Ethics — a Business Imperative

Simply stated, ethics is “doing the right things.” Extending this thought, business ethics, then, could be described as “doing the right things in business.” These statements are deceptive in their simplicity as the factors underlying and defining ethics are highly complex. There is nothing simple about ethics, not in private, personal life and certainly not in the business world. It is noteworthy that ethics is ethics, and it is all about “doing the right things,” regardless of whether practiced in a personal or business setting. People make decisions both in their private lives and in their business lives; these decisions balance past experiences and future hopes with social and economic pressures. In essence, decisions are based on personal judgment of what is right and what is wrong given the circumstances and the desired outcome. So, it follows that without guidance and direction to the contrary, business decisions will be made according to the same standards and the same values of right versus wrong used to make personal decisions. A company’s reputation is defined by its actions, which are the direct results of the decisions that it makes. More and more, reputation has an impact on profitability, long-term viability and shareholder value, escalating the importance to business of a formal framework for decision making; preferably a framework that is based on high ethical standards that foster positive values and integrity. Business ethics is an extension of personal ethics, albeit sanctioned by company dictates, so it is wise for a company to seize every opportunity to provide the direction and support needed to guide its decisions and ethical posture. In today’s world and environment, ethics is clearly an imperative that business cannot choose to ignore.