Ethics in Consulting
Ethics dilemmas in consulting
Ethics has become an important topic in business today with good reason. Just look at the headlines: Rajat Gupta Scandal, Anil Kumar and Rajaratnam scandal, Enron, Worldcom, Health South, Great depression, financial crisis due to unethical behaviour by the banks etc. All of these cases are related to consultants either directly or indirectly and they occurred due to the moral fallacy of some of them.
Ethics is an extremely relevant value in business and consulting. The presence of recognized ethics and/or ethical practices tends to diminish the need for informative or legal/contractual precautions in the formalization of relationships, for both of the parts involved in a negotiation.
Consulting is an enigmatic business. The industry is ridiculed, reviled, or revered, depending on one’s perspective. Management consultants and their moral standards, practices and behaviour have been questioned and caricatured, but it is not sufficiently appreciated that they frequently have to operate in situations which are characterized by ambiguity, ignorance, uncertainty and sensitivity and they cannot always simply apply ethical rules in cooperating with their clients.
Some major consulting firms Importance of Ethics
Ethics among business professionals has been receiving a lot of increased attention lately. However, it is not surprising that ethics has come out more into focus especially during the last few years. The latest development in society and some of the business events has triggered this movement. Deception, Turbulence, Forgery, relentless competition, and economic creativity are few of the key characteristics driving this behaviour. Sometimes the reliability and the legitim...
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... the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil complaint accusing Mr. Rajat Gupta, a Goldman Sachs board member and former McKinsey managing director, of telling Mr. Rajaratnam about a $5 billion investment in Goldman by Warren E. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway at the height of the financial crisis. Mr. Gupta, a revered former partner who had been elected managing director three times in a row, serving at the helm for a decade, was ultimately convicted of criminal charges of leaking boardroom business. Such incidences highlight the importance of having proper ethical rules in consulting and the need to have strict barriers in place to guard against such infractions.
In conclusion ethics form an important part of consulting industry and without a strong core founded on ethical principles a consulting company can’t aim to survive in the market in the long run.
This paper is an analysis of the ethical business decision matrix developed by The George S. May Company (May), a management-consulting firm. The paper will also compare how these guidelines were used by John D. Beckett (Beckett) in his company and how the author’s firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLC (PwC), uses them. The guidelines are meant to be used by employees. These guidelines are specifically a measure of moral and ethical principles tied to business ethics in acceptability of right and wrong behaviour in the workplace.
Ethics policies are implemented in almost all businesses. Companies search for candidates that will be moral in their actions so they can ensure long-term financial success. Throughout history we have seen businesses fall due to unethical behavior. In recent years the business Enron Corporation is best known for the scandal that led to the bankruptcy of a company with more than 60 billion dollars in assets. We will examine the circumstances that led to the downfall of Enron, how the scandal was realized, as well as the outcome of one of the largest bankruptcies in American history; a case that exemplifies unethical professional behavior.
Ferrell, O. C., Fraedrich, J., & Ferrell, L. (2011). Business ethics: Ethical decision making and cases: 2011 custom edition (8th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Ferrell, O.C. "Business Ethics." Ethical Decision Making and Cases. Michele Rhoades, Joanne Dauksewicz. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.
Trevino, L. K., & Nelson, K. A. (2011). Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right. New York: John Wiley.
Trevino, L., & Nelson, K. (2011). Managing business ethics - straight talk about how to
Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making & Case Studies. Cengage Textbook. The “Mission & Vision”. DecisionOne Corporation. Web.
Ethics in business is a highly important concept, as it can affect a company’s profits, salaries paid to employees and CEOs, and public opinion, among many other aspects of a business. Ethics can be enforced by company policies and guidelines, set a precedent when a company is faced with an important decision, and are also evolving thanks to new technology and situations that arise due to technology usage. Businesses have a duty to maintain their ethical responsibilities and also to help their employees enforce these responsibilities in and out of the workplace. However, ethics and the foundation for them are not always black and white. There are many different ethical theories, however Utilitarianism, Kant’s Deontological ethics, and Virtue ethics are three of the most well known theories in existence. Each theory is distinct in that it has a different quality used to determine ethicality and allows for a person to choose which system of ethics works best with both the situation and his or her personal ethical preferences.
Albert Carr argues that business is a game and that business ethics differs from private life ethics that individuals practice. Carr explains that practices such as bluffing and not telling the whole truth are morally acceptable in business context. Carr claims that one cannot apply a single standard of ethics universally as situations differ from one to another. My response to such claim is that I refuse to accept that businesses cannot be strictly ethical.
Nowadays, society is governed by the implications of rules and legal restrictions. All of these rules were created to uphold and maintain the idea of ethical and moral values. Even children growing up were taught by some very important codes of ethics at school. These lessons learned as a youth growing up carry over into adulthood, as an employee or manager. Managers and workers both follow a similar code of ethics within the work place. Today, as a management consultant, I am going to prepare a code of ethics for my clients as they have recently started a restaurant called Knox, it is important to have a code of ethics in every company for their employees and also a circular by explaining the purpose and benefits of a good ethics. And finally, a brief report on the steps of strategic formulation and implementation.
Treviño, L. K., & Nelson, K. A. (2007). Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right Fourth ed., Retrieved on July 30, 2010 from www.ecampus.phoenix.edu
Ethics are the driving force behind good business. Every ethical choice made by a professional can and will have a much different outcome than any unethical choice. Bad ethics can ruin many aspects of a business and as (Gaye-Anderson, 2007) states how quite easily the lives and professional reputation of the employees can even be severally damaged (para. 3). Everything from morale to motivation can be severely affected by poor ethical choices. Customers will take their business elsewhere. Employees will abandon ship. Other, competing businesses reap the benefits of the bad moral choices. Ultimately, the entire business can be brought down by one poor ethical choice.
Recently, three individuals were awarded $170 million for helping investigators gather a record $16.65 billion penalty against Bank of America. Based on their action of inflating the value of mortgage properties and selling defective loans to investors. By influencing the market falsely is unethical and wrong. That is also why their punishment was so harsh. Firms today warn their managers and employees that failing to report unethical behavior and violations by others, could get them fired.
Ethics are moral principles or values that govern the conduct of an individual or a group.It is not a burden to bear, but a prudent and effective guide which furthers life and success. Ethics are important not only in business but in academics and society as well because it is an essential part of the foundation on which a civilized society is built.
In the business world there are many fundamental aspects and situations that can lead to several issues. In order to find an optimal and professional solution, business decision makers need to apply moral and ethical standards. And it is at that moment in which business ethics perform its role. Business ethics, which is in charge of examine how companies and individuals should act in business situations, is very essential in order to reach a common agreement and to work within the laws of business and solve an arisen dilemma. Working of the hand of ethical business companies, employees, investors, directors, and even individual officers can be beneficiated and obtain most favorable outcomes.