this blog has been started for our Communications class assignment. our blog team must do the following
1) make minimum of 5 posts, each with 75 words or more
2) collectively add 3 items (pictures, links, ect)
3) due by Nov 6th
Hey there everyone, so i thought I would be the first person to Blog about this issue. I'm just gonna start by presenting my thoughts on the importance of ethics in today's businesses.
Ethics is the difference between what is right and what is wrong. In business this could vary all the way from taking paper clips from the storage closet or scheming employees out of there pension fund(Enron). The line between what is right and wrong is always changing in a growing technological environment. Employees and even employers are being placed in situations they have never experienced. They are being forced to make tough decisions which can make or break a business. There are businesses which don't always do the right thing in terms of how they manage there money, or how the people in charge of the money manage it. There are employees in the company or in some cases employers who have to use there instincts of right and wrong to make key decisions. Of course this comes with the amount of responsibility they have in the corporation. Either way the choices made in business today are very important.
Ethics has been an interesting topic so far. What defines what is right vs what's wrong? During our business class we had to break up into groups and discuss ethics. a majority of the people within my group agreed that their ethical decisions were determined by how the situation affected them, instead of what is the right thing to do. we specifically talked about stealing a box of pens from work. This concept of thinking troubled me, that people will base their decisions on how it effects them, instead of the greater benefit of the people involved. I personally believe that their is no separation between different areas of ethics (ex. business vs personal). Either you have ethics or you don't. I believe in always doing the right thing, whether that is as simple as not stealing a box of pens, or as big as cheating on my girlfriend.
There are so many different practices considered unethical in the business environment. I want to specifically look at a practice referred to as “cooking the books.” This is the specific term given to any practice that falsifies financial information to benefit stakeholders. During the accounting processes there are so many records kept that show every single transaction that that business participates in. When revenue that wasn’t actually earned that is recorded to show a profit compared to a loss this benefits stakeholders by reinsuring them that what they have invested in is worth their time and is not too risky of a venture. Although they might not actually be true this gives a sense of false hope and keeps people investing. There are some very good examples of this and it might be worth while talking about some businesses that used “cooking the books” to their advantage. [img]http://trustedadvisor.com/public/Image/cookingthebooks.jpg[/img]
Ethics is a big deal. It affects every aspect of the business world. What is right and wrong? With how much integrity should one live their life? It is an issue where one makes a decision based on the beliefs they were raised with and their own moral values as an individual. To some, it defines what you can and cannot get away with.
Here is a topic one can ponder… Plastic surgery has always been a controversial issue. If one were to do the works; such as a face-lift, brow-lift, and liposuction and the change looked authentic and natural, would one have to answer to every person who asked “Did you get work done?” Is it ethical to have to explain everything you got done? In a way, one could say you’re living a lie because you are altering your body parts. To be ethical in this situation, my opinion would be to tell your close family and friends, who you trust, about the changes you have made. To others who wouldn’t give a care about you any other day, it is simply not their business.
Ethics and business go hand-in-hand. Whether stealing from a company or even lying towards the company, unethical decisions we make in the business world affect everyone in the company. Unethical practices cause a "rippling effect;" for example: An employee decides to sign in his work hours dishonestly. The work that should have been done or the money that was unethically earned, takes away from the company's potential profit. Because of this the company's success rate will decrease eventually. Long story short, if we choose to follow an ethical path, we will benefit in the end.
I would like to add on to what Dan has said. In Dan's post he says:
"we specifically talked about stealing a box of pens from work. This concept of thinking troubled me, that people will base their decisions on how it effects them, instead of the greater benefit of the people involved."
Now I believe Dan is right in this case, to an extent. I believe ethics are very important in the running of a succesfull business and companies should surround themselves with ethical people. I also believe that people have different circumstances that change their view on waht is ethically correct. Say for example your company employs a single mother, who works as your secretary. You pay her an average wage even though she is a very hard worker and clearly deserves a pay increase. She can't afford to buy her son all the school supplies he needs so she has taken a few pens and note pads from the storage closet. Now in this case is the woman being unethical or is the boss being unethical? He can afford to give her a small pay increase that would help her out greatly! Is that unethical of him? Or should her son not have pens for class because she is being unethical? there are always circumstances that are completely different from ours and we may never know unless we were in these peoples shoes.
I am very interested to hear your thoughts on this Dan and anyone else.
One of the questions that need to be explored here is "stealing", and is it ever really ethical? On the other side of the world a young child is starving to death. him and his friends get together every mornings, and start plotting their plans. While they are running towards the market they discuss their plans to hit the apple table first. by the time they are finished their deed they can live another day because they have eaten, and have food for their family. So is this wrong for them to steal to survive? even thought they have no chance with out stealing can you truly say they are being unethical? On the other hand in our country two kids get together in front of the 7-Eleven and go over their competition, "who ever steals the most gets bought a big mac". So with their terms in mind they enter the store, both ready to win. Would you say this situation is any different from the last one? is this wrong? and why? What can truly determine what's ethical to steal and what's not? Im truly interested in what each of you uses to determine ethical from unethical.
On a separate note: I have not been able to shake the "age compression" strategy with "selling sexy" that we studied in Marketing last week, and whether its ethical or not. In order to answer this question I am going to explore one systemic effect this marketing strategy has on our society. First of all I believe in taking ownership for your actions, especially when your action effect others. So when marketers use the excuse that they sell because there is a market, and that its the demand that drives their strategies, I get frustrated. TAKE SOME OWNERSHIP AND STOP REDIRECTING BLAME. I know that we have an understanding of how marketing actually works, Marketers will literally create a demand for any product that they are hired to sell. So when does selling a product become unethical? Divorce rates are up, and so is teen pregnancy. The family has been breaking down at a rapid rate, what is love anymore? getting laid? getting pregnant? getting ditched? the truth is that our future is in our youth. What are our young brothers, sisters, kids learning right now? what are there habits? What do they do for fun? all these questions are important for our future. So where am I going with this? (its really late so gimme a break!) I thinks its unethical for marketers to sell sexy with an age compression marketing strategy. Why does Tony hawk really need a strip club? seriously, in the name of profit our society is being destroyed.
Kids are directly influenced by their surroundings and role models. As we saw in the marketing video, sex is everywhere. MTV, Advertisements, Lasenza girl, video games, the teenage dora the explorer, bratz dolls, and maxim. On a societal scale us men have been trained to undervalue women, and see them as toys that we can use for our immediate gratification. On the other hand Women have been trained that unless they put out they will never be accepted, and they do put out, only to lose what they have given to the next trend. All these things are some of the results of the profits made in this "sexy" industry. How can it truly be ethical to train up our youth to undervalue sex, and self image, and true beauty?
Comments or opinions? I would love to know what you think?
To comment on Matt's last post (regarding a company hiring a single mother): I have never been in a situation where I was unable to afford school supplies or anything in that matter. I know where Matt is coming from - we cannot understand what ethical understandings and/or motives these people have unless we have been in 'their' shoes. However, in my opinion (just as Dan had mentioned), stealing is always an unethical decision; whether it be as small as a pen or as big as a car, stealing is stealing. Based on the mother's money situation, we can clearly understand her motives for stealing the pens and note pads, but not yet her ethical beliefs. Being in such a dilemma does not mean that one can throw the concept of ethics out the door and get away with their actions. Dan posted: "People will base their decisions on how it effects them, instead of the greater benefit of the people involved." I agree completely; before you make any type of decision, whether ethical or unethical, you should stop and think about the possible outcomes/consequences that affect society as a whole. Here is a website regarding the importance of ethics in business: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/ethics-important-in-business.html
I must say that i actually agree with Dan's last post. Business and marketing have both lost their ability to really think before they act. They are so worried about making a profit and keeping there jobs that they will do almost anything. It really is sad when you take a look at the lives that they are influencing by doing so.
Kids these days are being raised by television and as much as they hate to admit it marketers are taking advantage of this. In some cases, like the one we seen in class, childhoods are being lost. Young kids who should be playing soccer or playing on a playground are now concerned with fashion and buying bras that they don't need. Its really sad because i'm sure the business owners who decided to target these groups have children as well. I would like to see what there lives are like. To see if they are fixed to the television like other kids their age or if they are concerned with sex bracelets. Its something I feel should be looked into.
Here's a link to a website that takes a look at marketing to teens. check it out, it's quite interesting.
On the subject of marketing to teens and pre-teens, in our eyes for the most part this can be seen as disgusting and gross. But how hypocritical is that? Didn't we all watch certain TV shows that our parents thought were inappropriate? I know that I certainly did. Even today would you flip to a TV show that you would usually watch while your grandparents are over for a family dinner? I think that views as a society are getting much more liberal significantly generation by generation. Can anyone relate?
To comment on what Rob said. I too believe that everyone has at one point in their life, watched television shows that are parents weren't too fond of; I personally wasn't allowed to watch South Park (for obvious reasons of course). However, I think that because we were not allowed to watch certain programs on TV or listen to certain types of music, the rebellious side of all of us tells us to watch or listen to these things. This relates to ethics in a sense; we all know that our parents would prefer us to watch age-appropriate programs when we are younger, because it is the right choice at the time, but because tv is so accessible to these shows, ethics are thrown out the door. Like Rob mentioned, I also think that society is becoming more and more liberally significant throughout our generations. We need to be able to control what our children listen to, what they watch, what they are exposed to; but the simple matter of doing this, is nearly impossible because of all the various marketing techniques.
When does the desire for profit/revenue interfere with our ethics? I think that ethics is primarily affected by a company's demand for profit, or the lengths a business will go to make money. Take Wal-Mart for example, the complete success of Wal-Mart does have some ethical issues; Wal-Mart has been the main cause for many smaller retail stores going out of business. Wal-Mart has taken advantage of countries like China, Malaysia, and other nations; it has got these countries in a constricted tie with business. Even though Wal-Mart has acted unethical to these countries, it is the most successful corporation in the world.
There are various reasons why a person could act unethically at a business or as a business. There are reasons why people act this way and they obviously have their own reasons as to why they may do this. I think as a group we have discovered and added alot of feedback as to why this happens and in what cases.
Ethics within a business Ethics from a business or business owners standpoint and the segmentation of teens as a target market
We have mentionesd all of these and really made a good effort to expand on them.
One thing that hasnt been brought up though is why should ethics be considered in a business? Why doesnt society just assume that business knows what they are doing and that it must be right?!
LOL, thats a great question Matt. Human nature is brought into this question. Why is it that we cannot simply know what is right and wrong in business? Why do some people feel that hitting their wife is okay, while other do not? With so many different types of people, belief's have become relative to their situation, as opposed to the greater good of everyone. I think that as a society we have become so selfish, that ethics has to be defined. Otherwise people would just do what seems best for themselves, and their would be no accountablility.
To comment on Matt's last post, in my opinion: Society is very sceptical on businesses. Most consumers/customers are too harsh on successful businesses; the thought of being successful without being unethical is never present in their minds (again, this is in my opinion). I believe the mistakes made by companies (that have been expressed through the media), have affected all consumers; in that they do not trust that companies know what they are doing, or believe that the company is marketing in an ethical manner. If consumers continually believe that companies' marketing strategies are unethical, I believe our economy will collapse (go into a recession) in the distant future.
Why should ethics be practiced in the business world? The only way to run a successful business is to practice that business morally and ethically. It’s a very simple concept. When you’re doing what you do to make money and people feel like your earning it by being dishonest and by cheating people, business won’t be very good. If you have a strong sense of morality in your practice people can relate and see your efforts as genuine. Anyone else care to expand on this or even give a few examples?
In regards to posts made on selling sex and age compression, excellent points were made on all sides. Society today has become so overtly sexual through forms of media that one does not know how to fit in other than to be sexy or sexually active. As a result, all morals and ethics become destroyed. Morals that parents brought their children up on only last until they are influenced by peers or media. Rash decisions are made that can lead to regret. Finding love seems much more of a fairytale than ever because society nowadays runs on a one-track mind. The whole nightclub scenario is marketed to the idea of a one night stand. Meeting someone where you can have a relationship with is very rare and one tends to get their hopes up and make mistakes in the moment. Old traditions and customs of first dates have disappeared and getting to know one another over a period of time has significantly decreased. Nowadays, an encounter with the opposite sex is arranged by hoping to run into one another at a bar, intoxicated or under other influences. Even though conditions are the way they are, the best way one can cope is to take a step back and be more critical of the decisions they are making. To decide whether or not an advertisement is sexy or sexist or whether or not a compliment being made is sincere or piggish. When one goes to the bar with their friends, they must relax and have a good time but at the same time be responsible. This is how morals and ethics can be applied to modern age behaviour.
Here is an a billboard in New York that was vandalized and soon removed. However, the vandal made a point.
Wal-Mart is actually a great example for this particular issue Tim. Wal-Mart is often seen as this big corporate monster that crushes “Ma and Pa” stores and runs out the little guy. We however are the one supporting this outrageous company although most don’t like to admit it. Wal-Mart, especially in Canada also faces one of the highest levels of theft. The one that has the highest level is here in Edmonton actually, right in Capilano. Do you think that it is all customers that are performing the theft? Or do you think its employees compensating for their lack of pay and below par working conditions?
AshleyMadisons.com has a slogan, "LIFE IS SHORT, HAVE AN AFFAIR"
Is it ethical to make profit by encouraging affairs?
I stumbled upon this web site after my roommate had heard about it at work. Being a Christian, I believe that having sex with another woman other than my wife (have not found her yet) is wrong, end of story. Now I am not here to get on your case about your life style, thats not my business. But I see a link between this Ashley Madison's website, and the decline in our marriages across the globe. AshleyMadisons is an online site for married people who are unhappy with their spouse, and want to have and affair. Ashley Madisons currently have 47005000 members around the globe. They generate millions of dollars off this brutal niche market. I went onto our library data base and researched the company. For their members they will provide software to completely hide the affair from ones spouse, they will bill the user under a phantom company with some legit sounding marketing name, and they also provide an "Ashley Madisons affair guarantee" that states you will get all your money back if your have not gotten laid within 3 months.
This truly, truly disturbs me to think that someone would seriously make a multi million dollar site by creating the tools for people to destroy their familys. This is not ethical in any way. Oh yes, SO WHATS ETHICAL? sure we can get trained on the industry ethical standards. Yet when it really comes down to it ethics must be something bigger than what you FEEL is right, otherwise we will destroy ourselves. As a Chrsitian I have been forming my personal ethical code by what I have been learning in church, and reading from the bible. Does that make me weird? not at all. What it does do is provides me with an ethical code that is way bigger than my personal understanding. It gives me a line I can draw in the sand between right and wrong. I can honestly say that if it was not for my Church and its teachings in my life, you would not want to know me at all.
In reading over all of our responses to various issues on the topic of practicing business ethically, I have found a very specific trend. All of us do believe that business should be practiced ethically without any doubt but what is characterized as ethical is in the eye of the beholder. There are many steps to take in thinking out the most basic of procedures and as long as the general idea is thought of as morally and sociably acceptable you should be on the right track to managing a successful business.
To build on what everyone continues to say about ethics and the running of a successful business. From what I can see and what we are all saying a successful business generally needs to be ethical in some way in the end. Promoting affairs and destroying ma and pa stores is a terrible thing. These businesses are doing very well now but even look at Walmart. When they first starting being a super popular store and spreading across the globe they were terrible. They didn't care what they destroyed in terms of business and at what cost. Now if you take a close look at Walmart they have many programs to support local communities and sports. They have realized that good business is ethical business.
As for the site that promotes finding new people to hump I strongly believe they will figure this out eventually. As this site gains popularity with the common public they will soon have to take responsibility for their actions. Whether this comes in the form of lawsuits from angry individuals or the local governments just having enough. Their is one thing that comes with unethical business and that is a little thing called Char ma! what goes around must come around and it can be in almost any form.
I agree with Matt's post. Everyone has different morals and ethics based on: beliefs instilled as a child, religion etc. However, in the business world, morals and ethics must be compromised with co-workers and managers for the purpose of karma and ultimately, termination.
For example, if one were to work at a McDonald’s in a Wal-mart they could somehow figure out how to discount and or steal things from Wal-mart through the McDonald’s till and their ethics behind it is their negative employee behavior; believing since they are underpaid they should get a bonus in their own way.
They could get away with this for awhile but cameras and other security technology don't lie. In the end they could get fired and, as a result, a criminal record.
Hey there everyone, so i thought I would be the first person to Blog about this issue. I'm just gonna start by presenting my thoughts on the importance of ethics in today's businesses.
ReplyDeleteEthics is the difference between what is right and what is wrong. In business this could vary all the way from taking paper clips from the storage closet or scheming employees out of there pension fund(Enron). The line between what is right and wrong is always changing in a growing technological environment. Employees and even employers are being placed in situations they have never experienced. They are being forced to make tough decisions which can make or break a business. There are businesses which don't always do the right thing in terms of how they manage there money, or how the people in charge of the money manage it. There are employees in the company or in some cases employers who have to use there instincts of right and wrong to make key decisions. Of course this comes with the amount of responsibility they have in the corporation. Either way the choices made in business today are very important.
This looks good guys. You're well on your way!
ReplyDeleteEthics has been an interesting topic so far. What defines what is right vs what's wrong? During our business class we had to break up into groups and discuss ethics. a majority of the people within my group agreed that their ethical decisions were determined by how the situation affected them, instead of what is the right thing to do. we specifically talked about stealing a box of pens from work. This concept of thinking troubled me, that people will base their decisions on how it effects them, instead of the greater benefit of the people involved. I personally believe that their is no separation between different areas of ethics (ex. business vs personal). Either you have ethics or you don't. I believe in always doing the right thing, whether that is as simple as not stealing a box of pens, or as big as cheating on my girlfriend.
ReplyDeleteThere are so many different practices considered unethical in the business environment. I want to specifically look at a practice referred to as “cooking the books.” This is the specific term given to any practice that falsifies financial information to benefit stakeholders. During the accounting processes there are so many records kept that show every single transaction that that business participates in. When revenue that wasn’t actually earned that is recorded to show a profit compared to a loss this benefits stakeholders by reinsuring them that what they have invested in is worth their time and is not too risky of a venture. Although they might not actually be true this gives a sense of false hope and keeps people investing. There are some very good examples of this and it might be worth while talking about some businesses that used “cooking the books” to their advantage.
ReplyDelete[img]http://trustedadvisor.com/public/Image/cookingthebooks.jpg[/img]
well that didn't work. How do you add pictures?
ReplyDeleteEthics is a big deal. It affects every aspect of the business world. What is right and wrong? With how much integrity should one live their life? It is an issue where one makes a decision based on the beliefs they were raised with and their own moral values as an individual. To some, it defines what you can and cannot get away with.
ReplyDeleteHere is a topic one can ponder…
Plastic surgery has always been a controversial issue. If one were to do the works; such as a face-lift, brow-lift, and liposuction and the change looked authentic and natural, would one have to answer to every person who asked “Did you get work done?” Is it ethical to have to explain everything you got done? In a way, one could say you’re living a lie because you are altering your body parts. To be ethical in this situation, my opinion would be to tell your close family and friends, who you trust, about the changes you have made. To others who wouldn’t give a care about you any other day, it is simply not their business.
Ethics and business go hand-in-hand. Whether stealing from a company or even lying towards the company, unethical decisions we make in the business world affect everyone in the company. Unethical practices cause a "rippling effect;" for example: An employee decides to sign in his work hours dishonestly. The work that should have been done or the money that was unethically earned, takes away from the company's potential profit. Because of this the company's success rate will decrease eventually. Long story short, if we choose to follow an ethical path, we will benefit in the end.
ReplyDeleteI would like to add on to what Dan has said. In Dan's post he says:
ReplyDelete"we specifically talked about stealing a box of pens from work. This concept of thinking troubled me, that people will base their decisions on how it effects them, instead of the greater benefit of the people involved."
Now I believe Dan is right in this case, to an extent. I believe ethics are very important in the running of a succesfull business and companies should surround themselves with ethical people. I also believe that people have different circumstances that change their view on waht is ethically correct. Say for example your company employs a single mother, who works as your secretary. You pay her an average wage
even though she is a very hard worker and clearly deserves a pay increase. She can't afford to buy her son all the school supplies he needs so she has taken a few pens and note pads from the storage closet. Now in this case is the woman being unethical or is the boss being unethical? He can afford to give her a small pay increase that would help her out greatly! Is that unethical of him? Or should her son not have pens for class because she is being unethical? there are always circumstances that are completely different from ours and we may never know unless we were in these peoples shoes.
I am very interested to hear your thoughts on this Dan and anyone else.
To comment on Matt's last post:
ReplyDeleteOne of the questions that need to be explored here is "stealing", and is it ever really ethical? On the other side of the world a young child is starving to death. him and his friends get together every mornings, and start plotting their plans. While they are running towards the market they discuss their plans to hit the apple table first. by the time they are finished their deed they can live another day because they have eaten, and have food for their family. So is this wrong for them to steal to survive? even thought they have no chance with out stealing can you truly say they are being unethical? On the other hand in our country two kids get together in front of the 7-Eleven and go over their competition, "who ever steals the most gets bought a big mac". So with their terms in mind they enter the store, both ready to win. Would you say this situation is any different from the last one? is this wrong? and why? What can truly determine what's ethical to steal and what's not? Im truly interested in what each of you uses to determine ethical from unethical.
On a separate note: I have not been able to shake the "age compression" strategy with "selling sexy" that we studied in Marketing last week, and whether its ethical or not. In order to answer this question I am going to explore one systemic effect this marketing strategy has on our society. First of all I believe in taking ownership for your actions, especially when your action effect others. So when marketers use the excuse that they sell because there is a market, and that its the demand that drives their strategies, I get frustrated. TAKE SOME OWNERSHIP AND STOP REDIRECTING BLAME. I know that we have an understanding of how marketing actually works, Marketers will literally create a demand for any product that they are hired to sell. So when does selling a product become unethical? Divorce rates are up, and so is teen pregnancy. The family has been breaking down at a rapid rate, what is love anymore? getting laid? getting pregnant? getting ditched? the truth is that our future is in our youth. What are our young brothers, sisters, kids learning right now? what are there habits? What do they do for fun? all these questions are important for our future. So where am I going with this? (its really late so gimme a break!) I thinks its unethical for marketers to sell sexy with an age compression marketing strategy. Why does Tony hawk really need a strip club? seriously, in the name of profit our society is being destroyed.
ReplyDeleteKids are directly influenced by their surroundings and role models. As we saw in the marketing video, sex is everywhere. MTV, Advertisements, Lasenza girl, video games, the teenage dora the explorer, bratz dolls, and maxim. On a societal scale us men have been trained to undervalue women, and see them as toys that we can use for our immediate gratification. On the other hand Women have been trained that unless they put out they will never be accepted, and they do put out, only to lose what they have given to the next trend. All these things are some of the results of the profits made in this "sexy" industry. How can it truly be ethical to train up our youth to undervalue sex, and self image, and true beauty?
Comments or opinions? I would love to know what you think?
To comment on Matt's last post (regarding a company hiring a single mother):
ReplyDeleteI have never been in a situation where I was unable to afford school supplies or anything in that matter. I know where Matt is coming from - we cannot understand what ethical understandings and/or motives these people have unless we have been in 'their' shoes. However, in my opinion (just as Dan had mentioned), stealing is always an unethical decision; whether it be as small as a pen or as big as a car, stealing is stealing. Based on the mother's money situation, we can clearly understand her motives for stealing the pens and note pads, but not yet her ethical beliefs. Being in such a dilemma does not mean that one can throw the concept of ethics out the door and get away with their actions. Dan posted: "People will base their decisions on how it effects them, instead of the greater benefit of the people involved." I agree completely; before you make any type of decision, whether ethical or unethical, you should stop and think about the possible outcomes/consequences that affect society as a whole.
Here is a website regarding the importance of ethics in business: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/ethics-important-in-business.html
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI must say that i actually agree with Dan's last post. Business and marketing have both lost their ability to really think before they act. They are so worried about making a profit and keeping there jobs that they will do almost anything. It really is sad when you take a look at the lives that they are influencing by doing so.
ReplyDeleteKids these days are being raised by television and as much as they hate to admit it marketers are taking advantage of this. In some cases, like the one we seen in class, childhoods are being lost. Young kids who should be playing soccer or playing on a playground are now concerned with fashion and buying bras that they don't need. Its really sad because i'm sure the business owners who decided to target these groups have children as well. I would like to see what there lives are like. To see if they are fixed to the television like other kids their age or if they are concerned with sex bracelets. Its something I feel should be looked into.
Here's a link to a website that takes a look at marketing to teens. check it out, it's quite interesting.
http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/parents/marketing/issues_teens_marketing.cfm
On the subject of marketing to teens and pre-teens, in our eyes for the most part this can be seen as disgusting and gross. But how hypocritical is that? Didn't we all watch certain TV shows that our parents thought were inappropriate? I know that I certainly did. Even today would you flip to a TV show that you would usually watch while your grandparents are over for a family dinner? I think that views as a society are getting much more liberal significantly generation by generation. Can anyone relate?
ReplyDeleteTo comment on what Rob said. I too believe that everyone has at one point in their life, watched television shows that are parents weren't too fond of; I personally wasn't allowed to watch South Park (for obvious reasons of course). However, I think that because we were not allowed to watch certain programs on TV or listen to certain types of music, the rebellious side of all of us tells us to watch or listen to these things. This relates to ethics in a sense; we all know that our parents would prefer us to watch age-appropriate programs when we are younger, because it is the right choice at the time, but because tv is so accessible to these shows, ethics are thrown out the door. Like Rob mentioned, I also think that society is becoming more and more liberally significant throughout our generations. We need to be able to control what our children listen to, what they watch, what they are exposed to; but the simple matter of doing this, is nearly impossible because of all the various marketing techniques.
ReplyDeleteWhen does the desire for profit/revenue interfere with our ethics?
ReplyDeleteI think that ethics is primarily affected by a company's demand for profit, or the lengths a business will go to make money.
Take Wal-Mart for example, the complete success of Wal-Mart does have some ethical issues; Wal-Mart has been the main cause for many smaller retail stores going out of business. Wal-Mart has taken advantage of countries like China, Malaysia, and other nations; it has got these countries in a constricted tie with business. Even though Wal-Mart has acted unethical to these countries, it is the most successful corporation in the world.
There are various reasons why a person could act unethically at a business or as a business. There are reasons why people act this way and they obviously have their own reasons as to why they may do this. I think as a group we have discovered and added alot of feedback as to why this happens and in what cases.
ReplyDeleteEthics within a business
Ethics from a business or business owners standpoint and
the segmentation of teens as a target market
We have mentionesd all of these and really made a good effort to expand on them.
One thing that hasnt been brought up though is why should ethics be considered in a business? Why doesnt society just assume that business knows what they are doing and that it must be right?!
LOL, thats a great question Matt. Human nature is brought into this question. Why is it that we cannot simply know what is right and wrong in business? Why do some people feel that hitting their wife is okay, while other do not? With so many different types of people, belief's have become relative to their situation, as opposed to the greater good of everyone. I think that as a society we have become so selfish, that ethics has to be defined. Otherwise people would just do what seems best for themselves, and their would be no accountablility.
ReplyDeleteTo comment on Matt's last post, in my opinion:
ReplyDeleteSociety is very sceptical on businesses. Most consumers/customers are too harsh on successful businesses; the thought of being successful without being unethical is never present in their minds (again, this is in my opinion). I believe the mistakes made by companies (that have been expressed through the media), have affected all consumers; in that they do not trust that companies know what they are doing, or believe that the company is marketing in an ethical manner. If consumers continually believe that companies' marketing strategies are unethical, I believe our economy will collapse (go into a recession) in the distant future.
Why should ethics be practiced in the business world? The only way to run a successful business is to practice that business morally and ethically. It’s a very simple concept. When you’re doing what you do to make money and people feel like your earning it by being dishonest and by cheating people, business won’t be very good. If you have a strong sense of morality in your practice people can relate and see your efforts as genuine. Anyone else care to expand on this or even give a few examples?
ReplyDeleteIn regards to posts made on selling sex and age compression, excellent points were made on all sides. Society today has become so overtly sexual through forms of media that one does not know how to fit in other than to be sexy or sexually active. As a result, all morals and ethics become destroyed. Morals that parents brought their children up on only last until they are influenced by peers or media. Rash decisions are made that can lead to regret. Finding love seems much more of a fairytale than ever because society nowadays runs on a one-track mind. The whole nightclub scenario is marketed to the idea of a one night stand. Meeting someone where you can have a relationship with is very rare and one tends to get their hopes up and make mistakes in the moment. Old traditions and customs of first dates have disappeared and getting to know one another over a period of time has significantly decreased. Nowadays, an encounter with the opposite sex is arranged by hoping to run into one another at a bar, intoxicated or under other influences.
ReplyDeleteEven though conditions are the way they are, the best way one can cope is to take a step back and be more critical of the decisions they are making. To decide whether or not an advertisement is sexy or sexist or whether or not a compliment being made is sincere or piggish. When one goes to the bar with their friends, they must relax and have a good time but at the same time be responsible. This is how morals and ethics can be applied to modern age behaviour.
Here is an a billboard in New York that was vandalized and soon removed. However, the vandal made a point.
http://jezebel.com/315570/american-apparel-ads-sexy-or-sexist
Sexy or sexist?
Wal-Mart is actually a great example for this particular issue Tim. Wal-Mart is often seen as this big corporate monster that crushes “Ma and Pa” stores and runs out the little guy. We however are the one supporting this outrageous company although most don’t like to admit it. Wal-Mart, especially in Canada also faces one of the highest levels of theft. The one that has the highest level is here in Edmonton actually, right in Capilano. Do you think that it is all customers that are performing the theft? Or do you think its employees compensating for their lack of pay and below par working conditions?
ReplyDeleteAshleyMadisons.com has a slogan, "LIFE IS SHORT, HAVE AN AFFAIR"
ReplyDeleteIs it ethical to make profit by encouraging affairs?
I stumbled upon this web site after my roommate had heard about it at work. Being a Christian, I believe that having sex with another woman other than my wife (have not found her yet) is wrong, end of story. Now I am not here to get on your case about your life style, thats not my business. But I see a link between this Ashley Madison's website, and the decline in our marriages across the globe. AshleyMadisons is an online site for married people who are unhappy with their spouse, and want to have and affair. Ashley Madisons currently have 47005000 members around the globe. They generate millions of dollars off this brutal niche market. I went onto our library data base and researched the company. For their members they will provide software to completely hide the affair from ones spouse, they will bill the user under a phantom company with some legit sounding marketing name, and they also provide an "Ashley Madisons affair guarantee" that states you will get all your money back if your have not gotten laid within 3 months.
This truly, truly disturbs me to think that someone would seriously make a multi million dollar site by creating the tools for people to destroy their familys. This is not ethical in any way. Oh yes, SO WHATS ETHICAL? sure we can get trained on the industry ethical standards. Yet when it really comes down to it ethics must be something bigger than what you FEEL is right, otherwise we will destroy ourselves. As a Chrsitian I have been forming my personal ethical code by what I have been learning in church, and reading from the bible. Does that make me weird? not at all. What it does do is provides me with an ethical code that is way bigger than my personal understanding. It gives me a line I can draw in the sand between right and wrong. I can honestly say that if it was not for my Church and its teachings in my life, you would not want to know me at all.
So What is ethics to you?
In reading over all of our responses to various issues on the topic of practicing business ethically, I have found a very specific trend. All of us do believe that business should be practiced ethically without any doubt but what is characterized as ethical is in the eye of the beholder. There are many steps to take in thinking out the most basic of procedures and as long as the general idea is thought of as morally and sociably acceptable you should be on the right track to managing a successful business.
ReplyDeleteTo build on what everyone continues to say about ethics and the running of a successful business. From what I can see and what we are all saying a successful business generally needs to be ethical in some way in the end. Promoting affairs and destroying ma and pa stores is a terrible thing. These businesses are doing very well now but even look at Walmart. When they first starting being a super popular store and spreading across the globe they were terrible. They didn't care what they destroyed in terms of business and at what cost. Now if you take a close look at Walmart they have many programs to support local communities and sports. They have realized that good business is ethical business.
ReplyDeleteAs for the site that promotes finding new people to hump I strongly believe they will figure this out eventually. As this site gains popularity with the common public they will soon have to take responsibility for their actions. Whether this comes in the form of lawsuits from angry individuals or the local governments just having enough. Their is one thing that comes with unethical business and that is a little thing called Char ma! what goes around must come around and it can be in almost any form.
I agree with Matt's post. Everyone has different morals and ethics based on: beliefs instilled as a child, religion etc. However, in the business world, morals and ethics must be compromised with co-workers and managers for the purpose of karma and ultimately, termination.
ReplyDeleteFor example, if one were to work at a McDonald’s in a Wal-mart they could somehow figure out how to discount and or steal things from Wal-mart through the McDonald’s till and their ethics behind it is their negative employee behavior; believing since they are underpaid they should get a bonus in their own way.
They could get away with this for awhile but cameras and other security technology don't lie. In the end they could get fired and, as a result, a criminal record.
Here is a link to my first post. Demi Moore at age 46. Aged gracefully or had a little help?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.gossipcheck.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/demi_moore1_300_400.jpg