is necessary for the functioning of a business is key to that business' relative success. As mentioned previously, infractions against company insiders and stakeholders are never tolerable under Kantian standards. One exception to the rule will do nothing but lead to a downward spiral of ethical violations. No matter how small these infractions might seem, in theory, they will add up to catastrophe.
Such operations against the categorical imperative have been seen in recent years, placing shame upon businesses whose ethical violations have been made public. Take, for example, the Enron scandal, which not only left the company in disgrace, but is still considered to be one of the most deceitful business catastrophes in recent history. Not only did this instance leave the company in disgrace, but it left other companies looking inward at their own transparency policies and ethical codes.
Today, some of the most successful companies make distinct mention of the moral codes that exist...
Companies such as Apple, Aflac, ARAMARK. eBay, Hasbro, GE and Kellogg are just several of the companies that have been ranked among the "World's Most Ethical Companies" for their commitment to exceptional ethics and more importantly -- compliance (Ethisphere 1). Clearly, ethics is one of the most powerful contributors to a company's overall success and longevity. Without it, and an understanding that no ethical infraction is small enough not to matter, a company can simply not survive in the long run.
Conclusion
Immanuel Kant's categorical imperative is a notion that can significantly add to a company's ability to lay a foundation for its respective ethical code. While many individuals do not adhere to such high standards, setting the bar as high as the categorical imperative does forces individuals to more closely scrutinize their own actions.
Works Cited
Bowie, Norman. "A Kantian Approach to Business Ethics," in Robert Frederick [editor]
A Companion to Business Ethics. 2002. pp. 3-16. Ames, IA: Blackwell Publishing. Print.
Ethisphere. "World's Most Ethical Companies: 2012." Ethisphere. 2012. Web. Retrieved
from: http://ethisphere.com/worlds-most-ethical-companies-testimonials / [Accessed on 23 March 2012].
Kant, Immanuel. Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, [Translated by James W.
Ellington, 3rd ed.] 1993. New York, NY: Hackett Publications. Print.
Keele, Lisa. "The Categorical Imperative of Immanuel Kant: The Key to Kant's Ethical
Theory Explained." Lisa Keele: Suite 101. 2011. Web. Retrieved from: http://lisa-keele.suite101.com/the-categorical-imperative-of-immanuel-kant-a64742 [Accessed on 23 March 2012].
Josephson Institute. "Decision Making Models" Kant's Categorical Imperative."
Josephson Institute. 2010 October 26. Retrieved from: http://josephsoninstitute.org/business/blog/2010/10/decision-making-models-kant%E2%80%99s-categorical-imperative / [Accessed on 23 March 2012].
