Canadian Business and Society: Ethics & Responsibilities - Week 1 Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering core definitions, governance concepts, and fundamentals of Canadian capitalism from Week 1 lecture.

Ethics of Business

Moral principles and values that seek to determine right and wrong in the business world.

Law

Enforceable rules created by governments and courts.

Compliance

Systems and processes used to meet legal and regulatory obligations.

Governance

Structures for accountability, oversight, and decision-making.

The Right of Private Property

The legal right to own and use economic goods, such as land and buildings.

Individualism

The view that the individual, and not society or a collective, is the paramount decision maker in society, assuming that the individual is inherently decent and rational.

Economic Freedoms

Conditions that exist when the business system operates with few restrictions on its activities.

Equality of Opportunity

The assumption that all individuals or groups have an even chance at responding to some condition in society.

Competition

The condition in a market system in which many rival sellers seek to provide goods and services to many buyers.

Profits

The excess of revenues over expenses, closely associated with competition.

The Work Ethic

A code of values, or a body of moral principles, claiming that work is desirable, a natural activity, and good in and of itself.

Consumer Sovereignty

The assumption existing in an economy that consumers have and exercise power over producers through the decisions they make in purchasing goods and services provided by corporations.

Laissez-faire approach

An approach suggesting minimal involvement of government other than national security, internal law and order, and a system of currency and measures.

Canadian Capitalism

An economic system that allows for private ownership of the means of production (land, labour, and capital) and assumes economic decision making is in the hands of individuals or enterprises expecting to earn a profit.

Boards of Directors

Individuals elected by shareholders who must fulfill legal and fiduciary obligations.

Managers

Individuals hired by boards of directors to oversee the operations of a corporation.

Integration of Business and Society

A shared value approach in which both business and society benefit, aiming to reduce friction between society and business while increasing mutual benefits.