Verified Document

Professional Ethics And Business Success Thesis

In the face of industry or leadership standards which may divert from a sense of personal ethicality, Merrill suggests that it must largely fall upon the individual to find an ethical and professional compass. The belief presented here by Merrill that there are larger industry forces at hand which may undermine ethical tendencies is further supported by Nagel's article, Ruthlessness in Public Life. Here, Nagel makes a devastating but categorically demonstrable case as his primary argument that the most egregious and socially damaging crimes are those committed by the largest entities. This highlights an issue of startling relevance to our times. With the collapse of such major modern upstarts as Enron, Tyco and WorldCom, all of them destroyed internally by the embezzlement, misrepresentation and greed of their own leaders, it would become increasingly apparent that the presence of strong, defined and enforced business ethics codes is a determining factor in the long-term viability of corporations large and small. So would Nagel make this his primary issue, contending that "public crimes are committed by individuals who play roles in political, military, and economic institutions." (Callahan, 76)

This underscores the unwritten assumption of his text, that we have afforded far too much power to institutions which cannot be reigned in by individual ethical orientation. Citing such incidences as the Vietnam War and implicating such large scale economic institutions as the World Bank, Nagel argues that the largest institutions from which we tend to draw our ethical standards are also often guilty of widespread human rights abuses and acts that could certainly be considered criminal in nature. To Nagel, this presents us with the options either to concede to what we know are immoral acts and positions based on the understanding that society allows these trespasses or to reshape our behaviors to reflect an internal compass of ethical sensibility. As Nagel indicates of these options though, there is a self-delusion in shifting personal ethical responsibility to the mores of society. Accordingly, "when we try, therefore, to say what is morally special about public roles and public action, we must concentrate on how they alter the demands on the individual. The actions are his, whether they consist of planning to obliterate a city or only firing in response to an order." (Callahan, 77-78)

This points us to Nagel's conclusion, which much like...

This is a conclusion which is supported primarily by the correlation which Nagel makes between such encompassing systems as military policy, governmental orientation and corporate culture. In the intercession between these, ethicality proves to be a casualty of interests proclaimed to be above such standards. It is this which causes Nagel to dismiss the ethical authoritarianism of such larger systems.
The unstated assumption which thus resonates with the greatest of importance is the argument that individuals are entitled no personal dismissal from responsibility for failing to maintain ethical standards in professional, personal or public behavior simply because society has failed these standards. Beyond functioning as a recurrent point to this discussion, this is a resolution which provides justification for the recognition of personal responsibility in improving the ethical grounding of our larger professional and private cultures.

Given the findings provided by these articles, we may thus make the argument that evidence especially emergent from the corporate scandals of the last decade demonstrates the cause for ethical orientation in the business world to be related to the understanding that the end of business success justifies the means of ethical orientation. This denotes the inherently practical motives which should drive the codification and enforcement of sound ethical orientation from an organizational perspective, beginning with individuals and leaders guided by strong personal moral compasses. As we find, The relationship between ethical business practices and business survivability cuts across a great many human paths. The absence of a sound code for ethical organizational behavior can have serious consequences to the definition of the procedural regularities and personnel orientation shaping the organization's corporate identity and functionality. Ultimately, this speaks to the primary finding here, that the functionality and long-term viability of an organization, and indeed upon our society, may be as much contingent upon the strength of its ethical resolve as on the quality of its output.

Works Cited:

Callahan, J. (1988). Ethical Issues in Professional Life. Oxford University Press.

Johnson, C. (2005). Meeting the Ethical Challenges of Leadership, 2nd edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited:

Callahan, J. (1988). Ethical Issues in Professional Life. Oxford University Press.

Johnson, C. (2005). Meeting the Ethical Challenges of Leadership, 2nd edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Business Ethics Business Structure and Ethics in
Words: 692 Length: 2 Document Type: Thesis

Business Ethics Business Structure and Ethics in Organizational Behavior Business ethics can also be known as corporate ethics. It is described as a form of professional or applied ethics that helps in investigating ethical principles as well as moral or ethical problems that comes up within different business environment. Its application takes place within every aspects of business conduct and it is always of relevance to the individuals' conducts and the organization

Business and Professional Ethics/Marketing Google
Words: 1897 Length: 6 Document Type: Essay

This would have been a truly unethical action. The second objection that can be brought to the sustained thesis is represented by the fact that censorship is a violation of several human rights. These rights include the right to freedom of speech, the right to self-expression and the right to be well informed. It might be argued that Google made a mistake and created a precedent, proving that totalitarian regime

Professional Ethics & Laws in
Words: 1929 Length: 5 Document Type: Term Paper

Most of the subjects who took part in the Belmont research were inmates, under privileged children or black people. This research violated these person's rights. By using inmates, the researchers were looking for people who could be easily coerced to participate in the study. Inmates can be forced into the study as they have no one to defend their rights. Under privileged children may be forced because they do

Professional Ethics and Potential Conflicts
Words: 1765 Length: 7 Document Type: Thesis

Generally, with the exception of outright ethical violations, it is often context and the particular dynamics associated with any extra-therapeutic relationships and the specific type of therapy involved that determines precisely where the line between boundary crossing and boundary violation exists. Conclusion: Undoubtedly, the nature of psychological therapy and the nature of the relationship dynamics between therapist and patient raise more potentially delicate ethical issues than physical medicine. Various aspects of

Business and Professional Ethics
Words: 1281 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

business and professional ethics in the movie "Wall Street." Discussed are the ethical principles that are violated as related to business; how greed is presented as part of American business; Gecko's view; how Buddy reacts and deals with the issues of ethics; how Buddy's view of greed and ethics evolves and changes throughout the film; what is/are the ethical dilemmas he faces and how does he handle them. Wall Street,

Ethics Business Statistics Christian Worldview
Words: 1511 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

Morality of Statistics Ethics/Business Statistics, Christian Worldview The morality of statistics: Will statistics invariably lie? A famous book from the 1950s was entitled How to lie with statistics. Implied by the counter-intuitive name was the concept that the old cliche that 'numbers don't lie' was false. In fact, as discussed in the article "Reflection before action: The statistical consultant confronts ethical issues" by S. Andrew Ostapski and Claude R. Superville, statistics can be

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

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