good ethics is good business

  • good business is good ethics:

    • can be understood in various ways:

      • that there is nothing different between business decisions and other kind of decisions » biz decisions are not inherently unethical ∴ a good business decision, as any good decision, is likely to also be ethical

      • that business decisions are inherently unethical because they are interested only in what benefits the business. this can have neg impacts on the business n such businesses will do better if they make their decision-making based on good ethics

      • that most everyday business decisions don’t involve ethical choices but that occasionally biz decisions do involve a choice between doing the right thing or doing something that might be wrong. atp those making the decisions would benefit from ethical guidance - perhaps in the form of a policy setting out what the business must do in such circumstances

  • examples of self-interest over ethics:

    • the long term cost of the unethical causes of the financial crisis of 2008 were high

      prevention might’ve meant lower economic growth, fewer house-buyers, lower consumer spending » fewer jobs

utilitarian approaches:

1. crane and matten say that approaching business ethically is a matter of weighing up the potential economic gains vs losses

2. because of the complexity of business operations n the no of variables involved in business decisions , within dynamic and fast-paced business environments

  1. …

  2. an act utilitarian may conclude that anything is permissible if it increases pleasure for the greatest number » their workforce should be moved to zero-hour contracts so that many more customers would benefit from the resulting cheaper products

  3. a rule utilitarian would conclude that the behaviour of businesses holistically is of importance n be prepared to restrict the business’ conduct in some circumstances due to a perceived overall benefit to a wider range of goods, not just for profit » for them, zero-hour contracts cause more pain than pleasure »» rule utilitarianism would therefore seem to fit better with a “good ethics is good business” approach

kantian approach:

  • categorical imperatives are attractive for business because:

    • kantian ethics enables principles to be developed that apply in every situation

    • the cat. imp. would clarify for a business just what actions are and are not permissible

  • however, could be considered unattractive for a highly-competitive, capitalist business environment because:

    • 3rd maxim of the categorical imperative requires that a business acts only in ways that would be seen as acceptable by everyone » whilst one business tries to act responsibly, its competitors rush to take advantage

    • 2nd maxim of cat. imp. says that ppl should not only be treated as means: their own needs n aspirations should always be considered too » could potentially tie a business up in complex considerations of stakeholder outcomes

    • 1st maxim of cat. imp. demands that any action is only right if it’s right for everyone » businesses following this maxim would always tell the truth, coz if everyone lied then nothing would work