...Sales and ethics – an oxymoron? By Tony Cross, UPSA Chairperson Tony suggests sales and ethics are compatible. Even if we sometimes don’t think so. Driving sales & revenue targets and remaining ethical in the process is difficult. But essential for sustainability. UPSA has a strong view on ethics and has released the UPSA Buyer's Bill of Rights designed to give buyers a level of confidence in the approach, attitude, consistency and ethics of the selling organisations. Anyone who has picked up the business or financial section of their daily newspaper over the past year has read story after story about unethical behaviour by South African companies. The media’s ongoing coverage of executive deception, corruption, greed and non-disclosure has made headline news and has required government to mediate between regulatory bodies and corporate legal teams. It is no different internationally, with massive companies like Enron, WorldCom and Arthur Anderson displaying unacceptable capitalistic behaviour to such a large extent these companies have disappeared from the corporate landscape. Business in general, and industry sectors such as financial services, health, government and technology are no longer trusted fully and the sad truth is that business itself is to blame. Corporate executives – and specifically Sales Executives, in the quest to meet the annually increasing shareholder demands, have often slipped into a culture of selfinterest. Ethical behaviour is seen as a compliance...
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...Is Sales-Ethics an Oxymoron? Globalization highlighted the ethical issues and concerns for every individual organization, multinational organizational conduct their operations under ethical code of conduct to confine the issues faced by unethical conducts. Many organizations such as pharmaceutical firms, technological firms and financial firms pay more attentions to ethical behavior to ensure the sales to consumers have been impeccably ethical. However managers pay attention to behavioral ethical conducts that ensure the professional attitude of sales force towards consumers/customers (Chen & Tang, 2006, 69). Recent unethical conducts by Enron and WorldCom highlighted the attention for sales and ethical behavior, because unethical conduct and sales ethics can ruin the whole organization wide reputation (McDevitt et al, 2007, 73). Business ethics is counter stone for doing business in industry that however considered by every single organization, which eventually encourages every single business entity to develop the organization’s processes based on ethical conducts. Business ethics and sales ethics both entails the same meaning because ultimately salesperson engages in the business activity to generate profits for business, but on contrary “business ethics” and “sales ethics” have no contradiction in associations. Sales ethics on the other hand have some stereotype meaning because business and sales people are not always ethical; leaving us with a dilemma that indicates...
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...‘Sales ethics is an oxymoron’ Ethics is a very important and influential factor in interpersonal relationships which involve persuasion and leadership. When one has to rely and relies on the integrity and objectivity of the other person, ethics become all the more important. The correctness and incorrectness of intentions and behaviours in dealing with others, when they are encompassed with morality, are called Ethics (Boldrin and Levine 2008). According to Katalin (2005), ethical conduct involves a person observing established and accepted principles of morality of his /her own profession. Ethics provides the rationale for deciding what is right or wrong in given circumstances. Ethical standards in a society form the basis on which the ethical standards of a profession are built. Sales profession of organisations is no exception to this rule. But growing competition among business organizations and industrial houses prompt them to resort to marketing and selling strategies, which many times appear unethical. It appears that organizations resort to any practice that props up their sales (Dobson, 1997). Even established organizations are falling prey to such temptations. Misleading advertisement about non-existing features in product, wrong assurances on quality and alluring and tempting promises on characteristics like durability have become commonly accepted norms of marketing strategies. Not surprisingly the consumers...
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...Is Sales Ethics an Oxymoron? Introduction It has been said that sales ethics is an oxymoron. In this paper, this topic will be discussed. First, what is an oxymoron? It can be explained as the bringing together of two apparently contradictory concepts such as 'a great defeat' or 'humiliating honor'. From this topic, it is saying that sales ethics is an oxymoron which indicates that there is no ethic in sales. It is suggesting that sales are in some degree unethical. For example, it may believe that ales or business is integrally harmful. Or we can say it is at best amoral and it is beyond the normal moral considerations. In order to better discuss the statement of the question, it is necessary for us to define the meaning 'sales ethics'. Sales or business ethics is the application of ethical values to business behaviour or sales function. When the first trade happened the argument of sales ethics (business ethics) has had drown a great attention (i.e. the Code of Hammurabi, created nearly 4,000 years ago, records that Mesopotamian rulers attempted to create honest prices. In the fourth century BCE, Aristotle discussed the vices and virtues of tradesmen and merchants. The Old Testament and the Jewish Talmud discuss the proper way to conduct business and even includes topics such as fraud, theft, misleading advertisements, environmental issues and just prices. ) Throughout the history of commerce to today, the issues of business ethics is a continuous source of debate as it...
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...World-Class Bull “When does a so-called smart sales strategy cross the line to become deceitful?” (Humphreys, 2009) Which business risk represents the greatest threat to shareholder value: Natural disasters? Product defects? Piracy? Patent infringement? Lack of ethical boundaries? (Rudin, A. 2010) The World-Class Bull case study explores the ethical boundaries and challenges that a company will face when it is discovered that one of their top salesman, Chris Knox, takes on the challenge to land a big account. Using the CEO’s personal love of livestock the salesman develops a person relationship and eventually closes the sale. Ethical issues arise when the tactics used by the salesman are revealed in an email sent by the VP of sales, Jeremy Silva, celebrating the success of landing the account. This paper explores and describes how to identify risk factors for ethics problems, and how once identified determining steps to mitigate that risk. Employee actions should be conducted with honesty, full disclosure and the upholding of confidentiality. While the actions of Chris Knox in the World-Class Bull Case may be deemed to have crossed the line the mitigation of his actions should have been handled differently. The responsibility of this “could have crossed the line” behavior lies with management, specifically the sales manager and secondarily the organizations lack of proper ethics training. Building relationships and friendships with potential and current customers...
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...The May issue of the Harvard Business Review offers up an ethics problem in its monthly case study: World-Class Bull (subscription required for full article). The three commentaries offer very different reactions to the facts presented in the case study’s fact pattern. John Humphreys, Zafar U. Ahmed, and Mildred Pryor penned the fact pattern. The case study revolves around the acquisition of a new customer. The existing sales agent was having no luck. A hot shot salesman took on the challenge by using the customer’s love of livestock to generate the relationship and close the sale. On one hand, you need to applaud the salesman for learning more about the customer and how to engage the customer in a relationship. The ethical issue arises because of the apparent subterfuge of the salesman in engaging the customer and developing the relationship. The ethical issue is raised to a higher level when the sales manager sends an email to the entire sales team applauding the salesman and describing all of the subterfuge in detail. James Borg, author of Persuasion: The Art Of Influencing People, lauds the salesman for taking the steps to engage the customer on a personal basis. However, he thinks the sales manager should “be hauled in front of the company’s Idiocy Review Board for sending an ill-advised, potentially damaging e-mail.” Don Peppers and Martha Rogers, the coauthors of Rules to Break and Laws to Follow: How Your Business Can Beat the Crisis of Short-Termism, flat...
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...PART I: EXPLORATION OF BUSINESS ETHICS Ethics not only guide people what is right or wrong, but also are the basic standards in people’s lives and depending mainly on different perspectives, people will have their own ethical standards. Generally, a person will face difficult decisions whether their decisions have to violate ethical standards because of their personal purposes or they will disregard personal interests to accomplish their responsibilities. Obviously, it is not easy to stand between ethics and personal benefits. I remember that when I was in high school, I had to make one of the toughest decisions in my life. To be more specific, I needed to pass the final test if I wanted to pass Math class because my in-class grades were not good, and the proportion of the final test took 30% of the total. The conflicts between my mind and heart made me confused because the trade-off costs at that time were the same. In the end, instead of spending time to make that silly decision, I decided not to cheat on the final test and tried my best to finish the exam. Consequently, I got a B plus in total grade and also I realized that if I did cheat on the final test, I would be caught by supervisors. Each job will have their codes of ethics in which professional workers need to qualify in order to maintain the integrity of a profession. Somehow, I believe that the codes of ethics of doctors and accounting are the most relevant principle in which they will have the similarities and...
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...Ethical Principles and Real Estate Issues John D. McKay Ethics 316 5/1/2015 Terrance Davis Ethical Principles and Real Estate Issues In order practice Real Estate in the state of California a license is required. To sit for the exam there is a requirement to take three college level courses and a passing score on the state exam. When completed the individual has the opportunity to buy and sell property for another and enter the world of Real Estate sales. Real Estate sales can be very lucrative. Unfortunately, a real estate agents reputation is usually grouped together with used car salesmen and lawyers. The sales career seems to attract the unscrupulous where ethical boundaries are crossed all the time. According to Waller (n,d), As with most careers involving sales, real estate professionals encounter ethically compromising situations so frequently that they may be unaware of the situation or the implications of their actions. Many offer advice to their clients trying to be helpful, but are unaware of the problems they may create (para. 2). Since Real Estate Agents make their money based on performance and number of sales it predictable that agents make self serving decisions. The world of the Real Estate Agent can be analyzed using ethical principles to address issues, and answering the following...
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...potato growers that are originally collected, weighed, wash, graded, bagged, and distributed. They originally represented the potato growers of eastern Canada and northern Maine. We know what the results of the strategic planning was the construction of a large manufacturing plant in northern Maine. The main purpose of this plant is to manufacture and process higher value-potato products. This is only the first of three phases they intend to implement. Meaning, we will start out the organizing for the north eastern region of the United States and parts of Canada. The things that will be covered are organization charts, the use of decentralization, financing the business, sales and distribution, and components of human resources, such as hiring and training of employees. The use of a corporate ethics officer, along with stewards in all branches of the organization will also be covered. Organization Structure It would seem that the company has already made and started to implement a strategic plan with intentions of continuing growth to the international level. But before they move on to the other phases, they need to set up the way they would like or need their organization to run. [pic] The organization chart shows three divisions. Representing the Canadian base as Division A, the manufacturing plant in Maine as Division B, and the shipping and distribution from the Maine plant as Division C. Division A will do the collecting...
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...ILE 335 Engineering Ethics Alexandra Velichko 20121545 2013-2014 Business Ethics in the News LLOYDS BANKING GROUP: The Pitfalls of Performance-Based Pay Case Study Wednesday, Lloyds Banking Group was fined £28 million ($46 million) by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority for “serious failings” in the bonus and pay structure for its sales staff. The incentive structure, which ranged from substantial pay increases (and cuts), cash bonuses, and even bottles of wine, resulted in widespread instances of sales representatives pushing products that customers did not necessarily want or need. The FCA said that the incentive structure was so extreme, at times increasing or cutting a sales representative’s pay by 50%, that sales staff were likely driven to sell ill-suited products to customers. The FCA also expressed concern over a conflict of interest, as sales managers, whose compensation was tied to the performance of the sales staff, were in charge of administering the incentive structure. When do performance-based pay structures result in improper practices? How could Lloyds adjust its incentive structure to alleviate these concerns? Case Study Solution Lloyds Banking Group is in such status of capacity that enabled them to cripple to their customers by pushing products that customers did not necessarily want or need. This is an example of unethical or socially irresponsible behavior. There is a sort of negative impact within the firm, when unethical environment may...
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...ethical and moral issues in the business world. We will examine differences between personal ethics and business ethics. The preceding matters are all relevant to one another. The author will also provide some examples of common ethical problems that are faced in the business world. In order to distinguish the major differences between ethical and moral issues, we have to understand the differences. The following quote comes from an article named “Ethics and Morality in Business” by Thomas R. Schori, Ph.D., and Michael L. Garee: Most of us instinctively believe, by virtue of our religious beliefs, our moral upbringing, or even our own internal moral "compass," that ultimately evil will be punished, either in the here and now or certainly in the great beyond.” Schori and Garee describe the battle between humanity and morality in that statement. The idea that people have the ability to understand right and wrong is expressed in that statement. Personal character will differ from person to person. However, there is still the balance between right and wrong that we all identify in our own ways. Society also plays a role in the topic of morality and ethics. Our personal beliefs are related to our own morals. The way society, business, and other types of institutions view issues come in to play with ethics. In order to examine the difference between business ethics and personal ethics, one must understand each category. It is possible for someone to make different decisions...
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...BUSINESS ETHICS TUTORIAL EMERGING BUSINESS ETHICS ISSUES Case Study: Joseph's Ethical Dilemma. Joseph Freberg had been with Alcon for 18 months. He had begun his career right out of college with a firm in the Southeast called Cala Industrial, which specialized in air compressors. Because of his work with Cala, he had been lured away to Alcon, in Omaha, as a sales manager. Joseph’s first six months had been hard. Working with older salespeople, trying to get a handle on his people’s sales territories and settling into the corporate culture of a new firm took 16-hour days, six days a week. During those six months, he also bought a house, and his fiancée, Ellen, furnished it, deciding almost everything from the colour of the rugs to the style of the curtains. Ellen had taken a brokerage job with Trout Brothers and seemed to be working even more hours than Joseph. But the long days were paying off. Ellen was now starting to handle some large accounts and was being noticed by the “right” crowd in the wealthier Omaha areas. Costs for the new home had exceeded their anticipated spending limit, and the plans for their wedding seemed to be getting larger and larger. In addition, Ellen was commuting from her apartment to the new home and then to her job, and the commute killed her car. As a result, she decided to lease something that exuded success. “Ellen, don’t you think a Mercedes is a little out of our range? What are the payments?” inquired Joseph. “Don’t worry...
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...Cultural difference begins with the ethical variations of perspectives or business ethics of each individual international company. Language is a huge barrier when it comes to international or inter-cultural business dealings, but despite the language barrier one must consider business ethics when communicating. The rapid growth of globalization has prompted businesses to develop international codes of ethics that are used world wide as a standard of ethics no matter what culture or country one is dealing with; this has assisted businesses in making sure that all employees are following the same code of ethics and keeps the company running ethically. Two countries that have had many articles written their ethical perspectives are Brazil and China; these articles also give an overview of the study used to compare ethical differences between American and Brazilian MBA graduates working during the study. In the article concerning the ethical perspectives of Brazil and China, the Chinese believe that communication is the key component in business affairs; employees of both domestic and international companies must use communication to complete any business deals or transactions. One influence that sets the Chinese apart from other countries in their way of ethics is that their base ethics teachings are based off the teachings of Confucius. Confucius was known as a political figure, educator, and a thinker; his teachings have become the foundation on how the Chinese perceive education...
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...An Analysis of 'Peter Green’s First Day' The business ethics case “Peter Green’s First Day” presents the dilemma of recent college graduate Peter Green, who has just completed a training program for Scott Carpets and is out on his first sales call with his District Manager, John Murphy. Peter is taking over Murphy’s original sales territory (before Murphy was promoted), and he wants to make a good impression as the two of them call on an important client, Peabody Rug. To Peter’s delight, the owner of Peabody Rug agrees to a large sale but then makes a request for some “help on the freight costs.(运费成本)” Later, Peter asks his manager what such “help” means and is told that Peabody will claim that some of the carpet was damaged in transit to the store. Peter would then be expected to falsify a damaged freight report for Scott Carpets’ front office, and Peabody would be given a discount equal to the cost of shipping the rolls of carpet back to the warehouse for replacement. Peter is told that this is standard practice in doing business with Peabody Rug, both for Scott Carpets and its competitors. Peter does not understand: “Basically, what you’re asking me to do,” he tells his manager, “is to lie to the front office.” The manager is furious with this characterization. Upset and uncertain, Peter returns home to his wife and newborn. He was raised to tell the truth; now, on the first day of his new, job he believes he is being asked to lie. Robert Solomon, Professor of Philosophy...
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...(Week 5-due on 26.06.2016). Topic: “Ethics in Management Decision.”-Ethical Decision Making. Done By Student Name: Khalid Bin Hossain Student ID# c3267875. Done For Lecturer: Nimay K. As we have to write an annotated bibliography on the topic “Ethics in management decision”, I along with my other group members (Poonam and Hilda) arranged a successful group meeting for week 5. On this meeting, we discussed about the topic that we have selected. We have decided to have a meeting at least once a week at the university library group discussion room and also decided to communicate with each other regularly by our cellular phone and with the electronic mails. On the meeting, we searched for the articles relevant to our topic and we found one article each. We read all three articles and discussed about the articles and about our topic briefly. The articles that we have found are- 1) “Management Ethics making the right choice” by Richard B. Secord. 2) “The personal selling and sales management Ethics Research, managerial implications and research directions from a comprehensive review of the empirical literature” by Nicholas McClaren. 3) “How ethical are manager’s goodwill impairment decisions in Spanish listed firms? By Giner and Pardo. According to Secord (2016), leadership derived from various components. These elements can be 1) observation 2) training, 3) practice, 4) experience and 5) a good mentor. ‘Ethics’ can be defined as an area of study with...
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