Transcript Introduction to Retailing

Key Issues
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Ethics: 13.1
Spiritual commitment in the workplace
Growing ethical confusion
Strong ethical leadership
Josephson’s ethical principles
CEO of a Fortune 500
Company
“There is going to be a Day of Judgment. If there
isn’t a day up there, it’s when you’re lying on your
deathbed. And you’re going to say to yourself:
‘Well, what did I achieve in my life?’ It’s not how
much money you’ve made, or how big a house
you’ve got, or how many cars. It’s what you did for
your fellow man. It’s ‘What did I do to make the
world better?’ That’s what it’s going to come down
to.”
Geoffrey C. Bible,
Chairman and CEO of Philip Morris
Ethics: 13.2
The Station
Robert J. Hastings
Tucked away in our subconscious minds is an
idyllic vision. We see ourselves on a long trip
that spans the continent.
We're traveling by passenger train, and out the
windows we drink in the passing scene of cars
on nearby highways, of children waving at a
crossing, of cattle grazing on a distant hillside,
of smoke pouring from a power plant, of row
upon row of corn and wheat, of flatlands and
valleys, of mountains and rolling hills, of biting
winter and blazing summer and cavorting spring
and docile fall.
Source: http://www.storybin.com/wisdom/wisdom104.shtml
Ethics: 13.3
But uppermost in our minds is the final
destination. On a certain day at a certain hour
we will pull into the station. There will be bands
playing, and flags waving. And once we get
there so many wonderful dreams will come
true.
So many wishes will be fulfilled and so many
pieces of our lives finally will be neatly fitted
together like a completed jigsaw puzzle. How
restlessly we pace the aisles ... waiting,
waiting, waiting, for the station.
Ethics: 13.4
However, sooner or later we must realize there is
no one station, no one place to arrive at. The true
joy of life is the trip.
The station is only a dream. It constantly
outdistances us.
“When we reach the station, that will be it!”
 When I graduate, that will be it!
 When I get a real job!
 When I get married!
 When I have children!
 When I get that new BMW!
 When I win that promotion!
 Then … I shall live happily ever after!
Ethics: 13.5
President Hinckley
Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to
waste a lot of time running around shouting that he's
been robbed.
The fact is that most [golf] putts don't drop, most beef is
tough, most children grow up to be just people, most
successful marriages require a high degree of mutual
toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise.
Life is like an old time rail journey ... delays, sidetracks,
smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only
occasionally by beautiful vistas, and thrilling bursts of
speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have
a ride.
Quoting Jenkins Lloyd Jones
Ethics: 13.6
Morally Difficult Situations
• Your biggest customer has asked that you, a mfr of
fashion goods, “delay” shipment of a new product to
competitors for a few weeks.
• You own a small metal plating co. & accidentally
dumped some zinc solution into the city sewer system.
The amount is small but could cause a few people to
become temporarily ill.
• In real life, the "moral dilemma" we most often face is: I
know what's right, but it's difficult, costly, unpopular, or
inconvenient to do it. Do I have the determination to do
it anyway?
Ethics: 13.7
Wall Street Journal Ethics Quiz:
How would you answer? Other people?
 What’s the value at which a gift from
a supplier or client becomes
troubling?
 Is a $50 gift to a boss wrong?
 Is a $50 gift from the boss wrong?
 From a supplier, is it wrong to take …
- a $100 holiday food basket?
- a $25 gift certificate?
 Is it wrong to accept a $75 prize won
at a raffle at a supplier’s conference?
Source: WSJ, 10/21/99
Ethics: 13.8
Yes
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No
You Will Work With Good
People!
Have you had occasion to talk about your
religious faith in the workplace in the past 24
hours?
Does modern life leave you too busy to
enjoy God or pray as you would like?
Do you feel the need in your life to
experience spiritual growth?
Do you believe God exists and have no
doubts about it?
Do you have absolute trust in God?
Source: Business Week, Nov 1, 1999, based on
McKinsey’s A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America
Ethics: 13.9
Firms’ Moral Development
The Amoral
Corporation
Pursues winning at any cost; views employees
merely as economic units of production.
with the letter of the law, but not its
The Legalistic Concerned
adopts codes of conduct that read like
Corporation spirit;
products of legal departments which they are.
The Responsive
Corporation
The Emergent
Ethical
Corporation
The Ethical
Corporation
Interested in being a responsible corporate
citizen because
itthe
is expedient;
has
codes
of
Why
Lord
has
a
conduct that look more like codes of ethics.
Recognizesbusiness
a social contractschool
between business
and society, and seeks to instill that attitude
throughout the corporation.
Balances profits and ethics throughout its
culture.
Linda Starke, The New Paradigm in Business -Emerging Strategies for Leadership and
Organizational Change
Ethics: 13.10
Difficulty of Moral Action
Model of Moral Response
The most
ethical path
Our chosen path
Different
Experiences
We must Life
Close
the Gap …
Why do we cheat?
Ethics: 13.11
The Fraud Triangle
Why We Behave Unethically
Fraud
Triangle
Rationalization
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.12
Questionable State of Ethics
Did you cheat to get into graduate school?
“Yes”
 43% Liberal Arts
 52% Education
 63% Law and Medicine
 75% Business
Source: Rutgers University survey of students
Ethics: 13.13
Questionable State of Ethics
Business School Graduates
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76% were willing to understate expenses that cut
into their companies’ profits
Nearly all believe shareholder value is more
important than customer service
Convicts in 11 minimum security prisons had
higher scores on an ethical dilemma exam than
MBAs
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.14
Survey of Employees
 65% don’t report ethical problems they
observe
 96% feared being accused of not being a
team player
 81% feared corrective action would not be
taken anyway
 68% feared retribution from their
supervisors
Source: Society of Human Resource Management
Ethics: 13.15
Deterioration in Ethical Values
Then
Now
College students who
cheated in high school
Self-reported cheating
1940: 20%
1983: 11%
75-98%
49%
Believe cheating is common
Used cheat sheets
1940: 20%
1969: 34%
88%
68%
Let others copy work
Willing to lie to get job
1969: 58%
2000: 28%
98%
39%
Based on several different ethics studies,
2003-2005
Ethics: 13.16
Why is Dishonesty Increasing?
Positive
Labeling
Modeling
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.17
Honesty
Why Is Dishonesty Increasing?
 Little Good Modeling
 Makes up our news —
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more explicit than ever
Focus of TV/movies
Dishonest “leaders”
Sports, business,
entertainment “heroes”
Good models are rare
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.18
 Little Positive Labeling
 Home … families spend 10
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hours/week less together vs
20 years ago
Vocabulary of school
children
Schools
Churches
You Must Prepare
to Teach Ethical Values
Ethical Leadership
Helping Others be Ethical
Ethical Courage
Willingness to Pay the Price for Doing the Right Thing
Application of Ethics to Business Situations
Fraudulent Practices, Unfairness
Personal Ethical Understanding
Right/wrong, Fairness, Honesty, Personal Integrity, Respect for Others
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.19
Importance of Ethical
Leadership
Where do you want to be?
Honest
Employees
Will Always
be Honest
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.20
Swing
Group
Could Go
Either
Way
Dishonest
Employees
Policies Won’t
Help Much
Importance of Ethical
Leadership
Where do you want to be?
Honest
Employees
Will Always
be Honest
Swing
Group
Could Go
Either
Way
Dishonest
Employees
Policies Won’t
Help Much
Strong Ethical Leadership
Induces the middle group to behave as
if they were the honest employees.
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.21
Importance of Ethical
Leadership
Where do you want to be?
Swing
Honest
Employees Group
Will Always
be Honest
Could Go
Either
Way
Dishonest
Employees
Policies Won’t
Help Much
Weak Ethical Leadership
Permits the middle group to behave as
if they were the dishonest employees.
Steve Albrecht, 2005
Ethics: 13.22
Ethical Principles
I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but I
can do something. And, because I cannot do everything, I will
--Edwin Hale
not refuse to do what I can.
 Fairness. Be fair & open-minded, be willing to admit
error and to change positions and beliefs; show a
commitment to justice, and tolerance for diversity.
 Honesty. Be truthful, sincere, forthright, straightforward,
frank, candid; do not cheat, steal, deceive, or act deviously.
 Integrity. Be principled, honorable, upright, courageous
and act on convictions, abide by the spirit as well as the
letter.
 Fidelity. Be faithful & loyal to family, friends, employers,
and country; don’t use or disclose information learned in
confidence.
Source: Josephson, “Ethics & Decision
Making,” Ethics Easier Said than Done,
Winter 1988
Ethics: 13.23
 Caring. Be caring, kind and compassionate; share,
be giving, serve others; help those in need and avoid
harming others.
 Respect. Show respect for human dignity, privacy,
and the right to self-determination of all people; be
courteous, prompt, and decent.
 Responsible Citizenship. Obey just laws if a
law is unjust, openly protest it; exercise all
democratic rights and privileges responsibly by
participation, social consciousness and public
service.
 Accountability. Be accountable, accept
responsibility for decisions and the consequences of
actions and inactions; set an example for others.
Source: Josephson, “Ethics & Decision
Making,” Ethics Easier Said than Done,
Winter 1988
Ethics: 13.24