Business Ethics, why we should all remember what it is

Today I decided to touch the topic of Business Ethics, and provide a summary of what that means, seemingly that there are those who seemed to forget.

Ethics has its place in nearly all professional disciplines. The medical profession, legal profession, accounting profession and countless others maintain individual codes of conduct that guide the manner in which those professionals should behave. Ethics, according to Wikipedia, also is known as “moral philosophy.” It addresses concepts of morality such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime. [In some respects, it relates to the poem by Robert Fulghum “All I ever really needed to know, I learned in Kindergarten”. Wouldn't the business world be an easier place if we all lived by those simple rule

The term “ETHICS” can be dissected into components in order to evaluate which aspects are working in your organization and where there is room for improvement.

EVERYONE IS RESPONSIBLE

TONE AT THE TOP IS ESSENTIAL

HONESTY IS STILL THE BEST POLICY

INTEGRITY CAN BE A MEASURE OF ETHICS

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY & COMMUNICATION MUST BE PREVALENT

SILENCE IS NOT ACCEPTABLE

Seemingly if I review recent developments and occurrences, there seems to be a lack on understanding the terms, but I truly hope that those who needs to be educated will take this to Heart and mind.

Ethics and Corporate Responsibility will continue to be hot topics in Corporate world for years to come. As the economy continues to struggle, or rebound, the ethical behavior of those within business will dramatically impact the success of that recovery. It is no longer acceptable to be the Enron’s of the world where a best practice “code of conduct” sits on a shelf but is not embraced or actually displayed in practice. Organizations must focus on all aspects of their Ethics program. You must look further than the policy itself. Know how the policy is practiced, enforced, updated and how compliance is measured and reported? Those are the true signs of a policy in action.