Once one knows this, or rather once one feels this knowledge in one's bones, one lives in a new world. Some people remain aliens in the new world forever. Maybe they like it that way. Maybe they don't have a choice." (Alford, 52).
With respect to the case study at hand here, this was an experience which afflicted me with heavily mixed feelings at Allied. The vacuum of integrity in the industry was counterintuitive to my understanding of business practices that were sensible in the long-term and that abided traditional moral conditions in their execution. As a major consequence of this paradox, I found myself often in a position where balance was crucial. The major divide between my commitment to my principles and my loyalty to an employer's whose principles were divergent from my own was one only driven wider by the difficulties of context. Within an industry that appeared to not only encourage but cater to the vices in honesty and integrity which were my employer's, I had to choose carefully my approach to the daily operation of the company.
Indeed, the fact that Mr. Caldwell was bolstered in his behavior by similar standards throughout the industry would exacerbate the complexity of my dilemma. With consideration to the dilemma over whether or not to attempt to alter an organizational atmosphere that deviates from conventional terms of ethicality, research has assessed that "the putative benefits depend upon the assumption that the corruption transgresses a wrong or inefficient economic policy, overcomes limitations in an imperfect political system, or gets around imperfections in organizational rules. In short, if the prevailing system is bad, then corruption may be good." (DeLeon, 35)
Therefore, in evaluating circumstances at Allied, I was often forced to consider whether or not the connotation which I would attribute to a set of behaviors such as dishonesty or fiscal irresponsibility was merely shaped by personal prejudice rather than by the relevant conditions within the workplace.
Upon close inspection, I would generally find my position of objection vindicated by operational failures. Within the cyclical pattern to which my employer seemed beholden, there was a tendency for dishonesty and fiscal irresponsibility to share a reciprocal relationship with operational failures. Our poor service with clients would, while not necessarily ending the relationships susceptible to such, have the impact of reducing the level of reliance which some customers would place on our company's services. This translated to diminished sales with individual clients, obviously a condition which contrasts with the goals of any production and retail organization.
In drawing the determination that the contextual vagaries of the industry were not sufficient justification for the ethical shortcomings which had become institutionalized at Allied, I was also able to establish a connection between specific operational problems and this deviation from ethical soundness. It had become clear to me that through a more efficient system of inventory maintenance, through better ergonomic production processes, through more thorough communication with clients, we could establish a circumstance in which deviations from ethicality would become less necessary and less practical.
This awareness begot the further revelation that a stratified approach to the ethical conditions at Allied which sought to work with the structural opportunities there available rather than against the internal bottleneck that was Mr. Caldwell might create a more favorable working environment for all. This invokes the decision-problem tool from Evan Berman's the Ethics Edge, the Ethics Triangle. (See Figure Below). By devising three separate and related strategies which appeal to alternative means to addressing ethical shortcomings in a developing company, I was able to bring gradual improvement to the circumstances at Allied. The three-part strategy was composed with the notion in mind that the dilemma between organizational loyalty and business ethicality could be resolved neutrally by way of the aforementioned rectification of basic operational problems, the diffusion of ethical appropriateness to the general personnel and the self-directed orientation toward ethical behavior.
The conditions at Allied Medical Products challenged my managerial sensibilities and my understanding of the appropriate ways to conduct business. It was essentially my observation that the methods selected by my employer, Mr. Caldwell, to routinely conduct business not only diverged from my sense of ethical rightness but also tended more often than not to compromise the company's efficiency. My position, officially denoted as General Manager of Operations, was constituted of a diverse range of responsibilities too extensive and varied to list...
Business Ethics "the High Cost of High-Tech Foods case" The cost of high-tech food continues to arouse debates over the ethical, moral, and practical impacts the foods have on the people, market, and economy. However, it is evident that the proponents and opponents of the motion do not seem to come to agreement as each holds their view right. The situation worsens due to the application of emotions in addressing the matter
Business Ethics Introduction (Summarize the overall viewpoint of the author, and discuss the major issues presented in the case.) In the case, the author is showing how Dennis Kozlowski and Mark Schwartz were at the top of an elaborate scheme to defraud Tyco. This was accomplished by talking about how their troubles began based upon Kozlowski's desire to avoid paying taxes on artwork in New York State. As the investigation expanded, the
One of the criticisms of Broadway is that tickets are too expensive, but to encourage a new generation to enjoy Broadway, many theaters offer scaled prices, including discounts for students. Regarding the sale of 50 tickets for $300 each -- this would depend upon the size of the venue. Some limited exchanges like this could fund more, less well-known groups to come to campus under the umbrella of the activities
Ethics Corporate Governance & Business Ethics It is quite interesting to note that, academic research in business ethics was a totally distinct discipline from research in corporate governance, and the application of the word 'ethics' was uncommon in available research on corporate governance. The chief responsibility of corporate governance was understood to be safeguarding the benefits of the shareholders. Because of the severance between ownership and management, and the incapability of the
Business Ethics When the Truth Takes a Stretching Class Maria Bailey clearly and blatantly misrepresented the size of her start-up business, but shrugged it off saying she knew what she was "capable of doing" and just wanted to show potential clients "what we were going to be," rather than tell them the truth about how fledgling her business actually was at that time. Was it immoral for Mary Bailey to misrepresent her company? Looking
The Bank CEO's Role in Defining Ethical Integrity Based on a thorough review of existing literature of the role of ethics in the banking industry, the role of the CEO as the ethical leader of their organization is next discussion. Based on the concepts presented in the paper to this point as the foundation, these key points provide insights into how CEOs and senior management actively shape the ethical standards of
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now