This document discusses business ethics and ethical dilemmas that can arise in business. It defines business ethics as examining the principles and problems that can emerge in a business environment. It outlines several ethical issues that can occur across organizational functions like accounting, human resources, sales and marketing, and production. These issues include misleading financial reports, discrimination, anti-competitive practices, and dangerous or defective products. The document also provides two case studies, one about protests against KFC for alleged animal cruelty and excessive MSG, and another about the arrest of the CEO of Baazee.com for allowing the sale of explicit content online.
2. Everfelt cheated orexploited by youremployer?
Did you pay extra fora product that actually costs
less?
Did you everhave to bribe someone to get some
work
done?
Ethical Dilemmas in
Business
4. Business Ethics
art that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems
that can arise in a business environment
behavior that a business adheres to in its daily dealings with the
world
how the business interacts with the world at large, and also to their
one-on-one dealings with a single customer
the manner in which some businesses conduct themselves that
brings up the question of ethical behavior
5. Business Ethic Issues across
Organizational Functions
Accounting Information:
misleading financial analysis
forex scams: criminal manipulation of the
financial markets
Executive compensation: concerns excessive
payments made to corporate CEO's
Bribery, kickbacks, facilitation payments
While these may be in the (short-term) interests of the company and
its shareholders, these practices may be anti-competitive oroffend
against the values of society.
6. Business Ethic Issues across
Organizational Functions
Human Resource Management:
employee discrimination
representation of employees
privacy of the employee
privacy of the employer
fairness of the employment contract and
the balance of power between employer
and employee
It covers those ethical issues arising around the employer-
employee
relationship, such as the rights and duties owed between
employer
7. Business Ethic Issues across
Organizational Functions
Sales & Marketing:
price fixing, price discrimination, price skimming
anti-competitive practices such as manipulation
of loyalty and supply chains
marketing strategies such as greenwash, viral
marketing, spam (electronic), and planned
obsolescence
immoral or harmful content of advertisements
black markets and grey markets
Marketing ethics overlaps strongly with media
ethics,
because marketing makes heavy use of media.
8. Business Ethic Issues across
Organizational Functions
Production:
defective, addictive and dangerous products and services
ethical relations between the company and the
environment
ethical problems arising out of new technologies
animal rights and animal testing, use of
economically disadvantaged groups (such as students) as test
objects
This area of business ethics deals with the duties of a
company
to ensure that products and production processes do not
cause
9. Case Study - KFC
Protest Against KFC:
KFC entered India in 1995
KFC's chickens did not adhere to the
Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954
Chickens contained nearly three times more
monosodium glutamate as allowed by the
Act
KFC faced severe protests by PETA, an
animal rights protection organization
PETA accused KFC of cruelty towards
chickens and released a video tape showing
the ill-treatment of birds in KFC's poultry
farms
10. Case Study - KFC
PETA brought a five-foot tall chicken complete
with an ensemble of feathers and beak hobbled
on a pair of crutches outside KFC Indian outlet
in Bangalore
It was a peaceful protest was held against the
alleged ill treatment of birds in KFC's poultry
farms
By late 2003, PETA further intensified its
campaign through protests at regular intervals
Celebrities like Anouska Shankar, Anil Kumble,
John Abrahan and others supported
However, undeterred by the continued protests,
KFC added three more outlets to its existing
one at Bangalore
11. Case Study – Baazee.com
breach of the IT Act of India 2000 by
Baazee.com and presents the concerns
of the people at large about the liability
for crimes on the Internet
charges of allowing the sale of VCDs
showing two Delhi school students in an
explicit sexual act
Avinash Bajaj, CEO of Baazee.com in
2004 was arrested on these charges
raised serious doubts on the efficacy of
India’s cyberlaws
12. Conclusion
Good business ethics should be a part of every business
The manner in which some businesses conduct themselves brings
up the question of ethical behavior
Companies should continuously monitor the ethical values that are
part of the business they are into