Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethic Get

In:

Submitted By shatakan1
Words 1699
Pages 7
ABSTRACT
This is the case of an immigrant worker named Valerie Young. She is currently working in the United States on a temporary work visa and has come into a situation that calls into play her ethics and moral fiber. Valerie has discovered an ethical shortcoming on the part of her manager who is violating company policy by taking kickbacks, under the name of his private company, with disregard for company policy is a clear case of the Might-equals-right principle, because the manager feels that he can act in this manner due to his position in the department. This discovery puts Valerie in a precarious position, in that by reporting in immediately, there is a chance that there may be retaliation against her by her current employer and forced to leave the county due to her citizenship status.
I will discuss ethical concepts and dilemmas that Valerie Young faced during her employment in the Wisson international cosmetic and fragrance company. Further, I will examine the issues presented by Valerie’s manager, Lionel Waters, in relationship to his ethics in handling business and employees. I will also try to recommend Valerie what to do and provide support for making the wright decisions. Lastly, I will discuss numerous aspects of corporate culture that contribute to the ethical dilemmas.
Valerie is an immigrant with temporary working visa. She has discovered unethical behavior of her boss who is violating company policy. This behavior is a clear case of Might-equals-right Principal (“do whatever you are powerful enough to impose on others without respect to socially acceptable behaviors). The manager Valerie did not have a U.S. green card she was operating on a particular visa which depends on the business she is operating implying her economic scenario. She will jeopardize her job and her remain in the country by blowing the whistle. Moreover, she will lose her

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

How Personal Ethics Can Get

...Running head: PERSONAL ETHICAL DELIMMAS How Personal Can Ethics Get Nasser Mardini Virginia International University Organizational Behavior and HR management – MBA 513 Fall 2011 Dr. Shawn Richmond 09/22/2011 ABSTRACT In this paper I will discuss the concept of ethics and the dilemmas facing Valerie; who is a marketing manager for Wisson which is an international cosmetics and fragrance company. I will also discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics, how organizational policies and procedures can impact ethics, the ethical dilemmas that Valerie is facing and recommend what Valerie should do. Introduction This is a case of a marketing manager named Valerie Young. She is working in the US on a work permit. She discovers some documents about her boss which shows that he is taking kickbacks from two fragrance companies. And she is now in a situation where she don’t know what to do should she report the issue to the company CEOs and stick to the work ethics and face the chance or losing her job and going back to her home country or should she just keep it to herself and not go by her ethics or just keep it to herself at least until she at least gets her M.S. basically the question is if she should let him get away what this or not ? Q1: Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. In most of the times, some people have more power than other people for example let’s say professor have...

Words: 1064 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

How Personal Ethics Can Get

...“How Personal Can Ethics Get?” Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. Personal difference and preference can impact organizational ethics is such a way where people can end up getting hurt. Personal difference and preference is one’s own way of how they think or how they feel about someone or something. Organizational ethics is the understanding of values of how an organization can integrate morals and main beliefs that differentiate right from wrong in the organization. (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011, p.34) When integrating personal differences and preference with organizational ethics it maybe dissimilarity within the organization because not everyone believe in doing and saying things in ways others would prefer them. Everyone’s knowledge, skills, and abilities all differ and if there isn’t any ethical behavior being performed the company will not be able to run as smooth as they could be running. Using Valerie Young as an example, she had found out information about her boss having work on the side, which was unethical. He wasn’t being honest with the staff and Valerie Young got to wondering about what she was going to do. The way that she acted in this situation seems as if she was in the obedience and punishment stage. In the obedience and punishment stage people do the right thing mainly to avoid punishment or to achieve approval. (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011, p.35) Valerie Young acted in favor to avoid punishment....

Words: 1268 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...Organizational Behavior How Personal Can Ethics get? John-Miguel Onkony Course: Bus 520 Fall Quarter 2011 1. Discuss how personal differences and preferences can impact organizational ethics? First of all, we have to know that every person that works in any company or organization has his or her differences and preferences ethics. Each individual has a family background which comes with different aspect of culture and values. Each individual has their own perception, and their own process to select, organize, interpret and respond to the information that is called perception process according to Hellriegel (2011). Now the perception process is influenced by many factors which are internal and external factors according to Helliriegel. Internal factors mostly are influenced by personality, learning and motivation and the external factors are influenced by cultural issues and communication. Before answering this question, we have to know that each and every organization has its own ethics. Any individual that work in any organization has to follow the ethics of that organizational. Organizational ethics can be defined as the ethics outlined by the organization and how the organization is expected to respond to internal or external...

Words: 1378 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...How Personal Can Ethics Get? Abstract This paper will discuss the ethical dilemma that Valarie Young faces as she discovers that her boss, Mr. Waters, has been involved in unethical behavior. It will provide an overview of how personal differences and preferences impact organizational ethics, how organizational policies and procedures can impact ethics and provide a recommendation for the actions that Valarie should take. How Personal Can Ethics Get? Valerie Young is a non-U.S. citizen working under a special work visa for a fragrance company Wisson in Chicago. She has discovered that her boss, Mr. Lionel Waters, is involved in kickback activities with the two fragrance companies that Wisson works with. Valerie is in the difficult situation of having to decide if she should report this or keep this information secret because of the possible personal costs to herself. Kohlberg’s model of moral development held that people develop morally, much as they do physically, from early childhood to adulthood. Individuals evolve, ranging from the lowest stage (obedience and punishment orientation) to the highest stage (universal ethical principles). Kohlberg also states that what defines a person’s stage of moral development is not the specific ethical choice, but the person’s ethical reasoning used to justify that choice (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011, p.34). Ethics are the values and principles that distinguish right from wrong (Hellrigel & Slocum, 2011, p.10). Every...

Words: 1834 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get

...Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. Organizational ethics are the written and unwritten rules, principles, and values held by the organization which help determine the standard of conduct and obligations of the employees within the company. These organizational ethics help govern the decisions made by employees every day in regards to what is right and wrong. Organizational culture binds the employees of the organization together through shared values, behaviors, and shared ideals. The organization’s culture also sets the standard for determining acceptable and unacceptable behavior and decision making within the organization. Furthermore, the organizational culture should reflect the shared and learned values, beliefs, and attitudes of its members. Everyone has their own personal difference and beliefs about what is considered right and wrong ethical behaviors which is due to the fact that everyone has a different background which impacted their ethical views and beliefs. There are plenty of factors that contribute to the development of personal ethics. These factors include family influences, religious beliefs, culture, personal experiences, and internal emotions or feelings. Family normally is the first to instill the sense of what is right and wrong into a child. Also the way parents and family members behave has a strong impact on as well because children easily absorbs the actions of the ones closest to them which...

Words: 1335 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get

...How Personal Can Ethics Get? Mahalia D. Wright Dr. B Grizzell, Strayer University Bus 520: Leadership & Organizational April 26, 2011 Abstract This assignment explores an integrating case in the end of our textbook and several articles researched to fully understand just about ethics can get in a organization. The articles and case study conduct detailed findings individual and preferences can impact the ethics of an organization. This paper also reviews an organization’s rules and regulations can impact ethics. This detailed discussion is presented on the reviewed case study about an employee at Wisson Fragrance Company located in Chicago, Illinois named Valerie Young. Valerie’s ethical dilemmas with her boss, Lionel Waters, will give this paper an opportunity to explain the recommendations given due to her circumstances. It has been long understood that employees truly make an organization. The population researched and discussed are MBAs consider vital when searching for a job and it has been proven that most job seekers will not work at a company they could not be proud to state their affiliation. This material suggests that organizations overestimate the level to which others share their views on ethical matters and factors an organization’s ethical practices, corporate social responsibility (CSR), treatment of employees, job training and growth as good impacts. The results from this assignment will reveal the importance of a organization reputation...

Words: 1544 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...HOW PERSONAL CAN ETHICS GET? RICK LYMAN STEWART W. EDWARDS, PhD LEADERSHIP AND ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR – BUS 520 10/22/11 Ethics are generally formed from culture, behaviors, backgrounds, religions, and policies. Ethical behaviors are generally derived from experience and common sense. It is been argued that Ethics are not considered as benchmarks, however, groups of individuals constitute the power of firms and bad ethics will be driven out by the majority of opinion. Obviously issues that have ethical overtones are presented to everyone, and they make decisions on those issues. Are those ethical decisions? We try to imagine that only the 'right' choice is an ethical decision. But often all options may appear to be somewhat ethical. An ethical decision then is made when one fairly assesses the outcome on all those involved, even those barely involved. Considerations like legality and morality may have to be taken into account, but ethics is not about laws or morality if laws and morality harm rather than help. An ethical decision may ignore national boundaries and seek to help people on either side of them equally. This may not be legal, even though it is moral. An ethical decision might be to allow a polygamous family, for example, to go on living together in love and peace even though by most standards of morality and law this may be illegal and immoral because the ethical person will look at the good or harm that will come to the people involved. An ethical...

Words: 1949 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...How Personal Can Ethics Get? Personal differences and preferences can greatly impact an organizations’ ethics. With millions of individuals in the workforce today it is expected that the workforce be varied with different sexual orientations, religions, cultures, norms, attitudes, and expectations. In fact according to the United States Department of Labor more than half of the U.S. workforce consists of women, minorities, and recent immigrants (Toossi, pg. 10). With these types of statistics it is more important than ever for a company to create strong ethical environments. Ethical issues in organizations are widespread and multifaceted. “Some ethical issues involve factors that blur individual perceptions between right and wrong. As a result, some employees may differ in their opinions about what is ethical or unethical in various situations” (Hellriegel & Slocum, pg. 34). According to Lawrence Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development individuals all mature uniquely and at varying rates. Consequently when faced with the same ethical dilemmas a group of individuals may all exhibit a different response. As an example, employees in the first stage of moral development, Obedience and Punishment, would use simple reasoning in a situation and do the “right” thing to avoid being punished or to obtain approval. In comparison an employee in the sixth and final stage, Universal, would determine appropriate conduct based on their developed conscience. Not surprisingly leaders in an...

Words: 1621 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

“How Personal Can Ethics Get?"

...Assignment 1- “How Personal Can Ethics Get?" BUS 520- Leadership and Organizational Behavior 1. Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Assignment-1-How-Personal-Can-Ethics/705932 To understand personal differences and preferences we must first discuss personality. An individual’s personality is defined by five major indicators which can be defined as emotional stability, agreeableness, extraversion, conscientiousness and openness. (Don Hellriegel & John W. Slocum, 2010) The one I find most impending on organizational ethics would be conscientiousness. Conscientiousness is defined by Hellriegel and Slocum as being the individuals concern of their self discipline, the ability to act responsibly and the ability to direct their behavior. A person who is more conscientious is more inclined to be responsible, careful, respectful, driven and thorough. The opposite can be said about a person that is less conscientious. Organizational ethics can be defined as the ethics outlined by the organization and how the organization is expected to respond to internal or external stimuli. (Organizational Ethics, 2011) If an individual is not conscientious in their own personal life, how can they be conscientious when it comes to upholding the organizations ethical structure? http://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Assignment-1/36619 Ones upbringing and life's experiences form ones world view and how one thinks...

Words: 1988 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get

...How Personal Can Ethics Get? How Personal Can Ethics Get? Tieasha Abdur-Rasheed Ronald Deming, PhD Leadership and Organizational Behavior – BUS 520 (Section 28016) October 24, 2010 Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. Personal differences and preference do not mix well with organizational ethics. Personal differences can give you a distorted opinion of what the organizations ethical behavior should be. If one employee has a personal difference with another, it could cause them to act unethically in an attempt to fulfill a personal grudge. We must learn to put personal feelings aside to maintain correct ethical conduct. I was in a situation at work where a co-worker and I fell out and she began acting very unethically. She went behind me on several of my assignments and intentionally miscalculated several of my problems as if I was messing up. Her feelings toward me made her totally forget about the company’s code of ethics. In this case our personal differences not only ruined our work relationship but it also harmed the company’s reputation because I was submitting my work to an outside firm. I was also in a situation where I had a supervisor that preferred to submit only her ideas to upper level management. She disregarded the feedback that was given to her by team members and gave negative feedback to her supervisor about anybody who questioned her. In both of these situations, not only was the morale in...

Words: 931 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...How Personal Can Ethics Get? Renee J Dresch Professor Jo-Rene Queensberry Leadership and Organizational Behavior- BUS 520 July 16, 2010 How Personal Can Ethics Get? Business ethics defines how an organization integrates core values into its policies and business practices. Personal ethics are the moral foundation on which people build their lives. Together, business and personal ethics form a partnership to help make a company grow and generate revenues. Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. Individual differences are the physical, personality, attitudinal, and emotional attributes that vary from one person to another (Hellriegel, Slocum, 2011). Everyone possesses their own individual differences. Some of those differences vary from being extremely shy to being extremely gregarious. Some people consistently exceed expectations while others do just enough to get by. Personal differences are shaped by heredity and environment. Everyone has their own DNA that is then developed into physical differences based on family genetics. From family genetics, personality and individualism are developed. Some of this is based on upbringing: religion, school environments, family, and society. The remaining differences are based on life events. What one goes through and how it affects that person is how people perceive and react. Since no two people go through the same exact life events at the same time,...

Words: 1377 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...“How Personal Can Ethics Get?” By: A. Tianna Brown Professor Paul Rossman BUS 520 - Organizational Behavior October 23, 2011 “How Personal Can Ethics Get?” “Ethics are the motivation based on ideas of right or wrong, the philosophical study of moral values and rules“, according to the World Net Dictionary (2011). I believe that ethics are based within a business like setting. Morals, although the same idea at hand, are used within a more personal setting - amongst individuals and how they are raised. Ethics and morals lie against the same barrier - right or wrong. The underlying question on contrary is, “How personal can ethics get?” “Case Scenario” Valerie Young is an immigrant worker employed as a Marketing Manager at Wisson Cosmetic Company in Chicago, IL. Valerie Young was hired by Lionel Waters to contribute her organizational, financial and marketing skills to the cosmetic and fragrance company. Lionel Waters, was hired by the CEO of Wisson at the time fourteen years prior and Lionel Water has been apart of ever since to start a new product line for the company’s mass fragrance market. Although Valerie Young was new to the beauty industry, she was eager to learn all that she could about fragrance scents and how they were developed. With working with Wisson over the years, Valerie thought that compared to her first year with the Wisson, she realized that the company worked with as many as eight different fragrance companies and once time and that...

Words: 1112 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get

...“How Personal Can Ethics Get?” 1. Discuss how personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics. Personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics whenever there is a departure between what work ethics are expected to be in place and the actual ethical environment of the organization. If a leader or a leadership team lacks the appropriate ethical intensity and thus fails to highlight the moral importance given to an issue, then the leader’s personal preference will become the ethical compass for the organization. Clearly, while every individual has his/her own perception of work ethics, the organizational culture of professional standards demands that personal differences and preference take a back seat to the organizational ethical well-being especially considering the organizational responsibility to its stakeholders and public image. When personal differences and preference become part of the decision making process, the organizational ethics become diluted thus causing confusion, disbelief, disappointment and even decreased performance among the members of the organization itself. The immediate by-products are the unraveling of the ethical canvas of the organization and the increasing negative social consensus: both of which will eventually erode the organizational ethical foundation and could potentially have a direct impact on diminished product loyalty and market share. The case study “How Personal Can Ethics...

Words: 839 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...“How Personal Can Ethics Get?” Assignment 1: Business 520 How personal differences and preference can impact organizational ethics Individuals’ ethical development is established before entering a company. The influence of family, church, community, and school will determine individual values. Companies are dealing with individuals whose value base has already been established. When choosing a company to work for, one of the things that a person should look for is whether the company has like ethics or values. This makes working for a company a much better fit for your career. Most organizations have a code of conduct which describes its core values and code of ethics. People live in environments that affect them in many ways. They have their own religion, their own point of view toward an issue. While individuals values of are important, the organization has a major impact on the behavior of its members, and can have a positive or negative influence on their values. Business ethics can be defined as written and unwritten codes of principles and values that govern decisions and actions within a company.” For example, for catholic people, when your company forces the staff to work in Christmas day, what are they supposed to do? Work or go to the church? Another example, let’s say that your company harms the environment. As a manager, would you accuse the company? Or keep your work and continue receive salary. There are a lot of situations when your personal preferences...

Words: 1765 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

How Personal Can Ethics Get?

...Assignment #1 – How Personal Can Ethics Get? Leadership and Organizational Behavior - BUS 5200030016 Margo R Coley Strayer University Dr. Maggie Sizer July 18, 2010 Introduction The term “ethics”, as it is applied to business and organizations, is difficult to precisely define. The International Business Ethics Institute defines business ethics as “a form of applied ethics” that “aims at inculcating a sense within a company’s employee population of how to conduct business responsibly” (Business ethics primer, 2008). How Do Personal Differences and Preference Impact Organizational Ethics? Personal ethics act as the foundation for your moral compass; the internal guide that tells you what’s right and wrong. They drive your actions and, to a certain extent, your emotions, on a daily basis. (Scivicque, 2007). Personal ethics are also developed by our feelings. When we do something that is against our moral code, we feel bad, guilty or ashamed. Likewise, when we do something that fits into our ethical idea of “right” we feel good, proud or happy. This causes a sort of immediate feedback for creating our moral standards and making ethical decisions. (Rhoden, 2008) It is commonly understood that there are ethics and then there are workplace or organizational ethics. Often we don’t stop to realize that there is no difference between personal ethics and ethics in the workplace; ethics are the same whether at work or in personal life. After all, ethics are about making...

Words: 1020 - Pages: 5